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PubMed2004

[Quality of life in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases: translation to Portuguese language and validation of the "Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire" (IBDQ)].

BACKGROUND: Crohn's disease comprises, together with ulcerative colitis, the inflammatory bowel diseases, which because their morbidity and chronic evolution have a considerable impact on the patient's quality of life. The measurement of quality of life requires the determination of the degree of subjective well-being attributed to the lack of symptoms, to psychological state and daily activity, and is useful as an instrument of evaluation, both in clinical trials and health programs. Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire is an instrument developed by North-American investigators of McMaster University which reproducibility and validity has been determined in several countries studies, and has shown its use in the measurement of the quality of life of patients with inflammatory bowel diseases. AIMS: Our purpose was to translate that instrument into Portuguese language, its adaptation to Brazilian culture and verify its psychometric properties (validity and reproducibility). METHODS: It was applied to a population of 50 inflammatory bowel diseases patients (24 with Crohn's disease, 26 with ulcerative colitis). To test the criteria and construction validity of the instrument's, it was compared with SF-36, a general questionnaire for establishing quality of life, and the Crohn's Disease Activity Index and Lichtiger's Index. RESULTS: The correlations obtained were mostly moderate. About the intestinal diseases activity index, Lichtiger's index showed better correlations than Crohn's Disease Activity Index. To evaluate its reproducibility, the instrument was applied on three occasions, twice by the same observer (12 days average between applications) and once by a second observer, resulting in a high degree of intra- and interobserver correlation. CONCLUSIONS: Portuguese version of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire is a valid and reproducible instrument which can be used to evaluate the quality of life of Brazilian inflammatory bowel diseases patients.

Adult↗

PubMed1988

Periodontal disease in sickle cell disease subjects.

Various systemic diseases and conditions have been associated with an increase in periodontal disease severity. These studies indicate that host-response mechanisms influence the initiation and/or progression of inflammatory periodontal diseases. Diseases that have been associated with an increased severity of periodontal disease include various neutrophil abnormalities, Down's syndrome, diabetes, and recently, the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Sickle cell disease is strongly associated with a predisposition to various infections; therefore, the objective of this study was to determine whether sickle cell disease is also associated with an increase in the severity of periodontal disease. A total of 78 patients with sickle cell anemia (SS), hemoglobin SC disease (SC) or S Thalassemia were evaluated blind and compared with an appropriate control population using clinical and radiographic indices of periodontal disease severity. The results clearly indicate that, in this population of patients, sickle cell disease is not associated with increased levels of gingivitis or periodontitis.

Adult↗

PubMed1989

[Research into actual conditions and preventive care in periodontal disease. Relationship between questionnaire results and periodontal disease in youth].

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of periodontal disease and the relationship between the results of questionnaire concerning periodontal disease and the actual periodontal condition in youth. The examination was carried out in three parts. In the first part, a questionnaire was conducted on 3,886 junior and senior high school students (12 to 18 years of age) living in Kawagoe, Japan. The questionnaire was composed by of items concerning habits of oral hygiene, periodontal symptoms, understanding of periodontal disease and history of diagnosis by dentist of periodontal disease. Secondary, mass intraoral examination was carried out on all objects. The examination covered gingival inflammation, periodontal probing depth, calculus, dental plaque, dental caries and malalignment. Lastly, we examined the relationship between the results of periodontal examination and questionnaire with the original periodontal classification. The following results were obtained: 1. As an example of items in questionnaire, 83.1% brushed their teeth more than two times daily. The understanding of oral hygiene concerning dental caries was improved, but concerning periodontal disease was still poor. 2. The symptom most frequently reported was gingival bleeding during tooth brushing (18.4%). 3. The percentage of persons with periodontal disease (moderate gingival inflammation and periodontal pocket 4 mm or deeper) was of the highest frequency at 13 years old. The proportion of males increased with the advanced state of periodontal disease. 4. A significant correlation was found (chi 2-test: alpha less than 0.001) between advanced state of periodontal disease and a decrease in tooth brushing time per day. 5. A significant correlation was found between the advance of periodontal disease and gingival bleeding on tooth brushing (chi 2-test: alpha less than 0.001). Similarly, a correlation was found between the advance of periodontal disease and gingival swelling (chi 2-test: alpha less than 0.001). 6. A significant correlation was found (chi 2-test: alpha less than 0.001) between the advance of periodontal disease and aggravation of condition of dental plaque, calculus, dental caries and malalignment.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1988

Hemostasis in Crohn's disease: low factor XIII levels in active disease.

