The number of patients experiencing heat-related illnesses has gradually increased due to global warming.Owing to an aging society, 50% of patients with heat-related illnesses in Japan are elderly.Core temperature is one key parameter for health care; however, its monitoring is virtually impossible.Internet of Things (IoT) devices for healthcare have been proposed; however, the vital parameters to be monitored remain controversial.Here, we assessed the core temperature of elderly patients who were transported to hospitals by ambulance from their homes.The patients' core temperatures were recorded by the Fire Department of Nagoya City in the summers of 2019 and 2020.The time course of the core temperature of each patient was then replicated using the integrated computational techniques through multiphysics analysis and thermoregulation under ambient condition data.According to the statistics, most elderly patients who were transported from their homes had a high core temperature.The measured core temperature in 31.4% of the patients was higher than the computed core temperature even assuming that there was no sweating.Assuming that the sweating function works well, the total amount of water loss was insufficient to have caused dehydration in a single day.These results suggest that successive heat stress during the preceding days should be considered to recreate the computed core temperature to match the measurement.These results were consistent with the previous finding that some elderly suffered from heatstroke successively over a few days.In the IoT-based monitoring system development, it would be informative for monitoring core temperature during the preceding days.

With increasing heat-wave frequency, the prevention and public awareness of heat-related illnesses has become an essential topic. In the standard for heat strain and stress, empirical guidelines to prevent excess core temperature rise above 1 °C have been prescribed for workers. However, measuring core temperature change in our daily life or working place is not straightforward. The estimation of core temperature from measured vital signals in a non-invasive manner is thus essential for the management of heat stress or strain. Here, we propose an estimation method for core temperature change by a simplified thermodynamics model with the measured heart rate and ambient conditions (temperature and relative humidity). Our proposed model is based on a two-layer two-compartment model with tuned parameters, which were derived from comparison between the computations using high-resolution anatomical human body model. Our model exhibited good agreement with the measured core temperature rise; the computed and measured core temperature rise for the naked trial were 0.54 °C and 0.53 °C, whereas those for the clothed trial were 0.70 °C, and 0.71 °C, respectively. Furthermore, our compartment model with vital data measured from a wearable device achieved good estimation in real time for field measurement in addition to computational replication with a previous study.

Physical-condition management is becoming more important to improve the safety of work sites, such as preventing heat stroke caused by intense heat.We at NTT Device Innovation Center have developed a physical-condition management technology for creating more comfortable work sites by using the wearable-device sensors and data-analysis technology we have developed thus far, and the knowledge of thermal and exercise physiology in collaboration with specialists.This article introduces the problems with physical-condition management, how our technology can solve these problems, and the results from verifying our technology at an actual work site.

Monitoring body core temperature is one of the effective ways to identify heat-related risks of conditions such as heat stroke. However it is difficult to measure it directly during activity. We have developed a wearable device that can monitor a user's heart rate and the temperature and humidity inside their clothing during activity. Here, we investigated a method for estimating body core temperature from sensor data, and compared the estimated and actual values through clinical experiments.

The purpose of the present study was to examine the associations between physical fitness and body fatness with blood lipid profile in 231 Japanese children and adolescents (12.1 ± 1.5 years). The primary outcomes of the present study were a lipid risk score which was calculated by summing up z scores of three lipid items (triglycerides, low density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and high density lipoprotein-cholesterol). Physical fitness was assessed by using the Japanese standardised fitness test. For body fatness, a percentage of overweight was calculated with using age-, sex-, height-specific standardised body mass. For combined analysis (fitness × fatness), the participants were cross-tabulated into four groups (Non-Obese/Higher-Fit, Non-Obese/Lower-Fit, Obese/Higher-Fit, and Obese/Lower-Fit). The results demonstrated that the participants in fitness categories A/B [most fit] and C [middle] demonstrated the lower (better) lipid risk score than the participants in fitness categories D/E [least fit] (F (2, 222) = 6.03, p = .003). For body fatness, the lipid risk score in obese group was significantly higher (worse) than that in thin and normal groups (F (2, 222) = 6.08, p = .004). The combined analysis showed that there was a significant interaction (fitness × fatness) on the lipid risk score (F (1, 221) = 4.05, p = .047), suggesting that Obese/Lower-Fit group had the worst risk score compared to the other groups. The present study suggests that improving both fitness and body fatness might be important for better lipid profile in Japanese children and adolescents.

