Background Because of the increased number of diagnosed cases of endometriosis or adenomyosis resulting in infertility, many women require assisted reproductive technology (ART) to become pregnant. However, incidences of obstetric complications are increased for women who conceive using ART. There has been no prospective cohort study examining the influence of endometriosis and adenomyosis on obstetric outcomes after adjusting for the confounding influence of ART therapy. Objective This study evaluated the impact of endometriosis and adenomyosis on the incidence of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Study design Data were obtained from a prospective cohort study, known as the Japan Environment and Children’s Study (JECS), of the incidence of obstetric complications for women with endometriosis and adenomyosis. The data of 103,099 pregnancies that resulted in live birth or stillbirth or that were terminated through abortion between February 2011 and July 2014 in Japan were included. Results Women with endometriosis or adenomyosis were at increased risk for complications during pregnancy compared to those without a medical history of endometriosis (odds ratio [OR], 1.32; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.23 to 1.41) or adenomyosis (OR, 1.72; 95% CI, 1.37 to 2.16). Our analysis showed that the adjusted ORs for obstetric complications of pregnant women who conceived naturally or after infertility treatment that did not involve ART therapy were 1.26 (CI, 1.17 to 1.35) for pregnant women with a history of endometriosis and 1.52 (CI, 1.19 to 1.94) for those with a history of adenomyosis. Conclusions The presence of endometriosis and adenomyosis significantly increased the prevalence of obstetric complications after adjusting for the influence of ART outcomes.

BackgroundRecently, the association of plasma free amino acid (PFAA) profile and lifestyle-related diseases has been reported. However, few studies have been reported in large Asian populations, about the usefulness of PFAAs for evaluating disease risks. We examined the ability of PFAA profiles to evaluate lifestyle-related diseases in so far the largest Asian population.MethodsWe examined plasma concentrations of 19 amino acids in 8589 Japanese subjects, and determined the association with variables associated with obesity, blood glucose, lipid, and blood pressure. We also evaluated the PFAA indexes that reflect visceral fat obesity and insulin resistance. The contribution of single PFAA level and relevant PFAA indexes was also examined in the risk assessment of lifestyle-related diseases.ResultsOf the 19 amino acids, branched-chain amino acids and aromatic amino acids showed association with obesity and lipid variables. The PFAA index related to visceral fat obesity showed relatively higher correlation with variables than that of any PFAA. In the evaluation of lifestyle-related disease risks, the odds ratios of the PFAA index related to visceral fat obesity or insulin resistance with the diseases were higher than most of those of individual amino acid levels even after adjusting for potential confounding factors. The association pattern of the indexes and PFAA with each lifestyle-related disease was distinct.ConclusionsWe confirmed the usefulness of PFAA profiles and indexes as markers for evaluating the risks of lifestyle-related diseases, including diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, dyslipidemia, and hypertension in a large Asian population.

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16Groundwater nitrate contamination in agricultural areas is a common problem in many parts of 17 the world. The important agricultural district Shimabara in Nagasaki, Japan, is also

BackgroundStudies on the association of plasma-free amino acids with gout are very limited and produced conflicting results. Therefore, we sought to explore and characterize the plasma-free amino acid (PFAA) profile in patients with gout and evaluate its association with the latter.MethodsData from a total of 819 subjects (including 34 patients with gout) undergoing an annual health examination program in Shimane, Japan were considered for this study. Venous blood samples were collected from the subjects and concentrations of 19 plasma amino acids were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–mass spectrometry. Student’s t-test was applied for comparison of variables between patient and control groups. The relationships between the presence or absence of gout and individual amino acids were investigated by logistic regression analysis controlling for the effects of potential demographic confounders.ResultsAmong 19 amino acids, the levels of 10 amino acids (alanine, glycine, isoleucine, leucine, methionine, phenylalanine, proline, serine, tryptophan, valine) differed significantly (P < .001 to .05) between the patient and control groups. Univariate logistic regression analysis revealed that plasma levels of alanine, isoleucine, leucine, phenylalanine, tryptophan and valine had significant positive associations (P < .005 to .05) whereas glycine and serine had significant inverse association (P < .05) with gout.ConclusionsThe observed significant changes in PFAA profiles may have important implications for improving our understanding of pathophysiology, diagnosis and prevention of gout. The findings of this study need further confirmation in future large-scale studies involving a larger number of patients with gout.