Prefecture Level Research Articles

How Does Urbanization Affect Carbon Emission Performance? Evidence from 282 Cities in China

Improving carbon emission performance (CEP) is the key to realizing the goal of “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality” for China. Using a panel dataset of 282 cities at prefecture level and above in China from 2003 to 2017, this study employs the Global Malmquist–Luenberger (GML) index to measure CEP. Moreover, this study investigates the effect and transmission mechanisms of urbanization on CEP based on the extended STIRPAT model. The results show a significant positive “U-shaped” relationship between urbanization and CEP. When urbanization exceeds the inflection point, urbanization is conducive to improve CEP in Chinese cities. The mechanism analysis illustrates that human capital has a positive impact on CEP, while technological innovation inhibits it. The findings of this study can provide a scientific basis for local governments to formulate different strategies to improve China’s high-quality development through human capital accumulation and low cost and scale of low-carbon technologies.

Does expansion of college education benefit urban entrepreneurship and innovation in China?

It is important to determine whether China's unprecedented expansion of college education (ECE) since 1999 has made a significant impact on the urban entrepreneurship and innovation (E&I). Using the data of 284 cities at the prefecture level and above from 2000 to 2020, this study empirically identifies the average treatment effect (ATE) of China's ECE on the urban E&I with its spatial spillover and explores two mediating channels (i.e., talent accumulation, and labor misallocation) to reveal how China's ECE impacts urban E&I. The results verify that with strong significance and robustness, the ECE for either undergraduates or master's students wholly matter for the E&I of cities, especially cities located in eastern or northeast economic zone，cities with a population less than 5 million or the ones without “Mass Innovation and Entrepreneurship Demonstration Bases”. Meanwhile, both the “Matthew effect” and the spatially “beggar-thy-neighbor” of ATE induced by the ECE are also be confirmed. Arguably, the China's ECE contributes either more talents accumulation or less labor misallocation, thereby furtherly boosting urban E&I. Above results were beneficial, especially at the decision-making for the developing countries to promote urban innovation and entrepreneurship under the scenario of college enrollment expansion.

Diagnostic delay, treatment duration and outcomes since the implementation of integrated model of tuberculosis control and their associated factors in a county in East China

ObjectiveThis study assesses the diagnostic delay, treatment duration and treatment outcomes of tuberculosis (TB) patients since the implementation of the integrated model of TB control in a county in eastern China. It further identifies factors associated with diagnostic delay and treatment duration in the integrated model.MethodsWe collected data through the Chinese Tuberculosis Information Management System (TBIMS) for Cangnan County in Zhejiang Province. Chi-square and Mann-Whitney tests were adopted to identify factors associated with duration of treatment and treatment delay for TB patients within the integrated model. Multiple regression analysis was subsequently performed to confirm the identified factors.ResultsIn the integrated model from 2012 to 2018, the median health system delay was maintained at 1 day, and the median patient delay decreased from 14 to 9 days and the median total delay decreased from 15 to 11 days. In addition, the proportion of patients who experienced patient delay > 14 days and total delay > 28 days decreased from 49% to 35% and from 32% to 29% respectively. However, the proportion of patients who had health system delay > 14 days increased from 0.2% to 13% from 2012 to 2018. The median treatment duration increased from 199 to 366 days and the number of TB patients lost to follow-up showed an overall upward trend from 2012 to 2018. The multivariable regression analysis indicated that migrant TB patients and TB patients initially diagnosed in hospitals at the prefectural level and above tended to experience total delay > 28 days (p < 0.001). Linear regression analysis confirmed that new TB patients>60 years tended to have longer treatment duration (p < 0.05).ConclusionsWhile our study may suggest the potential of the integrated model in early detection and diagnosis of TB, it also suggests the importance of strengthening supervision and management of designated hospitals to optimize the treatment duration and improve retention of patients in TB care. Enhancing health education for TB patients, especially amongst migrant patients, and training in TB identification and referral for non-TB doctors are also key for early TB detection and diagnosis in the integrated model.

