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An 81-year-old woman was hospitalized with progressive consciousness disturbance. Blood tests showed acidemia with severe renal dysfunction, and a cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) test showed pleocytosis with myelin basic protein (MBP) elevation. Brain magnetic resonance imaging showed unilaterally dominant subcortical white matter lesions with lentiform fork sign on T2-weighted imaging. After initiating hemodialysis, her consciousness disturbance and white matter lesions improved, suggesting uremic encephalopathy (UE). Unilaterally dominant leukoencephalopathy and high pleocytosis with MBP elevation in CSF are less common than previously identified characteristics of UE. When unilateral leukoencephalopathy occurs in patients with renal failure, UE should be considered.

Background and Purpose: Post stroke dysphagia (PSD) is a common complication after stroke. The earlier prediction of PSD is essential for patient stratification for intensive rehabilitation, but there was no scoring system for predicting PSD. We aimed to develop the PSD prediction score. Methods: We examined consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke between 2018-2020. Patients with in-hospital-death were excluded. Dysphagia state was assessed using food oral intake scale (FOIS) score at hospital discharge. PSD was defined as FOIS 1-3, which represent tube-dependent nutrition. For the assessment of reproducibility of PSD score, patients were divided into derivation and validation cohort. Using the derivation cohort, PSD score was developed from associated factors to discriminate PSD by logistic regression analysis. Discriminative performance was analyzed by receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis. Reproducibility of PSD score was validated using the validation cohort. Results: Among 795 patients (median 77 years; male, 57%), 556 (70%) patients were assigned as derivation cohort and 239 (30%) patients were assigned as validation cohort. In the derivation cohort, older age (≥85 years), low BMI (≦18.5 kg/m 2 for aged 2 for aged ≥70 years), high NIHSS score (≥16), and low serum albumin (≦3.0 mg/dl) were associated with PSD (Table). PSD score were ranged from 0 to 6 from these factors (Table). Area under the curve (AUC) of PSD score for PSD was 0.83 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.78-0.88) with an appropriate cut-off value of 2 (sensitivity, 69%; specificity, 88%). In the validation cohort, the AUC of PSD score for PSD was 0.78 (95% CI 0.70-0.86), which was not significantly different in the AUC of the derivation cohort (AUC; 0.83 vs 0.78, p=0.30). Conclusions: In acute ischemic stroke population, the discriminative performance of PSD score had acceptable for diagnosing PSD.

Electropolymerization with a nanoporous template is a straightforward method to address one-dimensional (1D) polymer nanowires, while the limited monomer diffusion into the nanopores tends to give ...

The vibrational properties of green spruce wood samples were measured intermittently during drying and subsequent conditioning under ambient conditions to clarify the effects of seasoning. After drying, the equilibration of mass and the sound velocity of wood continued to increase, and its internal friction significantly decreased during six months of seasoning. However, those seasoning effects disappeared once the wood was moistened at 100% RH. Physical aging and stress relaxation of wood polymers was assumed to be responsible for this effect. This coincides with the empirical knowledge of violin makers: seasoning for a few years is more important than long-term aging over centuries.

Sitka spruce wood specimens were heated at 120°C and different relative humidity during heating (RHh) levels for 2–7 days and their equilibrium moisture contents (EMCs) were measured at 25°C and 11...

Background Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) is a critical complication in patients undergoing dialysis. Although the improvement of AIS management is an urgent requirement, few studies have evaluated the prognostic factors of AIS in these patients. This study aimed to assess the relationship between clinical factors in patients undergoing dialysis and the prognosis of AIS. Methods Among 1267 patients who were hospitalized for AIS in Sendai City Hospital from January 2015 to June 2020, 81 patients undergoing hemodialysis were retrospectively enrolled. Multivariate analysis was performed to evaluate the effect of baseline characteristics, dialysis factors, and neurological severity of patients at admission [National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score] on in-hospital mortality, physical disability, and the need for rehabilitation transfer. Results A higher NIHSS score was a critical risk factor for each outcome and the only significant factor for in-hospital mortality [odds ratio (OR)/point 1.156, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.054–1.267]. The risk factors of physical disability were NIHSS score (OR/point 1.458, 95% CI 1.064–1.998), older age (OR/year 1.141, 95% CI 1.022–1.274), diabetic nephropathy (OR 7.096, 95% CI 1.066–47.218), and higher premorbid modified Rankin scale (mRS) score (OR/grade 2.144, 95% CI 1.155–3.978); while those of rehabilitation transfer were a higher NIHSS score (OR/point 1.253, 95% CI 1.080–1.455), dialysis vintage (OR/year 1.175, 95% CI 1.024–1.349), and intradialytic hypotension before onset (OR 5.430, 95% CI 1.320–22.338). Conclusions Along with neurological severity, dialysis vintage, intradialytic hypotension, and diabetic nephropathy could worsen the prognosis of patients with AIS undergoing hemodialysis.

