Masayuki Nara1, Shinsaku Ueda2, Masashi Aoki3, Tsutomu Tamada4, Takuhiro Yamaguchi5, Michio Hongo1. 1. Department of Comprehensive Medicine, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan. 2. Department of Thoracic Surgery, Japanese Red Cross Ishinomaki Hospital, Ishinomaki, Miyagi, Japan. 3. Department of Neurology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan. 4. Department of Respiratory Medicine, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan. 5. Division of Biostatistics, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Strong earthquakes have been reported to increase the incidence of diseases. One reason for these increases may be the stress from the poor living environment for evacuees in disaster shelters. To reduce stress, makeshift cardboard beds were introduced in shelters in the Ishinomaki region, one of the areas heavily damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake, 4 months after the earthquake. The study was performed to determine whether use of the beds offered a reduction in the disease burden. METHODS: Blood pressure and blood D-dimer values, often used as diagnostic tests for venous thrombosis, were checked. The timed Up & Go (TUG) test, which assesses functional mobility; a questionnaire survey about symptoms (cough, insomnia, and lumbago); and an SF-8 health survey, a health-related quality of life survey, were also administered before and 1 month after introducing the beds. RESULTS: Blood pressure measurements, TUG test results, and questionnaire survey scores improved significantly 1 month after the introduction of the beds. Also, evacuees with higher blood D-dimer values tended to show improvement, suggesting that the beds may have had a good effect on persons with underlying venous thrombotic disorders. CONCLUSION: Makeshift beds of cardboard could be very useful in disaster shelters.
OBJECTIVE: Strong earthquakes have been reported to increase the incidence of diseases. One reason for these increases may be the stress from the poor living environment for evacuees in disaster shelters. To reduce stress, makeshift cardboard beds were introduced in shelters in the Ishinomaki region, one of the areas heavily damaged by the Great East Japan Earthquake, 4 months after the earthquake. The study was performed to determine whether use of the beds offered a reduction in the disease burden. METHODS: Blood pressure and blood D-dimer values, often used as diagnostic tests for venous thrombosis, were checked. The timed Up & Go (TUG) test, which assesses functional mobility; a questionnaire survey about symptoms (cough, insomnia, and lumbago); and an SF-8 health survey, a health-related quality of life survey, were also administered before and 1 month after introducing the beds. RESULTS: Blood pressure measurements, TUG test results, and questionnaire survey scores improved significantly 1 month after the introduction of the beds. Also, evacuees with higher blood D-dimer values tended to show improvement, suggesting that the beds may have had a good effect on persons with underlying venous thrombotic disorders. CONCLUSION: Makeshift beds of cardboard could be very useful in disaster shelters.
Authors: Koh Mizuno; Kazue Okamoto-Mizuno; Motoko Tanabe; Katsuko Niwano Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2016-11-30 Impact factor: 3.390