Massive gastrointestinal hemorrhage sometimes occurs in Crohn's disease. To examine the possible role of acquired disorders of hemostasis contributing to such events, several laboratory indicators of hemostasis (APT time, Normotest, platelet count, bleeding time, fibrinogen, factor VIII activity, vWF:Ag, factor X, factor XIII, antithrombin III, fibrinopeptide A, and B beta(15-42] were studied in 10 patients with active Crohn's disease (Crohn's disease activity index (CDAI) greater than 150) and 10 patients with quiescent disease (CDAI less than 150). Marked thrombocytosis was seen in three patients with active disease. Factor VIII activity and fibrinogen levels were significantly elevated in patients with Crohn's disease (p less than 0.001), and the factor VIII activity levels were significantly higher (p less than 0.05) in the patients with active disease than in those with quiescent disease. Factor XIII levels were significantly lower (p less than 0.02) in patients with active disease. Three of the patients with active disease had factor XIII levels below the lower reference limit. The two patients with the lowest levels had hemorrhagic diarrhea and spontaneous bleeding from the rectal mucosa. Fibrinopeptide A and B beta(15-42) levels were significantly elevated in both groups. The other coagulation analyses were essentially normal in both patient groups. The results suggest that factor XIII deficiency acquired through gastrointestinal leakage may contribute to gastrointestinal hemorrhage in some patients with active Crohn's disease.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1999

Disease and disease control. International Leprosy Congress, Beijing, 7-12 September 1998. Workshop report.

Four workshops were conducted during the congress under the disease control theme. The workshops were on the issues of defining disease and antibacterial therapy, early case detection, sustaining leprosy control in low endemic situations, and the prevention of disability. These workshops spanned the spectrum of disease and its consequences through from early detection, the definition of disease to the prevention of disability. All of these topics being important contemporary issues challenging leprosy control programmes world wide. Despite the broad spectrum of the topics it was interesting to see that a number of important themes emerged which were common to all topics. It is possible to identify five major themes arising from the output of the workshops which are now described below. Each of the workshops adopted broad and comprehensive approaches to their topic. In the past, there has been narrowness in defining disease in terms of the need for chemotherapy. The approach taken in the workshop now is for a much more comprehensive approach looking at all the consequences of the disease process rather than the requirement for antibacterial chemotherapy. Similarly broad approaches were taken to low endemic situations, considering comprehensive approaches which are inclusive rather than exclusive. Disability prevention also continues this same theme of comprehensive approaches based on multidisciplinary involvement in prevention of the consequences of the disease process. The second major theme to be identified in the output of the workshops was the importance of relevance to patients and people affected by leprosy. It is no longer adequate to view programmes in terms of their acceptance to those running the programmes. Control programmes must be acceptable to the people they are designed to benefit. This even impacts on definitions of disease in terms of what matters to patients rather than only restricting this to disease pathology. Similarly, approaches to disability prevention are not merely about measurement of impairments due to nerve function deficit but rather consider the abilities and functions which are most important to the individuals affected. The third theme which spans all of the workshops is the need to develop partnerships with others in addressing the challenges of leprosy today. Each workshop identified important groups with which partnerships need to be developed included local patient groups, voluntary associations and primary health care services. All of these have a role to play, from early case detection right through to the prevention of disability and the sustaining of control under low endemic situations. The fourth important theme is sustainability of programmes which need to be developed for the long term benefit of those affected by disease rather than short term goals. Again, this impacts an area such as case detection methods which need to be sustained in the long term. Approaches such as intensive case detection through mass survey are not sustainable given changes to the patterns of disease, whereas involvement of communities and community participation in the process of early case detection is a much more sustainable approach. This is important, as programmes attain low endemic status and is also important in preventing disabilities where the progressive nature of secondary impairments following primary impairments may be lifelong. The final theme is that of the importance of training, as each area is recommending new approaches to be taken and for new people to be involved in leprosy programmes. The implications are that those to be involved need to be trained and that the training requirements will be different from those of the last ten years. Training programmes will need to adapt to a wider range of individuals and groups being involved in programmes and to much more comprehensive approaches. These implications for training are profound and training centres and training programmes rapidly

