Right subclavian artery dissection was detected in a 78-year-old female victim of the Kumamoto earthquake during a carotid artery ultrasound examination. She was subsequently taken to hospital and diagnosed with localized subclavian artery dissection (LSAD) by contrast-enhanced computed tomography. There have been no previous reports of LSAD detected at a medical checkup. LSAD may progress and become severe, even in asymptomatic patients or patients with mild symptoms, and careful long-term follow-up is therefore required in all patients diagnosed with LSAD.

BackgroundAn increase in cardiovascular diseases has been reported following major disasters. Previous work has shown that ultrasonographic findings from ultrasound cardiography examination (UCG) increased until the 44th month after the tsunami caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake. The present study conducted UCG among victims in the tsunami disaster area and investigated the frequency of disaster-related cardiovascular diseases and changes over time until the 55th month after the disaster.MethodsThe subjects were residents of temporary housing complexes and neighboring housing in Watari-gun, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. There were 207 subjects in the 18th month, 125 in the 30th month, 121 in the 44th month, and 106 in the 55th month after the disaster. Data were collected through UCG and self-report questionnaire.ResultsSignificant changes were observed among subjects with clinical findings from the UCG, which increased over the study period—from 42.0 to 60.8, 72.7, and 73.6% beginning in the 18th month after the disaster (p < 0.0001).ConclusionsIt is possible that the UCG can become a useful examination to visualize the potential impact of a major disaster on the cardiac function of victims. Victims with clinical findings continued increasing not only during the acute phase after a disaster but also in the long term. We therefore need to keep this in mind, and note that it is important to establish a support system to control cardiovascular diseases from the early stage of disaster.Trial registrationUMIN; ID000029802. R000034050. 2 November 2017.

Objective: This study aimed to examine the prevalence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) among evacuees in Minamiaso, a village which was temporarily isolated after the earthquakes, from the acute to recovery phase after the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquakes (GLIDE no: EQ-2016-000033-JPN). Methods: This prospective study, which was approved by Fukui University Medical Research Ethics Committee (approval no. 20160024 and 20160089), enrolled 181 evacuees (73.9 ± 11.6 y) who participated in a series of 3 DVT screenings using portable ultrasound machines conducted over 19 mo. All participants completed a questionnaire before the screenings, and none of the participants attended all 3 screenings. Data analysis was performed using EZR version 1.41. Results: The DVT prevalence was 14.3% (79.4 ± 8.2 y) at first screening of evacuees staying in shelters and 18.5% (71.5 ± 13.1 y) and 12.2% (72.8 ± 10.9 y) in second and third screenings of evacuees staying in temporary housing, respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed age ≥75 y and alcohol consumption as independent risk factors in the entire cohort and in patients aged ≤74 y, respectively. Conclusions: A high DVT prevalence over a long time period of 19 mo was observed where survivors were temporarily isolated after the disaster.

Introduction: Tsunami victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake were screened for deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) in order to compare the DVT incidence rates between temporary and non-temporary housing resident groups. Material and methods: Lower extremity venous ultrasonography was performed on 290 subjects (64 men and 226 women; mean age = 71.9 ± 7.9 years) at 44 months after the disaster. All subjects completed questionnaires to gather information about their background factors which included the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale: K6. Results: The DVT detection rate was 10.7% in the temporary group. In the non-temporary group, it was 11.3% among the subjects who previously lived in temporary housing. For the subjects who were living in their own homes,