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Results for “Serum Folate Level”

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At least 505 records · Page 28Linked to original sources
PubMed2005

In pregnant women who smoke, caffeine consumption is associated with an increased level of homocysteine.

AIM: To investigate whether maternal caffeine consumption is associated with increased maternal homocysteine (Hcy) levels in uncomplicated pregnancies. METHODS: Ninety-two pregnant women were randomly selected, and maternal serum levels of folate, vitamin B(12), and Hcy at gestational weeks 17 and 33 were measured. Caffeine consumption was estimated from dietary records collected at the same gestational ages. RESULTS: In women who smoked, Hcy levels were associated with caffeine consumption both in gestational weeks 17 and 33 and with folate at week 33. Consumption of one cup of coffee was associated with an increase in maternal Hcy of 0.26 micromol/l at week 17 and 0.69 micromol/l at week 33, indicating that one extra cup (150 ml) of coffee per day may increase Hcy by 5--10% in pregnant smokers. In non-smokers, caffeine consumption was not associated with Hcy levels. CONCLUSIONS: In uncomplicated pregnancies, maternal caffeine consumption early in the second and in the third trimester is associated with increased maternal Hcy levels in women who smoked, but not in non-smokers.

Caffeine↗
PubMed1974

Malabsorption in overland travellers to India.

Thirty-four cases of malabsorption are described in young adults after brief periods of overland travel to India. Symptoms included diarrhoea, abdominal distension, and weight loss. Investigation revealed fat, xylose, and vitamin B(12) malabsorption with marked morphological changes in the mucosa. Lower levels of serum folate and vitamin B(12) were observed in those with protracted diarrhoea, but no anaemia developed. Malabsorption may persist for many months after return to the U.K. Most patients responded initially to antibiotics, but some subsequently relapsed. The reasons why these patients developed tropical sprue are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Vitamin B nutrition in the Nigerian tropical ataxic neuropathy.

Assessment of nutritional status of vitamin B components by plasma or blood levels indicated riboflavin deficiency and possibly thiamine deficiency in Nigerian patients who suffered from tropical ataxic neuropathy and neurologically normal Nigerians who subsisted on predominant cassava diet. Serum levels of folate, niacin, pyridoxine and panthothenic acid were normal. Vitamin deficiencies probably are minor factors, if any, in the pathogenesis of tropical ataxic neuropathy in Nigerians.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Genetic analysis of the thermolabile variant of 5, 10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase as a risk factor for ischemic stroke.

Mild hyperhomocysteinemia is a risk factor for atherosclerotic vascular disease. Homozygosity for the C677T mutation in the gene for 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is frequently associated with hyperhomocysteinemia, particularly in individuals with low levels of serum folate, and has been directly associated with cardiovascular disease in certain populations. The purpose of this study was to establish whether the C677T mutation, which causes thermolabile MTHFR, is a risk factor for ischemic stroke in the Irish population. The homozygous C677T genotype has previously been associated with coronary heart disease in Ireland. We collected blood from 174 individuals (minimum age 60 years) who had suffered an ischemic stroke that was confirmed by computed tomography brain scan. Control subjects (n=183) aged >/=60 years, who had never suffered a stroke or transient ischemic attack, were recruited from hospitals and active retirement groups in the same geographical area. MTHFR genotypes were determined and other known risk factors for stroke were documented. In the control group, the frequency of subjects with the homozygous C677T genotype was 10.4%. In patients who had suffered ischemic stroke, the frequency was 15.5%. This difference was not statistically significant. The odds ratio of stroke for C677T homozygotes, with other genotypes as a reference group, was 1.59, 95% CI=0.85, 2.97. The data indicate that the homozygous C677T MTHFR genotype is at most a moderate risk factor for ischemic stroke.

Aged↗
PubMed2003

Hyperhomocysteinemia in cerebral vein thrombosis.

