Associations between body morphology and bone mineral density in premenopausal women

To investigate whether body morphology, obesity and its long time evolution were associated with lumbar and femoral bone mineral density (BMD) in premenopausal women of the same age. Design: Cross-sectional study. Subjects: 72 healthy premenopausal women born in 1950 (42 years) with a regular physical activity. Measurements: BMD measured by dual-X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) at lumbar spine and proximal femur; body weight, body mass index (BMI), BMI at 20 years (BMI-20), increase in BMI since age of 20 (BMI->20), body circumferences (breast, waist, hip) and their ratios (WHR, BHR, WBR), smoking and alcohol intake. Results: Lumbar spine BMD did not correlate with any anthropometric measurement. Femoral BMDs correlated positively with weight, BMI, BMI-20, breast, waist, WHR and BHR. The BMI-20 explained the 5% and the current BMI the 13% of variance of total femur BMD. After adjustment for weight or BMI, breast circumference and BHR remained significantly correlated with all femoral BMDs sites except neck. Weight was the best predictor for neck BMD (R² = 0.08; p < 0.02), and BHR for Ward's triangle (R² = 0.12; p < 0.01) and trochanter (R² = 0.10; p < 0.001). Alcohol intake, cigarette smoking, and age of menarche were not related to BMDs. Conclusion: In premenopausal women of the same age, lumbar spine BMD was not associated with any anthropometric measurement. Greater BHR and its long time of evolution may be determinants of greater femoral BMD (trabecular), whereas body weight may be determinant of femoral neck BMD (cortical). Further studies are needed to determine whether large breast to hip ratio may be considered as a protective factor for femoral osteoporosis.     

Clinicopathologic features and incidence of invasive lobular carcinoma in Japanese women

Intending to clarify the true Incidence of Invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast In Japanese women as well as the frequency of unilateral multlcentriclty, 362 cases of clinically defined monocentrlc breast cancer without pre-operative biopsy (previously fine needle aspiration or needle biopsy were routinely carried out for every case) were examined by whole mammary gland serial sectioning. On the basis of pathology and the World Health Organization classification of breast tumors, each case was assigned to one of two main histologlc types: Invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) or Invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC). Invasive lobular carcinoma was further separated into classic and variant types by employing previously published criteria. Twenty-one cases of ILC (5.8%) were diagnosed, which Is more than In most previous Japanese studies. Unilateral multicentric breast carcinoma was detected In 9.5% of ILC and 16.1% of IDC (the difference was found not significant). Microscopically, ILC tumors were found to be, on average, larger than IDC. Patients with classic type ILC tended to be younger than those with variant type or IDC. Estrogen receptor expression was found more frequently In variant type ILC than in classic type. These results suggest that the incidence of invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast In Japanese women is low and that unilateral multicentricity Is not significantly higher in ILC than in IDC.     

Elektronenmikroskopische Befunde an inneren Organen bei Morbus Fabry

Zusammenfassung Es werden elektronenmikroskopische Beobachtungen zur Lokalisation und zur Feinstruktur der Glykolipideinschlüsse in verschiedenen inneren Organen bei Morbus Fabry berichtet. Die intrazellulÄren und extrazellulÄren Einschlüsse bestehen aus vielschichtig lamellÄren Membransystemen in konzentrischer und exzentrischer sowie in stapeiförmiger paralleler Anordnung. Diese lamellÄre Anordnung ist charakteristisch für flüssigkristalline Phasen von Phospholipid-Wasser-Systemen. Erstmalig werden ultrastrukturelle Befunde an den inneren Organen einer erkrankten Frau mitgeteilt. Demzufolge lassen sich bei heterozygoten Frauen gleiche Glykolipidablagerungen wie bei homozygoten MÄnnern nachweisen. Die Beziehung der Glykolipideinschlüsse zu den Lysosomen wird erörtert.

---

Electron microscopic observations in internal organs in morbus fabry

Summary Electron microscopic findings are reported on the localization and fine structure of glycolipid inclusions in different organs (heart, kidney, lymph nodes, arterial blood vessels, pancreas) in Fabry's disease in a female. The intracellular and extracellular inclusions were made up of multilamellar membraneous systems in concentric, excentric, and parallel arrangement. This fine structure is characteristic of liquid-crystalline phases of phospholipid-water systems.The same type of inclusions are found in the internal organs of heterozygotic women as in homozygotic men. The relationship between the glycolipid inclusions and the lysosomes is discussed.