China↗

PubMed2001

Disease course in systemic lupus erythematosus: changes in health status, disease activity, and organ damage after 2 years.

OBJECTIVE: To examine changes in health status, disease activity, and organ damage after 2 years and to study possible disease variables predicting change in health status, disease activity, and organ damage at followup in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Second, to compare changes in health status in patients with SLE to that of matched patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and matched healthy controls. METHODS: A 2 year longitudinal observational study, measuring health status (Short-Form 36. visual analog scale for pain and fatigue, modified Health Assessment Questionnaire, patient global assessment of disease activity), disease activity, and organ damage in 87 patients with SLE. Health status measures in SLE were compared to 65 matched RA patients selected from the Oslo RA register and to 77 matched healthy controls from the population register. RESULTS: On a group level the SLE patients showed stable health status measures and disease activity scores 2 years after baseline, but organ damage scores increased significantly. Increase in organ damage was significantly and independently predicted by baseline scores of disease activity and organ damage, health status, and disease activity by the respective baseline scores. Changes in health status measures over 2 years were similar in SLE, RA, and healthy controls. CONCLUSION: Our 2 year longitudinal observational SLE study showed a stable course of health status and disease activity, whereas organ damage increased. Disease activity and organ damage at baseline predicted the latter. Our results indicate the value of careful monitoring of disease activity over time in SLE and individually tailored treatment guided by the predictors of course and outcome.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

B27+ disease versus B27- disease.

When studying heterogeneity of B27-positive disease versus B27-negative disease, very different patterns of disease associations but also a lot of similarities may be observed. In general, B27-positive disease has an earlier onset, a more severe and prolonged clinical course and is more often complicated by acute anterior uveitis and peripheral arthritis, whereas B27-negative disease is accompanied by psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease and erythema nodosum in a higher percentage of the cases. Despite these differences, B27-positive disease may be completely undistinguishable from B27-negative disease in a number of individual cases. Family aggregation and male preponderance, however, are only seen in B27-positive disease. These observations may lead to the conclusion that HLA-B27 is probably not the only key to the pathogenesis of these diseases, but nevertheless an important genetic factor in disease expression.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1983

Cardiac disease after radiation therapy for Hodgkin's disease: analysis of 48 patients.

Occult or overt but delayed cardiac disease after thoracic radiotherapy for Hodgkin's disease may be common. Detailed cardiac evaluations were performed in 48 patients with Hodgkin's disease at risk a mean of 97 months after radiotherapy. The study protocol included echocardiography, gated radionuclide ventriculography, and cardiac catheterization. Cardiac disease was found in 46 patients (96%) and included constrictive or occult constrictive pericarditis (24 patients), an abnormal hemodynamic response to a fluid challenge (14 patients), coronary artery disease (6 patients), and left ventricular dysfunction (2 patients). Most patients (53%) had normal echocardiograms. Gated blood pool radionuclide angiocardiography was performed in 42 patients. Excluding patients with occlusive coronary artery disease, the left ventricular ejection fraction at rest (mean 59%) and during exercise (mean 69%) was within normal limits. Congestive heart failure occurred in 2 patients. Six patients had pericardiectomy for constrictive pericarditis and 3 patients had coronary artery bypass surgery for coronary artery disease. Thus (1) delayed cardiac disease after radiotherapy is common, (2) chronic pericardial disorders are the most frequent manifestations of this disease, and (3) the prognosis for patients who have radiation-induced cardiac disease is generally favorable.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Comparison of generic and disease-specific questionnaires for the assessment of quality of life in patients with peripheral arterial disease.