Sitka spruce wood specimens were heated at 120–140 °C and different relative humidity values (RHh), and their specific dynamic Young’s moduli (E′/ρ), mechanical loss tangents (tanδ), and CIELAB color parameters were measured at 25 °C and 60% relative humidity before and after the removal of water-soluble extractives. The E′/ρ and tanδ values were significantly decreased and increased, respectively, with increases in mass loss by heating at 100% RHh. After the removal of water-soluble extractives, the decreased E′/ρ was increased and the increased tanδ was decreased. This suggested that water-soluble sugars, i.e., depolymerization products of hemicelluloses, acted as plasticizers to decrease E′/ρ and increase tanδ values of hygrothermally treated wood, particularly for wood heated in humid conditions. By heating at 60–75% RHh, the E′/ρ was slightly increased and tanδ was almost unchanged. The water-soluble extractives had little effect on the color of the hygrothermally treated wood, irrespective of RHh.

BACKGROUND Seasonal variations in the severity and outcomes of stroke remain unclarified.Methods and Results:A total of 2,965 acute ischemic stroke patients from a single-center prospective registry were studied. Among the total patients, stroke onset did not vary by season, though it varied with a peak in winter when limited to patients >75 years old (P=0.026), when limited to patients with moderate-to-severe initial neurological deficits (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale Score ≥10, P=0.014), and when limited to those with cardioembolic stroke (n=1,031, P=0.010). In 1,934 patients with noncardioembolic stroke, stroke onset did not vary by season. After multivariable adjustment, moderate-to-severe neurological deficits were more common in winter (odds ratio 1.37, 95% confidence interval 1.10-1.72) and spring (1.27, 1.01-1.60), and death at 1 year was more common in summer than in fall (1.55, 1.03-2.36); death or dependency (modified Rankin Scale score 3-6) and death or bedridden (score of 5-6) were not differently common among the seasons. CONCLUSIONS Overall ischemic stroke showed a fairly even distribution among the 4 seasons. Cardioembolic stroke was more common in winter. Ischemic stroke patients had more moderate-to-severe initial neurological deficits in winter and spring. Poor clinical outcomes at 1 year were generally similar among the seasons. Ischemic stroke is not necessarily a winter-dominant disease.

Early neurosyphilis commonly appears in basilar meninges, and its meningeal inflammation can spread to neighboring cranial nerves, resulting in some cranial nerve palsies. Herein, we report a case of a 51-year-old man who presented with right peripheral facial nerve palsy. His symptoms completely disappeared with prednisolone monotherapy without antibiotics use and were not exacerbated during clinical treatment. However, 2 months after remission of seventh cranial neuropathy, fifth and eighth cranial neuropathies appeared on the right side. Serologic tests for syphilis were revealed to be abnormal. Finally, the patient was diagnosed with early neurosyphilis with multiple cranial palsies. His neurological symptoms were markedly improved by combined penicillin-corticosteroid treatment. Systemic corticosteroids could be effective as adjunctive therapy to ameliorate neurological sequelae in early neurosyphilis.

Sitka spruce wood samples were subjected to different conditions of hydro-thermal treatment by varying the relative humidity (RH) and period of exposure at a constant temperature of 120 °C. Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy, principal component analysis (PCA) and two dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS) were employed to examine the structural changes which occur in the wood samples during the applied treatment conditions and to quantify the differences between non-extracted and water-extracted wood specimens after the treatment. Modifications were dependent on the amount of water molecules present the medium and also on treatment time. Higher variations were observed for samples treated at higher RH values and for longer periods. At the same time, it was also observed that during the hydro-thermal treatment a high amount of extractives remain in the wood structure, extractives which vary in quantity and composition. PCA and 2D-COS made it possible to discriminate modifications in the wood samples according to treatment time and relative humidity. Non-extracted and water-extracted samples were also examined to identify the sequential order of band modification.