The present study examined the sex-specific associations of moderate and vigorous physical activity (VPA) with physical fitness in 300 Japanese adolescents aged 12-14 years. Participants were asked to wear an accelerometer to evaluate physical activity (PA) levels of various intensities (i.e. moderate PA (MPA), 3-5.9 metabolic equivalents (METs); VPA, ≥6 METs; moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA), ≥3 METs). Eight fitness items were assessed (grip strength, bent-leg sit-up, sit-and-reach, side step, 50 m sprint, standing long jump, handball throw, and distance running) as part of the Japanese standardised fitness test. A fitness composite score was calculated using Japanese fitness norms, and participants were categorised according to their score from category A (most fit) to category E (least fit), with participants in categories D and E defined as having low fitness. It was found that for boys, accumulating more than 80.7 min/day of MVPA may reduce the probability of low fitness (odds ratio (ORs) [95% confidence interval (CI)] = 0.17 [0.06-0.47], p = .001). For girls, accumulating only 8.4 min of VPA could reduce the likelihood of exhibiting low fitness (ORs [95% CI] = 0.23 [0.05-0.89], p = .032). These results reveal that there are sex-specific differences in the relationship between PA and physical fitness in adolescents, suggesting that sex-specific PA recommendation may be needed to improve physical fitness in adolescents.

Understanding factors associated with physical activity (PA) is important to promote PA. The purpose of the present study was to investigate factors associated with achieving PA guideline in 293 Japanese adolescents (140 boys and 153 girls). Time spent in moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) was accessed by using accelerometers. Based on MVPA, the participants were classified as "Active" (≥60 min/day of MVPA) or "Inactive" (<60 min/day of MVPA). Anthropometry, age, screen time, mental health, participation in after-school sport activities, sleep status, and breakfast status were measured as factors potentially associated with achieving PA guideline. Adjusted logistic regression analyses revealed that after-school sports activities were positively associated with the probability of being Active for both sexes (odds ratios [ORs] [95% confidence intervals (CI)] = 3.90 [1.13-13.49] for boys, 4.80 [1.80-12.81] for girls). In addition, body fat was negatively associated with a reduced likelihood of being Active for girls (ORs [95%CI] = 0.93 [0.87-0.97]). Two factor ANOVA revealed that those in Inactive group had significantly lower PA levels than those in Active group on both regular curriculum and extra-curriculum (F (1, 138) = 152.50 for boys, F (1, 151) = 181.95 for girls, p < 0.001). In addition, for girls, there was a significant interaction effect between domain (regular curriculum vs. extra-curriculum) and after-school sport activities (F (1, 151) = 4.91, p = 0.028), suggesting that obtaining higher PA levels on extra-curriculum might be difficult for those who do not belong to any after-school sport activities. Therefore, promoting PA on regular curriculum (i.e., physical education lessons and recess) might be alternative ways to increase PA levels for those individuals. Furthermore, special attention may be needed for girls who have higher body fat to promote PA.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between thermoregulation and catecholamine release in the preoptic area and anterior hypothalamus (PO/AH) during incremental treadmill running in the rat. To this aim, we combined in vivo brain microdialysis, biotelemetry and metabolic measurements for continuous monitoring of core body temperature (T(core)), neurotransmitters and thermoregulatory responses. The animals were exercised for 1h at 23°C. Treadmill speed was increased every 20 min (10, 20 and 26 m min⁻¹). T(core), oxygen consumption (V˙O₂, an index of heat production) and tail skin temperature (T(tail), an index of heat loss) were simultaneously measured. Brain microdialysis samples were collected every 10 min, and these samples were analyzed for noradrenaline (NA), dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT). T(core) and V˙O(2)₂ significantly increased during treadmill and were exercise intensity dependent. After an initial drop T(tail) increased significantly during exercise. Both NA and DA levels in the PO/AH increased significantly during exercise. There was no effect on serotonin release. T(core), V˙O₂ and T(tail) were positively correlated with the levels of NA and DA. Our data suggest that thermoregulatory responses are dependent on the intensity of the exercise and that these responses are associated with changes in NA and DA release, but not in 5-HT release in the PO/AH.

