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Biomedical subjects

Lex M Bouter

Publications and source records attributed to Lex M Bouter.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed2005

Determinants of hip pain in adult patients with severe cerebral palsy.

The purpose of our investigation was to study the relationship between radiographic results of the femoral head and pain in people with severe cerebral palsy. We conducted a cross-sectional study on hip radiography results and pain in 160 patients with severe cerebral palsy. Eighteen percent of our patients had hip pain in hip-loading situations. Migration and deformity were closely related. There was a significant association with hip pain (odds ratio, 2.79; 95% confidence interval 1.01-7.70). There is a high prevalence of hip pain after unsuccessful femoral bone surgery. Migration and deformity of the femoral head are strongly interrelated, and are associated with pain.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Mild renal insufficiency is associated with increased left ventricular mass in men, but not in women: an arterial stiffness-related phenomenon--the Hoorn Study.

BACKGROUND: Mild renal insufficiency has recently been recognized as an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). The mechanisms underlying this association are incompletely understood. Increased left ventricular mass (LVM) is an independent risk factor for CVD, which is particularly common in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and which has been shown to be associated with mild renal insufficiency. Increased arterial stiffness has also been shown to be an independent risk factor for CVD in ESRD and has also been associated with mild renal insufficiency. We hypothesized that the association between mild renal insufficiency and increased LVM could be mediated through increased arterial stiffness, and that this may be one of the pathways linking mild renal insufficiency to CVD. We therefore investigated, in a cross-sectional population-based study, the influence of increased arterial stiffness on the association between renal function and LVM. METHODS: The study population consisted of 742 elderly individuals (373 men and 369 women). Renal function was estimated by the serum creatinine level in micromol/L; by the Cockcroft-Gault formula in mL/min and by the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) formula. LVM was obtained by echocardiography. RESULTS: The mean estimates of renal function in men and women were, respectively, 103.7 (SD 17.0) and 86.8 (SD 11.2) micromol/L for the serum creatinine level; 63.4 (SD 12.9) and 61.4 (SD 11.0) mL/min/1.73 m(2) for the Cockcroft-Gault formula; and 59.7 (SD 10.8) and 60.9 (SD 10.5) mL/min per 1.73 m(2) for the MDRD formula. LVM was 93.1 (SD 26.4) g/m(2) in men and 86.7 (SD 22.3) g/m(2) in women. In men, impaired renal function, as estimated by the Cockcroft-Gault and the MDRD formula, was significantly associated with greater LVM after adjustment for age, glucose tolerance, hypertension, and prior CVD [regression coefficient beta (95% CI), 1.28 (0.22 to 2.33) g/m(2) and 1.63 (0.41 to 2.86) g/m(2) per 5 mL/min/1.73 m(2) decrease, respectively]. However, the association between impaired renal function and increased LVM was not statistically significant after adjustment for arterial stiffness estimates [regression coefficient beta (95% CI), 0.02 (-1.60 to 1.64) g/m(2) and 0.54 (-1.25 to 2.33) g/m(2) per 5 mL/min/1.73 m(2) decrease, respectively]. In women, impaired renal function was not significantly associated with greater LVM. CONCLUSION: Our study shows that in a general elderly population, even mild impairment of renal function is associated with adverse changes in left ventricular structure. In men, but not in women, this leads to greater LVM, a process that may be related to increases in arterial stiffness. Importantly, these novel findings suggest that such changes occur early in the process of renal functional deterioration, which may explain, in part, the increase in cardiovascular risk in men with mildly impaired renal function.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

Serum albumin and muscle strength: a longitudinal study in older men and women.