Importance Repeat expansion of CGG in LRP12 has been identified as the causative variation of oculopharyngodistal myopathy (OPDM). However, to our knowledge, the clinicopathologic features of OPDM with CGG repeat expansion in LRP12 (hereafter referred to as OPDM_LRP12) remain unknown. Objective To identify and characterize the clinicopathologic features of patients with OPDM_LRP12. Design, setting, and participants This case series included 208 patients with a clinical or clinicopathologic diagnosis of oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy (OPDM) from January 1, 1978, to December 31, 2020. Patients with GCN repeat expansions in PABPN1 were excluded from the study. Repeat expansions of CGG in LRP12 were screened by repeat primed polymerase chain reaction and/or Southern blot. Main outcomes and measures Clinical information, muscle imaging data obtained by either computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging, and muscle pathologic characteristics. Results Sixty-five Japanese patients with OPDM (40 men [62%]; mean [SD] age at onset, 41.0 [10.1] years) from 59 families with CGG repeat expansions in LRP12 were identified. This represents the most common OPDM subtype among all patients in Japan with genetically diagnosed OPDM. The expansions ranged from 85 to 289 repeats. A negative correlation was observed between the repeat size and the age at onset (r2 = 0.188, P = .001). The most common initial symptoms were ptosis and muscle weakness, present in 24 patients (37%). Limb muscle weakness was predominantly distal in 53 of 64 patients (83%), but 2 of 64 patients (3%) had predominantly proximal muscle weakness. Ptosis was observed in 62 of 64 patients (97%), and dysphagia or dysarthria was observed in 63 of 64 patients (98%). A total of 21 of 64 patients (33%) had asymmetric muscle weakness. Aspiration pneumonia was seen in 11 of 64 patients (17%), and 5 of 64 patients (8%) required mechanical ventilation. Seven of 64 patients (11%) developed cardiac abnormalities, and 5 of 64 patients (8%) developed neurologic abnormalities. Asymmetric muscle involvement was detected on computed tomography scans in 6 of 27 patients (22%) and on magnetic resonance imaging scans in 4 of 15 patients (27%), with the soleus and the medial head of the gastrocnemius being the worst affected. All 42 muscle biopsy samples showed rimmed vacuoles. Intranuclear tubulofilamentous inclusions were observed in only 1 of 5 patients. Conclusions and relevance This study suggests that OPDM_LRP12 is the most frequent OPDM subtype in Japan and is characterized by oculopharyngeal weakness, distal myopathy that especially affects the soleus and gastrocnemius muscles, and rimmed vacuoles in muscle biopsy.

Carotid web has been recognized as a rare cause of ischemic stroke with high recurrence rate. We describe a 48-year-old woman with carotid web who developed embolic stroke. We obtained a fresh thrombus from the internal carotid artery when carotid endarterectomy was performed. A preoperative computational fluid dynamics (CFD) study showed stagnation of blood around the web structure as well as the low wall shear stress. The rheological analysis newly disclosed mechanisms of thrombus formation related to the carotid web. CFD study in the carotid web may determine indication and timing of surgical interventions with further accumulation of clinical evidence.