OBJECTIVE: This study compared the ability of generic and disease-specific questionnaires to assess quality of life (QOL) at baseline and to detect change in QOL after treatment in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD). METHODS: This prospective multicenter trial recruited 514 patients with PAD who needed an imaging workup and had an ankle brachial pressure index of less than 0.90. Patients with severe comorbidity were excluded, leaving a study population of 450 patients. Patients completed two generic questionnaires, the Short Form 36 (SF-36) and the European Quality of Life 5D (EuroQol-5D), and one disease-specific questionnaire, the Vascular Quality of Life (VascuQol) at baseline and after 6 months of follow-up. Rutherford classification and treadmill walking distance were determined at baseline and after 6 months of follow-up and were considered indicators of disease severity. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and areas under the curves (AUCs) were used to evaluate each of the three questionnaires for its ability to discriminate between severe and mild disease at baseline and to discriminate between a large and small change in disease severity after follow-up. The underlying assumption was that disease severity is a major determinant of QOL. This implies that the validity of a QOL questionnaire is reflected by its ability to discriminate between mildly and severely diseased patients. RESULTS: At baseline, 443 patients and after follow-up, 386 patients completed questionnaires. At baseline, no significant ( P >.05) differences were observed among AUCs for the total scores of the three questionnaires, indicating that all three questionnaires assessed the disease severity equally well. After follow-up, the AUCs for the VascuQol were significantly higher than the AUCs for the SF-36 and EuroQol-5D with respect to detection of improvement in Rutherford classification ( P < .05), indicating that change in disease severity after follow-up was best detected by the VascuQol. CONCLUSION: The VascuQol is the preferred questionnaire as outcome measure for QOL in future trials and clinical follow-up of patients with PAD.

Aged↗

PubMed2006

Screening for asymptomatic cardiovascular disease with noninvasive imaging in patients at high-risk and low-risk according to the European Guidelines on Cardiovascular Disease Prevention: the SMART study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence of atherosclerotic risk factors and to investigate the added value of noninvasive imaging in detecting asymptomatic cardiovascular diseases in patients at low risk and high risk according to the European Guidelines on Cardiovascular Disease Prevention. METHODS: In the vascular screening program of the University Medical Center Utrecht, patients aged 18 to 79 years who had recently received a diagnosis of manifest vascular disease (coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm, or peripheral arterial disease [PAD]) or had a risk factor (hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or diabetes mellitus) were assessed for atherosclerotic risk factors and (other) arterial diseases by noninvasive means. The European guidelines were applied to quantify the number of high-risk patients. RESULTS: Eighty-eight percent of 3950 patients were considered to be at high-risk. More than 80% had hyperlipidemia, approximately 50% had hypertension, 21% had diabetes mellitus, and 31% were current smokers. An asymptomatic reduced ankle-brachial index (< or = 0.90) was most frequently observed in patients with cerebrovascular disease (21%); an asymptomatic abdominal aortic aneurysm (> or = 3.0 cm) in patients with PAD (5%) or cerebrovascular disease (5%); and an asymptomatic carotid stenosis (> or = 50%) in patients with PAD (15%). On the basis of noninvasive measurements, 73 (13%) of 545 patients initially considered as low risk were reclassified as high risk. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed a high prevalence and clustering of modifiable atherosclerotic risk factors in high-risk patients. The yield of noninvasive vascular measurements was relatively low but identified a sizable number of high-risk patients. Standard screening for asymptomatic atherosclerotic disease identified a limited number of vascular abnormalities that necessitated immediate medical attention in patients already identified as high-risk patients.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Uric acid and chronic renal disease: possible implication of hyperuricemia on progression of renal disease.

