Catalogue Search | MBRL
Are you sure you want to remove the book from the shelf?
{{itemTitle}}
261
result(s) for
"Shohei Sato"
Sort by:
Britain and the formation of the Gulf States : embers of empire
This book is about the end of the British Empire in the Middle East. It offers new insight into the relationship that was nurtured between Britain and the Gulf rulers at the height of the empire and how this has influenced the structure of international society today. Over the last four decades the Persian Gulf region has gone through oil shocks, wars and political changes but the basic entities of the southern Gulf States have largely remained in place. Historically, nine separate states had stood in parallel to each other under British influence. At various points, plans were discussed to amalgamate the nine into one, two, three or even four separate entities. The eventual emergence of the smaller but prosperous members such as Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates was not at all evident until 1971. How did such a resilient system arise, given such seemingly contested societies? Drawing on extensive multi-archival research in the British, American and Gulf archives, Britain and the formation of the Gulf States considers the factors that drove the formation of these three new states we see today. It illuminates a series of negotiations between British diplomats and the Gulf rulers that inadvertently led these states to take their current shapes and addresses the crucial issue of self-determination versus 'better together'. This book will be of interest not only to students and scholars of the British Empire or the Middle East but also to those with a broader interest in the transformation of the modern world. -- Amazon.com.
Book
Noninvasive Early Detection of Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome of COVID-19 Inpatients Using a Piezoelectric Respiratory Rates Sensor
In 2020, 20% of patients with COVID-19 developed severe complications, including life-threatening pneumonia with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). We developed a preliminary SIRS monitor that does not require blood sampling, is noninvasive, and can collect data 24 h per day. The proposed monitor comprises a piezoelectric respiratory sensor located beneath the patient’s mattress and a fingertip pulse sensor that determines ultra-high accuracy respiratory rate (mode of a 40-min frequency distribution of respiratory rates (M40FD-RR)). We assessed the clinical performance of the M40FD-RR preliminary SIRS monitor in 29 patients (12 female, 17 male, aged 15–90 years) hospitalized at Suwa Central Hospital with COVID-19, which was confirmed by a positive polymerase chain reaction test. SIRS was evaluated by logistic regression analysis using M40FD-RR, heart rate, age, and sex as explanatory variables. We compared the results of 109 examinations of 29 COVID-19 inpatients with SIRS against those determined by the proposed monitor. The proposed monitor achieved 75% sensitivity and 83% negative predictive value, making it a promising candidate for future 24 h noninvasive preliminary SIRS tests.
Journal Article
A Thermopile Sensor Revealed That the Average Peripheral Wrist Skin Temperature of Patients with Major Depressive Disorder at 09:00 Is 2.9 °C Lower than That of Healthy People
Many patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) feel worse in the morning than in the evening. To clarify the differences in morning physiological characteristics between patients with MDD and healthy participants, a wearable device that measures peripheral wrist skin temperature and heart rate (HR) was adopted. The device incorporates a thermopile sensor to measure peripheral wrist skin temperature using infrared radiation emitted from the skin surface. In total, 30 patients diagnosed with MDD and 24 healthy individuals were recruited. From 00:00 to 12:00, participants wore a wrist-worn device on their non-dominant hand. It was discovered that, at 09:00, the average peripheral wrist skin temperature of patients with MDD was significantly lower (by 0.1% [2.9 °C]) than that of healthy individuals. The dramatic decrease in morning (09:00) peripheral wrist skin temperature in patients with MDD can be attributed to their morning sympathetic surge and peripheral vascular contraction. The average HR of patients with MDD was significantly higher (by 1% [17 beats/min]) than that of healthy controls. Regression analysis, including peripheral wrist skin temperature and HR at 09:00, showed 83.3% sensitivity and a negative predictive value of 76.2%. The potential impact of these results appears promising for future preliminary morning MDD screening.
Journal Article
Screening for Major Depressive Disorder Using a Wearable Ultra-Short-Term HRV Monitor and Signal Quality Indices
To encourage potential major depressive disorder (MDD) patients to attend diagnostic sessions, we developed a novel MDD screening system based on sleep-induced autonomic nervous responses. The proposed method only requires a wristwatch device to be worn for 24 h. We evaluated heart rate variability (HRV) via wrist photoplethysmography (PPG). However, previous studies have indicated that HRV measurements obtained using wearable devices are susceptible to motion artifacts. We propose a novel method to improve screening accuracy by removing unreliable HRV data (identified on the basis of signal quality indices (SQIs) obtained by PPG sensors). The proposed algorithm enables real-time calculation of signal quality indices in the frequency domain (SQI-FD). A clinical study conducted at Maynds Tower Mental Clinic enrolled 40 MDD patients (mean age, 37.5 ± 8.8 years) diagnosed on the basis of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, and 29 healthy volunteers (mean age, 31.9 ± 13.0 years). Acceleration data were used to identify sleep states, and a linear classification model was trained and tested using HRV and pulse rate data. Ten-fold cross-validation showed a sensitivity of 87.3% (80.3% without SQI-FD data) and specificity of 84.0% (73.3% without SQI-FD data). Thus, SQI-FD drastically improved sensitivity and specificity.