OBJECTIVES: To examine whether low serum albumin is associated with low muscle strength and future decline in muscle strength in community-dwelling older men and women. DESIGN: Population-based cohort study. SETTING: The Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. PARTICIPANTS: Six hundred seventy-six women and 644 men aged 65 to 88. MEASUREMENTS: Serum albumin was determined at baseline. Muscle strength was assessed using grip strength at baseline, after 3 (n=1,009), and 6 (n=741) years. The outcomes were continuous baseline muscle strength, 3- and 6-year change in muscle strength, and a dichotomous indicator for substantial decline (a decrease if > or =1 standard deviations for women=11 kg, for men=12 kg) in muscle strength. RESULTS: Mean serum albumin concentration+/-standard deviation was 45.0+/-3.3 g/L for women and 45.2+/-3.2 g/L for men. At baseline, adjusting for age, lifestyle factors, and chronic conditions, lower serum albumin was cross-sectionally associated with weaker muscle strength (P<.001) in women and men. After 3 years of follow-up, mean decline in muscle strength was -5.6+/-10.9 kg in women and -9.6+/-11.9 kg in men. After adjustment for potential confounders, lower serum albumin was associated with muscle strength decline over 3 years (P<.01) in women and men (beta=0.57, standard error (SE)=0.18; beta=0.37, SE=0.16, respectively). Lower serum albumin was also associated with substantial decline in muscle strength in women (per unit albumin (g/L) adjusted odds ratio (OR)=1.14, one-sided 95% confidence limit (CL)=1.07) and men (per unit albumin (g/L) adjusted OR=1.14, 95% CL=1.08). Similar but slightly weaker associations were found between serum albumin and 6-year change in muscle strength (P<.05). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that low serum albumin, even within the normal range, is independently associated with weaker muscle strength and future decline in muscle strength in older women and men.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

Evidence of the efficacy of occupational therapy in different conditions: an overview of systematic reviews.

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the research evidence available from systematic reviews of the efficacy of occupational therapy (OT) for practitioners, researchers, purchasing organizations and policy-makers. DATA SOURCE: The search for systematic reviews was conducted in PubMed and the Cochrane Library (October 2004). METHODS: The reviews included were those that utilized a systematic search for evidence with regard to OT for specific patient groups. Data were summarized for patient group, interventions, outcome domains, type of study designs included, method of data synthesis and conclusions. RESULTS: Fourteen systematic reviews were included. Three reviews related to rheumatoid arthritis, four reviewed stroke and four focused on elderly people. Reviews of Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, Huntington's disease, cerebral palsy and mental illnesses were also identified. The reviews of rheumatoid arthritis, stroke and elderly people showed evidence of the efficacy of OT in increasing functional abilities. Positive results were presented for quality of life and social participation in elderly people and stroke respectively. The efficacy of OT in all other patient groups is unknown due to insufficient evidence. CONCLUSION: This summary shows that elderly people and people with stroke or rheumatoid arthritis can expect to benefit from comprehensive OT. Evidence of the efficacy of specific interventions is sparse and should be addressed in future research. The evidence that does exist should be incorporated into OT practice.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

Moderate alcohol consumption lowers the risk of type 2 diabetes: a meta-analysis of prospective observational studies.

OBJECTIVE: This meta-analysis was undertaken to obtain insight regarding the shape and strength of the relationship between alcohol consumption and the risk of type 2 diabetes, the effects of adjustment for confounders, and the effect of modification by type 2 diabetes definition, sex, and BMI. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: The 15 original prospective cohort studies that were included comprise 11,959 incident cases of type 2 diabetes in 369,862 individuals who, on average, were followed for 12 years. RESULTS: After pooling the data, a U-shaped relationship was found. Compared with nonconsumers, the relative risk (RR) for type 2 diabetes in those who consumed </=6 g/day alcohol was 0.87 (95% CI 0.79-0.95). For the moderate consumption ranges of 6-12, 12-24, and 24-48 g/day, RRs of 0.70 (0.61-0.79), 0.69 (0.58-0.81), and 0.72 (0.62-0.84) were found, respectively. The risk of type 2 diabetes in heavy drinkers (>/=48 g/day) was equal to that in nonconsumers (1.04 [0.84-1.29]). In general, nonsignificant trends for larger RR reduction associated with moderate alcohol consumption were observed for women compared with men, for crude compared with multivariate-adjusted analyses, and for studies that used self-reports instead of testing for type 2 diabetes definition. No differences in RR reductions were found between individuals with low or high BMI. CONCLUSIONS: The present evidence from observational studies suggests an approximately 30% reduced risk of type 2 diabetes in moderate alcohol consumers, whereas no risk reduction is observed in consumers of >/=48 g/day.

Alcohol Drinking↗
PubMed2005

Proinsulin concentration is an independent predictor of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality: an 11-year follow-up of the Hoorn Study.

