ニンチショウ ト エイヨウ

Japan has rapidly been becoming an aged society. Most of people are eager to grow older healthily. One of the most important things for aged people is how to prevent risks for dementia. It is well known that hypertention, hyperlipemia and diabetes are risk factors for vasucular dementia. Moreover recently it comes to be clear that diabetes increase the risk not only for vasucular dementia but also for Alzheimer’s disease. Mediterranean diet is well-known to prevent Alzheimer disease. A number of prospective epidemiologic studies have found association between nutrition and dementia. For example, n‐３fatty acid, vitamins and polyphenol may be associated with decrease of the risk for dementia. It may also be useful to prevent metabolic syndrome before aging. It is necessary for all to mind the relationship between diet and dementia

BPSD and care burden

Purpose : We investigated the cognitive function, behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD), and activities of daily living (ADLs) of elderly individuals admitted in care facilities. Moreover, the factors affecting the care burden experienced by facility staffs were examined. Method : 24 care facilities for elderly individuals participated in the study. The Revised Hasegawa Dementia Scale (HDS-R), Japanese version of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), and Crichton Geriatric Behavioral Rating Scale (CGBRS) were used to evaluate cognitive function, BPSD, and ADL, respectively. The short Japanese version of the Zarit Burden Interview was used to assess the care burden. A multiple regression analysis was conducted with data obtained from 464 elderly individuals who fulfilled all the scales. Results : The care burden was correlated to the scores of HDS-R, but not with those of dysphoria/depression and disinhibition of NPI, restlessness of CGBRS, and subjective mood of CGBRS (R2 = 0.309, p < 0.005). Conclusion : Dysphoria/depression, disinhibition, restlessness, and subjective mood, but not cognitive decline, have an effect on the care burden experienced by facility staffs who manage elderly individuals. These results indicated that the appropriate diagnosis and treatment of BPSD are important in reducing the burden of facility staffs

NIRS during cognitive tasks might predict drug response in OCD

Objective: We investigated oxyhemoglobin change in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) who showed different responses to pharmacotherapy during neuropsychological tasks with near-infrared spectroscopy. Subjects and methods: A total of 42 patients with OCD (mean age: 35.6±9.6 years, 14 men, 28 women) and healthy control subjects (mean age: 35.4±9.7 years, 13 men, 29 women) were selected. Patients with OCD were divided into three groups (responders to selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), responders to SSRIs with antipsychotics, and nonresponders to SSRIs and SSRIs with antipsychotics) based on pharmacological response. We investigated oxyhemoglobin change in the PFC of subjects during Stroop tasks and a verbal fluency test with near-infrared spectroscopy. Results: Responders to SSRIs showed smaller activation compared to control subjects during the Stroop incongruent task and verbal fluency test, but not during the Stroop congruent task. In contrast, responders to SSRIs with antipsychotics showed smaller activation compared to control subjects during all three tasks. Conclusion: Our results suggest that activation of the PFC during Stroop tasks might predict responses to pharmacotherapy of patients with OCD

Japanese Stroop tasks for NIRS study

The Stroop task is sometimes used in psychiatric research to elicit prefrontal activity, which presumably reflects cognitive functioning. Although there are two Stroop tasks (Kana script and Kanji script) in Japan, it is unclear whether these tasks elicit the same hemoglobin changes. Moreover, it is unclear whether psychological conditions or characteristics influence hemoglobin changes in the Japanese Stroop task. The aim of this study was to clarify whether hemoglobin changes elicited by the two Japanese Stroop tasks accurately reflected cognitive functioning. Hemoglobin changes were measured with multi-channel near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in 100 healthy Japanese participants performing two Japanese Stroop tasks. The Beck-Depression Inventory (BDI), State-Trait-Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (MOCI) were administered to participants to identify psychological conditions or personality characteristics. Compared with the Kanji task, the Kana task produced a greater Stroop effect and a larger increase in oxyhemoglobin (oxy- Hb) concentration. Moreover there were no significant correlations between oxy-Hb concentration and BDI, STAI-trait, STAI-state, or MOCI scores. Therefore we found that a participant’s psychological conditions or characteristics did not influence the hemodynamic changes during either task. These data suggest the Kana Stroop task is more useful than the Kanji Stroop task for NIRS studies in psychiatric research

Association between BDNF and clinical response in OCD

Aim: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a member of the neurotrophin family, and it promotes the development and function of dopaminergic and serotonergic neurons. The Met allele of the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism is associated with a decrease in activity-dependent secretion of BDNF compared with the Val allele, and a number of studies have provided evidence for the association between this polymorphism and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The purpose of this study was to investigate whether this functional variant of the BDNF gene is associated with OCD and treatment response in patients with OCD in the Japanese population. Methods: We first performed a case–control association study between the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism and OCD (175 cases and 2,027 controls). Then, we examined an association between this polymorphism and treatment response in 96 patients with OCD. Results: We found no significant association between the Met allele and OCD risk or between the Met allele and treatment responses to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or serotonin reuptake inhibitor with an atypical antipsychotic (P>0.05). Conclusion: Our results suggest that the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism may not be associated as a risk factor for developing OCD or with therapeutic response in patients with OCD in the Japanese population