Objective:\ud It is not known whether patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) with ischemic stroke despite oral anticoagulant therapy are at increased risk for further recurrent strokes or how ongoing secondary prevention should be managed.\ud \ud Methods:\ud We conducted an individual patient data pooled analysis of 7 prospective cohort studies that recruited patients with AF and recent cerebral ischemia. We compared patients taking oral anticoagulants (vitamin K antagonists [VKA] or direct oral anticoagulants [DOAC]) prior to index event (OACprior ) with those without prior oral anticoagulation (OACnaive ). We further compared those who changed the type (ie, from VKA or DOAC, vice versa, or DOAC to DOAC) of anticoagulation (OACchanged ) with those who continued the same anticoagulation as secondary prevention (OACunchanged ). Time to recurrent acute ischemic stroke (AIS) was analyzed using multivariate competing risk Fine-Gray models to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).\ud \ud Results:\ud We included 5,413 patients (median age = 78 years [interquartile range (IQR) = 71-84 years]; 5,136 [96.7%] had ischemic stroke as the index event, median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale on admission = 6 [IQR = 2-12]). The median CHA2 DS2 -Vasc score (congestive heart failure, hypertension, age≥ 75 years, diabetes mellitus, stroke/transient ischemic attack, vascular disease, age 65-74 years, sex category) was 5 (IQR = 4-6) and was similar for OACprior (n = 1,195) and OACnaive (n = 4,119, p = 0.103). During 6,128 patient-years of follow-up, 289 patients had AIS (4.7% per year, 95% CI = 4.2-5.3%). OACprior was associated with an increased risk of AIS (HR = 1.6, 95% CI = 1.2-2.3, p = 0.005). OACchanged (n = 307) was not associated with decreased risk of AIS (HR = 1.2, 95% CI = 0.7-2.1, p = 0.415) compared with OACunchanged (n = 585).\ud \ud Interpretation:\ud Patients with AF who have an ischemic stroke despite previous oral anticoagulation are at a higher risk for recurrent ischemic stroke despite a CHA2 DS2 -Vasc score similar to those without prior oral anticoagulation. Better prevention strategies are needed for this high-risk patient group.

Backgrounds The main culprit lesion causing hiccup in patients with ischemic stroke is thought to involve the medulla oblongata, but some cases of hiccups caused by damage to the supratentorial cortex have been reported. The present study aimed to address the clinical and radiological characteristics of acute stroke patients accompanied by hiccups caused by supratentorial lesions. Method We retrospectively studied 5,309 consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack who were admitted to our institute within 7 days after onset between April 2006 and September 2017. We searched for the term “hiccup” in prospectively collected descriptive datasets and analyzed associations between hiccup and clinical and radiological findings, with particular focus on patients with supratentorial lesions. Results We finally selected 16 stroke patients accompanied by hiccup. Nine patients had infarcts in the lateral medulla oblongata, and others had supratentorial infarcts (three patients with cortical infarcts, four patients with subcortical infarcts). Moreover, the right hemisphere was frequently damaged in this series (6/7, 86%). Conclusions Hiccup could be caused by supratentorial infarcts including the insular cortex, temporal lobe, and subcortex., Hiccup could be caused by supratentorial infarcts including the insular cortex, temporal lobe, and subcortex.

Background We aimed to clarify associations between prior anticoagulation and short‐ or long‐term clinical outcomes in ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Methods and Results A total of 1189 ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation who were hospitalized within 7 days after onset were analyzed. Of these, 813 patients (68.4%) received no prior anticoagulation, 310 (26.1%) received prior warfarin treatment with an international normalized ratio ( INR ) INR ≥2 on admission, and the remaining 38 (3.2%) received prior direct oral anticoagulant treatment. Prior warfarin treatment was associated with a lower risk of death or disability at 3 months compared with no prior anticoagulation ( INR P =0.001; INR ≥2: adjusted odds ratio: 0.40; 95% CI, 0.16–0.97; P =0.043) but was not associated with a lower risk of death or disability at 2 years. Prior warfarin treatment with an INR ≥2 on admission was associated with a higher risk of ischemic events within 2 years compared with no prior anticoagulation (adjusted hazard ratio: 2.94; 95% CI, 1.20–6.15; P =0.021). Conclusions Prior warfarin treatment was associated with a lower risk of death or disability at 3 months but was not associated with a lower risk of death or disability at 2 years in ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Prior warfarin treatment with an INR ≥2 on admission was associated with a higher risk of ischemic events within 2 years. Clinical Trial Registration URL : http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier: NCT 01581502.

