Primary production in the Sea of Okhotsk is largely supported by dissolved iron (dFe) transported by the Amur river, indicating the importance of dFe discharge from terrestrial environments. However, ...little is known about the mechanisms of dFe discharge into the Amur river, especially in terms of long-term change in dFe concentration. In the Amur river, extreme increase in dFe concentration was observed between 1995 and 1997, the cause of which remains unclear. As a cause of this iron anomaly, we considered the impact of permafrost degradation. To link the permafrost degradation to long-term variation in dFe concentration, we examined the changes in annual air temperature (Ta), accumulated temperature (AT), and net precipitation for three regions (northeast, south, and northwest) of the basin between 1960 and 2006. Ta and AT were relatively high in one out of every few years, and were especially high during 1988–1990 continuously. Net precipitation in late summer (July to September) has increased since 1977 and has stayed positive until 2006 throughout the basin. Most importantly, we found significant correlations between Ta and late summer dFe concentration with a 7-year lag (
r
= 0.54–0.69,
p
< 0.01), which indicate a close relationship between high Ta in year Y and increased late summer dFe concentration in year Y + 7. This correlation was the strongest in northeastern Amur basin where permafrost coverage is the highest. Similar 7-year lag correlation was also found between AT in the northeastern basin and late summer dFe concentration (
r
= 0.51,
p
< 0.01). Based on our findings, we propose the following hypothesis as a cause of iron anomaly. (1) Increased net precipitation since 1977 has increased soil moisture, which created suitable conditions for microbial dFe generation; (2) permafrost degradation during the warm years of 1988–1990 promoted iron bioavailability and led to the intensive dFe generation in the deeper part of the active layer; and (3) dFe took approximately 7 years to reach the rivers and extremely increased dFe concentration during 1995–1997. This is the first study to suggest the time-lagged impact of permafrost degradation on iron biogeochemistry in the Amur river basin.
This study aimed to determine whether kilohertz-frequency alternating current (KFAC) is superior to low-frequency pulsed current (PC) in increasing muscle-evoked torque and lessening discomfort.
The ...electronic databases PubMed, PEDro, CINAHL, and CENTRAL were searched for related articles, published before August 2017. Furthermore, citation search was performed on the original record using Web of Science.
Randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental studies, and within-subject repeated studies evaluating and comparing KFAC and PC treatments were included. The pooled standardized mean differences (SMDs) of KFAC and PC treatments, with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), were calculated using the random effects model.
In total, 1148 potentially relevant articles were selected, of which 14 articles with within-subject repeated designs (271 participants, mean age: 26.4 years) met the inclusion criteria. KFAC did not significantly increase muscle-evoked torque, compared to PC (pooled SMD: -0.25; 95% CI: -0.53, 0.06; P = 0.120). KFAC had comparable discomfort compared to that experienced using PC (pooled SMD: -0.06; 95% CI: -0.50, 0.38; P = 0.800). These estimates of the effects had a high risk of bias, as assessed using the Downs and Black scale, and were highly heterogeneous studies.
This meta-analysis does not establish that KFAC is superior to PC in increasing muscle-evoked torque and lessening discomfort level. However, no strong conclusion could be drawn because of a high risk of bias and a large amount of heterogeneity. High quality studies comparing the efficacy between PC and KFAC treatments with consideration of potential confounders is warranted to facilitate the development of effective treatment.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Objectives
Chronic low back pain (LBP) is known to cause various disorders compared with acute LBP. However, there was no study evaluating presenteeism due to LBP divided into subcategories by the ...duration of LBP. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the relationship between acute or chronic LBP and presenteeism in hospital nursing staff.
Methods
Overall, 1100 nurses filled in a questionnaire on basic attributes, LBP symptoms, depression symptoms, and work productivity. The subjects were divided into three groups based on the period of LBP and the compared work productivity. Work Limitation Questionnaire Japanese version (WLQ‐J) was used for the assessment of work productivity. The effects of acute and chronic LBP on presenteeism were evaluated through multiple regression analysis models.
