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Yasutomo Tanaka,1,2 Masatoshi Hanada,1,2 Chika Kitagawa,3 Kazuaki Suyama,4 Ryota Shiroishi,5 Naoto Rikitomi,3 Toru Tsuda,6 Yoshiaki Utsunomiya,5 Takako Tanaka,1 Kazuya Shingai,1 Yorihide Yanagita,7 Ryo Kozu1,2 1Department of Physical Therapy Science, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan; 2Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Nagasaki University Hospital, Nagasaki, Japan; 3Nagasaki Pulmonary Rehabilitation Clinic, Nagasaki, Japan; 4Tagami Hospital, Nagasaki, Japan; 5Utsunomiya Medical Clinic, Fukuoka, Japan; 6Kirigaoka Tsuda Hospital, Fukuoka, Japan; 7Department of Physical Therapy, School of Health Science, Toyohashi Sozo University, Aichi, JapanCorrespondence: Ryo Kozu, Department of Physical Therapy Science, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, 1-7-1 Sakamoto, Nagasaki, 852-8520, Japan, Tel/Fax +81 95 819 7963, Email ryokozu@nagasaki-u.ac.jpPurpose: Assessment for frailty is important as it enables timely intervention to prevent or delay poor prognosis in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The aims of this study, in a sample of outpatients with COPD, were to (i) assess the prevalence of physical frailty using the Japanese version of the Cardiovascular Health Study (J-CHS) criteria and the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) and the degree of agreement between the findings of the two assessments and (ii) identify factors associated with the disparity in the results obtained with these instruments.Patients and Methods: This was a multicenter cross-sectional study of individuals with stable COPD enrolled in four institutions. Frailty was assessed using the J-CHS criteria and the SPPB. Weighted Cohen’s kappa (k) statistic was performed to investigate the magnitude of agreement between the instruments. We divided participants into two groups depending on whether there was agreement or non-agreement between the results of the two frailty assessments. The two groups were then compared with respect to their clinical data.Results: A total of 103 participants (81 male) were included in the analysis. The median age and FEV1 (%predicted) were 77 years and 62%, respectively. The prevalence of frailty and pre-frail was 21% and 56% with the J-CHS criteria and 10% and 17% with the SPPB. The degree of agreement was fair (k = 0.36 [95% CI: 0.22– 0.50], P< 0.001). There were no significant differences in the clinical characteristics between the agreement group (n = 44) and the non-agreement group (n = 59).Conclusion: We showed that the degree of agreement was fair with the J-CHS criteria detecting a higher prevalence than the SPPB. Our findings suggest that the J-CHS criteria may be useful in people with COPD with the aim of providing interventions to reverse frailty in the early stages.Keywords: cardiovascular health study, Short Physical Performance Battery, chronic lung disease, physical function

Kazuaki Suyama, Ryo Kozu, Takako Tanaka, Yuji Ishimatsu, Terumitsu Sawai Department of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Science, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan Background: The impact of airway obstruction of nonsmoking women caused by their husband’s smoking is unclear, despite the association between environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure at home and obstructive pulmonary diseases among nonsmoking women. The aim of this study was to provide evidence that ETS exposure from the husband at home has a more significant influence on the airway obstruction of nonsmoking women than other housemates. Participants and methods: Nonsmoking women aged 40 years or older were recruited from the health checkup during May 2015–December 2016, Japan. They answered structured questionnaires, including ETS exposure from their husbands and other housemates (parents, siblings and dependants), and performed spirometry. We categorized the women with any history of ETS exposure from housemates into three groups (A = husband, B = others and C = both of husband and others) and defined the control group as those with no ETS exposure from housemates. Results: A total of 811 nonsmoking women completed questionnaires and spirometry. The proportion of nonsmoking women who had airway obstruction (forced expiratory volume in 1 second [FEV1]/forced vital capacity [FVC]

Ferromagnetic (FM) interlayer exchange coupling of ion-beam sputtered Fe/Ge multilayers was investigated by off-specular polarized neutron scattering measurements. We observed a monotonously growing correlation of magnetic moments in the out-of-plane direction with decreasing Ge thickness. The magnetic properties of the multilayers with and without the FM interlayer exchange coupling agree well with the three- and two-dimensional random anisotropy model, respectively, assuming an FM interlayer exchange coupling comparable to the direct exchange interaction within the sample plane. The results of the Fe/Ge multilayers were used to invoke FM interlayer exchange coupling in a neutron polarizing supermirror in order to extend its bandwidth. Typically, the bandwidth is limited due to a Curie temperature close to room temperature of the thinnest Fe layers with less than 3 nm. We propose a modified layer sequence of the neutron polarizing supermirror, where the minimum Fe thickness was set to 3.5 nm, whereas the Ge thickness was reduced. A performance test of the neutron polarizing supermirror showed that the FM interlayer exchange coupling contributed to the presence of the magnetization comparable to the bulk and resulted in a marked extension in the bandwidth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]