To clarify the mechanism of body temperature (T(b)) rise following voluntary wheel-run training in rats, we investigated the behavioral thermoregulation in female rats by means of a thermal gradient system. We performed thermal gradient tests before training, 4 weeks after training started, and 2 weeks after it stopped. We also examined the effects on the selected ambient temperature and T(b) with quantitative training activity. Nine female rats ran voluntarily in a wheel in the range of 6,545 from 1,665 revolutions/night. The higher the wheel-running activity, the higher the T(b) level rose at rest during the daytime after 4 weeks of training. The higher-activity rats selected a higher ambient temperature after the training than before, and the T(b) was maintained at a high level under this environment. Our results suggest that the rise in T(b) level during rest following the wheel-run training is a regulated body temperature change.

We investigated the effects of environmental light and darkness on thermoregulation during both daytime and nighttime by monitoring body temperature (Tb) and physical activity of rats using a telemetry system. Experiments were performed in both resting and exercising rats. In resting rats, lights-off during the daytime resulted in an increase in both Tb and activity. Conversely, during the nighttime, Tb decreased with the lights-on stimulus despite the fact that the activity was left unchanged. Treadmill exercise (10 m/min) always increased Tb from the basal resting level. In both daytime and nighttime, exercising rats exhibited a persistent Tb-rise when lights were on. However, in the lights-off condition at nighttime, the Tb of exercising rats increased to a level significantly higher than that of exercising rats with the lights-on. Our results suggest that light at nighttime causes the suppression of Tb in both resting and exercising rats.

Tangent stiffness equations for a beam-column, which is subjected to either uniformly or sinusoidally distributed lateral loads, are presented. The equations have been derived by differentiating the slope-deflection equations under axial forces for a member. Thus, the tangent stiffness equations take into consideration axial forces, bowing effect, and laterally distributed loads. As a numerical example, elastic buckling behavior of parallel chord latticed beams with laterally distributed loads iis investigated to compare the results obtained from the present method with those from the conventional matrix method in which the distributed loads are considered as a series of concentrated loads at additional intermediate nodes of a member. Furthermore, buckling tests were carried out to confirm the equations derived as well as to clarify the buckling behavior of space frame structures. In conclusion, it can be said that the new equations can provide a good efficient way of estimating the equilibrium paths and buckling loads. They can also lead to a significant savings in core storage and computing time required for the analysis of space frame structures.

Electrolytic lesions aimed at the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) were made in male Long-Evans rats. Body temperature (Tb), activity, and drinking were monitored continuously in a 12-h light:12-h dark (12:12 LD) cycle at an ambient temperature of 23°C. Large SCN lesions eliminated activity and drink ing rhythms and abolished or reduced the circadian rhythm of Tb. The Tb responses of the rats were measured in L after exposure to cold and injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a fever-producing drug, and in both L and D during a 30-min exposure to a novel cage. Rats with SCN lesions (SCNX) maintained their Tb as well as did controls during 2-h exposure to 2°C. They also showed the expected increases in Tb in response to novelty and LPS. Nevertheless, there were differences between SCNX rats and other rats. When measured 9 h after LPS injection, SCNX rats had lower Tb in D than did sham-lesioned or intact rats or rats with lesions that missed the SCN. This is not surprising; the Tb of SCNX rats does not go as high as that of intact rats in D. However, it was surprising that at night SCNX rats increased their Tb in response to novelty (lights on in the test situation), whereas normal rats did not. For some reason, light inhibits the Tb rise to novelty in normal rats but does not do so in rats with SCN lesions.