Journal Article
Effects of Zinc Acetate Hydrate Supplementation on Renal Anemia with Hypozincemia in Hemodialysis Patients
Introduction and Aims: This study examined whether zinc supplementation with zinc acetate hydrate improved renal anemia with hypozincemia in patients undergoing hemodialysis. Methods: The study participants included 21 patients undergoing hemodialysis who presented with a serum zinc level < 60 mg/dL and who were administered zinc acetate hydrate at 50 mg (reduced to 25 mg, as appropriate) for 6 months. Patients with a hemorrhagic lesion, acute-phase disease (pneumonia or cardiac failure), or hematologic disease and those whose treatment was switched from peritoneal dialysis to hemodialysis were excluded. The changes in the erythropoietin resistance index (ERI) before and after zinc acetate hydrate administration were examined. ERI was defined as the dose (IU) of erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA)/week/body weight (kg)/hemoglobin content (g/dL). The differences between the two groups were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed rank sum test, and p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The study participants included 19 men and 2 women aged 41–95 years (mean ± standard deviation (SD): 67.1 ± 13.6). The changes in the values of parameters measured before and after zinc acetate hydrate administration were as follows: Blood Hb did not change significantly, from 10.0–13.6 g/dL (11.5 ± 1.0 g/dL) to 10.2–12.4 g/dL (11.4 ± 0.7 g/dL); serum zinc concentration significantly increased, from 33.0–59.0 mg/dL μg/dL (52.4 ± 7.6 mg/dL μg/dL) to 57.0–124.0 mg/dL μg/dL (84.1 ± 16.3 mg/dL μg/dL; p < 0.01); the ESA dose significantly decreased, from 0–12,000 IU/week (5630 ± 3351 IU/week) to 0–9000 IU/week (4428 ± 2779; p = 0.04); and ERI significantly decreased, from 0.0–18.2 (8.1 ± 5.1) to 0.0–16.0 (6.3 ± 4.3; p = 0.04). Conclusions: Zinc supplementation increased the serum zinc concentration and significantly reduced the ESA dose and ERI, suggesting that a correction of hypozincemia contributes to lessening renal anemia in these patients.
Journal Article
Thoracic Motion Analysis Using a TrueDepth Camera in Patients with Relapsing Polychondritis: A Pilot Study
Background/Objectives: Relapsing polychondritis (RP) is a rare autoimmune disorder marked by recurrent inflammation of cartilaginous tissues, including the airways. Airway involvement, such as subglottic stenosis and airway malacia, significantly impacts prognosis. Although spirometry is the standard for evaluating respiratory function, it may be unfeasible in patients with severe airway narrowing or tracheostomy. This study evaluated the potential of a smartphone-based application, DepthRecorder, which uses the iPhone’s TrueDepth camera to analyze thoracic motion in real time. Methods: Twelve patients with RP were enrolled. All underwent simultaneous respiratory assessment using spirometry and the DepthRecorder application. Thoracic motion data were corrected for height using previously validated regression formulas. Correlation between DepthRecorder and spirometry values was analyzed using Spearman’s rank correlation for forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), and the FEV1/FVC ratio. Results: Mean age was 53.8 ± 13.3 years, with equal numbers of males and females. Before correction, DepthRecorder showed moderate correlations for FEV1 (ρ = 0.48, p = 0.003) and FEV1/FVC (%) (ρ = 0.57, p < 0.001). After correction, stronger correlations were observed for FVC (ρ = 0.76, p < 0.001), FEV1 (ρ = 0.72, p < 0.001), and FEV1/FVC (%) (ρ = 0.60, p < 0.001). Conclusions: The DepthRecorder application demonstrated strong correlations with spirometry following height-based correction. This method may offer a practical, non-invasive tool for respiratory assessment in RP patients who cannot undergo conventional lung function testing. Further studies are needed to validate these findings and establish clinical reference standards.
