Niigata University of Health and Welfare

About: Niigata University of Health and Welfare is a education organization based out in Niigata, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Medicine & Isometric exercise. The organization has 523 authors who have published 996 publications receiving 10316 citations.

Morphological features of the fibula in Jomon hunter-gatherers from the shell mounds of the Pacific coastal area

Abstract: Objective The Jomon, one of the ancestral populations of modern Japanese, were hunter-gatherers inhabiting the Japanese archipelago from 11,000 to 300 BC. We evaluated changes in the diaphyseal morphology of the fibula from the middle to the final phase of the Jomon period, compared to the morphology of other historical and modern populations from the Japanese archipelago, to elucidate temporal changes in habitual activities and possible division of labor among males and females. Material and Method Jomon specimens of 107 males and 97 females were obtained from the shell mounds of the Pacific coastal area of East Japan, distinguishing between middle (3,000–2,000 BC) and late-final (2,000–300 BC) phases of the Jomon period. Mid-shaft morphology of the fibula and tibia were compared to morphological measurements of specimens from Yayoi (37 males, 28 females), medieval (56 males, 56 females), early modern (51 males, 50 females), and modern (125 males, 68 females) periods. Result Largest values of fibular areas and relative fibular-to-tibial areas were identified in males from the late-final Jomon phase, compared to the middle Jomon phase and after the Yayoi period. These period-specific differences in fibular area were smaller in females, with the largest between-sex difference identified in the late-final Jomon phase. Discussion Results confirm a change in the habitual activity pattern of males in the late-final phase. Males of the late-final Jomon phase likely did more long-distance traveling to the inland/mountainous region, as part of an ecological change that occurred during the middle to the late-final Jomon phase. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Low calcium intake is associated with increased bone resorption in postmenopausal Japanese women: Yokogoshi Study.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE Low Ca intake is common among Japanese women, but its effect on bone metabolism has not been fully elucidated. The aim of the present study was to determine the relationship between Ca intake and serum markers of bone turnover in postmenopausal Japanese women. DESIGN A cross-sectional study. SETTING A community setting. SUBJECTS Subjects were 595 home-dwelling postmenopausal Japanese women. Ca intake was assessed by a validated FFQ. Serum type I collagen cross-linked N-telopeptides (NTX) and osteocalcin were measured as markers of bone turnover. The relationships between demographic characteristics, lifestyles, serum Ca, vitamin D and intact serum parathyroid hormone and bone turnover were also assessed. RESULTS The average age of the subjects was 64.5 (sd 5.8) years and the mean Ca intake was 527 (sd 160) mg/d. Ca intake was significantly associated with serum NTX (P = 0.0104), but not with serum osteocalcin. Mean serum NTX concentration in the lowest quartile of Ca intake (<417 mg/d) was significantly higher than in the fourth, referent quartile. Among these Japanese postmenopausal women, very low Ca intake (less than approximately 400 mg/d) was associated with increased bone resorption but not bone formation. CONCLUSIONS Increased bone resorption may be one mechanism by which this Ca-depleted population normalizes bone metabolism and prevents osteoporosis.

Analysis of head movements coupled with trunk drift in healthy subjects.

Abstract: Accelerometers were used to measure sequential head tilt and trunk drift in 14 healthy young subjects while they performed three kinds of head task. First, maximum inclination angles in anterior, posterior, right and left directions were measured to estimate cervical ranges of motion for flexion-extension and lateral bending. The inclination angles measured (61.2° on average for flexion, 51.7° for extension, 42.7° for right bending and 43.9° for left bending) were consistent with previous findings. Secondly, cross-correlation analysis was applied to evaluate the degree of functional coupling between the head and trunk during flexion-extension and lateral bending. Significantly higher correlation coefficients were found between head tilt and trunk drift when these movements were in the same (iso-) directional condition than in a different (allo-) directional condition. The coupled trunk drift in flexion-extension for the iso-directional condition (10.3° on average) was much larger than for the allodirectional condition (2.3°). Finally, head turning was recorded as oval traces in a biaxial plane. In both clockwise and counter-clockwise head turning conditions, the maximum inclination angles of the traces were larger in the anterior-posterior direction (59.8° anterior and 58.2° posterior, in the clockwise condition, and 47.4° and 47.4° in the counter-clockwise condition) than in the right-left direction (36.3° right and 39.0° left, in the clockwise condition, and 40.5° and 36.7° in the counter-clockwise condition), and the angles in the four directions were almost equal to flexion-extension and lateral bending. The characteristics of the traces recorded and a possible application of the present recording system are discussed.

Low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D increases cognitive impairment in elderly people.

Abstract: It has been reported that many elderly people have low serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] and that serum 25(OH)D levels may have a relationship with cognitive function. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between serum 25(OH)D levels and cognitive function in a Japanese population. This cross-sectional study was performed as a part of the Project in Sado for Total Health (PROST). The PROST study evaluated cognitive state and serum vitamin D level from June 2011 to November 2013 for 740 patients (431 men and 309 women). The Mini-Mental State Examination-Japanese version (MMSE-J) and serum 25(OH)D level measurements were used as assessment tools. Cognitive impairment was defined using MMSE-J ≤ 23 as a cutoff. Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) for low MMSE-J scores. The average subject age was 68.1 years, the average MMSE- J score was 25.9, and the average 25(OH)D level was 24.6 ng/mL. Significant ORs for cognitive impairment were observed for both high age and low serum 25(OH)D. The adjusted OR for the lowest versus highest serum 25(OH)D quartiles was 2.70 (95% confidence interval 1.38–5.28, P = 0.0110). Low serum 25(OH)D levels were independently associated with a higher prevalence of cognitive impairment.

Coordination among the rearfoot, midfoot, and forefoot during walking.

Abstract: Examining coordination between segments is essential for prevention and treatment of injuries However, traditional methods such as ratio, cross-correlation technique, and angle-time plot may not provide a complete understanding of intersegmental coordination The present study aimed to quantify the coordination among the rearfoot, midfoot, and forefoot segments during walking Twenty healthy young men walked barefoot on a treadmill Reflective markers were fixed to their right shank and foot based on the Leardini foot model Three-dimensional joint angles were calculated at the distal segment, and were expressed relative to the adjacent proximal segment The coupling angle representing intersegmental coordination was calculated by using the modified vector coding technique, and categorized into the following four coordination patterns: in-phase with proximal dominancy, in-phase with distal dominancy, tanti-phase with proximal dominancy, and anti-phase with distal dominancy The results showed that the midfoot was dominantly everted compared with the rearfoot and forefoot during the early stance (ie, the rearfoot-midfoot coordination and midfoot-forefoot coordination were mainly in-phase with distal and proximal dominancy, respectively) This result may suggest that the midfoot plays a more significant role than the rearfoot and forefoot during early stance The results of the present study can help in understanding the interaction of the intersegmental foot kinematic time series during walking The results could be used as data to distinguish the presence of injuries or abnormal inter-segmental foot motions such as pes planus Additionally, these data might be used in the future in a comparison with data on foot deformities