Food habits are associated with lipid peroxidation in an elderly population

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to assess the association between dietary intake and lipid peroxidation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional population analysis from an ongoing prospective study. Malondialdehyde (MDA) was measured as a marker of lipid peroxidation. Diet was assessed through direct observation and food frequency questionnaire. SUBJECTS: Participants with no missing data were 162 nonsmoking elderly individuals residing in 7 institutions across Asturias (Spain). STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Comparisons of adjusted group means by tertiles of plasma MDA were made by analysis of variance. Stepwise regression analysis was done using MDA as a dependent variable and food intake as an independent variable. Food intakes were categorized into quartiles and logistic regression was applied to calculate the odds ratio for being in the highest tertile of plasma MDA. RESULTS: Consumption of potatoes had an independent direct effect and accounted for a sizeable proportion of the variation in plasma MDA levels (18%, P<.001). In addition to potatoes, other foods that had an apparently independent effect on plasma MDA were eggs, cooked vegetables, and red wine (R(2)=0.028, 0.023 and 0.018, respectively). In this study, dietary factors accounted for 25% of the variation in plasma MDA levels. CONCLUSION: Identifying nutritional determinants of oxidative stress is important because of its negative health effect. Consumption of cooked vegetables and moderate intake of wine has been shown to be appropriate for reducing the risk of oxidative damage. On the contrary, caution must be used with the intake of potatoes because we have found a positive association with MDA levels. Further studies are required to investigate the mechanism(s) of this association and whether it is related to the preparation method or to the potato itself.     

Synthetic peptide vaccine against Taenia solium pig cysticercosis: successful vaccination in a controlled field trial in rural Mexico

Taenia solium cysticercosis seriously affects human health when localised in the central nervous system (CNS) and causes great economic loss in pig husbandry in rural areas of endemic countries. Increasing the resistance to the parasite in the obligatory host pig may help in curbing transmission. Three synthetic peptides based on protein sequences of the murine parasite Taenia crassiceps, which had previously been shown to induce protection in mice against homologous challenge, were tested as a vaccine against T. solium cysticercosis in pigs. Vaccinated and unvaccinated piglets (240 in all) were distributed in pairs among the peasants' households of two rural villages in Mexico in which 14% of the native pigs were cysticercotic. Ten to twelve months later, the effect of vaccination was evaluated at necropsy. Vaccination decreased the total number of T. solium cysticerci (98.7%) and reduced the prevalence (52.6%). The natural challenge conditions used in this field trial strengthen the likelihood of successful transmission control to both pig and human through a large-scale pig vaccination program. We believe this is a major contribution in anticysticercosis vaccine development as these rather simple yet protective peptides are potentially more cost-effective to produce and less variable in results than antigens that are more complex.     

Risk factor profile for atherosclerosis among young adults in Israel--results of a large-scale survey from the young adult periodic examinations in Israel (YAPEIS) database

Assessing the prevalence of relevant risk factors among young adults is a critical step in the process of preventing atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases (ASCVD) later in life. The Israel Defense Force Periodic Health Examination Center performs a routine check-up for subjects aged 25–45 years. Medical history, physical examination notes, laboratory results and ECG tracings are recorded, computerized and processed to form the Young Adults Periodic Examinations in Israel (YAPEIS) database. Data representing 31,640 subjects (27,769 males and 3871 females) examined between the years 1991–1999 were analyzed. The prevalence of documented risk factors for ASCVD were evaluated. The results of all parameters were graded categorically as low, moderate or high and the Framingham risk score was calculated. Fifty-one percent of the study participants were found to be overweight (body mass index 25 kg/m²), 8.5% had high systolic blood pressure and 14.6% had high diastolic blood pressure. The prevalence of hypercholesterolemia and hyperglycemia was found to be 44.7 and 9.7%, respectively. Thirty-two percent of the subjects smoked cigarettes, and 76.7% reported not performing any routine physical activity. Furthermore, 31.8% had a Framingham score indicating a greater than 5% risk for developing a coronary event within the next 10 years. As expected, the prevalence of these risk factors increased with age and were found to be less frequent among females. Thus we conclude that many young Israeli adults hold significant risk factors for future ASCVD. Many of these risk factors are modifiable, and risk behavior is often amenable to alteration. Awareness to the high prevalence of risk factors among young adults should spark vigorous health-promotion programs as well as screening, education, and interventional measures aimed at altering the expected outcome of future ASCVD.     

Spanish Society of Cardiology practice guidelines on ambulatory monitoring of electrocardiogram and blood pressure

In the present paper, a historical review and a clinical up-date are done on two procedures of great medical interest: Holter electrocardiography and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. Technical and methodological characteristics of each procedure are carefully exposed, emphasizing each the lack of an international agreement in order to establish regulations that make all the equipment homogeneous and reliable in order to increase both accuracy and reliability in diagnosis. Based on published international scientific documents and the personal experience of the authors, guidelines for clinical applications, indications and limitations of each technique are analyzed in relation to capacities of the Spanish political and social public health system profile. New concepts and dynamics of developments such as; dynamic QT, RR variability or pulse wave velocity are exposed, in the frame of the present time and future for improving efficiency and clinical application.     

The clinical practice guidelines of the Sociedad Española de Cardiología on the automatic implantable defibrillator

Since the first implantation in man in 1980 implantable cardioverter defibrillator technology has greatly improved and the number of devices implanted has increased considerably every year. Non thoracotomy lead systems and biphasic shocks are now the approach of choice, offering an almost 100% success rate. This document reviews the recommendations for qualification of personnel and for the centres implanting and carrying out follow-ups on defibrillators. The current indications for the implantation of implantable cardioverter defibrillator are also addressed.