Although hyperuricemia has long been associated with renal disease, uric acid has not been considered as a true mediator of progression of renal disease. The observation that hyperuricemia commonly is associated with other risk factors of cardiovascular and renal disease, especially hypertension, has made it difficult to dissect the effect of uric acid itself. However, recent epidemiologic evidence suggests a significant and independent association between the level of serum uric acid and renal disease progression with beneficial effect of decreasing uric acid levels. Furthermore, our experimental data using hyperuricemic animals and cultured cells have provided robust evidence regarding the role of uric acid on progression of renal disease. Hyperuricemia increased systemic blood pressure, proteinuria, renal dysfunction, vascular disease, and progressive renal scarring in rats. Recent data also suggest hyperuricemia may be one of the key and previously unknown mechanisms for the activation of the renin-angiotensin and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) systems in progressive renal disease. Although we must be cautious in the interpretation of animal models to human disease, these studies provide a mechanism to explain epidemiologic data that show uric acid is an independent risk factor for renal progression. Although there is no concrete evidence yet that uric acid bears a causal or reversible relationship to progressive renal disease in humans, it is time to reevaluate the implication of hyperuricemia as an important player for progression of renal disease and to try to find safe and reasonable therapeutic modalities in individual patients based on their clinical data, medication history, and the presence of cardiovascular complications.

Animals↗

PubMed1999

Ionizing radiation and genetic risks. VI. Chronic multifactorial diseases: a review of epidemiological and genetical aspects of coronary heart disease, essential hypertension and diabetes mellitus.

This paper provides a broad overview of the epidemiological and genetical aspects of common multifactorial diseases in man with focus on three well-studied ones, namely, coronary heart disease (CHD), essential hypertension (EHYT) and diabetes mellitus (DM). In contrast to mendelian diseases, for which a mutant gene either in the heterozygous or homozygous condition is generally sufficient to cause disease, for most multifactorial diseases, the concepts of genetic susceptibility' and risk factors' are more appropriate. For these diseases, genetic susceptibility is heterogeneous. The well-studied diseases such as CHD permit one to conceptualize the complex relationships between genotype and phenotype for chronic multifactorial diseases in general, namely that allelic variations in genes, through their products interacting with environmental factors, contribute to the quantitative variability of biological risk factor traits and thus ultimately to disease outcome. Two types of such allelic variations can be distinguished, namely those in genes whose mutant alleles have (i) small to moderate effects on the risk factor trait, are common in the population (polymorphic alleles) and therefore contribute substantially to the variability of biological risk factor traits and (ii) profound effects, are rare in the population and therefore contribute far less to the variability of biological risk factor traits. For all the three diseases considered in this review, a positive family history is a strong risk factor. CHD is one of the major contributors to mortality in most industrialized countries. Evidence from epidemiological studies, clinical correlations, genetic hyperlipidaemias etc., indicate that lipids play a key role in the pathogenesis of CHD. The known lipid-related risk factors include: high levels of low density lipoprotein cholesterol, low levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol, high apoB levels (the major protein fraction of the low density lipoprotein particles) and elevated levels of Lp(a) lipoprotein. Among the risk factors which are not related to lipids are: high levels of homocysteine, low activity of paraoxonase and possibly also elevated plasma fibrinogen levels. In addition to the above, hypertension, diabetes and obesity (which themselves have genetic determinants) are important risk factors for CHD. Among the environmental risk factors are: high dietary fat intake, smoking, stress, lack of exercise etc. About 60% of the variability of the plasma cholesterol is genetic in origin. While a few genes have been identified whose mutant alleles have large effects on this trait (e.g., LDLR, familial defective apoB-100), variability in cholesterol levels among individuals in most families is influenced by allelic variation in many genes (polymorphisms) as well as environmental exposures. A proportion of this variation can be accounted for by two alleles of the apoE locus that increase (&epsi;4) and decrease (&epsi;2) cholesterol levels, respectively. A polymorphism at the apoB gene (XbaI) also has similar effects, but is probably not mediated through lipids. High density lipoprotein cholesterol levels are genetically influenced and are related to apoA1 and hepatic lipase (LIPC) gene functions. Mutations in the apoA1 gene are rare and there are data which suggest a role of allelic variation at or linked LIPC gene in high density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Polymorphism at the apoA1--C3 loci is often associated with hypertriglyceridemia. The apo(a) gene which codes for Lp(a) is highly polymorphic, each allele determining a specific number of multiple tandem repeats of a unique coding sequence known as Kringle 4. The size of the gene correlates with the size of the Lp(a) protein. The smaller the size of the Lp(a) protein, the higher are the Lp(a) levels. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED)

