Increasing BMI and waist circumference and prevalence of obesity among adults with Type 2 diabetes: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys

ObjectiveObesity remains one of the most important modifiable risk factors for the prevention of Type 2 diabetes and its related comorbid conditions. The aim of this study was to examine trends in average body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, and obesity prevalence among adults with and without Type 2 diabetes.MethodsInformation on BMI and waist circumference among 4162 adults with and 40,376 adults without Type 2 diabetes was obtained from the National Health and Examination Surveys completed during years 1976–2006. Mean BMI, waist circumference and prevalence of total obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m²) and obesity stage III (BMI ≥40 kg/m²) were determined by survey periods after adjustment for the survey period weights and age standardization to the US 2000 Census. Means and proportions between first and last survey periods were compared using Z scores.ResultsDuring this 20-year period, mean BMI increased from 29.2 kg/m² to 34.2 kg/m² among adults with Type 2 diabetes and from 25.2 kg/m² to 28.1 kg/m² among adults without diabetes (P<.0001 for both comparisons). Mean waist circumference increased substantially in all groups. Among adults with and without Type 2 diabetes, total obesity increased by 58% and 136%, respectively, while Class III obesity increased by 141% and 345%, respectively (P<.0001 for all comparisons).ConclusionsObesity prevalence is rising rapidly among adults with and without Type 2 diabetes. This has important implications for the likely growth of the population with Type 2 diabetes and diabetes related comorbid conditions.     

The association of diabetes mellitus with carotid atherosclerosis and arterial stiffness in the Corinthia study

Background and aimsEvaluation of arterial stiffness and carotid atherosclerotic burden can provide important prognostic information regarding the risk of future cardiovascular events. The aim of this study was to assess these vascular properties in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM).Methods and resultsIn the context of the observational “Corinthia” study, we analyzed 1757 participants with determined DM status. Carotid ultrasonography was performed to evaluate intima-media thickness (cIMT) and carotid plaque burden. Arterial stiffness was estimated via assessment of carotid-to-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV). Individuals with DM had increased mean cIMT, maximum cIMT, carotid plaque burden, and cfPWV compared to those without DM. After multivariable regression analysis, the presence of DM was still associated with significantly increased mean cIMT (by 0.074 mm, p = .004), maximum cIMT (by 0.134 mm, p = .007), cfPWV (by 0.929 m/s, p < .001), and a higher prevalence of carotid plaques (odds ratio 1.52, 95% confidence intervals 1.11, 2.10, p = .01). In a propensity score-matched cohort, mean cIMT, maximum cIMT, and carotid plaque burden were significantly higher in individuals with DM. Analysis according to territory of cIMT measurement displayed substantial differences in left (DM: 1.32 ± 0.78 mm vs. no DM: 1.20 ± 0.66 mm, p = .04) and right carotid bulbs (DM: 1.33 ± 0.82 mm vs. no DM: 1.18 ± 0.69 mm, p = .02) with respect to DM status while non-significant variations were observed in left (DM: 0.98 ± 0.49 mm vs. no DM: 0.91 ± 0.35 mm, p = .06) and right common carotid artery (DM: 0.95 ± 0.50 mm vs. no DM: 0.92 ± 0.40 mm, p = .36).ConclusionsDiabetes mellitus is associated with increased cfPWV and cIMT, with more pronounced lesions in the carotid bulb.     

Dietary patterns in association with the risk of elevated blood pressure,lipid profile and fasting plasma glucose among adults in Jiangsu Province of China

Background and AimsThis study aimed to identify unique dietary patterns, and to examine the correlation of dietary patterns with elevated blood pressure, lipid profile and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) among adults in Jiangsu Province of China.Methods and results4951 individuals were selected in this cross-sectional study from nutrition and health survey in Jiangsu Province in 2014. Factor analysis was used to identify the dietary patterns. Higher quartile of the cereals-seafood-dairy dietary pattern was inversely associated with high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) (composed to Q1, OR = 0.834, 95% CI: 0.700～0.993, P < 0.05) and FPG (composed to Q1, OR = 0.725, 95% CI: 0.609–0.862, P < 0.05), while higher quartile of the traditional Jiangsu dietary pattern was positively associated with low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) (composed to Q1, OR = 1.395, 95% CI: 1.067～1.825, P < 0.05) and high systolic blood pressure (SBP) (composed to Q1, OR = 1.238, 95% CI: 1.020～1.503, P < 0.05). Higher scores of the refined food-oriented dietary pattern was inversely related to high triglycerides (TG) (composed to Q1, OR = 0.665, 95% CI: 0.551～0.802, P < 0.05), but was positively related to high TC (composed to Q1, OR = 2.179, 95% CI: 1.817～2.614), high LDL (composed to Q1, OR = 2.431, 95% CI: 2.037～2.902, P < 0.05) and elevated FPG (composed to Q1, OR = 1.734, 95% CI: 1.458～2.061, P < 0.05).ConclusionDifferent structure of dietary patterns do affect the blood pressure, lipid profile and fasting plasma glucose among adults in Jiangsu Province, China.     

