Objectives Group living is an approach that can create small, homelike environments in traditional nursing homes in Japan. The aim of the present study was to examine quality of life (QOL) of residents with dementia in group-living situations.
Methods The group-living group consisted of facilities that formed residential units. Each unit had a common area and stable staff assignments. The control group consisted of facilities that did not form residential units. The quality of life instrument for Japanese elderly with dementia (QLDJ) scale was used to rate QOL by direct care workers of 616 residents with dementia from 173 facilities in the group-living group and 750 residents from 174 facilities in the control group. QOL was based on the following subscales: interacting with surroundings; expressing oneself; and experiencing minimal negative behavior.
Results Multilevel regression analyses demonstrated a significantly greater QOL with respect to interacting with surroundings, expressing oneself, and experiencing minimal negative behavior for residents with dementia in the group-living group compared to the control group, as measured by the QLDJ. The total QLDJ score was also significantly higher for the group-living group.
Conclusion The results suggest improved QOL of residents with dementia under group-living situations. Future studies should examine the effect of group-living on QOL of residents with dementia using a cohort design, following residents longitudinally from admission.

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Objectives The objective of this study was to shed light on (1) the extent to which primary caregivers of patients with brain damage feel nursing-care burden, and (2) the relationship between such burden and other attributes in a cross-sectional manner.
Methods We conducted an anonymous questionnaire survey of primary caregivers of young patients with brain damage. The survey was conducted between November 2008 and March 2009. The number of valid responses was 53 (response rate 56%). To assess burden of caregivers, we used the Short Version of the Japanese Version of the Zarit Caregiver Burden Interview (J–ZBI_8).
Results With regard to burden felt by primary caregivers “concerns about excretion” and “problematic behavior” were stressed.
  Individuals who were less than 50 in age most strongly felt burden. Moreover, burden was greater for spouses than for guardians.
Conclusion In order to reduce the burden of caregivers in case of primary caregivers, rehabilitation concerning young patients with brain damage and efforts to enhance their capabilities are important. In addition, it is also necessary to provide social resources so that primary caregivers can rely on other persons without worry.

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Objectives To determine the prevalence of knee pain, and implementation status of health behavior for knee pain among young-old persons living in a rural area in Japan by sex, and to study related factors.
Methods An anonymous self-administered questionnaire covering demographic variables, lifestyle such as smoking, drinking, farm work, snow removal, ‘ochanomi’ (tea break with friends), hospital visits, knee pain, JKOM (Japanese knee osteoarthritis measure) and health behavior was distributed to 2,758 persons aged 65 to 74 years living in Minamiaizu town, a rural and snowy town of Fukushima Prefecture in November, 2008.
Results Valid responses were obtained from 1,415 (response rate: 51.3%). The prevalence of knee pain was 35.1%, and twice as many women as men had pain in their knees. People with knee pain had a higher body mass index, higher risk of motor deterioration, lower frequency of going out, and more hospital visits than people without knee pain. Health behavior was emphasized by 657 persons (46.3%), and the rate was higher in people with knee pain. As to companions and information source for health behaviors, ‘ochanomi’ friends were popular for women and family members for men. Walking was more common and exercise and diet were less common in men than in women. Among the women with knee pain, the implementation rate of health behavior was higher in non-smokers, farm workers, and ‘ochanomi’ participants than in others. Among men without knee pain, the implementation rate was higher in non-smokers and in people with high scores on the JKOM subscale of “pain or stiffness” and “health status”. Among women without knee pain, more people living alone and going out once or more a week focused on health behavior more than the other people.
Conclusion The prevalence of knee pain in this study was similar to that in a previous study on elderly living in a mountain area. Type, information source, companion and related factors of health behavior differed by sex and presence of knee pain; therefore, approaches for encouraging health behavior should be suited to the target population's characteristics. Many people obtain information from non-professionals, so health care workers should provide details about adequate methods for health behavior in a careful manner.

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[in Japanese]

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[in Japanese]

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