Journal Article
The sportification of judo: global convergence and evolution
This article re-examines our understanding of modern sport. Today, various physical cultures across the world are practised under the name of sport. Almost all of these sports originated in the West and expanded to the rest of the world. However, the history of judo confounds the diffusionist model. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, a Japanese educationalist amalgamated different martial arts and established judo not as a sport but as ‘a way of life’. Today it is practised globally as an Olympic sport. Focusing on the changes in its rules during this period, this article demonstrates that the globalization of judo was accompanied by a constant evolution of its character. The overall ‘sportification’ of judo took place not as a diffusion but as a convergence – a point that is pertinent to the understanding of the global sportification of physical cultures, and also the standardization of cultures in modern times.
Journal Article
A Survey on the Awareness of Epilepsy Treatments in Community Pharmacies
For effective epileptic seizure management, pharmacies need to provide physicians with information regarding drug-drug interactions, drugs that lower seizure thresholds, and switching to generic drugs. The aim of the study was to clarify the actual situation of information provision from pharmacies to physicians and investigate awareness of epilepsy treatment in community pharmacies.
A survey targeting all pharmacies (1,512 pharmacies) belonging to the Hiroshima Prefectural Pharmacists Association was conducted from October 7, 2023, to November 30, 2023. The survey investigated the dispensing status of antiseizure medication (ASM) prescriptions and the feedback rate to physicians regarding drug interactions, seizure-threshold-lowering drugs, and switching to generics. We also evaluated the relationship between the frequency of patient care, the status of information provision, and switching to generic medications.
Of the 197 pharmacies that responded, 181 (92%) had experience with ASM prescriptions. Ninety-five pharmacies (48%) provided feedback to physicians on interactions with newly prescribed ASMs. Precautions for interactions between new drugs and ongoing ASMs were addressed in 98 pharmacies (50%). Additionally, 86 pharmacies (44%) provided feedback on new drugs that lower the seizure threshold. Generic switching occurred in 143 pharmacies (73%). Information for physicians was provided via medicine notebooks in 160 cases (81%), while preconfirmation was conducted in only 10 cases (5%). Pharmacies providing patient care at least once a week were more likely to provide information about newly prescribed concomitant medications (p = 0.04), but no significant difference was found in other cases. They were also more likely to switch to generic drugs (p < 0.01), but there was no difference in providing information to physicians before confirmation.
Feedback rates to physicians regarding interactions requiring precautions and threshold-lowering drugs were 50% or less, and prior confirmation when switching to generic drugs was rare. Further promotion of hospital-pharmacy information sharing is needed for more appropriate seizure management in patients with epilepsy.
Journal Article
The development of a non-contact tachycardia and tachypnea monitoring system, a clinical trial on shock patients
The proposed system uses dual 24 GHz Doppler radars beneath the bed mattress, each transmitting at a power (10 mW) comparable to wireless microphones [3, 4]. In summary, to encourage medical professionals to test for shock when a logit score ≥ 0, the proposed PASS-based system appears promising for continuous monitoring of possible shock in locations outside the ICU, such as long-term care hospitals and facilities and in-home medical care environments. Otake Y, Kobayashi T, Hakozaki Y, Matsui T. Non-contact heart rate variability monitoring using Doppler radars beneath bed mattresses: a case report.
Journal Article
Britain's withdrawal from the persian gulf, 1964-1971: a study of informal empire
This thesis is about British disengagement from the southern coast of the Persian Gulf. Britain never had colonies in the region, but had held significant imperial sway over nine Protected States since the nineteenth century. The informal empire remained intact until the Labour government (1964-70) announced its intention to leave, in consequence of which Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates became independent in 1971. This thesis attempts three things. First, it draws on extensive archival research to provide the fullest possible account of British withdrawal: why it had to leave, how it did and what followed. The Gulf rulers wanted to maintain British protection for their own security, but Britain decided nonetheless on military retreat, because it needed to placate the domestic constituency in order to push forward the reversal of social reforms due to economic retrenchment. The Gulf rulers responded quickly, yet unsuccessfully, in deciding how many states would be formed as they achieve independence. It was only after the Gulf rulers and the British diplomats on the ground made late and mutually acceptable compromises about coming together that the nine Protected States became three new independent sovereign states. In the end, Britain was able to leave the Gulf peacefully, and the new states retained close relations with Britain. Second, the study of an informal empire illuminates the enduring collaborative relationship between Britain and the Gulf rulers, characterised by the nominal sovereignty given to the Protected States. This relationship not only helped Britain maintain its imperial sway at little cost, but also made possible a peaceful withdrawal and the orderly emergence of the new states. Third, this informal empire characterised by collaboration and nominal sovereignty laid the structural foundations for the later international society in the region – a point more generally telling for the study of international relations.
Dissertation