Objectives The present study aimed to determine whether phased changes in strategies including the Helsinki model affect the delay of intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) using tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) to treat acute ischemic stroke. Method We retrospectively studied 516 consecutive patients treated with IVT in our department between October 2005 and December 2018. We implemented a system of hospital pre-notification in 2005, when IVT was initially implemented at our center. We then improved the IVT strategy by simplifying brain imaging (July 2011), premixing tPA (April 2014), locating a blood cell counter in the emergency room (June 2015), manually administering a tPA bolus before preparing a continuous infusion (January 2016), awarding a prize to members of the acute stroke team (November 2016), and completing registration before arrival and sending patients directly to computed tomography (February 2017). We analyzed the effects of these strategic changes on annual median door-to-needle times (DTN). Results The DTN was annually reduced, from a median of 90 [interquartile range, 55–98] minutes in 2006 to 15 [12–24.25] minutes in 2017. By 2017, 94% of patients were treated within 60 min of arrival. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that initial NIHSS score ≤ 4 (OR 2.67, 95% CI 1.3–5.7) and anticoagulation before onset (OR 6.00, 95% CI 2.47–14.58) were independently associated with 20 min or more of DTN in 186 patients treated from 2016 to 2018. Conclusions Phased strategic change to reduce the delay in delivering IVT reduced median DTN to 15 min at a single Japanese stroke center.

Spruce wood specimens were hygrothermally treated at different temperatures (T, 95–140 °C) and relative humidity during heating (RHh, 0–92%). Their loss in dry mass (ML), specific dynamic Young’s modulus (E′/ρ), mechanical loss tangent (tan δ), and CIELAB colour parameters were measured at 25 °C and 60% relative humidity (RH) before and after the hygrothermal treatment. The changes in physical properties by the hygrothermal treatment were formulated as functions of ML. Those ML dependencies were combined with the ML–time curve at 20 °C previously predicted by using a time–T–RHh superposition, and the changes in physical properties during long-term ageing were predicted. The predicted vibrational properties were stable at 0–80% RH, whereas a significant decrease in E′/ρ and increase in tan δ were predicted at 92% RH, suggesting serious degradation in acoustic quality in humid conditions. The predicted changes in colour reasonably agreed with those during natural ageing. The combination of hygrothermal treatment and time–T–RHh superposition is a useful tool to predict the effects of ageing in ambient conditions, particularly when the target property simply depends on the chemical changes in wood constituents.

Spruce wood specimens were hygrothermally treated at different temperatures (T, 95–140 °C) and relative humidity during heating (RHh, 0–92%) to measure the loss in dry mass (ML) due to the treatment. The ML was approximated by a power function of the heating duration t, and the plots of ML versus t were successfully superposed as a single master curve by shifting the plots along the t axis using the shift factors aT and aH, representing the effects of T and RHh, respectively. The apparent activation energies calculated from the linear correlation between ln(aT) and the reciprocal of absolute temperature were 109–116 kJ/mol, almost independent of RHh. Plots of aH versus RHh showed sigmoid shapes, suggesting that the aH value depended on the moisture content of the wood. The shift factors allowed the prediction of the ML of wood by hygrothermal treatment at arbitrary T and RHh. The predicted ML values showed good agreement with experimental ML values available in the literature.

GNE myopathy is an autosomal recessive muscular disorder caused by mutations in the gene encoding the key enzyme in sialic acid biosynthesis, UDP-N-acetylglucosamine 2-epimerase/N-acetylmannosamine kinase (GNE/MNK). Here, we report two siblings with myopathy with rimmed vacuoles and congenital thrombocytopenia who harbored two compound heterozygous GNE mutations, p.V603L and p.G739S. Thrombocytopenia, which is characterized by shortened platelet lifetime rather than ineffective thrombopoiesis, has been observed since infancy. We performed exome sequencing and array CGH to identify the underlying genetic etiology of thrombocytopenia. No pathogenic variants were detected among the known causative genes of recessively inherited thrombocytopenia; yet, candidate variants in two genes that followed an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance, including previously identified GNE mutations, were detected. Alternatively, it is possible that the decreased activity of GNE/MNK itself, which would lead to decreased sialic content in platelets, is associated with thrombocytopenia in these patients. Further investigations are required to clarify the association between GNE myopathy and the pathogenesis of thrombocytopenia.

In the complexedly-mediated society, the public opinion which is the foundation of democracy should be considered not as a static norm but as a dynamic recursive self-creation process. From this point of view, this paper will analyze the series of scandals relating to the Masuzoe, the former Tokyo Governor, problem, and clarify the dynamic characteristics of the public opinion in the complexedly-mediated society.

