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Children Disability Health Japan

Japan team creates device to measure dizziness symptoms in children

Graduate school students in Japan have developed a device to easily measure symptoms of orthostatic dysregulation, a disorder common among children that causes them physical difficulty getting up in the morning and dizziness when standing.
The team at Nagoya University’s graduate school hopes the device will help sufferers communicate their symptoms clearly when they need to skip classes due to their condition.

ALS Assisted Dying Euthanasia Japan Podcast Yuri Hayashi

Top court rejects appeal by doctor over euthanasia of ALS patient [Podcast Episode]

Japan’s top court rejected an appeal on Thursday 12th June by a doctor convicted of consensually killing a woman, Yuri Hayashi, 51, who had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a rare neurological disease also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in 2019 in Kyoto, western Japan, finalizing his 18-year prison sentence. The Supreme Court’s Second Petty Bench rejected arguments that found Yoshikazu Okubo, 47, guilty of aiding another’s suicide would violate the constitutional right to self-determination.

Dementia Health Japan

Middle- to Old-Age Depression Likely Tied to Dementia

Abnormal tau protein causing dementia accumulates in the brains of middle- to old-age patients with mood disorders, such as depression, at a higher rate than in their healthy counterparts, a study has found. The study, led by Japan’s National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, or QST, is expected to lead to early detection and treatments based on objective diagnoses of dementia, because the cognitive functions of participating patients were normal at the time of analysis.

Assassination of Shinzo Abe Japan

Trial of Ex-PM Abe’s Assassin Set to begin on October 28

The first court hearing of the lay judge trial of Tetsuya Yamagami, who was indicted for the fatal shooting of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July 2022, will be held from 2 p.m. on Oct. 28, Nara District Court said Friday. 
   Yamagami, 44, has been charged with murdering Abe and violating the firearms and swords control law. He is expected to admit that he had an intention to kill Abe, according to informed sources.

ALS Assisted Dying Euthanasia Japan Yuri Hayashi

Japan’s Top court rejects appeal by doctor over euthanasia of ALS patient

Japan’s top court has rejected an appeal by a doctor convicted of consensually killing a woman, Yuri Hayashi, 51, who had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a rare neurological disease also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in 2019 in Kyoto, western Japan, finalizing his 18-year prison sentence. The Supreme Court’s Second Petty Bench rejected arguments that found Yoshikazu Okubo, 47, guilty of aiding another’s suicide would violate the constitutional right to self-determination.

Disability Hospitals Human Rights Immigration Japan Medical

Japan to Tighten Immigration Rules Over Unpaid Medical and Insurance Bills

The Japanese government plans to introduce a “rigorous screening” system by June 2027 that will deny visa renewals to mid- and long-term foreign residents who have failed to pay medical expenses, taxes, or social insurance premiums. The move comes as the Cabinet prepares to approve policies aimed at creating “an orderly and harmonious society with foreign nationals.” A 2024 health ministry survey found that 65.3% of medical institutions accepting foreign patients had unpaid bills, with foreign nationals accounting for 29.3% of debtors but just 1.4% of the total amount owed. Despite these concerns, officials acknowledge there is no nationwide data on insurance payment compliance by foreign residents.

Disability Forced Sterilization Japan

Japanese man tells U.N. forced sterilization at 14 ruined his life

A child victim of forced sterilization under Japan’s now-defunct eugenics protection law said the surgery ruined his life, as he described his experiences at a U.N. event on disability rights Tuesday in New York. “Because of the surgery, my life was thrown completely off course,” the 82-year-old man, who uses the pseudonym Saburo Kita, said at the event linked to a United Nations conference on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Japan Pregnancy Welfare

Japan to Study Ways to Save More Pregnant Women in Trouble

Japan’s Children and Families Agency will examine ways to have more pregnant women under difficult conditions, such as abuse and poverty, benefit from the agency’s program to provide them with a safe childbirth environment. Assistance seekers include youngsters who ran away from home due to bad relations with their parents, or other guardians, and those fleeing their partners’ violence, agency officials said.