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Pathological diagnosis of gallbladder disease is mainly determined via bile cytology or biopsy after transcapillary catheter placement in the gallbladder. Percutaneous ultrasound-guided gallbladder biopsy is mainly performed in cases in which pathological evidence, such as pre-chemotherapy of unresectable gallbladder cancer is required and in cases that are difficult to diagnose with image examination. The advantage of biopsy is that a definitive diagnosis can be obtained pathologically; however, there is a possibility of false negatives. Recently, endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration has is performed in patients with gallbladder mass and gallbladder wall thickening via the duodenum. On the other hand, percutaneous ultrasound-guided gallbladder biopsy is performed via the liver.

Background and Aim The prevalence of ulcerative colitis (UC) is increasing steadily in Japan. In Western countries, a bimodal distribution, with UC onset peaks in youth and middle age, is observed, and smoking cessation is reported as a risk factor for UC. However, there are few reports on a bimodal distribution of onset age among Japanese patients. Therefore, the distribution of onset age and factors related to late onset (i.e. onset at 50 years old or later) were investigated in UC patients in Japan. Methods A questionnaire survey of UC patients was conducted to investigate the distribution of the age of onset and factors that may be related to UC onset in a Japanese university hospital. Results Among 465 UC patients, 343 patients responded. In the distribution of onset age, a large peak was seen in patients aged 10–20s, and small peaks were seen at age 40–44 years and then in 50–60s. In addition, the onset age was older in the UC patients diagnosed in 2001 or later than in those diagnosed in 2000 or earlier. Late onset was more common among the UC patients diagnosed in 2001 or later (vs 2000 or earlier: interaction odds ratio = 4.98, 95% CI: 2.21–11.25, P