Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is responsible for non-shivering thermogenesis and is an attractive therapeutic target for combating obesity and related diseases. Human BAT activity has been evaluated by 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography ( 18 FDG-PET/CT) under acute cold exposure, but the method has some serious limitations, including radiation exposure. Infrared thermography (IRT) may be a simple and less-invasive alternative to evaluate BAT activity. In the present study, to establish an optimal condition for IRT, using a thermal imaging camera, skin temperature was measured in the supraclavicular region close to BAT depots (T scv ) and the control chest region (T c ) in 24 young healthy volunteers. Their BAT activity was assessed as the maximal standardized uptake value (SUV max ) by 18 FDG-PET/CT. Under a warm condition at 24–27°C, no significant correlation was found between the IRT parameters (T scv , T c, , and the difference between T scv and T c, , Δtemp) and SUV max , but 30–120 min after cold exposure at 19°C, T scv and Δtemp were significantly correlated with SUV max ( r = 0.40–0.48 and r = 0.68–0.76). Δtemp after cold exposure was not affected by mean body temperature, body fatness, and skin blood flow. A lower correlation ( r = 0.43) of Δtemp with SUV max was also obtained when the participant’s hands were immersed in water at 18°C for 5 min. Receiver operating characteristic analysis revealed that Δtemp after 30–60 min cold exposure can be used as an index for BAT evaluation with 74% sensitivity, 92% specificity, and 79% diagnostic accuracy. Thus, IRT may be useful as a simple and less-invasive method for evaluating BAT, particularly for large-scale screening and longitudinal repeat studies.

Background: Information about factors related to better adherence to continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) sensor adherence is quite limited. Materials and Methods: Forty-six participants with type 1 diabetes using continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) without CGM were recruited. The participants’ characteristics and diabetes-related quality of life (QOL) were evaluated at baseline and one year after starting to use CGM. Participants wearing the sensor for ≥60% of the time were considered as adherent. Results: The mean age of the 46 participants was 44.1 ± 15.0 years old and the mean glycohemoglobin (HbA1c) was 7.7 ± 1.0%; 60.9% of the participants were classified as adherent. The duration of using CSII was longer in the adherent group, and the degree of diabetic retinopathy was significantly different. There were no significant differences in age, frequency of self-monitoring of blood glucose, or Hypoglycemia Fear Survey (HFS-B for behavior, HFS-W for worry) score at baseline between the adherent and nonadherent groups. The Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID) score at baseline was significantly higher and the total CSII-QOL score at baseline was significantly lower in the adherent group. The usage of dual-wave bolus was significantly increased in the adherent group (34.6%-61.5%, P = .016), but not in the nonadherent group (33.3%-33.3%, P > .999). The HbA1c level showed a significant improvement in the adherent group (7.8%-7.3%, P < .001), but not in the nonadherent group (7.5%-7.2%, P = .102). Conclusions: Higher adherence to CGM sensors may be associated with a heavier emotional burden of diabetes and a worse QOL in relation to CSII at baseline.

BackgroundPolycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder among reproductive-aged women. While PCOS is associated with an increased risk of obesity and insulin resistance, little is known regarding the prevalence of and risk factors for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) among Japanese women with PCOS. We estimated the prevalence of and risk factors for elevated liver enzymes, as the index of NAFLD, in Japanese women with PCOS.MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed 102 reproductive-aged women who visited the Department of Gynecology, Kyoto Medical Center in Japan from January 2000 to September 2016. Inclusion criterion was confirmed diagnosis of PCOS using International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10) codes. Exclusion criteria were women with a history of liver diseases, missing body mass index (BMI) and serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) data, and pregnancy. Data regarding age; BMI; and levels of blood glucose, serum lipid, liver enzymes, and sex hormones were obtained from medical records. Elevated liver enzymes was defined as ALT > 19 IU/L. Optimal cutoffs for risk factors for elevated liver enzymes were calculated to determine predictors of elevated liver enzymes using area under the curve (AUC) by receiver-operating characteristics (ROC).ResultsThe prevalence of elevated liver enzymes was 33.3%. BMI was significantly higher in PCOS patients than in those without elevated liver enzymes (25.3 vs. 20.7 kg/m2, P < 0.05). ROC analyses were performed using BMI and blood glucose and testosterone levels because BMI and blood glucose showed differences between the groups and testosterone is related to fatty liver. AUC of the model including BMI and blood glucose and testosterone levels was 0.861 (sensitivity, 66.7%; specificity, 100%).ConclusionsThese findings suggest that elevated liver enzymes are common in women with PCOS. An algorism using BMI and blood glucose and testosterone levels might be useful to determine elevated liver enzymes in women with PCOS. Our finding may be useful for the study of NAFLD among Japanese women with PCOS since several previous studies have indicated elevated liver enzymes to be related to the potential presence of NAFLD. Further examination, including abdominal ultrasonography and/or liver biopsy data, is required to confirm these results.

Background Given the major role of glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) in the regulation of adiposity, this study examined the effects induced by a diet based on the Japanese tradition (SMART WASHOKU) on the visceral fat area (VFA) and GIP secretions. Methods Overweight/obese men ( n = 21; mean age, 41.0 ± 9.0 years; mean BMI, 25.2 ± 2.0 kg/m 2 ) without diabetes were placed on either a SMART WASHOKU or control meal for 2 weeks, in a randomized, cross-over setup with a four-week washout period. Results For the meal tolerance test, blood samples were collected at 0, 30, 60, 120, 180, and 240 min post-meal, followed by measuring blood glucose, insulin, GIP, and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) levels. Relative to a control meal, SMART WASHOKU meal yielded significantly lower plasma postprandial GIP concentrations (AUC: 700.0 ± 208.0 vs. 1117.0 ± 351.4 pmol/L・4 h, P < 0.05); however, between meals, there was no significant difference in the levels of GLP-1, peptide YY, and ghrelin. Compared to the control meal, SMART WASHOKU intervention significantly reduced VFA and the levels of LDL-cholesterol, triglyceride, and HbA1c after the chronic meal intervention. Conclusions In conclusion, a SMART WASHOKU meal may decrease VFA and improve metabolic parameters in overweight/obese men, possibly via suppressing GIP secretion.

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