OBJECTIVE: High proinsulin concentration may be a better predictor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality than insulin concentration. Previous observations may have been confounded by glucose tolerance status or lack of precision because of high intraindividual variability. We investigated the longitudinal relation of means of duplicate measurements of insulin and proinsulin with all-cause and CVD mortality in a population-based cohort taking glucose tolerance status into account. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Fasting and post-75-g glucose-load (2-h) glucose, insulin, and proinsulin values were determined in duplicate on separate days in 277 participants with normal glucose metabolism, 208 participants with impaired glucose metabolism, and 119 newly detected patients with type 2 diabetes of the Hoorn Study. Insulin resistance and beta-cell function were estimated by homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR and HOMA-B, respectively), and the fasting proinsulin-to-insulin ratio was calculated. Subjects were followed with respect to mortality until January 2003. RESULTS: Fasting proinsulin levels were significantly associated with all-cause and CVD mortality. The hazard ratios (HRs) per increase in interquartile range adjusted for age and sex were 1.21 (95% CI 1.04-1.42) for all-cause mortality and 1.33 (1.06-1.66) for CVD mortality. Adjustment for glucose tolerance status and HOMA-IR did not substantially change the associations. CONCLUSIONS: Fasting proinsulin was associated with all-cause and CVD mortality, independent of glucose tolerance status and insulin resistance and largely independent of other CVD risk factors. Proinsulin might play a role in the relationship between insulin resistance and CVD.

Aged↗
PubMed2005

Implementation of clinical guidelines on physical therapy for patients with low back pain: randomized trial comparing patient outcomes after a standard and active implementation strategy.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: An active strategy was developed for the implementation of the clinical guidelines on physical therapy for patients with low back pain. The effect of this strategy on patients' physical functioning, coping strategy, and beliefs regarding their low back pain was studied. SUBJECTS: One hundred thirteen primary care physical therapists treated a total of 500 patients. METHODS: The physical therapists were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups. The control group received the guidelines by mail (standard passive method of dissemination). The intervention group, in contrast, received an additional active training strategy consisting of 2 sessions with education, group discussion, role playing, feedback, and reminders. Patients with low back pain, treated by the participating therapists, completed questionnaires on physical functioning, pain, sick leave, coping, and beliefs. RESULTS: Physical functioning and pain in the 2 groups improved substantially in the first 12 weeks. Multilevel longitudinal analysis showed no differences between the 2 groups on any outcome measure during follow-up. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The authors found no additional benefit to applying an active strategy to implement the physical therapy guidelines for patients with low back pain. Active implementation strategies are not recommended if patient outcomes are to be improved.

Education, Continuing↗
PubMed2005

Correlating nerve conduction studies and clinical outcome measures on carpal tunnel syndrome: lessons from a randomized controlled trial.

The reported relationships between nerve conduction studies (NCS) and outcome measures in carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) are weak to moderate. However, selection of patients may have confounded nonrandomized studies. NCS have potentially great value in selecting patients for a specific treatment and in objectively assessing the efficacy of treatments in CTS, especially if they correlate significantly with clinical outcome measures. To investigate the relationship between clinical outcome measures for the severity of complaints and NCS in patients treated for CTS, data were obtained from a multicenter randomized controlled trial on the efficacy of splinting versus surgery for CTS. At baseline and 12 months after randomization, clinical outcome measures were assessed and NCS were performed. In total, 138 patients completed the questionnaires and underwent repeated NCS. Relationships were analyzed with Spearman rank correlation coefficients and Pearson correlation coefficients. All NCS parameters showed highly significant improvement compared with baseline (P < 0.001). Modest correlations (< 0.4) were found between the neurophysiologic and clinical outcome measures after 12 months, and between the changes in these different categories of outcome measures. This study confirms that the parameters of NCS improve significantly after treatment for CTS, but the modest correlations between neurophysiologic and clinical outcome measures do not support that NCS are routinely performed in clinical practice to evaluate treatment effects. However, studies investigating the effects of treatment for CTS should incorporate both clinical outcome measures and NCS, because they are complementary. Furthermore, NCS can provide additional information to the clinician when treatment effects are unsatisfactory.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Inter-observer reproducibility of measurements of range of motion in patients with shoulder pain using a digital inclinometer.