Results
In total, 765 subjects, without missing values, were included. The overall prevalence of LBP was 64.6% (acute LBP 47.5%, chronic LBP 17.1%). On multiple regression analysis, acute pain and presenteeism were not associated. Conversely, chronic LBP was associated with time management (adjusted β = −2.3, 95% CI: −4.5 to −1.1), mental‐interpersonal relationship (adjusted β = −2.8, 95% CI: −5.1 to −0.6), and output (adjusted β = −2.7, 95% CI: −5.4 to 0.0) after adjustment for sex and career years. When depression was included in the adjustment factors, chronic LBP and WLQ subscales were not associated.
Conclusions
It became obvious that Chronic LBP in nurses was significantly related to time management, mental‐interpersonal relationship, and output. The importance of preventing a decline in work productivity by taking precautions to prevent chronic LBP and depression was suggested.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The purpose of this 1-year prospective study was to determine whether sarcopenia is an independent risk factor of cognitive deterioration in community-dwelling older adults.
One-year prospective ...study.
Japanese community.
A total of 131 community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years and older participated in this study.
We defined sarcopenia using the diagnostic algorithm recommended by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia, and the participants were classified into the sarcopenia and normal groups according to this definition. The participants' cognitive functions were assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) during pre- and postdata collection (after 1 year).
The rate of change in pre- and post-MMSE scores during the follow-up term was significantly different between the 2 groups (normal group, -0.32 ± 8.39%; sarcopenia group, -5.86 ± 5.16%; P = .002). The analysis of covariance, adjusted for demographic data and the pre-MMSE scores, showed a significant change in the MMSE scores between the normal and sarcopenia group (F = 9.30, P = .003). Furthermore, in the multivariate logistic regression analysis, the cognitive function was significantly more likely to deteriorate (defined as a loss of at least 2 points of MMSE) in the sarcopenia group during the follow-up term (odds ratio: 7.86, 95% confidence interval: 1.53-40.5).
Sarcopenia was identified as an independent risk factor of cognitive deterioration in community-dwelling older adults during the 1-year study period.
ABSTRACTHotta, T, Nishiguchi, S, Fukutani, N, Tashiro, Y, Adachi, D, Morino, S, Shirooka, H, Nozaki, Y, Hirata, H, Yamaguchi, M, and Aoyama, T. Functional movement screen for predicting running ...injuries in 18- to 24-year-old competitive male runners. J Strength Cond Res 29(10)2808–2815, 2015—The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the functional movement screen (FMS) could predict running injuries in competitive runners. Eighty-four competitive male runners (average age = 20.0 ± 1.1 years) participated. Each subject performed the FMS, which consisted of 7 movement tests (each score range0–3, total score range0–21), during the preseason. The incidence of running injuries (time lost because of injury ≤ 4 weeks) was investigated through a follow-up survey during the 6-month season. Mann-Whitney U-tests were used to investigate which movement tests were significantly associated with running injuries. The receiver-operator characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to determine the cutoff. The mean FMS composite score was 14.1 ± 2.3. The ROC analysis determined the cutoff at 14/15 (sensitivity = 0.73, specificity = 0.54), suggesting that the composite score had a low predictability for running injuries. However, the total scores (0–6) from the deep squat (DS) and active straight leg raise (ASLR) tests (DS and ASLR), which were significant with the U-test, had relatively high predictability at the cutoff of 3/4 (sensitivity = 0.73, specificity = 0.74). Furthermore, the multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the DS and ASLR scores of ≤3 significantly influenced the incidence of running injuries after adjusting for subjectsʼ characteristics (odds ratio = 9.7, 95% confidence interval = 2.1–44.4). Thus, the current study identified the DS and ASLR score as a more effective method than the composite score to screen the risk of running injuries in competitive male runners.
Aim
The present study explored the association between comprehensive health literacy and frailty level in community‐dwelling older adults in Japan.
Methods
This was a cross‐sectional study. We ...enrolled 517 community‐dwelling older adults (mean age 73.2 ± 6.3 years; 410 women). We divided the cohort into two groups, non‐frail and any‐frail, based on Fried Frailty Index scores. We assessed comprehensive health literacy using a 14‐item health literacy scale, and classified the participants as having high or low health literacy. We carried out multivariate logistic regression analysis in which the dependent variable was the presence of non‐frailty and the independent variable was the presence of high health literacy. The analysis was adjusted for age, sex, body mass index, educational history and cognitive function.