Herrn Prof. Dr. F. Bolck, Direktor des Pathologischen Instituts der Friedrich-Schiller-UniversitÄt Jena, zum 60. Geburtstag gewidmet.     

7832例孕妇HCMV-IgM的检测分析

目的为了解孕妇人巨细胞病毒（HCMV）近期感染状况。方法采用酶联免疫吸附试验（ELISA）对7832例孕妇的静脉血标本进行了HCMV-IgM检测。结果在7832例孕妇中检测出HCMV-IgM阳性标本67例,阳性率为0.86%。结论在孕妇中巨细胞病毒有一定的近期感染率。     

Effects of tibolone on body composition in postmenopausal women: a 1-year follow up study

Objective: We investigated the effects of 1-year tibolone treatment on body weight, body composition and indices of android obesity in postmenopausal women.

Methods: Forty-four postmenopausal women participated in this open-label controlled study; mean age was 51.8 ± 2.21 years and all women were menopausal for 3.8 ± 1.40 years. Twenty-two of them started taking 2.5 mg tibolone (TIB) daily for 1 year, whereas the remaining 22 served as age-matched controls. All subjects underwent a structured interview, physical examination, body composition measurements performed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) — Hologic QDR 4500 A, as well as bioelectrical body impedance analysis (BI) — Tanita TBF-215, Japan.

Results: The TIB group did not significantly increase their weight (+0.4 kg), while the non-treated controls increased their mean weight by 1.4 kg (p = 0.046). In the TIB group, DXA showed a non-significant body fat decrease by a mean of 0.5 kg and a non-significant lean mass increase by 0.8 kg, while in the control group, fat mass increased by 1.7 kg (p = 0.032) and lean mass did not change. BI revealed that the TIB group had lost some fat (≈0.6 kg, n.s.) and put some free-fat mass (≈1.0 kg, p = 0.048) without changes in total body water. The control group put on some fat (≈1.1 kg, p = 0.042) and lost some body water (≈0.4 kg, n.s.).

Conclusion: Results from both methods of measuring body composition show a similar trend: a decrease in fat mass and an increase in lean mass in TIB treated subjects. From the body composition perspective, tibolone may be regarded as a preferential alternative to conventional hormonal therapy (HT) in postmenopausal women.     

Bioavailability of oestradiol and oestriol administered orally to oophorectomized women

A bioavailability study was performed on ten oophorectomized women in a randomized cross-over design. The absorption of tablets containing 2 mg of micronized oestradiol and 1 mg of micronized oestriol (Estrofem®) was compared to the absorption of the same micronized hormones administered in an aqueous suspension. Serum concentration values of oestradiol, oestriol and oestrone were measured by radioimmunoassay. The data obtained were analyzed both by univariate and multivariate analyses, and neither the serum concentrations at the various sample times, the maximum concentrations, the times for the maximum concentrations, nor the areas under the serum concentration curves disclosed any significant differences between the tablet and suspension administrations at the 5% level. The serum concentration values achieved by giving 2 mg of oestradiol and 1 mg of oestriol were of the same magnitude or higher than those of the normal menstrual cycle.     

Exploratory Efficacy of Calcium-Vitamin D Milk Fortification and Periodontal Therapy on Maternal Oral Health and Metabolic and Inflammatory Profile

In this 2 × 2 factorial, outcome-assessor blinded, feasibility randomised trial we explored the effect of a non-pharmaceutical multi-component intervention on periodontal health and metabolic and inflammatory profiles among pregnant women with periodontitis receiving prenatal care in a Brazilian public health centre. 69 pregnant women (gestational age ≤20 weeks, T0) were randomly allocated into four groups: (1) fortified sachet (vitamin D and calcium) and powdered milk plus periodontal therapy during pregnancy (early PT) (n = 17); (2) placebo sachet and powdered milk plus early PT (n = 15); (3) fortified sachet and powdered milk plus late PT (after delivery) (n = 19); (4) placebo sachet and powdered milk plus late PT (n = 18). Third trimester (T1) and 6–8 weeks postpartum (T2) exploratory outcomes included periodontal health (% sites with bleeding on probing (BOP)), glucose, insulin, C-Reactive Protein, serum calcium and vitamin D. The mean BOP was significantly reduced in the early PT groups, while BOP worsened in the late PT groups. No significant effect of fortification on BOP was observed. Changes in glucose levels and variation on birthweight did not differ among groups This feasibility trial provides preliminary evidence for estimating the minimum clinically important differences for selected maternal outcomes. A large-scale trial to evaluate the interventions’ clinical benefits and cost-effectiveness is warranted.     