BACKGROUND: Reproducible measurements of the range of motion are an important prerequisite for the interpretation of study results. The digital inclinometer is considered to be a useful instrument because it is inexpensive and easy to use. No previous study assessed inter-observer reproducibility of range of motion measurements with a digital inclinometer by physical therapists in a large sample of patients. METHODS: Two physical therapists independently measured the passive range of motion of the glenohumeral abduction and the external rotation in 155 patients with shoulder pain. Agreement was quantified by calculation of the mean differences between the observers and the standard deviation (SD) of this difference and the limits of agreement, defined as the mean difference +/- 1.96*SD of this difference. Reliability was quantified by means of the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). RESULTS: The limits of agreement were 0.8 +/- 19.6 for glenohumeral abduction and -4.6 +/- 18.8 for external rotation (affected side) and quite similar for the contralateral side and the differences between sides. The percentage agreement within 10 degrees for these measurements were 72% and 70% respectively. The ICC ranged from 0.28 to 0.90 (0.83 and 0.90 for the affected side). CONCLUSIONS: The inter-observer agreement was found to be poor. If individual patients are assessed by two different observers, differences in range of motion of less than 20-25 degrees can not be distinguished from measurement error. In contrast, acceptable reliability was found for the inclinometric measurements of the affected side and the differences between the sides, indicating that the inclimeter can be used in studies in which groups are compared.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

The urine dipstick test useful to rule out infections. A meta-analysis of the accuracy.

BACKGROUND: Many studies have evaluated the accuracy of dipstick tests as rapid detectors of bacteriuria and urinary tract infections (UTI). The lack of an adequate explanation for the heterogeneity of the dipstick accuracy stimulates an ongoing debate. The objective of the present meta-analysis was to summarise the available evidence on the diagnostic accuracy of the urine dipstick test, taking into account various pre-defined potential sources of heterogeneity. METHODS: Literature from 1990 through 1999 was searched in Medline and Embase, and by reference tracking. Selected publications should be concerned with the diagnosis of bacteriuria or urinary tract infections, investigate the use of dipstick tests for nitrites and/or leukocyte esterase, and present empirical data. A checklist was used to assess methodological quality. RESULTS: 70 publications were included. Accuracy of nitrites was high in pregnant women (Diagnostic Odds Ratio = 165) and elderly people (DOR = 108). Positive predictive values were >/=80% in elderly and in family medicine. Accuracy of leukocyte-esterase was high in studies in urology patients (DOR = 276). Sensitivities were highest in family medicine (86%). Negative predictive values were high in both tests in all patient groups and settings, except for in family medicine. The combination of both test results showed an important increase in sensitivity. Accuracy was high in studies in urology patients (DOR = 52), in children (DOR = 46), and if clinical information was present (DOR = 28). Sensitivity was highest in studies carried out in family medicine (90%). Predictive values of combinations of positive test results were low in all other situations. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, this review demonstrates that the urine dipstick test alone seems to be useful in all populations to exclude the presence of infection if the results of both nitrites and leukocyte-esterase are negative. Sensitivities of the combination of both tests vary between 68 and 88% in different patient groups, but positive test results have to be confirmed. Although the combination of positive test results is very sensitive in family practice, the usefulness of the dipstick test alone to rule in infection remains doubtful, even with high pre-test probabilities.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Cost-effectiveness of hip protectors in frail institutionalized elderly.

A randomized controlled trial was performed to examine the cost-effectiveness of external hip protectors in the prevention of hip fractures. Since the hip protectors were not effective in preventing hip fractures in our study, the main objective became to examine whether the use of hip protectors results in lower average costs per participant in the hip protector group as compared with the control group. In addition, the average costs of a hip fracture and subsequent rehabilitation in frail, institutionalized elderly were calculated. Residents from apartment houses for the elderly, homes for the elderly and nursing homes with a high risk for hip fractures were randomized to the hip protector group (n=276) or control group (n=285). Costs were calculated for the hip fracture and subsequent rehabilitation until 1 year after the fracture. Six months after each hip fracture, a nurse was interviewed and after 12 months, a questionnaire was sent to the general practitioner or nursing home physician to determine the utilization of health care resources. Differences in costs between the groups were analyzed using non-parametric bootstrapping. Eighteen hip fractures occurred in the intervention group and 20 hip fractures (in 19 persons) in the control group (log rank P-value=0.86). The average costs per participant, including the costs of the intervention, were Euro 913 in the intervention group and Euro 502 in the control group (cost difference of Euro -411; 95% confidence interval: -723; 57). The average costs of a hip fracture and subsequent rehabilitation were Euro 8100 (95% CI: 6716-10,010). The use of hip protectors was not associated with lower costs. In addition, the average costs of a hip fracture and subsequent rehabilitation in the first year after the fracture were estimated at Euro 8100 in institutionalized elderly.