Results
There were 132 (25.5%) and 385 (74.5%) participants in the non‐frail and any‐frail groups, respectively. The analysis showed that high health literacy was independently associated with the non‐frail group (odds ratio 1.64, 95% confidence interval 1.03–2.61).
Conclusions
The results showed that high health literacy was associated with non‐frailty. This result implies that comprehensive health literacy might play a salient role in maintaining good health status in community‐dwelling older adults in Japan. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 804‐809.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Background
The association between subjective cognitive decline and falls has not been clearly determined.
Aims
Our aim was to explore the effect of subjective cognitive decline on falls in ...community-dwelling older adults with or without objective cognitive decline.
Methods
We included 470 older adults (mean age 73.6 ± 5.2; 329 women) living in the community and obtained data on fall history directly from the participants. Subjective cognitive decline was assessed using a self-administered question. Objective cognitive function was measured using the Mini-Mental State Examination. Statistical analyses were carried out separately for participants with objective cognitive decline and those without.
Results
A multiple logistic regression analysis showed that, among participants without objective cognitive decline, subjective cognitive decline was positively associated with falls OR 1.91; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.17–3.12;
p
= 0.01). Conversely, among participants with objective cognitive decline, subjective cognitive decline was negatively associated with falls (OR 0.07; 95% CI 0.01–0.85,
p
= 0.04).
Discussion
The result suggests that the objective–subjective disparity may affect falls in community-dwelling older adults.
Conclusions
The presence of subjective cognitive decline was significantly positively associated with falls among cognitively intact older adults. However, among their cognitively impaired peers, the absence of subjective cognitive decline was positively associated with falls.
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EMUNI, FZAB, GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Dissolved iron (dFe) in boreal rivers may play an important role in primary production in high-latitude oceans. However, iron behavior in soils and dFe discharge mechanism from soil to the rivers are ...poorly understood. To better understand iron dynamics on the watershed scale, we observed the seasonal changes in dFe and Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) concentrations in the river as well as dFe concentration in soil pore waters in permafrost watershed from May to October. During snowmelt season, high dFe production (1.38–4.70 mg L−1) was observed in surface soil pore waters. Correspondingly, riverine dFe and DOC concentrations increased to 1.10 mg L−1 and 32.3 mg L−1, and both were the highest in the year. After spring floods, riverine dFe and DOC concentrations decreased to 0.15 mg L−1 and 7.62 mg L−1, and dFe concentration in surface soil pore waters also decreased to 0.20–1.28 mg L−1. In late July, riverine dFe and DOC concentrations increased to 0.33 mg L−1 and 23.6 mg L−1 in response to heavy rainfall. In August and September, considerable increases in dFe concentrations (2.00–6.90 mg L−1) were observed in subsurface soil pore waters, probably because infiltrated rainwater developed reducing conditions. This dFe production was confirmed widely in permafrost wetlands in valley areas. Overall, permafrost wetlands in valley areas are hotspots of dFe production and greatly contribute to dFe and DOC discharge to rivers, especially during snowmelt and rainy seasons.
Frailty in older adults is a serious problem because of various adverse health outcomes in many countries with aging populations, such as Japan. The purpose of this study was to determine whether ...frailty and pre-frailty are associated with cognitive decline and sarcopenia in community-dwelling older adults.
This is a cross-sectional study.
Japan.
The participants were 273 Japanese community-dwelling older women aged 65 years and older.
We used the frailty criteria developed by the Cardiovascular Health Study to define physical frailty. We divided the cohort into nonfrail, prefrail, and frail according to frailty scores. Cognitive decline and memory decline were defined by using the Mini-Mental State Examination and Scenery Picture Memory Test, respectively. Sarcopenia was defined according to the diagnostic algorithm recommended by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia.
In the multivariate logistic regression analysis by using non-frail participants as the reference, pre-frail elderly individuals were significantly more likely to have sarcopenia than non-frail elderly individuals odds ratio (OR): 2.77, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.05-9.26, but not cognitive decline or memory decline. Frail elderly individuals were significantly more likely to have cognitive decline (OR: 5.76, 95% CI: 1.20-27.6), memory decline (OR: 5.53, 95% CI: 1.64-18.7) and sarcopenia (OR: 19.1, 95% CI: 3.73-98.0) than non-frail elderly individuals.
Sarcopenia was associated with pre-frailty and frailty, whereas cognitive decline was associated only with frailty.
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