Cost-effective priorities for prefectural biodiversity and ecosystem service conservation planning on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Biodiversity and ecosystem services are seriously threatened by human activities, and there have been calls for the expansion of protected areas (PAs) to mitigate this situation. Currently, there is an urgent need to establish new PA cost-effectively from concentrating on biodiversity to including the provision of ecosystem services. Hence, a prefectural evaluation was conducted across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) to quantify endangered species habitat provision and three key ecosystem services to identify conservation priority zones (CPZs), which were then combined with low human footprint zones to determine cost–effective zones (CEZs). A scenario simulation, which contains conservative, moderate, and ambitious targets, was further proposed to conserve more CEZs for PA design. We found that biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human footprints varied significantly among the different taxonomic groups. CPZs and CEZs cover 33 and 28 % of the QTP, respectively, including almost all forest areas, and near medium and high elevations (approximately 3000 ∼ 4700 m). In comparison with existing PAs systems, the new PAs system is considering cost-effective in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem services, increasing 42–60 %, 32–46 %, and 62–69 %, and 47–62 % of the important habitats that serve mammals, birds, amphibians, and plants, respectively, and promoting 48–66 % carbon service, 37–54 % soil retention, and 22–37 % water yield. More importantly, it reduces conflict with the human footprint by up to 22 %. Moreover, the conservative, moderate, and ambitious targets conserved 44, 48, and 53 % of the QTP, respectively. These three targets were set for each prefecture and prefectural–level city with spatially specific CEZs recognized, providing some implications on prefectural PAs priorities for policymakers.

Sequential data-driven carbon peaking path simulation research of the Yangtze River Delta urban agglomeration based on semantic mining and heuristic algorithm optimization

In this paper, 41 prefecture level cities in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) are selected as the research objects. Based on the semantic mining model, the policy data information from three dimensions namely national, provincial and municipal levels is integrated to build data-driven multiple scenarios. Then the long short-term memory neural network optimized by particle swarm optimization (PSO-LSTM) is further used to predict the peaking time of the YRD urban agglomeration under multiple scenarios. The results show that the YRD urban agglomeration as a whole can achieve carbon peaking on time under all three simulation paths, but the peaking situation of specific cities within the region will be significantly different due to differentiated policy orientations. Under the business as usual scenario, some cities in the north of the region cannot achieve carbon peaking by 2030. Under the stable growth scenario, more cities cannot achieve carbon peaking on time. However, under the low carbon scenario, all cities within the region can achieve carbon peaking by 2030. Therefore, when exploring effective carbon peaking paths, adopting more stringent policies and measures to limit carbon emissions can help achieve the regional carbon peaking goal earlier, ensure that all cities within the region can achieve carbon peaking on time, and can also narrow the gap between cities within the region in terms of peaking time. This paper explores a new scenario analysis parameter setting and carbon emission prediction method, which overcomes the subjectivity of current scenario analysis research in parameter setting to a certain extent, and also provides a scientific reference for predicting the diversified development trend of carbon emission.

Inspiration or perspiration: Diffusion of China's low-carbon city pilot policies nationwide