The association between the prognostic nutritional index and 28-day mortality among atrial fibrillation patients in China over 80 years of age

Backgrounds and aimsThe most prevalent form of cardiac rhythm abnormality among older populations is atrial fibrillation (AF). The prognostic nutritional index (PNI) is a reliable predictor of mortality in various diseases. The association between the PNI and mortality among AF patients over 80 years remains uncleared.Methods and resultsA retrospective assessment of AF cases admitted to a single cardiovascular disease unit in China between January 2015 and June 2020 was performed. The PNI at admission was defined as 10 × serum albumin (g/dL) + 0.005 × total lymphocyte count (per mm³). The association between PNI and cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related or all-cause mortality within 28 days was assessed via multivariable Cox regression. The analysis included 1141 patients. The CVD-related and all-cause mortality rates were 3.3% and 8.7%. Kaplan-Meier analyses revealed that cases with lower PNI tertiles exhibited higher all-cause mortality (T1: 7.6%; T2: 6.1%; T3: 2.4%, P < 0.001) or CVD mortality (T1: 6.3%; T2: 2.9%; T3: 0.8%, P < 0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, continuous PNI was negatively related to the hazard of all-cause mortality (HR 0.92, 95% CI 0.89, 0.96) and CVD-related mortality (HR 0.90, 95% CI 0.84, 0.95). Compared to the T1 group, patients with a higher PNI exhibited a lower risk of all-cause mortality (P for trend 0.003) and CVD-related mortality (P for trend 0.005). Among most subgroups, CVD-related and all-cause mortality decreased with elevating PNI values.ConclusionsPNI is significantly negatively correlated with CVD-related and all-cause mortality among AF cases over 80 years.     

Relationship between serum uric acid levels and different types of atrial fibrillation: An updated meta-analysis

AimIncreasing evidence supports the hypothesis that high serum uric acid (SUA) levels are related to atrial fibrillation (AF). However, the incidence of AF in patients with hyperuricemia and SUA levels in different types of AF is not entirely clear. This meta-analysis was designed to evaluate the relationship between SUA and incidence of AF, and the variation in SUA levels in different types of AF.Data synthesisRelevant reports were searched for in Embase, PubMed and the Cochrane Library. A fixed-effects model combining relative risk (RR) and the corresponding 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was used to evaluate the correlation between SUA and AF. The standardized mean differences (SMDs) of SUA values were calculated using a random-effects model to evaluate the differences in SUA levels among different types of AF.A total of 31 studies with 504,958 participants were included in this research. The results from 8 cohort studies showed that high SUA levels significantly increased the incidence of AF [RR (95% CI): 1.92 (1.68–2.20); P < 0.01]. The results from 29 studies revealed that SUA levels elevated in patients with AF [SMD (95% CI): 0.55 (0.43–0.66); P < 0.001]. Meanwhile, SUA levels in new-onset AF [SMD (95%CI): 0.24 (0.10–0.38); P = 0.001], paroxysmal AF [SMD (95%CI): 0.52 (0.33–0.72); P < 0.001] and persistent AF [SMD (95%CI): 1.23 (0.98–1.48); P < 0.001] were significantly higher than that in patients without AF.ConclusionsHigh SUA levels had an obvious correlation with the occurrence rate of AF. In addition, SUA levels were significantly different among patients with new-onset, paroxysmal and persistent AF.     