The development of modern rationality brought about a shift from gemeinschaft to gesellschaft,; the overcoming of natural phenomena by science and technology as well as the expansion of human capacity have become the basic requirement for society’s survival. However, the increase in uncertainty as a result of this development has heralded a risk society. Dealing with the risk society is one of the most urgent challenges of contemporary society. We introduce new effective methodologies collectively called computational social science, therefore.

Demyelinating polyneuropathy associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is quite rare. We herein present the case of a woman patient with a 12-year history of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP)-like polyneuropathy who later developed bulbar palsy and respiratory failure. The autopsy findings revealed neuronal loss in the anterior horn and primary motor cortex with degeneration of the corticospinal tracts. Diffuse phosphorylated TAR DNA-binding protein of 43 kDa inclusions were observed in the anterior horn and cerebral cortices, including the temporal lobe. The final diagnosis was ALS with CIDP-like polyneuropathy. Compared with other reports of ALS with CIDP-like polyneuropathy, the present patient was younger and followed a relatively long clinical course, with no upper motor neuron signs.

This paper discusses the future of journalism, including social-media use. The findings within this paper are based on the results of the “Social Survey on Social Media Use in the Great East Japan Earthquake.” 2 The author conducted this Internet-based survey in June 2012, and the results discussed herein are based on a sample size of 1,000 persons. The main findings suggest that social-media use during and immediately following the March 11, 2011 earthquake in Japan has been developing in a mutually complementary manner with traditional media.

Background The therapeutic efficacy of low-dose intravenous alteplase (0.6 mg/kg) for basilar artery occlusion (BAO) remains unknown. Methods BAO patients enrolled from the Japanese multicenter registry involving 600 stroke patients treated with the low-dose intravenous alteplase were studied. Results Twenty-five patients had BAO (8 women ranging from 32-92 years of age; mean baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale [NIHSS] score 16). The stroke subtype was cardioembolic in 15 patients and atherothrombotic in 4 patients. BAO was recanalized during hospitalization in 18 (78%) of 23 patients undergoing follow-up angiography. Within the initial 24 hours, 14 patients (56%) had a ≥8-point decrease in the NIHSS score, being more common than 267 patients with middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCO) from the same registry (odds ratio [OR] 2.50; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.06-5.97) after adjustment by sex, age, and baseline NIHSS score. In addition, 4 patients (16%) had a ≥4-point increase in the score, being marginally more common than MCO patients (OR 3.13; 95% CI 0.81-10.25). Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage within the initial 36 hours (8% v 5%), independence at 3 months (modified Rankin Scale score ≤2, 48% v 52%), and mortality at 3 months (4% v 6%) were similar when comparing BAO and MCO patients. When compared with previous studies of BAO, vital and functional outcomes at 3 months were relatively better in our study. Conclusions The use of low-dose alteplase resulted in similar outcomes when comparing acute BAO and MCO patients.

To clarify the effects of humidity during heating on the physical properties of hydrothermally treated wood, Sitka spruce wood was heated in an autoclave at 120 °C and different heating humidity (HRH), and their equilibrium moisture content (EMC), specific dynamic Young’s modulus (E′/ρ), and mechanical loss tangent (tanδ) were measured at 25 °C and 60 % RH prior to and after the hydrothermal treatment. Higher values of HRH resulted in greater loss in weight (WL) because of the acceleration of thermal degradation in the presence of moisture. The time–humidity superposition was applicable to the changes in WL. The EMC was minimized by heating at intermediate HRH (60 %), but it recovered significantly after the wood was moistened at 100 % RH. This fact suggested that the reduction in hygroscopicity due to hydrothermal treatment included both reversible and irreversible effects. The reversible effect was not observed when the wood was heated at 92 % HRH or above. After the moistening, the EMC value of hydrothermally treated wood decreased monotonically with increasing HRH and WL. An irreversible chemical change such as decomposition of hemicelluloses was responsible for the irreversible effect, whereas the reversible effect may have resulted from the annealing of amorphous wood polymers. After hydrothermal treatment at 80 % HRH or lower, E′/ρ increased and tanδ decreased mainly because of the reduction in EMC. On the other hand, high-humidity heating (92 % HRH) resulted in significant decrease in E′/ρ and remarkable increase in tanδ probably because of the depolymerization of hemicelluloses. The color of wood was darkened by the hydrothermal treatment, and the CIELAB color parameters of hydrothermally treated wood were closely connected to the WL.