Low-carbon city pilot policy is critical for building a responsible government and achieving modernized urban governance in China. To further promote the full implementation of low-carbon city pilot policy, it is highly necessary to clarify the spatial-temporal diffusion process and influencing mechanism of the pilot policy. By taking 277 cities at the prefecture level and above as examples, this study introduces the perspective of dynamic process, and proposes the theoretical hypothesis of policy diffusion based on the analytical framework of “demand driving-pressure response-efficiency measurement”. The results demonstrate that 1) the diffusion of low-carbon city policy in China temporally shows an overall upward trend, but policy diffusion block, deviation, and variation are likely to occur during the process, and it spatially shows obvious adjacency effect, ripple effect, and hierarchical characteristics. 2) The logic for the “demand driving-pressure response-efficiency measurement” analytical framework has an important impact on the diffusion of low-carbon city pilot policies. Among them, the level of science and technology investment has a greater impact on the pilot policies of low-carbon cities. On average, each percentage of increase in the level of science and technology investment will increase the advantage for cities in adopting low-carbon policies by 404788.3%. 3) In the analysis of different stages and regions, each logical variable affects the adoption of low-carbon policies to varying degrees. In terms of different stages, the pressure response logical variable and efficiency consideration logical variable have the most and least significant effect on the adoption of low-carbon policies, respectively. In terms of different regions, the demand driven logic and pressure response logic variables have a greater impact on the central and western regions than on the eastern region. Here, we propose the following suggestions: for cities with different actual needs, the central and local governments should correctly grasp the time node of low-carbon city pilot according to local conditions; it is necessary to reconstruct the assessment system of low-carbon policies, and establish a policy reward and punishment mechanism of combining leniency and tightness in different regions; and pilot cities should establish practical programs with operability and implementation value.

The unintended economic impact of high-speed rail on China's non-core cities: A spatial-difference-in-differences analysis

China's large-scale high-speed rail (HSR) construction has raised heated debates worldwide. Differing from previous research on metropolitan areas, this study examines on the economic impacts on periphery cities connected by HSR lines. Using a unique panel dataset of 237 Chinese non-core cities at the prefecture level spanning from 2002 to 2016, this study adopts a spatial difference-in-differences model to investigate the impact of HSR on service industry output. The estimation results suggest that the operation of HSR has a significant negative impact on service industry output of non-core cities, confirming the existence of a siphoning effect of HSR. Such negative impact varies with the profile of the non-core cities. HSR-connected non-core cities in the relatively well-developed coastal region, medium-sized and located within half-an-hour's travel time to mega cities tended to be associated with the most pronounced reductions. These findings provide important implications to the Chinese government and could be cogent for those planning or constructing HSR lines in other countries, given the numerous ongoing HSR initiatives around the globe.

Can China’s vehicular emissions regulation reduce air pollution?—a quasi-natural experiment based on the latest National Vehicular Emissions Standard (stage-VI)

The existing evidence on the environmental effects of vehicular emissions regulation almost comes from developed countries, but the effectiveness of this policy tool in developing countries, especially in China, remains unclear. This study, for the first time, examined the mitigating effects of China’s vehicular emissions regulation on air pollution at the prefecture level cities, by using the latest implementation of China’s National Vehicular Emissions Standard VI (CHINA-VI) as a quasi-natural experimental process of policy shocks. To this end, monthly data from 2018 to 2020 was applied to construct a difference-in-differences (DID) model. The results showed that pilot cities’ air quality index (AQI) significantly decreased by 4.74 compared to non-pilot cities after the implementation of CHINA-VI. Also, the concentration of PM2.5, PM10, and O3 has decreased by 3.6 μg∕m3, 6.4 μg∕m3, and 3.0 μg∕m3, respectively, which means the new China’s vehicular emissions regulation has comprehensively improved air quality. The findings are still valid after a series of robustness tests using different estimation methods such as PSM-DID and IV-2SLS. In addition, we also found heterogeneity in the environmental performance of CHINA-VI across cities. Specifically, cities with lower levels of green finance development and public environmental concern showed a greater emissions reduction effect, but smart cities showed a greater emissions reduction effect than non-smart cities.

A network system for the prevention and treatment of mushroom poisoning in Chuxiong Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China: implementation and assessment