Adherence to Mediterranean Diet and Selected Lifestyle Elements among Young Women with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus from Northeast Poland: A Case-Control COVID-19 Survey

An appropriate balanced diet and dietary patterns are important at every stage of life, but in the case of young patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), it is especially crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the study was to assess health and nutritional behaviors, mainly adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD), during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland among women with T1DM, and to compare them with a healthy population. This survey (based on a questionnaire) was conducted in December 2020 and included 219 young women, healthy (n = 106) and with T1DM (n = 113), from northeast Poland. Over 30% of the study group admitted that they did not engage in any physical activity. A large proportion declared that their screen time was 5–7 h a day (48% in control and 40% in T1DM group). High intakes of sweet-beverages, sweets and red meat, but also low intakes of olive oil, fish and nuts were observed. The vast majority of participants (60% vs. 71%) were moderately adherent to the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS). The study demonstrated that despite the similarity between the behaviors of healthy people and those with T1DM, negative health and nutritional practices, such as low physical activity, long screen time, medium and high levels of stress and inappropriate eating habits were observed.     

Evaluation of Serum Zinc Status of Pregnant Women in the China Adult Chronic Disease and Nutrition Surveillance (CACDNS) 2015

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate serum zinc status of pregnant women in the China Adult Chronic Disease and Nutrition Surveillance (CACDNS) in 2015–2016. Methods: A total of 7147 apparently healthy pregnant women were randomly selected in 302 national monitoring sites. Information on age, race, residence region, education, pregnancy, and family income per annum was collected, and the concentration of serum zinc was determined. The evaluation of serum zinc status was further performed according to the recommendations by the International Zinc Nutrition Consultative Group (IZiNCG). Results: The median concentration of serum zinc was 858.9 μg/L with an interquartile range (IQR) of 712.9 μg/L and 1048.9 μg/L, while the overall prevalence of zinc deficiency was 3.5% with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 3.0% and 3.9%. Serum zinc status of pregnant women changed greatly in the different categories, particular in pregnancy and family income per annum (p < 0.05), but no significant difference was observed in the prevalence of zinc deficiency (p > 0.05). Conclusions: The lower prevalence of zinc deficiency generally indicated a better zinc status for pregnant women in the CACDNS in 2015–2016. However, a well-designed evaluation system of zinc status for pregnant women should be continually optimized and improved by inducing more parameters such as biochemical, dietary, or functional indicators.     

What Are the Maternal Factors that Potentially Intervenes in the Nutritional Composition of Human Milk?

Background: To evaluate the potential factors associated with the nutritional composition of human milk of puerperal women. Methods: cross-sectional study, conducted between March 2016 and August 2017, with 107 women, selected in a Tertiary Health Care Tertiary Health Facility of the Unified Health System (SUS) in the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro. Data were collected two months after delivery. The dependent variable of the study was the nutritional composition of human milk. We divided the independent variables into hierarchical levels: distal (age, schooling, parity and pregestational nutritional status), intermediate (number of prenatal visits and gestational weight gain) and proximal (alcohol consumption, smoking, diabetes mellitus and hypertension). For data analysis, we applied the multiple linear regression, centered on the hierarchical model. Only the variables associated with the nutritional composition of breast milk remained in the final model at a 5% level of significance. Results: The nutritional composition of human milk yielded by women with pregestational overweight, smokers and hypertensive had higher amounts of lipids and energy. Conversely, women with gestational weight gain below the recommended had lower amounts of these components. Conclusion: The evaluation of factors associated with the nutritional composition of human milk is extremely important to assist post-partum care practices. In this study, we observed that lipid and energy contents were associated to pregestational nutritional status, gestational weight gain, smoking and hypertension.