Aged↗
PubMed2004

Carotid arterial remodeling: a maladaptive phenomenon in type 2 diabetes but not in impaired glucose metabolism: the Hoorn study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Deteriorating glucose tolerance is associated with an increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Arterial remodeling is the change in structural properties through time in response to atherogenic and/or hemodynamic alterations and aims to maintain circumferential wall stress constant (sigma(C)). Arterial remodeling has not been studied in relation to glucose tolerance. METHODS: The study population consisted of 278 people with normal glucose metabolism, 168 with impaired glucose metabolism, and 301 with type 2 diabetes (DM-2); their mean age was 67.8 years. We assessed carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), interadventitial diameter (IAD), lumen diameter (LD), and sigma(C). RESULTS: After adjustment for age, sex, height, body mass index, and prior CVD, DM-2 was associated with increased IAD, IMT, and sigma(C) but not LD (regression coefficients: 0.24 mm; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.07 to 0.41; 0.050 mm; 95% CI, 0.024 to 0.077; 5.00 kPa; 95% CI, 0.92 to 9.08; and 0.13 mm; 95% CI, -0.03 to 0.29, respectively). After additional adjustment for pulse pressure, the association between DM-2 and IAD disappeared, whereas the association with IMT remained. After adjustment, impaired glucose metabolism was not significantly associated with LD (0.12 mm; 95% CI, -0.06 to 0.33), sigma(C) (0.25 kPa; 95% CI, -4.49 to 4.98), IAD (0.08 mm; 95% CI, -0.11 to 0.27), or IMT (0.029 mm; 95% CI, -0.002 to 0.060). However, the IMT regression coefficient was half that of DM-2. CONCLUSIONS: DM-2 is associated with preserved LD at increased IMT, which, however, does not normalize the increased sigma(C). In contrast, impaired glucose metabolism is not associated with changes in LD or IAD, whereas IMT is moderately increased but sigma(C) remains constant. Carotid remodeling in DM-2 thus appears maladaptive, which may explain the increased CVD risk, especially stroke, in DM-2.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed2004

Assessing pain in patients with severe cerebral palsy: development, reliability, and validity of a pain assessment instrument for cerebral palsy.

OBJECTIVES: To develop the Pain Assessment Instrument for Cerebral Palsy (PAICP) and to study its test-retest reproducibility and construct validity. DESIGN: Cross-sectional validation study. SETTING: Homes for severely handicapped. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 164 adults with severe cerebral palsy (CP), caregivers, and physiotherapists, and 9 healthy children. INTERVENTIONS: The PAICP contains drawings of situations, some situations of which usually produce pain. Patients rate the pain associated with each activity using a Faces Pain Scale. Reproducibility and construct validity was assessed in a pilot study with CP patients and healthy children. Construct validity and agreement between the pain scores of the patients and proxies was assessed in 160 patients with severe CP. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Pain score on the PAICP. RESULTS: The measure showed adequate test-retest reproducibility. A significant difference was found between the mean scores for "painful" and "not painful" situations. We also found moderate agreement between the scores of the patients and proxies for daily activities but only for those activities in which the proxies were personally involved. CONCLUSIONS: The PAICP has adequate test-retest reproducibility and construct validity. It provides an indication of the pain experienced by patients in situations in which proxies are not personally involved and may also be more valid than proxy measures for other situations.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Measuring activity limitations in climbing stairs: development of a hierarchical scale for patients with lower-extremity disorders living at home.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a hierarchical scale that measures activity limitations in climbing stairs in patients with lower-extremity disorders living at home. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study with Mokken scale analysis of 15 dichotomous items. SETTING: Outpatient clinics of secondary and tertiary care centers. PARTICIPANTS: Patients (N=759; mean age +/- standard deviation, 59.8+/-15.0y; 48% men) living at home, with different lower-extremity disorders: stroke, poliomyelitis, osteoarthritis, amputation, complex regional pain syndrome type I, and diabetic foot problems. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: (1) Fit of the monotone homogeneity model, indicating whether items can be used for measuring patients; (2) fit of the double monotonicity model, indicating invariant (hierarchical) item ordering; (3) intratest reliability, indicating repeatability of the sum score; and (4) differential item functioning, addressing the validity of comparisons between subgroups of patients. RESULTS: There was (1) good fit of the monotone homogeneity model (coefficient H=.50) for all items for all patients, and for subgroups defined by age, gender, and diagnosis; (2) good fit of the double monotonicity model (coefficient H(T)=.58); (3) good intratest reliability (coefficient rho=.90); and (4) no differential item functioning with respect to age and gender, but differential item functioning for 4 items in amputees compared with nonamputees. CONCLUSIONS: A hierarchical scale, with excellent scaling characteristics, has been developed for measuring activity limitations in climbing stairs in patients with lower-extremity disorders who live at home. However, measurements should be interpreted with caution when comparisons are made between patients with and without amputation.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2004

Type 2 diabetes is associated with impaired endothelium-dependent, flow-mediated dilation, but impaired glucose metabolism is not; The Hoorn Study.