BackgroundMushroom poisoning is a major public health issue in China. The integration of medical resources from different institutes of different levels is crucial in reducing the harm of mushroom poisoning. However, few studies have provided comprehensive implementation procedures and postimplementation effectiveness evaluations. To reduce the harm caused by mushroom poisoning, a network system for the prevention and treatment of mushroom poisoning (NSPTMP) was established in Chuxiong, Yunnan Province, a high-risk area for mushroom poisoning.MethodsThe NSPTMP consists of three types of institutions, namely, centers for disease prevention, hospitals, and health administration departments, with each kind of institution comprising prefecture, county/city, town, and village levels. After three years of implementation, the network was evaluated by comparing the indices before and after network implementation using data from the “Foodborne Disease Outbreak Surveillance System” and 17 hospitals in Chuxiong. The indices included the fatalities caused by mushroom poisoning, the composition ratios of different types of mushrooms for both outpatients and inpatients and the hospitalization rates.ResultsCompared to the average fatality rate of mushroom poisoning from 2015 to 2017, the average fatality rate from 2018 to 2020 significantly decreased from 0.57 to 0.06% (P < 0.001). Regarding the poisonous genus containing lethal mushrooms, the outpatient and inpatient composition ratios significantly decreased for Amanita (9.36–2.91% and 57.23–17.68%, respectively) and Russula (15.27–8.41%) (P < 0.05). Regarding poisonous mushrooms that caused mild symptoms, the outpatient and inpatient composition ratios significantly increased for Scleroderma (5.13–13.90% and 2.89–18.90%, respectively) and Boletaceae (19.08–31.71%) (P < 0.05), and the hospitalization rates significantly increased for Scleroderma (6.33–18.02%) and Boletaceae (5.65–12.71%) (P < 0.05).ConclusionsThese findings suggest that the NSPTMP effectively reduced the harm caused by mushroom poisoning. In addition to the integration of medical resources, the development of poisonous mushroom identification, hierarchical treatment systems in hospitals, public education, and professional training also played important roles in improving the system’s effectiveness. The establishment and evaluation of the NSPTMP in Chuxiong Prefecture can provide valuable insights and serve as a model for other regions facing similar challenges in managing mushroom poisoning.

Higher participation rates for specific health checkups are associated with a lower incidence of treated ESKD in Japan.

A Japanese cohort study previously reported that not attending health checkups was associated with an increased risk of treated end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). The present study aimed to examine this association at the prefecture level. We conducted an ecological study of all prefectures in Japan (n = 47) using five sources of nationwide open data. We explored associations of participation rates for Specific Health Checkups (SHC participation rates), the estimated prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD), and the ratio of nephrology specialists for each prefecture with prefecture-specific standardized incidence rates (SIRs) of treated ESKD using structural equation modeling. Prefecture-specific SHC participation rates ranged from 44.2% to 65.9%, and were negatively correlated with prefecture-specific SIRs and prevalence of CKD, and positively correlated with the ratio of nephrology specialists. SHC participation rates had significant negative effects on prefecture-specific SIRs (standardized estimate (β) = -0.38, p = 0.01) and prefecture-specific prevalence of CKD (β = -0.32, p = 0.02). Through SHC participation rates, the ratio of nephrology specialists had a significant indirect negative effect on prefecture-specific SIRs (β= -0.14, p = 0.02). The model fitted the data well and explained 14% of the variance in SIRs. Our findings support the importance of increasing SHC participation rates at the population level and may encourage people to undergo health checkups.

Analysis on the vaccination coverage of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in China from 2017 to 2021

Objective: To explore the vaccination coverage of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) in China from 2017 to 2021. Methods: Using the reported number of PCV13 administrated doses from 2017 to 2021 and the population data from 31 provinces in China, which were collected by the Immunization Program Information System and summarized data at different levels (prefecture, provincial, and national). Collecting batch release data of PCV13 during the same period through the official website of the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control. The average coverage level of PCV13 was calculated by comparing the number of PCV13 vaccinations reported annually to the number of births in that year, and the spatial auto-correlation analysis was conducted in 2021 at the prefecture level. The coverage of PCV13 vaccination was estimated by the total vaccine doses administered each year divided by the number of newborn in the year, as of the administrated dose number per 100 people. Results: From March 2017 to December 2020, the total batch release of PCV13 was 20.06 million, with a total of 71.54, 384.75, 475.45, and 10.8886 million doses each year. During the same period, PCV13 reported doses were 20.2369 million and the vaccination doses from 2017 to 2021 were 4.08, 170.46, 407.52, 599.77, and 8.4185 million doses, respectively. From 2017 to 2021, the ratio of PCV13 doses administrated per 100 infants in each year was 0.25, 10.26, 23.81, 38.16, and 69.90 doses per 100 people, respectively. The range of the ratio in each province increased from 3.85 doses in 2017 to 264.41 doses per 100 people in 2021. The spatial auto-correlation analysis results showed that based on prefecture-level cities, there was spatial clustering in a certain area of PCV13 coverage from 2017 to 2021, and the spatial correlation in 2021 was the highest. The hotspot analysis showed that the hotspot areas with high coverage levels of PCV13 were concentrated in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Fujian and their surrounding areas. The cold spots with low vaccine coverage were concentrated in Yunnan, Qinghai, Tibet, and their surrounding areas. Conclusion: The average coverage level of PCV13 is low in China with significant regional differences.