Left Side Electrode of DBS Caused an Acute Mood Swing

No previous reports have described a case in which deep brain stimulation elicited an acute mood swing from a depressive to manic state simply by switching one side of the bilateral deep brain stimulation electrode on and off. The patient was a 68-year-old woman with a 10-year history of Parkinson’s disease. She underwent bilateral subthalamic deep brain stimulation surgery. After undergoing surgery, the patient exhibited hyperthymia. She was scheduled for admission. On the first day of admission, it was clear that resting tremors in the right limbs had relapsed and her hyperthymia had reverted to depression. It was discovered that the left-side electrode of the deep brain stimulation device was found to be accidentally turned off. As soon as the electrode was turned on, motor impairment improved and her mood switched from depression to mania. The authors speculate that the lateral balance of stimulation plays an important role in mood regulation. The current report provides an intriguing insight into possible mechanisms of mood swing in mood disorders

Multi-channel near-infrared spectroscopy reveals reduced prefrontal activation in schizophrenia patients during performance of the kana Stroop task

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the activity of frontal lobe of patients with schizophrenia during performance of two Japanese versions of the Stroop task (kana and kanji) by measuring changes in the concentration of oxygenated hemoglobin (oxyHb) with near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). Fourteen schizophrenia patients and 14 age- and gender-matched healthy control subjects participated in the study after giving consent. The relative changes of concentrations of oxyHb were measured by NIRS during performance of the Stroop task. Significant Stroop effects, as measured by the number of correct responses, were observed with both the kana and the kanji versions. Analysis of NIRS data revealed that the schizophrenia patients showed reduced activation in the prefrontal cortex compared to healthy controls during performance of the kana Stroop task, and that both schizophrenia patients and healthy controls showed lack of activity in the prefrontal cortex during performance of the kanji Stroop task. The results of the present study suggest the possibility that the kana Stroop task cause a greater Stroop effect than the kanji Stroop task, and schizophrenia patients show decreased prefrontal vascular reactivity associated with the inhibition required during the performance of the kana Stroop task

コウイ ショウガイ : ショウレイ ト コウサツ

Conduct disorder is characterized by repeated and continual antisocial behavior by children and adolescents. In this article we report a patient of this disorder who was referred to our hospital for psychiatric evaluation and briefly summarize the present understanding of the cause, treatment and prognosis of this disorder. The cause of conduct disorder consists of three major factors ; biological, environmental and mental factors. Conduct disorder may have a relation to attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD). Children with AD/HD tend to develop oppositional defiant disorder or conduct disorder in adolescents stage and then antisocial personality in adult stage. It is often difficult to improve symptoms of conduct disorder only with psychological treatment. Pharmacological treatment must be considered in some cases to ameliorate impulsiveness and aggression that may have organic origin. Early psychiatric intervention may be helpful in the treatment of conduct disorder

Questionnaire Survey on the Status of Promotion of Gender Equality and Diversity in Research : Current Situation at Tokushima University Based on Comparison with Nationwide Aggregated Results

本調査では，全国ダイバーシティネットワークの幹事機関である大阪大学と，日本学術会議科学者委員会男女共同参画分科会・同アンケート検討小分科会が共同で実施した「大学・研究機関における男女共同参画・ダイバーシティの推進状況調査」のうち「大学・研究機関における男女共同参画の推進状況に対する意見・感想」について，徳島大学回答分（男性60 件，女性21 件）のみ抽出されたデータを用いて，本学における男女共同参画・ダイバーシティ推進に関する研究者の意識調査を実施した。男女別に集計し，公開されている全国集計結果（計10，105 件）と比較検討することで，全国における本学の位置付けについて分析した。 　調査項目は， 1 ．男女共同参画の推進（全般） 2 ．男女共同参画の取り組み　3 ．ワークライフバランス・育児支援サービス　4 ．ダイバーシティ対応　5 ．ハラスメント防止体制　6 ．医学系　の6 項目にわたる。全国と徳島での回答差，また男女間の回答差から，現在の徳島大学の研究者における男女共同参画に対する意識について考察する。In this study, a survey was conducted to examine the attitude of researchers toward the promotion of gender equality and diversity at Tokushima University using the responses of only those from the university (60 male and 21 female), extracted from the survey segment “Opinions and Impressions on the Status of the Promotion of Gender Equality in Universities and Research Institutes.” The “Survey on the Promotion of Gender Equality and Diversity in Universities and Research Institutes” was conducted jointly by Osaka University, which is the secretariat of the National Diversity Network, and the Subcommittee on Gender Equality and the Committee for Scientific Community, the Science Council of Japan. By aggregating by gender and comparing the results with those published nationwide (total: 10,105 cases), this study analyzed the positioning of our university within Japan. The survey items were as follows: 1. promotion of gender equality (overall); 2. efforts for gender equality; 3. work-life balance and childcare support services; 4. support for diversity; 5. system to prevent harassment; and 6. the medical system. The differences in the responses between Japan and Tokushima as well as those between the male and female respondents were used to examine the attitude toward gender equality among current researchers at Tokushima University

PREFRONTAL ACTIVATION DURING EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE AS MEASURED BY NIRS

To investigate brain activation in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during emotional experiences, we examined blood oxygenation changes of healthy female volunteers by using multi-channel Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS). Results directly confirmed that the PFC was activated during emotional tasks suggesting that the levels of oxy-Hb increased significantly larger in negative periods compared with positive or neutral in the bilateral dorsolateral PFC. There is a possibility that this brain area is associated with the regulation of negative emotion. Our results suggest that it may be possible to evaluate emotional changes using NIRS sensitively