Anabolic steroid-associated hypogonadism in male hemodialysis patients

Hypogonadism in male hemodialysis patients has been previously reported. However, its precise pathogenesis has not yet been clarified. Mepitiostane and nandrolone decanoate are anabolic steroids prescribed for uremic anemia, and those may possibly exacerbate uremic gonadal damage. We studied the influences of these steroids on male gonadal function. Seventy-six hemodialysis patients were selected and examined for levels of luteinizing hormone (LH), follicular stimulating hormone (FSH), total testosterone, and prolactin. Twenty-three patients who received anabolic steroids showed lower testosterone values (205.2 +/- 35.6 ng/dl) than did patients without these steroids (449.7 +/- 21.3 ng/dl). Gonadotropins and prolactin showed no significant differences between the patients with and without the steroids. The testosterone values of three patients with mepitiostane increased after they stopped taking steroids. One patient suffering from complete aspermia recovered (sperm count: 0/ml to 1300 x 10(4)/ml) after discontinuation of mepitiostane and administration of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG). This clinical study suggests that some anabolic steroids play a role in uremic hypogonadism; thus mepitiostane or its analogues should be carefully prescribed for young male patients.     

A comparison of two methods for calculating CR (time constant) during studies of arterial blood flow in rats

Some of our earlier reports have dealt with experiments on the central caudal arteries of a series of anesthetized rats. The results of these experiments were expressed by a relationship derived from the Windkessel theory where f(t) = alpha dz(t)/dt + beta z(t). When this theory is used, the measured blood flow forms f(t) and calculated wave forms alpha dz(t)/dt + beta z(t) agree closely. In these studies, we discovered that, when blood flow adz(t)/dt + beta z(t) agree closely. In these studies, we discovered that, when blood flow decreases, CR (time constant tau, the product of the blood vessel compliance C and the peripheral resistance R) values increase and vary widely. In the present study, 1) we investigated changes in CR when blood flow increases, and, 2) the method of least squares was used in calculating the formula given above. We achieved a better conformity between measured blood flow and calculated blood flow and perceived a clearer relationship between mean blood flow and CR than when they were calculated by the old method.     

The degeneration of adjacent intervertebral discs negatively influence union rate of osteoporotic vertebral fracture: A multicenter cohort study

Background

With the increasing aging population in developed countries, there has been an associated increased prevalence of osteoporotic vertebral fracture (OVF). Many previous reports have attempted to predict the risk of delayed union associated with OVF. However, the role of endplate failure and the degeneration of adjacent intervertebral discs, and their association with delayed union has received little attention. The aim of this study was to evaluate the endplate fracture and disc degeneration rank as risk factors for delayed union.

Arm span increases predictive value of models for prevalent vertebral deformities: The Japanese Population-based Osteoporosis (JPOS) Study

Objective

We examined anthropometric indicators to improve predictive ability of asymptomatic vertebral fracture screening models.

Study design and setting

Data were obtained from the 1996 Japanese Population-based Osteoporosis (JPOS) Study. McCloskey–Kanis criteria diagnosed vertebral deformities on X-ray absorptiometric images in 693 women aged ≥50.The multiple logistic regression model included age, height, weight, postmenopausal status, total hip BMD, and arm span (AS) or sitting height as explanatory variables. Akaike's information criterion (AIC) evaluated model goodness-of-fit.

Results

Age-adjusted AS and sitting height in subjects with and without vertebral deformities were 147.2 ± 0.6 cm and 148.5 ± 0.2 cm (P = 0.055), 78.5 ± 0.5 cm and 79.9 ± 0.2 cm (P = 0.007), respectively. Every 5-cm increase in AS indicated 1.5-fold increased risk of prevalent vertebral deformity in the model including age, height, weight, postmenopausal status, and BMD. Including the explanatory variable AS in models yielded better predictive accuracy than excluding AS (AIC, 441.7 vs 446.6, respectively). Sitting height did not significantly influence model predictive ability.

Conclusion

Predictive accuracy of model for vertebral fracture including age, height, weight, postmenopausal status, and BMD improved when AS was added as an explanatory variable. Models to screen for asymptomatic vertebral fractures should include AS.     

Socioeconomic inequalities in physical and mental functioning of British, Finnish, and Japanese civil servants: Role of job demand, control, and work hours