New evidence of high-speed rail promoting green economic growth in the Yangtze River Economic Belt: empirical analysis based on difference-in-differences.

The Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) is an important ecological barrier in China. From new perspectives, this paper explores the mechanism of high-speed rail (HSR) for green economic growth (GEG) in the YREB. This paper constructs 108 city panel data at the prefecture level and above in the YREB from 2003 to 2020. Difference-in-differences (DID) is adopted to research the impact of high-speed rail on GEG in the YREB. (1) HSR has significantly improved the GEG of the YREB. The effect value is 4.88%. The parallel trend test suggests that DID is valid. A time-varying instrumental variable combining average altitude and historical railway network is constructed for the endogeneity test. (2) Propensity score matching (PSM) and DID (PSM-DID) were employed to test the sample selection bias. (3) A battery of robustness tests, including the placebo test, variable replacement, and policy interference exclusion, is carried out. The conclusions are still valid. (4) HSR can promote the GEG of the YREB by encouraging technological innovation, industrial upgrading, and increasing ecological efficiency. The contribution rate from the largest to the smallest is ecological efficiency, industrial upgrading, and technological innovation. (5) Heterogeneity analysis shows that HSR has played an important role in encouraging GEG in the eastern, peripheral cities, and the downstream cities of the YREB. Finally, this paper puts forward policy suggestions for promoting GEG in the YREB.

The Impact of Haze Pollution on Chinese Local Government Debt

Can haze pollution effectively influence local government debt? This study uses data from 285 Chinese cities at the prefecture level or above from 2006 to 2019, and uses annual average sunny days as an instrumental variable to systematically analyze the impact of haze pollution on local government debt from both theoretical and empirical perspectives. The main conclusions of this study are: (1) there is a positive correlation between haze pollution and local government debt; (2) sub-sample analysis suggests that the impact of haze pollution on local government debt shows heterogeneous effects in different cities and at different times; and (3) the analysis of the relevant mechanism suggests that haze pollution can promote local government debt through industrial structure upgrading and green technology innovation. The research conclusions provide policy references for Chinese local governments to effectively respond to haze pollution.

Japan's PrivacyMark system as a good illustration of certification mechanisms

Privacy and data protection certification mechanisms have increasingly been attracting great interest. Japan was one of the first countries in the world to introduce privacy and data protection certification mechanisms and privacy and data protection seals and marks. At the prefectural level, this began in 1990, and at the national level, in 1998. JIPDEC (then the Japan Information Processing and Development Corporation) launched the PrivacyMark system in April 1998. Applications from private enterprises are assessed by JIPDEC or one of 19 designated assessment bodies. There were 1,380 registered assessors (391 lead assessors, 282 assessors and 707 provisional assessors) as at 1st April, 2022. There are three assessor training bodies. The number of registered entities has been increasing year by year, and as at 10th May, 2023, the number of PrivacyMark Entities is 17,447.

