Risk factors for osteoporosis in elderly people with a cohort study : Using calcaneus stiffness as an index

We investigated risk factors for decreased calcaneus stiffness as an index of osteoporosis in Japanese elderly perpersons with a cohort study. Calcaneus stiffness was obtained through ultrasonographic heel measurement for 214 subjects (162 women and 52 men) who voluntarily participated in the baseline survey in 2000. Body mass index (BMI), medical history, oral health status, smoking cigarettes, alcoholic drinking, physical activities, and frequency of various foods intake were surveyed at that time. Stiffness was again measured among 93 subjects (70 women and 23 men) of them (43.5%) in the follow-up survey in 2005. Risk factors for decreased stiffness were evaluated using the unconditional logistic regression model adjusted for age and BMI by sex. Tooth loss was not associated with risk of decreased stiffness. From the results of stiffness in 2005 as a dependent variable, less frequent intake of vinegared dishes (OR=3.9, 95%CI: 1.3-11.6) and seaweed (OR=4.5, 95%CI: 1.5-14.2) in females as well as less frequent intake of green or yellow vegetables in males (OR=28.0, 95%CI: 2.5-317.4) were sigsignificantly associated with risk of decreased stiffness. From the results of change in stiffness as a dependent variable, less frequent intake of soybean products except for fermented soybeans (OR=3.2, 95%CI: 1.1-9.1) was significantly associated with risk of decreased stiffness in females. None of the other variables were significantly associated with risk of decreased stiffness. Dietary habits might play a role in calcium enrichment of the systemic bone. Further study is necessary to assess the relationship of dietary habits to risk of osteoporosis

Effectiveness of Influenza vaccines in reducing risk of acute febrile illness among community-dwelling elderly, 2006-07 seasons : Population-based cohort study in Japan

Background: Annual vaccinations are recommended for groups with high-risk medical conditions, as well as the residents of nursing homes. In general, little is known about the vaccine effectiveness of vaccines for Influenza-like illness (ILI) in community-dwelling elderly. Methods: A population based cohort study was conducted during the 2006-2007 (06/07) influenza season to examine the effectiveness of an influenza vaccine among community-dwelling elderly. We selected 1,000 elderly citizens ranging from 65 to 74 years old randomly from a population registry of Sapporo in September 2006. Baseline survey for them was conducted in October or November 2006, and 542 (54.2%) subjects responded with an informed consent. We excluded one person because he passed away before the follow-up survey. Thus, we analyzed 541 subjects. We followed-up the participants concerning acute febrile illnesses, hospitalizations, and so on every prior month from December 2006 to April 2007 though telephone interviews. The Chi-square test and Mann-Whitney U-test were used to compare vaccinated group to non-vaccinated group, and Cox’s hazard model was conducted to control for potential confounding factors. Results: After adjusting for confounders, the vaccination decreased acute fevers higher than or equal to 37.5°C (Hazard ratio (HR) =0.42, 95% confidence interval (CI)=(0.20, 0.90)) from December 2006 to March 2007, but was not associated with the risk of ILI (HR=1.25, 95%CI=(0.29, 5.37)). Conclusion: An influenza vaccination may decrease an acute fever during an influenza epidemic season in community-dwelling elderly

Association between shift work and the risk of death from biliary tract cancer in Japanese men

Background: There is increasing evidence suggesting that shift work involving night work may increase cancer risk. Methods: We examined the association between working rotating shifts and the risk of death from biliary tract cancer among Japanese men who participated in the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study. Of the 46, 395 men recruited, 22, 224 men aged 40-65 at baseline (1988-1990) who reported working full-time or were self-employed were included in the present analysis. The study subjects were followed through December 31, 2009. Information regarding occupation and lifestyle factors was collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95 % confidence interval (CI) for the risk of death from biliary tract cancer in relation to shift work. Results: During a mean 17-year follow-up, we observed 94 biliary tract cancer deaths, including 23 deaths from gallbladder cancer and 71 deaths from extrahepatic bile duct cancer. Overall, shift work was associated with a statistically non-significant increase in the risk of biliary tract cancer, with an HR of 1.50 (95 % CI: 0.81-2.77), among rotating shift workers. When the analysis was limited to extrahepatic bile duct cancer, a significant association appeared, with a multivariable-adjusted HR of 1.93 (95 % CI: 1.00-3.72) for rotating shift workers. Conclusion: Our data indicate that shift work may be associated with increased risk of death from extrahepatic bile duct cancer in this cohort of Japanese men. The association with gallbladder cancer remains unclear because of the small number of deaths

Risk Factors for Kidney Cancer

The incidence of kidney cancer and resulting mortality has been increasing in recent years. Its incidence is highest in Western and Northern Europe and North America, moderate in Japan, and low elsewhere in Asia. Although the incidence of kidney cancer in Japan is lower than in the other developed countries, there is no doubt that there has been an increasing occurrence of this disease recently in Japan, which may be partly due to the adoption of a Western life style.Obesity/overweight is associated with an increased risk of several kinds of cancers, including Kidney cancer. The prevalence of obesity/overweight is lower in Japan compared with in western countries; however, there has been a rapid increase due to the phenomenon of the Japanese adopting Western life styles and dietary habits. This in turn has led to a sharp increase in insulin resistance syndromes such as hypertension, dyslipidemia and diabetes mellitus. Hypertension is a risk factor for kidney cancer as well.Smoking tobacco smoking is also a risk factor for Kidney cancer and although smoking by people under the age of 20 years is prohibited by law in Japan, 36.6% of male high school students and 16.2% of female high school students smoke more than once a month. As adolescent smoking is a public health priority, an anti-smoking education and program to be introduced to school children at an early age is urgently required.As it is possible to intervene in order to reduce the prevalence and degree of obesity and smoking, health education would seem to be crucial tool in the fight against renal cancer. In this paper, we discuss the risk factors for kidney cancer (i.e., renal cell carcinoma) including life styles

The Smoking Experience of Pupils up to and Including Senior High School Age : a Survey of Non-medical University Students in Heilongjiang Prefecture，China．

The present study was conducted to investigate the smoking experiences of pupils in China. Non-medical university students answered a self-administered questionnaire on their own smoking experience from elementary school-onwards. The results revealed that 46 (33.8%) of 136 students up to 3rd grade of junior high school had the experience of smoking. Most students were offered smoking by friends (73.7%). However, 10.5% were offered by siblings and 5.3% by parents. 16.2% of the students were current smokers and 86% thought that smoking was harmful for health. Among 22 current smokers, 14 students (63.6%) continued smoking even through they thought that smoking was harmful for their health. As the smoking habit is difficult to break, an anti-smoking educational program should be promoted from elementary school