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Outpatient rehabilitation for an older couple in a repopulated village 10 years after the Fukushima nuclear disaster:An embedded case study

Yuta Saito, Sora Sato, Yoshitaka Nishikawa, Fumiya Oguro, Nobuaki Moriyama, Keiichiro Sato, Yurie Kobashi, Toyoaki Sawano, Akihiko Ozaki, Takeo Nakayama, Masaharu Tsubokura, Seiji Yasumura, Shohei Sakai

Author information

  • Yuta Saito

    Department of Rehabilitation, Hirata Central Hospital

  • Sora Sato

    Hirata Rehabilitation Care Center

  • Yoshitaka Nishikawa

    Department of Internal Medicine, Hirata Central Hospital
    Department of Internal Medicine, Kawauchi Village National Health Insurance Clinic
    Department of Health Informatics, Kyoto University School of Public Health

  • Fumiya Oguro

    Department of Internal Medicine, Hirata Central Hospital

  • Nobuaki Moriyama

    Department of Public Health, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine

  • Keiichiro Sato

    Seireikai Home Nursing Station Hirata

  • Yurie Kobashi

    Department of Internal Medicine, Hirata Central Hospital
    Department of Radiation Health Management, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine

  • Toyoaki Sawano

    Department of Radiation Health Management, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine
    Department of Surgery, Jyoban Hospital of Tokiwa Foundation

  • Akihiko Ozaki

    Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Jyoban Hospital of Tokiwa Foundation

  • Takeo Nakayama

    Department of Health Informatics, Kyoto University School of Public Health

  • Masaharu Tsubokura

    Department of Internal Medicine, Hirata Central Hospital
    Department of Radiation Health Management, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine

  • Seiji Yasumura

    Department of Public Health, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine

  • Shohei Sakai

    Hirata Rehabilitation Care Center

Abstract

Background


Little information is available on the role of community-based rehabilitation after a nuclear disaster. Here, we report the case of an older couple living in an area repopulated after the Fukushima nuclear disaster of 2011 who received outpatient rehabilitation.


Case presentation


An 84-year-old woman underwent total hip arthroplasty (THA) after she fell and sustained a trochanteric fracture while caring for her husband with Alzheimer's disease. The 85-year-old husband experienced worsening behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) following his wife's hospitalization. The couple received rehabilitation at an outpatient facility in a nearby village using a shuttle service. The woman’s postoperative anxiety was relieved and her physical function improved. Moreover, the husband's BPSD symptoms decreased.


Conclusion


A wife and husband showed improvement in physical function after THA and alleviation of BPSD, respectively, following rehabilitation. In post-disaster, resource-scarce areas, older adults may benefit from utilizing the outpatient rehabilitation services available in the surrounding area.

The cintent of reseach paper

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