This study aims to evaluate whether the pattern of socioeconomic inequalities in physical and mental functioning as measured by the Short Form 36 (SF-36) differs among employees in Britain, Finland, and Japan and whether work characteristics contribute to some of the health inequalities. The participants were 7340 (5122 men and 2218 women) British employees, 2297 (1638 men and 659 women) Japanese employees, and 8164 (1649 men and 6515 women) Finnish employees. All the participants were civil servants aged 40–60 years. Both male and female low grade employees had poor physical functioning in all cohorts. British and Japanese male low grade employees tended to have poor mental functioning but the associations were significant only for Japanese men. No consistent employment-grade differences in mental functioning were observed among British and Japanese women. Among Finnish men and women, high grade employees had poor mental functioning. In all cohorts, high grade employees had high control, high demands and long work hours. The grade differences in poor physical functioning and disadvantaged work characteristics among non-manual workers were somewhat smaller in the Finnish cohort than in the British and Japanese cohorts. Low control, high demands, and both short and long work hours were associated with poor functioning. When work characteristics were adjusted for, the socioeconomic differences in poor functioning were mildly attenuated in men, but the differences increased slightly in women. This study reconfirms the generally observed pattern of socioeconomic inequalities in health for physical functioning but not for mental functioning. The role of work characteristics in the relationship between socioeconomic status and health differed between men and women but was modest overall. We suggest that these differences in the pattern and magnitude of grade differences in work characteristics and health among the 3 cohorts may be attributable to the different welfare regimes among the 3 countries.     

Lifestyle and Overweight Among Japanese Adolescents: The Toyama Birth Cohort Study

Objective

To investigate the effects of lifestyle factors on overweight among Japanese adolescents.

Methods

We studied 5753 junior high school students (2842 boys and 2911 girls) aged 12 to 13 years. The students were residents of Toyama prefecture, Japan and completed a questionnaire about their height, weight, and lifestyle factors, in June and July 2002. Subjects with a body-mass index (BMI) higher than age- and sex-specific cut-off points were defined as obese. Parental overweight was defined as a BMI of 25 or higher. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine associations between lifestyle factors and overweight.

Results

Skipping breakfast, eating quickly, excessive eating, physical inactivity, and long hours of TV watching were positively and significantly associated with overweight in both sexes. There was a negative association between snacking and overweight in girls (P < 0.001); no such association was found in boys (P > 0.05). Nighttime snacking was negatively associated with overweight in boys and girls (P < 0.05). Extended video game playing (≥2 hours; OR = 2.00, P = 0.012) and short sleep duration (<7 hours; OR = 1.81, P = 0.004) were significantly associated with overweight in girls only. The respective risks of overweight that derived from the subjects’ fathers and mothers were 2.0 and 2.5 times, respectively, in boys and 1.9 and 3.0 times in girls.

Conclusions

Parental overweight, skipping breakfast, eating quickly, excessive eating, long hours of TV watching, long hours of video game playing, physical inactivity, and short sleep duration were associated with adolescent overweight. Furthermore, there were significant negative associations between adolescent overweight and snacking in girls and nighttime snacking in both sexes.Key words: overweight, lifestyle factors, adolescents, Japan, Toyama birth cohort study     

Effect of continuous morphine infusion on hypoxic-ischaemic brain damage of neonatal rats

Background: Opioids are commonly administered to critically ill neonates and infants for general anaesthesia and sedation. However, the clinical safety of these drugs, especially the effects on hypoxic–ischaemic damage of the developing brain, has not been well investigated. The present study was therefore conducted to investigate the effects of continuous morphine infusion on brain damage after hypoxic–ischaemic insults in neonatal rats.
Methods: Seven-day-old Sprague–Dawley rats were subjected to left common carotid artery ligation followed by a 90-min exposure of 8% oxygen. The rats were administered morphine (0.1, 0.3 or 1 mg/kg/h) or saline continuously for 72 h using osmotic minipumps. Seven days later, the rats were weighed and their brains were morphologically categorized into groups based on the following grades: 0=normal, 1=mild atrophy, 2=moderate atrophy, 3=atrophy with cystic cavitation <3 mm and 4=cystic cavitation >3 mm. For histological assessment, the ratio of the surviving neurons (ipsilateral/contralateral) was calculated in the cornu ammonis fields, CA1 and CA3, and the dentate gyrus (DG).
Results: One week after recovery (P14), the rats in the 1 mg/kg/h group showed significantly poorer weight gain compared with the other groups. However, the morphological score of the brains and the ratio of the surviving neurons in the CA1, CA3 and DG were similar among the groups.
Conclusion: Our results indicate that continuous administration of morphine does not worsen brain damage 7 days after hypoxic–ischaemic insults in neonatal rats.     

Comparison between monkey and human visual fields using a personal computer system

To use monkeys as models for eye diseases that may lead to blindness, we need to develop a method to precisely measure its visual field and to understand similarities and differences in visual field properties between monkeys and humans. The visual field of monkey was not measured precisely although the necessity. We established a new system with personal computers for precise measurement of the monkey visual field. Four monkeys and three humans served as subjects. The luminance-contrast sensitivity of the central 24 degrees field was measured while the subject was fixating a small spot. During the measurement, we continuously recorded the eye position, and discarded the data when fixation was broken. Reliability indices demonstrated high and stable behavioral performance by both monkeys and humans. The luminance-contrast sensitivity was highest around the fovea, and declined as eccentricity increased. The blind spot was clearly detected 15 degrees temporally. The overall sensitivity was higher in humans than in monkeys and the sensitivity dropped more sharply in the periphery in monkeys than in humans. We recommend this system as a convenient and reliable way to measure visual functions in monkeys in basic ophthalmologic research or in assessment of the drug effects on the visual field.