The rates of preterm birth among mothers aged in their 20s and early 30s increased between 1979 and 2014, which contributed to the secular increase in rates of preterm birth at < 37 weeks.
BackgroundAmbient temperature affects mortality in susceptible populations, but regional differences in this association remain unclear in Japan. We conducted a time-series study to examine the variation in the effects of ambient temperature on daily mortality across Japan.MethodsA total of 731 558 all-age non-accidental deaths in 6 cities during 2002–2007 were analyzed. The association between daily mortality and ambient temperature was examined using distributed lag nonlinear models with Poisson distribution. City-specific estimates were combined using random-effects meta-analysis. Bivariate random-effects meta-regressions were used to examine the moderating effect of city characteristics.ResultsThe effect of heat generally persisted for 1 to 2 days. In warmer communities, the effect of cold weather lasted for approximately 1 week. The combined increases in mortality risk due to heat (99th vs 90th percentile of city-specific temperature) and cold (first vs 10th percentile) were 2.21% (95% CI, 1.38%–3.04%) and 3.47% (1.75%–5.21%), respectively. City-specific effects based on absolute temperature changes were more heterogeneous than estimates based on relative changes, which suggests some degree of acclimatization. Northern populations with a cool climate appeared acclimatized to low temperature but were still vulnerable to extreme cold weather. Population density, average income, cost of property rental, and number of nurses appeared to influence variation in heat effect across cities.ConclusionsWe noted clear regional variation in temperature-related increases in mortality risk, which should be considered when planning preventive measures.
Objective Injury is the leading cause of death among children and adolescents in Japan. Despite this, until now there has been comparatively little research on this phenomenon. The purpose of this study was to examine if there was seasonal variation in child and adolescent injury mortality in Japan in 2000-2010. Methods Vital statistics injury mortality data were obtained from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan. The seasonality of the major causes of unintentional injury (transport accidents, drowning and suffocation) and intentional injury (suicide and homicide) mortality was examined for children and adolescents aged 0-19. Incidence ratios (IR) with 95 % confidence intervals (CI) were calculated to determine the difference between the numbers of observed and expected seasonal deaths. Results The annual average injury mortality rate among children and adolescents was 9.0 per 100,000. Deaths from transport accidents, drowning, suffocation and suicide had a significant seasonality. There was a summer peak for transport accidents (IR 1.15, 95 % CI 1.10-1.19) and drowning (IR 2.00, 95 % CI 1.88-2.11), a spring peak for suicide (IR 1.09, 95 % CI 1.04-1.14), while the incidence of suffocation was higher in winter (IR 1.12, 95 % CI 1.03-1.21). Conclusion Child and adolescent injury mortality from transport accidents, drowning, suffocation and suicide has a pronounced seasonality in Japan. More research is now needed to find the circumstances underpinning different forms of injury mortality in different periods of the year so that effective interventions can be designed and implemented to reduce the burden of injury mortality among Japanese children.
STH infection was associated with individual hygiene behavior, but not with nutritional status or socio-demographic characteristics. Health policy focusing on changing individual hygiene behaviors might be useful in addressing STH infection in Nepal.
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