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes (DM2) and impaired glucose metabolism (IGM) are associated with an increased cardiovascular disease risk. Impaired endothelial synthesis of nitric oxide (NO) is an important feature of atherothrombosis and can be estimated from endothelium-dependent flow-mediated dilation (FMD). It is controversial whether or not FMD is impaired in DM2 and IGM. We investigated this issue in a population-based setting. METHODS AND RESULTS: In the study population (n = 650; 246 with normal glucose metabolism (NGM), 135 with IGM and 269 with DM2; mean age: 67.6 years), FMD and endothelium-independent nitroglycerine-mediated dilation (NMD) were ultrasonically estimated from the brachial artery and expressed as the absolute change in diameter in mm. The increase in diameter (mean +/- standard deviation) in NGM, IGM and DM2 was 0.19 +/- 0.15, 0.19 +/- 0.18 and 0.13 +/- 0.17 MD and 0.45 +/- 0.21, 0.43 +/- 0.24 and 0.45 +/- 0.25 for NMD. After adjustment for age, sex, baseline diameter and percentage increase in peak systolic velocity, DM2, as compared to NGM, remained associated with impaired FMD (regression coefficient beta (95%CI)) as compared to NGM, -0.06 mm (-0.09 to -0.03). IGM was not associated with impaired FMD (beta, 0.01 mm (-0.02 to 0.04)). Additional adjustment for conventional cardiovascular risk factors did not alter these associations. Hyperglycemia or hyperinsulinemia explained 2% of the association between DM2 and FMD. NMD was not associated with glucose tolerance. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that DM2 is independently associated with impaired FMD. Hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia contribute minimally to this association. Impaired FMD may therefore, in part, explain the increased cardiovascular disease risk in DM2, whereas the normal FMD in IGM suggests that other forms of endothelial dysfunction are important in explaining the increased cardiovascular disease risk in IGM.

Aged↗
PubMed2004

Two prospective studies found that elevated 2-hr glucose predicted male mortality independent of fasting glucose and HbA1c.

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the relative contribution of elevated 2-hr glucose, fasting glucose (FPG), and HbA1c to all-cause mortality. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: A joint analysis of two prospective studies with baseline glycemia measurements. RESULTS: The multivariate adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) corresponding to a one standard deviation increase in HbA1c were 1.14 (95% CI 1.03-1.25), 1.08 (0.98-1.19) for FPG and 1.15 (1.05-1.27) for 2-hr glucose, respectively. Entering the 2-hr glucose to the model based on the FPG and HbA1c significantly improved the prediction of mortality, whereas neither FPG, nor HbA1c added significant information once 2-hr glucose was in the models. In subjects with FPG <7.0 mmol/L and HbA1c < or = 6.5%, the HR was 1.35 (1.03-1.78) in men with 2-hr glucose > or = 7.8 mmol/L compared with men with 2-hr glucose <7.8 mmol/L. CONCLUSION: Elevated 2-hr glucose was a predictor of mortality independent of the levels of fasting glucose and HbA1c.

Aged↗
PubMed2004

The value of bitewing radiographs in epidemiological caries research: a systematic review of the literature.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether radiographic examinations are necessary to evaluate (trends in) the prevalence of caries, a summary was made of data from epidemiological studies comparing the results of clinical and radiographic examinations in young populations. METHOD: A literature search yielded seven studies that met the inclusion criteria. A two-by-two table of radiographic versus clinical data was constructed for each study. These data were used to assess the radiographic and clinical prevalences and to find a conversion factor to calculate the total prevalence from the clinical prevalence. RESULTS: In the approximal surfaces the radiographic prevalence was considerably higher than the clinical prevalence. The conversion factors to calculate the total prevalence from the clinical prevalence varied considerably across studies. In the occlusal surfaces the radiographic and clinical prevalences were about similar, but extra lesions were detected with both methods. CONCLUSION: To study trends in the prevalence of caries, radiographic examinations are not necessary but to assess the prevalence of caries they do have unknown additional value. To obtain a valid conversion factor for relevant patient categories, agreement between the results of radiographic and clinical examinations should be investigated in sub samples of epidemiological studies.

Adolescent↗