基于非下采样双树复轮廓波变换的小波纹理特征识别肺良恶性结节CT图像

目的 观察基于非下采样双树复轮廓波变换（NSDTCT）的小波纹理特征在识别肺良恶性结节CT图像中的应用价值。方法 从肺结节患者的CT图像中分别提取基于NSDTCT和基于Contourlet变换的小波纹理参数,对高维纹理参数采用单因素分析、Lasso回归等方法进行降维。对降维后的纹理参数分别构建诊断良恶性肺结节的支持向量机分类诊断模型,绘制ROC曲线,比较2种方法的诊断效能。结果 采用NSDTCT方法,基于经Lasso降维且自变量数目较少的纹理参数构建的诊断模型分类效果最好,判断良恶性肺结节的准确率为98.37%,AUC为1.00;采用Contourlet变换方法,基于全部提取纹理参数构建的模型分类效果最好,诊断准确率为56.05%,AUC为0.73;2个模型的ROC曲线的AUC差异有统计学意义（Z=6.430,P<0.001）。结论 基于NSDTCT的纹理分析方法对判断良恶性肺结节的准确性较高。     

Nurse suicide in the United States: Analysis of the Center for Disease Control 2014 National Violent Death Reporting System dataset

ObjectiveThis study explored nurse suicide in the United States.MethodsCharacteristics were compared between occupations using 2014 National Violent Death Reporting System data.ResultsFemale nurse suicides were significantly higher (11.97/100,000) than in the female population (7.58/100,000) (p < 0.001); similarly male nurses (39.8/100,000) compared to the male population (28.2/100,000) (p < 0.001). Benzodiazepines and opioids were the most commonly used substances used in clinician suicide.ConclusionThese results suggest a public health imperative for future research and development of effective preventative strategies for nurses; a largely understudied population.     

Long-term efficacy of implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy plus defibrillator for primary prevention of sudden cardiac death in patients with mild heart failure: an updated meta-analysis

Previous studies of implantable cardiac resynchronization therapy plus defibrillator (CRT-D) therapy used for primary prevention of sudden cardiac death have suggested that CRT-D therapy is less effective in patients with mild heart failure and a wide QRS complex. However, the long-term benefits are variable. We performed a meta-analysis of randomized trials identified in systematic searches of MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Database. Three studies (3858 patients) with a mean follow-up of 66 months were included. Overall, CRT-D therapy was associated with significantly lower all-cause mortality than was implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) therapy (OR, 0.78; 95 % CI, 0.63–0.96; P = 0.02; I ² = 19 %). However, the risk of cardiac mortality was comparable between two groups (OR, 0.74; 95 % CI, 0.53–1.01; P = 0.06). CRT-D treatment was associated with a significantly lower risk of hospitalization for heart failure (OR, 0.67; 95 % CI, 0.50–0.89; P = 0.005; I ² = 55 %). The composite outcome of all-cause mortality and hospitalization for heart failure was also markedly lower with CRT-D therapy than with ICD treatment alone (OR, 0.67; 95 % CI, 0.57–0.77; P < 0.0001; I ² = 0 %). CRT-D therapy decreased the long-term risk of mortality and heart failure events in patients with mild heart failure with a wide QRS complex. However, long-term risk of cardiac mortality was similar between two groups. More randomized studies are needed to confirm these findings, especially in patients with NYHA class I heart failure or patients without LBBB.     

Prenatal exposure to phthalates and neuropsychological development during childhood

There is inconsistent evidence regarding the effects of prenatal phthalate exposure on children's neuropsychological development. We evaluate the association between prenatal phthalate exposure and the cognitive, psychomotor and behavioral development of 367 children at repeated ages in a prospective birth cohort study. We measured phthalate metabolites (sum of four DEHP metabolites – Σ₄DEHP, MBzP, MEP, MiBP and MnBP) in urine samples collected during the 1st and 3rd trimesters of pregnancy in women participating in the INMA-Sabadell birth cohort study. We assessed cognitive and psychomotor development of their children at 1 and 4 years, and social competence, ADHD symptoms and other behavioral problems at 4 and 7 years. No associations were observed between prenatal phthalate exposure and cognitive and psychomotor scores at the age of 1 year and at the age of 4 years, except for an association between MBzP and lower psychomotor scores (β = −1.49 [95% confidence interval (CI) = −2.78, −0.21]). Σ₄DEHP concentrations were associated with increased social competence scores at 4 years and with reduced ADHD symptoms at age 4 and 7 years. Increasing MEP concentrations were associated with a reduced risk of inattention symptoms at 4 years. No associations were observed for MBzP, MiBP or MnBP in relation to behavioral problems. This study, with multiple phthalate exposure measurements and measures of neuropsychological domains at different ages, suggest that prenatal phthalate exposure does not adversely affect children's cognitive, psychomotor or behavioral development.