Among Japanese patients with NVAF, treatment with apixaban 5/2.5 mg BID was associated with a significantly lower risk of major bleeding and any bleeding when compared to warfarin. Treatment with dabigatran 150/110 mg BID or rivaroxaban 15/10 mg QD was associated with a significantly lower risk of major bleeding, but not any bleeding, than warfarin. The potential benefit of individual NOACs in real-world practice needs to be assessed further.

Objective Side-effects of medications cause xerostomia. There have been cases where a medication has been discontinued owing to its severe side-effects. Therefore, the xerostomia must be treated to ensure that the primary disease is managed effectively. This study analyzed the actual status of patients with medication-induced xerostomia and investigates factors associated with its improvement. Methods This study assessed 490 patients diagnosed with medication-induced xerostomia who had an unstimulated salivary flow of ≤0.1 mL/min and received treatment for xerostomia at a xerostomia clinic. Patient age, sex, medical history, medications used, disease duration of xerostomia, and psychological disorders were recorded. The anticholinergic burden was assessed using the Anticholinergic Cognitive Burden scale. The unstimulated salivary flow was measured by the spitting method. According to their symptoms and diagnoses, the patients were introduced to oral lubricants, instructed on how to perform massage, and prescribed Japanese herbal medicines, and sialogogues. Factors associated with the subjective improvement of xerostomia and objective changes in the salivary flow rate were recorded at six months. Results Xerostomia improved in 338 patients (75.3%). The improvement rate was significantly lower in patients with psychiatric disorders (63.6%) (P = 0.009). The improvement rate decreased as more anticholinergics were used (P = 0.018). However, xerostomia improved in approximately 60% of patients receiving three or more anticholinergics. The unstimulated salivary flow increased significantly more in patients who reported an improvement of xerostomia (0.033±0.053 mL/min) than in those who reported no improvement (0.013±0.02 mL/min) (P = 0.025). Conclusion Xerostomia treatment improved oral dryness in 75.3% of patients receiving xerogenic medications in this study. If xerostomia due to side-effects of medications can be improved by treatment, it will greatly contribute to the quality of life of patients with xerogenic medications and may reduce the number of patients who discontinue medications.

In pediatric patients with neurogenic bladder (NGB), urinary tract evaluation, early diagnosis, and individualized management are important. We aimed to clarify the current status of diagnosis and treatment of NGB in Japanese children. This descriptive, observational, retrospective cohort study using the JMDC claims database included NGB patients aged ≤17 years over a 12-month follow-up period. Of the 1065 pediatric NGB patients, 38.9% had spina bifida. Dermatological and gastrointestinal comorbidities were common in the baseline period. Renal/bladder ultrasound was a commonly performed investigation (38.3%), but urodynamics was infrequently used (3.0%). Of all the overactive bladder medications, anticholinergics were used commonly (17.9% patients), and most patients used anticholinergics alone (without combination therapy). Clean intermittent catheterization (CIC; alone or in combination with medications) was performed in 9.3% of patients, and 3.9% of patients were concomitantly treated with medications. The most common incident complication was lower urinary tract infection (18.1%), which was especially common in patients with open spina bifida (54.1%). Despite guideline recommendations, lower urinary tract dysfunction is not thoroughly evaluated. Adequate understanding of patient status is critical to optimal patient management (behavioral therapy, CIC, and medication) in clinical practice.

This cross-sectional survey study evaluated associations between physician–patient communication and patient satisfaction with overactive bladder (OAB) medical care or clinical effectiveness. Japanese patients aged ≥50 years with OAB who had taken OAB medication within 2 years received a web-based survey regarding OAB medical care, physician–patient communication on OAB symptoms and treatment, and OAB symptom score (OABSS) change with treatment. Associations between physician–patient communication and patient satisfaction or OAB medication effectiveness (≥3-point improvement in OABSS) were investigated by multivariate analysis with confounding factors. Stratified analyses were performed based on medication continuation or discontinuation (for reasons except symptom improvement). Of the 1004 respondents included in the analyses, 58.0% continued treatment, and 23.7% discontinued for reasons except symptom improvement. Satisfaction with OAB care was associated with reported effectiveness, medication side effects, physician–patient communication, and whether medication was switched. Medication effectiveness was associated with patient–physician communication, female sex, and not switching medication. Significantly more patients in the continuation group were satisfied and had improvement of ≥3 points in OABSS (p < 0.001 for both). The findings suggest that, in Japan, adequate physician–patient communication contributes significantly to improving clinical effectiveness and satisfaction with medical care in OAB patients as well as treatment continuation.

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