High plasma levels of total homocysteine (tHcy) are a risk factor for deep vein thrombosis. Because no information on the relationship between cerebral vein thrombosis and hyperhomocysteinemia is available, a case-control study of 121 patients with a first episode of cerebral vein thrombosis and 242 healthy control subjects was carried out. Fasting plasma levels of tHcy and their postmethionine load (PML) increments, together with other laboratory markers of thrombophilia, were measured in plasma or DNA. Hyperhomocysteinemia (high fasting tHcy and/or PML increments) was diagnosed in 33 patients (27%) and 20 control subjects (8%) (odds ratio, 4.2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.3-7.6). Low levels of serum folate and the 677TT methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase were associated with hyperhomocysteinemia, but in a multivariate model hyperhomocysteinemia only was associated with an increased risk of cerebral vein thrombosis. Oral contraceptive intake was associated with the disease with an odds ratio of 6.1 (95% CI, 3.3-11.0). The combined presence of the latter and hyperhomocysteinemia increased the risk of the disease with an odds ratio of 19.5 (95% CI, 5.7-67.3). In conclusion, hyperhomocysteinemia is associated with a 4-fold increased risk of cerebral vein thrombosis; whether or not its correction with vitamins reduces the risk of the disease remains to be demonstrated.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1980

A sibling case of hyperphenylalaninemia due to a deficiency of dihydropteridine reductase: biochemical and pathological findings.

Three siblings with hyperphenylalaninemia were described, who showed convulsions and severe mental retardation despite dietary control of blood phenylalanine. The cultured skin fibroblasts from two patients revealed a markedly low activity of dihydropteridine reductase. These patients showed low levels of serum folate and of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid and homovanillic acid in cerebrospinal fluid. The postmortem examination on one of these siblings exhibited the dysmyelination in the cerebrum and spongy lesions of the white matter in the cerebellum, pons, medulla oblongata and spinal cord. Many minute foci of calcification were found in the cerebrum, which were located in the perivascular space of the small blood vessels. Such calcification was observed on CT scanning of the brain in the other two living siblings as well.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

The effect of oral nutritional supplements on habitual dietary quality and quantity in frail elders.

BACKGROUND: Frail institutionalized elders have a high prevalence of nutritional risk factors, undernutrition, weight loss, and nutrition-related morbidity and excess mortality. Little information is available on effective means to intervene in this setting. HYPOTHESES: We tested the hypothesis that addition of multinutrient oral supplements to the diet of frail elders would improve their overall nutritional status and functional level. METHODS: Fifty nursing home residents aged 88+/-1 yr. were followed for 10 weeks in the course of a randomized controlled trial of supplementation with a multinutrient liquid supplement vs. a non-nutritive placebo drink. Three-day food weighing was used to analyze their habitual dietary intake before and during the final week of the intervention. Nutritional status was further assessed with nutritional biochemistries, anthropometric measurements, and body composition analysis as well as physical and functional performance tests. RESULTS: The nutritional supplement was consumed with high compliance, but did not significantly augment total caloric intake. Supplementation was associated with significant reductions in total energy, protein, fat, water, fiber, and many vitamins and minerals in the habitual diet of these nursing home residents. Nutritional status improved in terms of folate levels in serum, but no other measured vitamin or mineral indices. Body composition analysis revealed a small gain in weight, increases in fat stores, but no improvement in lean tissue mass associated with supplemention. No physical performance or functional gains were associated with supplementation. CONCLUSION: Short-term nutritional supplementation in elders at nutritional risk is offset by simultaneous reduction in voluntary food intake. It seems likely that changing other components of energy expenditure such as physical activity levels or basal metabolism may be required to produce overall improvements in nutritional intake in this setting.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Diabetic patients on peritoneal dialysis need less erythropoietin to maintain adequate hemoglobin.

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients have been shown to require less erythropoietin as compared with hemodialysis (HD) patients to maintain similar hemoglobin values. In our unit, we observed that diabetic PD patients required less erythropoietin treatment than did other PD patients. We therefore compared the amount of erythropoietin needed in diabetic and non diabetic patients on PD to maintain a similar hemoglobin value. All polycystic patients were excluded from the study because they rarely require erythropoietin. We also excluded patients with bone marrow disease, active gastrointestinal bleeding, or patients very resistant (requiring more than 25,000 U per week) to Eprex (recombinant human erythropoietin: Janssen-Cilag, North York, Ontario, Canada). Patients not requiring Eprex were also excluded from the study. We calculated the weekly erythropoietin dose in the two groups. We also compared hemoglobin level, iron transferrin saturation, vitamin?12 level, and serum folate. Diabetic patients required a lower weekly erythropoietin dose. Diabetic PD patients in our unti receive an average 4497 U per week compared with 7593 U per week for non diabetic PD patients. The difference (approximately 3000 U per week) is statistically significant.

Diabetes Mellitus↗