title: Persistent prevalence of polycythemia among evacuees 4 years after the Great East Japan Earthquake: A follow-up study.
abstract: We previously reported that the lifestyle of evacuees significantly increased the prevalence of polycythemia compared with non-evacuees at an average of 1.6 years (2011-2012) from the previous annual health checkup before the Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE). Here we analyzed how the prolonged evacuation affected the prevalence of polycythemia an average of 2.5 years (2013-2014) after the previous data. Subjects were individuals aged 40-90 years living in the vicinity of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Fukushima Prefecture who had attended the annual health checkups since 2008. The prevalence of polycythemia and changes in its defining factors of red blood cell count (RBC), hemoglobin (Hb) level, hematocrit (Ht) level were compared between before and after the GEJE in 7713 individuals (3349 men and 4364 women) receiving follow-up examinations both 2011-2012 and 2013-2014. RBC, Hb levels and Ht levels in 2011-2012 were higher among evacuees than non-evacuees in both men and women. However, all levels in 2013-2014 were on the decline from those in 2011-2012. On the other hand, among evacuees, Hb and Ht levels continued to be higher than before the GEJE in both men and women evacuees. The prevalence of polycythemia, which was diagnosed if one of the defining factors was beyond the standard value, was significantly higher among evacuees than non-evacuees regardless of the presence or the absence of overweight/obesity, smoking, and hypertension. Therefore, prolonged evacuation is a cause of polycythemia even 3 to 4 years after the GEJE and regular health management of evacuees is important.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Radiation Life Sciences, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sakai
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Epidemiology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Hironori
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakano
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Epidemiology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohira
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Pediatrics, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Mitsuaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hosoya
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Public Health, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Seiji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yasumura
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Radiation Health Management, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ohtsuru
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Nephrology, Hypertension, Diabetology, and Endocrinology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Satoh
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Pediatrics, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Yukihiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kawasaki
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Cardiology and Hematology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Hitoshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Neurology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sugiura
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shishido
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Nephrology, Hypertension, Diabetology, and Endocrinology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshimitsu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hayashi
authors.affiliation: Information Management and Statistics Office, Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideto
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Public Health, Dokkyo Medical University School of Medicine, Shimotsuga, Japan.
authors.forename: Gen
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kobashi
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Epidemiology, Radiation Effects Research Foundation, Hiroshima, Japan.
authors.forename: Kotaro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ozasa
authors.affiliation: Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Shigeatsu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.affiliation: Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Hitoshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ohto
authors.affiliation: Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Masafumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abe
keywords: Evacuee; Lifestyle-related disease; Polycythemia; The Fukushima Health Management Survey; The Great East Japan Earthquake