Association between periodontal condition and kidney dysfunction in Japanese adults : A cross‐sectional study

Recent studies have demonstrated that chronic kidney disease (CKD) may be associated with the progression of periodontal disease. Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a major risk factor for CKD. The objective of this study was to clarify the relationship between periodontal condition and kidney dysfunction in patients who had kidney failure with or without DM. One hundred sixty‐four patients with kidney dysfunction were enrolled (male: N = 105; female: N = 59), and the relationship between periodontal condition and kidney dysfunction was analyzed in a cross‐sectional study. The subjects were divided into three groups: (a) patients with DM, (b) dialysis patients with nephropathy due to various kidney diseases, and (c) dialysis patient with nephropathy due to DM (diabetic nephropathy). Then, the effect of DM on the periodontal condition was analyzed. The patients were also stratified by CKD stage (into G1–G5) using the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), and the G5 group was divided in patients with or without DM. Correlations between eGFR and parameters of periodontal condition were calculated in patients from G1 to G4. The number of missing teeth was significantly higher in dialysis patients with diabetic nephropathy than in patients with DM, whereas alveolar bone loss did not show a significant difference among the three groups. In addition, the G5 patients with DM had a significantly higher number of missing teeth than the other CKD groups, whereas alveolar bone loss did not show a significant difference. In G5 patients with DM, Community Periodontal Index and Oral Hygiene Index scores were significantly higher than in G1‐4 patients with DM. There was a significant negative correlation between eGFR and the number of missing teeth. Patients with diabetic nephropathy have a higher rate of periodontal problems such as missing teeth in Japanese adults

The Organization System for Educational Improvement in Universities: Changes and problems over the past 12 years

The main purpose of this research is to: 1) clarify the national context and the role of organizations in supporting educational reform in universities; 2) reveal the present conditions and challenges of educational improvement activities, including faculty development (FD) and staff development (SD); 3) chart the establishment and role of "the platform" as a new trend, according to the questionnaire survey that followed the framework of research carried out in 2005 by the National Institute for Educational Policy Research; and 4) report figures regarding the tide of recent university education reform—e.g., university education centers—with reference to interviews with the vice-presidents of three universities. The study found that, by virtue of the complicated and multi-dimensional nature of the issue of university education reform, university education centers are installed as a correspondence device in response to multi-dimensional problems. As a result, centers were often reorganized and re-named according to each new problem that universities face, reflecting changes in policy and a change of the university environment.はじめに : 調査の背景、目的・方法と意義、今後の展望… 川島 啓二 1 第1章 教育改善のための大学教育センター等の役割… 姉川 恭子 7 第2章 大学教育センターにおけるFD/SD 活動… 天野 智水 31 第3章 大学教育センターの設置計画… 西野 毅朗 39 第4章 大学教育機構等の設置状況と今後の課題… 田中 正弘、川越 明日香、長 創一朗、江幡 知佳、高野 雅暉、中原 理沙、野村 祐介 45 第5章 大学教育改革のための組織的課題… 大膳 司 55 第6章 大学教育担当副学長へのインタビュー… 西野 毅朗 65 まとめ : 混迷の中の大学教育センター等… 川島 啓二 73 調査票と単純集計結果… 大膳 司 7

Long-Term Survival in a Case of Pleomorphic Carcinoma with a Brain Metastasis

Pleomorphic carcinoma (PC) is a rare malignant lung tumor with a poorer prognosis compared to other histological types of non-small cell lung cancer. However, several recent immunohistochemical studies revealed that a low MIB-1 index is a good prognostic marker in patients with PC. We report the case of a patient with PC and a single brain metastasis that achieved long-term recurrence-free survival following treatment with combined modality therapy. In this case, the MIB-1 index was reduced by gemcitabine-based chemotherapy, which may have led to long-term disease-free survival. The MIB-1 index may be a useful biomarker for the response to chemotherapy

Factors affecting eye drop instillation in glaucoma patients with visual field defect.

To investigate the success rate of eye drop instillation in glaucoma patients with visual field defect as well as non-glaucoma volunteers. Factors that may affect the success rate of eye drop instillation were also evaluated.A prospective, observational study.Seventy-eight glaucoma patients and 85 non-glaucoma volunteers were recruited in this study.Open angle glaucoma patients with visual field defect as well as non-glaucoma volunteers were asked to video record their procedures of eye drop instillation using a 5-mL plastic bottle of artificial tear solution. Success of eye drop instillation was judged on video based on the first one drop of solution successfully applied on the cornea, by two investigators.Success rate of eye drop instillation in glaucoma patients and non-glaucoma volunteers. Factors related to success rate of eye drop instillation, such as visual field defect and clinical characteristics, were also analyzed using multivariable logistic regression.No significant deference in mean age was observed between two groups (glaucoma: 64.5 ± 14.4 years, non-glaucoma: 60.9 ± 14.1 years, P = 0.1156). Success rate of eye drop instillation was significantly lower (P = 0.0215) in glaucoma patients (30/78; 38.5%) than in non-glaucoma volunteers (48/85; 56.5%). The most frequent reason of instillation failure in glaucoma patients was touching the bulbar conjunctiva, cornea, eyelid or eyelashes with the tip of the bottle (29.5%). Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified lower corrected visual acuity (VA) (≤ 1.0; odds ratio [OR] = 0.20, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.04-0.93, P = 0.0411), lower mean deviation (MD) (< -12 dB; OR = 0.20, 95% CI 0.05-0.86, P = 0.0307) and visual field defect (VFD) in the inferior hemifield (OR = 0.11, 95% CI 0.02-0.34, P < 0.001) to be significantly related to instillation failure in glaucoma patients.Success rate of eye drop instillation was significantly lower in glaucoma patients than in non-glaucoma volunteers. Corrected VA ≤ 1.0, MD < -12 dB and/or VFD in the inferior hemifield may be related to failure of eye drop instillation