How does digital infrastructure break the resource curse of cities? Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China

Digital infrastructure plays a pivotal role in optimizing resource allocation and fostering sustainable economic development. The question of whether digital infrastructure can break the "resource curse" in cities has been a subject of debate, with a dearth of substantial empirical evidence. Based on data from 2010 to 2021 at the prefecture level, this study employs an asymptotic difference-in-difference model to thoroughly investigate the effectiveness and underlying mechanisms of digital infrastructure, particularly in relation to the "Broadband China" strategy, in breaking the resource curse. Our findings reveal that digital infrastructure has a significant impact on mitigating the resource curse in cities. Mechanism testing demonstrates that digital infrastructure exerts a restraining effect on the "resource curse" by enhancing green innovation technologies, promoting the development of the manufacturing industry, and elevating entrepreneurial levels. Notably, digital infrastructure has a more pronounced effect in mitigating the "resource curse" in the central and western regions as well as resource-cursed areas. Furthermore, it's worth noting that the higher the level of marketization in a region, the more pronounced the effect of digital infrastructure in alleviating the "resource curse." Consequently, it is imperative to expedite the promotion of digital infrastructure construction, optimize market management mechanisms, and fully harness the advantages of digital infrastructure to facilitate the transformation of resource-based cities.

Spatial Spillover Effect and Nonlinear Relationship between Factor Misallocation and High-Quality Agricultural Economy: Evidence from 154 Cities in Major Grain-Producing Areas of China

Promoting the high-quality development of agriculture is an inevitable requirement toward realizing the transformation from a large agricultural country to a powerful one, and optimizing factor allocation is a prerequisite. In this paper, we use spatial econometric models to analyze the impact of factor misallocation on the high-quality development of the agricultural economy based on panel data from 154 prefecture-level cities in major grain-producing regions from 2004 to 2020. We found that factor misallocation was relatively low at the prefecture level, with an average annual decrease of 0.82 percent, compared to an average annual increase of 1.29 percent for the high-quality development of the agricultural economy. Factor misallocation inhibited improvements in high-quality agricultural economic development in adjacent cities. This conclusion remained stable after a series of tests, and the inhibitory effect exhibited significant spatiotemporal heterogeneity due to differences in geographical location, developmental level, and factor allocation methods. At the same time, a mechanism test demonstrated a continuous weakening of the inhibitory effect, accompanied by the optimization and upgrading of the agricultural industry, as well as an improvement in agricultural scientific and technological progress. In addition, nonlinear tests demonstrated that the impact of factor misallocation on the high-quality development of the agricultural economy exhibits significant nonlinear features as agricultural science and technology advances.

Research on the relationship between population distribution pattern and urban industrial facility agglomeration in China

Investigating the impact of industrial facility agglomeration on population distribution provides valuable insights for advancing urban and regional development, as well as aiding in planning, forecasting, and achieving regional equilibrium. However, there remains a notable gap in understanding the influence and mechanisms of industrial facility agglomeration on population distribution, particularly when considering different industry types and diverse regions comprehensively. Additionally, conventional panel data used to assess industrial facility agglomeration are constrained by limitations in coverage and timeliness. In contrast, Point of Interest (POI) data offers a superior solution with its real-time, fine-grained, and innovative advantages. This study utilizes real-time and fine-grained POI data in conjunction with the LandScan population raster dataset to precisely assess industrial facility agglomeration in 352 administrative units at the prefecture level and above in China. The key findings of this research can be summarized as follows: (1) factors influencing urban population growth rates have evolved, with increased significance attributed to Government Agencies and Social Groups, alongside a consistent impact from Science, Education, and Cultural Services. (2) The correlation between industrial facility agglomerations and population growth rates displayed linear relationships in 2015 and 2021, with varying strengths and directional shifts. (3) Regional disparities in industrial facility agglomeration patterns underscore the necessity for customized strategies to optimize industrial structures, foster innovation-driven sectors, and promote sustainable population growth.

