Dysphagia Screening Questionnaire : Swallow-10

The Seirei dysphagia screening questionnaire (namely, Seirei dsq) has been used to screen for oropharyngeal dysphagia (OD). Some of the questions in the questionnaire are difficult for people with cognitive decline to answer. We selected 10 items from the Seirei dsq that could be assessed by others, such as care workers (named Swallow-10). This study aims to verify the validity of the scoring method used in Swallow-10. The dataset used in this study was the one used in the development of Seirei dsq : 50 patients with cerebrovascular disease who were diagnosed with OD, 145 patients with cerebrovascular disease who did not have OD, and 170 healthy subjects. Among the answer choices, “A” for severe symptom, “B” for mild symptom and “C” for no symptom were scored with 4, 1 and 0 points respectively. Factor analysis extracted two factors : one related to pharyngeal function and another related to oral function. In addition, the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.84. ROC analysis indicated that optimal cutoff value was 5 points, with a sensitivity of 90.0% and a specificity of 88.5%. These results suggest that Swallow-10 may be useful as an OD screening tool for subjects with cognitive decline

認知症高齢者グループホームにおけるサブ共用空間の計画に関する研究

Residents in the "group homes" for the elderly people with dementia spend a lot of time in the common activity areas. It is well recognized that these common spaces are playing important roles in the group home life. Besides the legally required common areas such as dining rooms and living rooms, some group homes have additional sub-common activity areas. At three group homes in Hokkaido, we have conducted the time study on daily activities of the residents (where and what the residents are doing), employing the behavior observation method as well as the interviews with the care staff. Purpose of this study is to clarify the influences on the life style of the residents coming from the different kinds of physical environments. Based on the findings, we are to establish a basic guideline for the planning of the sub-common spaces in the future group homes. On the survey day, behavior maps were drawn every 10 minutes from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Some of the results obtained from this study are shown below. Unexpectedly, the sub-common spaces were not so well utilized by the residents. Therefore, it is quite difficult to determine if these sub-common spaces are giving influence on the life style of the residents or not. With the better and more active utilization of such sub-common spaces by the group home managements, these spaces could play more important roles for the residents. Due attention should also be paid to the physical environments when such sub-common areas be included in the space planning of the group homes

X-Ray Diffraction Study of CeT2Al10 (T = Ru, Os) at Low Temperatures and under Pressures

We have carried out a powder X-ray diffraction investigation on antiferromagnetic Kondo semiconductorsCeRu2Al10 and CeOs2Al10 at low temperatures and under high pressures as well as the structural investigationon single crystal of these compounds. The results of powder X-ray studies of CeRu2Al10 and CeOs2Al10 indicatethat these compounds do not have structural transition at its antiferromagnetic ordering temperature. The resultsof single crystal structural refinement indicate that the b-axis of this crystal structure is insensitive not only topressure but also to temperature and that the effect of cooling to Ce–Ce distance for CeRu2Al10 is the same asthat for CeOs2Al10

Notch controls the number of intraepithelial TCRαβ+CD8αα+ T cells

Intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) expressing CD8αα on αβ T cells (TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs) have suppressive capabilities in enterocolitis, but the mechanism that maintains homeostasis and cell number is not fully understood. Here, we demonstrated that the number of TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs was severely reduced in mice lacking recombination signal binding protein for immunoglobulin kappa J region (Rbpj) or Notch1 and Notch2 in T cells. Rbpj-deficient TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs expressed low levels of Atp8a2, which encodes a protein with flippase activity that regulates phospholipid asymmetry of plasma membrane such as flipping phosphatidylserine in the inner leaflet of plasma membrane. Rbpj-deficient TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs cannot maintain phosphatidylserine in the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane. Furthermore, depletion of intestinal macrophages restored TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs in Rbpj-deficient mice, suggesting that exposure of phosphatidylserine on the plasma membrane in Rbpj-deficient TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs acts as an “eat-me” signal. Together, these results revealed that Notch–Atp8a2 is a fundamental regulator for IELs and highlighted that membrane phospholipid asymmetry controlled by Notch-mediated flippase expression is a critical determinant in setting or balancing the number of TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs

A new thermo-time domain reflectometry approach to quantify soil ice content at temperatures near the freezing point

Soil ice content (θi) is an important property for many studies associated with cold regions. In situ quantification of θi with thermo-time domain reflectometry (TDR) at temperatures near the freezing point has been difficult. The objective of this study is to propose and test a new thermo-TDR approach to determine θi. First, the liquid water content (θl) of a partially frozen soil is determined from a TDR waveform. Next, a pulse of heat is applied through the thermo-TDR sensor to melt the ice in the partially frozen soil. Then, a second TDR waveform is obtained after melting to determine the θl, which is equivalent to the total water content (θt ) of the partially frozen soil. Finally, θi is calculated as the difference between θt and θl. The performance of the new approach was evaluated in sand and loam soils at a variety of θ t values. The new approach estimated θt , θl, and θi accurately. The root mean square errors (RMSE) of estimation were 0.013, 0.020, and 0.023 m3 m−3 for sand, and 0.041, 0.026, and 0.031 m3 m−3 for loam. These RMSE values are smaller than those reported in earlier thermo-TDR studies. Repeating the thermo-TDR measurements at the same location on the same soil sample caused decreased accuracy of estimated values, because of radial water transfer away from the heater tube of the thermo-TDR sensor. Further research is needed to determine if it is possible to obtain accurate repeated measurements. The use of a dielectric mixing model to convert the soil apparent dielectric constant to θl improved the accuracy of this approach. In our investigation, application of a small heat intensity until the partially frozen soil temperature became larger than about 1°C was favorable. The new method was shown to be suitable for estimating ice contents in soil at temperatures between 0°C and -2°C, and it could be combined with the volumetric heat capacity or thermal conductivity thermo-TDR based methods, which measured ice content at colder temperatures. Thus, the thermo-TDR technique could measure θi at all temperatures

Non-contact imaging of peripheral hemodynamics during cognitive and psychological stressors

Peripheral hemodynamics, measured via the blood volume pulse and vasomotion, provide a valuable way of monitoring physiological state. Camera imaging-based systems can be used to measure these peripheral signals without contact with the body, at distances of multiple meters. While researchers have paid attention to non-contact imaging photoplethysmography, the study of peripheral hemodynamics and the effect of autonomic nervous system activity on these signals has received less attention. Using a method, based on a tissue-like model of the skin, we extract melanin Cm and hemoglobin CHbO concentrations from videos of the hand and face and show that significant decreases in peripheral pulse signal power (by 36% +/- 29%) and vasomotion signal power (by 50% +/- 26%) occur during periods of cognitive and psychological stress. Via three experiments we show that similar results are achieved across different stimuli and regions of skin (face and hand). While changes in peripheral pulse and vasomotion power were significant the changes in pulse rate variability were less consistent across subjects and tasks

Radial Transport Characteristics of Fast Ions Due to Energetic-Particle Modes inside the Last Closed-Flux Surface in the Compact Helical System

The internal behavior of fast ions interacting with magnetohydrodynamic bursts excited by energetic ions has been experimentally investigated in the compact helical system. The resonant convective oscillation of fast ions was identified inside the last closed-flux surface during an energetic-particle mode (EPM) burst. The phase difference between the fast-ion oscillation and the EPM, indicating the coupling strength between them, remains a certain value during the EPM burst and drives an anomalous transport of fast ions

Evaluation of the contribution of tropical cyclone seeds to changes in tropical cyclone frequency due to global warming in high-resolution multi-model ensemble simulations

Previous projections of the frequency of tropical cyclone genesis due to global warming, even in terms of sign of the change, depends on the chosen model simulation. Here, we systematically examine projected changes in tropical cyclones using six global atmospheric models with medium-to-high horizontal resolutions included in the sixth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project/High-Resolution Model Intercomparison Project. Changes in the frequency of tropical cyclone genesis could be broken down into the contributions from (i) the tropical cyclone seed, a depression having a closed contour of sea level pressure with a warm core and (ii) the survival rate, the ratio of the frequency of tropical cyclone genesis to that of tropical cyclone seeds. The multi-model ensemble mean indicates that tropical cyclone genesis frequencies are significantly decreased during the period 1990–2049, which is attributable to changes in tropical cyclone seeds. Analysis of the individual models shows that although most models project a more or less decreasing trend in tropical cyclone genesis frequencies and seeds, the survival rate also contributes to the result in some models. The present study indicates the usefulness of decomposition into the frequency of the tropical cyclone seeds and the survival rate to understand the cause of uncertainty in projected frequencies of tropical cyclone genesis