Environmental Regulation and Spatial Spillover Effect of Green Technology Innovation: An Empirical Study on the Spatial Durbin Model

This study empirically examined the spatial spillover effect of various environmental regulations on green technology innovation using panel data from 284 cities at the prefecture level in China between 2007 and 2019. A geographical–economic spatial weight matrix was constructed, and the spatial Durbin model was employed to identify the specific characteristics of this spillover effect. The findings indicate that the spatial spillover effect of green technology innovation primarily occurs through geographical transmission. However, there is no significant spatial autocorrelation when using the economic distance weight matrix. Various types of environmental regulations influence the spatial spillover effect of green technology innovation in distinct ways. Specifically, market-motivated environmental regulation exhibits a U-shaped relationship with the spatial spillover effect, while command-controlled environmental regulation demonstrates an inverted U-shaped relationship, suggesting a complementary effect. Additional research shows that the upgrading of industrial structure acts as a mediator between command-controlled environmental regulation and the spatial spillover effect of green technology innovation. Government departments should comprehensively coordinate market-motivated environmental regulation and command-controlled environmental regulation, accurately assess the intensity of command-controlled measures, and prevent the migration of green technology innovation elements caused by excessive regulatory measures within enterprises.

Extracting and Evaluating Urban Entities in China from 2000 to 2020 Based on SNPP-VIIRS-like Data

It is crucial to evaluate the expansion of urban entities to implement sustainable urban planning strategies in China. Thus, this study attempted to extract and evaluate the growth of urban entities 270 prefecture cities in mainland China (2000–2020) using a novel approach based on consistent night light images. After the urban entities were extracted, a rationality assessment was carried out to compare the derived urban entities with the LandScan population product, Landsat, and road network results. Additionally, the results were compared with other physical extent products, such as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) and urban built-up area products (HE) products. According to the findings, the urban entities were basically consistent with the LandScan, road network, and HE and MODIS products. However, the urban entities more accurately reflected the concentration of human activities than did the impervious extents of the MODIS and HE products. At the prefecture levels, the area of urban entities increased from 8082 km2 to 74,417 km2 between 2000 and 2020, showing an average growth rate of 10.8% over those twenty years. As a reliable supplementary resource and guide for urban mapping, this research will inform new research on the K-means algorithm and on variations in NTL data brightness threshold dynamics at regional and global scales.

Regional variation in pre-dialysis blood pressure and its association with cardiovascular mortality rates in Japanese patients undergoing dialysis.

Adequate blood pressure (BP) management poses a significant challenge in improving the prognosis of patients undergoing dialysis. We aimed to investigate the relationship between pre-dialysis systolic blood pressure (SBP) and underlying disease in Japanese patients undergoing dialysis, based on prefectural location, and assess the association between pre-dialysis SBP and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality rate. We extracted the basic information of 336,182 patients who were undergoing dialysis in 2021 from the Web-based Analysis of Dialysis Data Archives database. Data on average pre-dialysis SBP were analyzed according to sex, prefectural location, and diabetic status, and the CVD mortality rate for each prefecture was calculated. The mean pre-dialysis SBP of the patients (males, 66.3%; mean age, 69.7 ± 12.5 years) was 151.9 ± 24.7 mmHg. Overall, 133,037 patients had underlying diabetic kidney disease (DKD). The patients with DKD were younger, had a shorter dialysis duration, and a higher pre-dialysis SBP than those with non-DKD comorbidities. The prefecture-based mean pre-dialysis SBP values were all higher than 140 mmHg. At the prefectural level, CVD mortality rate was positively correlated with pre-dialysis SBP (r = 0.3127, p = 0.0324) and diastolic blood pressure (r = 0.3378, p = 0.0202) among female patients. At the prefectural level, pre-dialysis SBP is >140 mmHg in Japanese patients undergoing dialysis, especially in those with DKD. The positive association between pre-dialysis SBP and CVD mortality rate suggests that optimal BP management at the prefectural level may reduce CVD mortality rates. At the prefectural level, pre-dialysis SBP is higher than 140 mmHg in Japanese patients undergoing dialysis, especially higher in those with DKD.