Chronic Disease↗

PubMed1993

Apolipoprotein (a) concentrations and susceptibility to coronary artery disease in patients with peripheral vascular disease.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relation between apolipoprotein(a) concentrations and angiographically defined coronary artery disease in patients with atheromatous peripheral vascular disease. DESIGN: 40 consecutive patients were recruited at the time of admission for peripheral vascular surgery. All underwent clinical assessment and coronary arteriography. Apolipoprotein(a) concentrations were measured by an immunoradiometric assay. SETTING: Tertiary referral centre. SUBJECTS: Patients requiring surgical intervention for large vessel peripheral vascular disease. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Presence or absence and severity and distribution of angiographically defined coronary artery disease. Measurement of circulating contractions of apolipoprotein(a) and other lipid indices. RESULTS: Coronary artery disease was absent in 11 patients (group 1), mild to moderate in 12 (group 2), and severe in 17 (group 3). The distribution of peripheral vascular disease and of standard lipid indices was similar in these three groups of patients. There was a significant difference in apolipoprotein(a) concentrations between the three groups, with concentrations progressively increasing with the severity of coronary artery disease (mean (95% confidence interval): group 1, 112 U/1 (52 to 242); group 2, 214 U/1 (129 to 355); group 3, 537 U/1 (271 to 1064) (analysis of variance p < 0.005). The prevalence of coronary artery disease was increased 7.4 fold in patients with apolipoprotein(a) concentrations that were greater than the cohort median (206 U/1) (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The results show an association between apolipoprotein(a) concentrations and angiographically defined coronary artery disease in patients with large vessel peripheral vascular disease. The findings imply differences in the pathogenesis of coronary and peripheral atheroma and suggest that the measurement of apolipoprotein(a) may prove a useful additional tool in the risk factor assessment of patients undergoing peripheral vascular surgery.

Aged↗

PubMed2004

Australia's notifiable diseases status, 2002: Annual report of the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System.

There were 57 infectious diseases notifiable at the national level in Australia in 2002. States and territories reported 100,278 cases of infectious diseases to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS), a fall of 4 per cent compared to the number of notifications in 2001. In 2002, the most frequently notified diseases were, sexually transmitted infections (31,929 reports, 32% of total notifications), gastrointestinal infections (26,708 reports, 27% of total notifications) and bloodborne infections (23,741, 24%). There were 11,711 (12% of total) cases of vaccine preventable diseases, 3,052 (3% of total) cases of vectorborne diseases, 1,155 (1% of total) cases of zoonotic infections, two cases of quarantinable diseases (Vibrio cholerae O1) and 1,980 cases of other bacterial diseases, notified to NNDSS. Compared to 2001, notifications of sexually transmitted infections increased by 16 per cent and gastrointestinal infections by 2 per cent while bloodborne infections fell by 18 per cent. The number of notifications of chlamydial infection and Q fever were the highest since 1991 and 1995 respectively. By contrast, the number of notification for hepatitis A and measles were the lowest since 1991. For other notifiable diseases, the number of notifications was within the range of the five years between 1997 and 2002 (range = five-year mean plus or minus two standard deviations). This report also includes 2002 summary data on communicable diseases from other surveillance systems including the Laboratory Virology and Serology Reporting Scheme and sentinel general practitioner schemes.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1977

Role of hypertension in ischemic heart disease and cerebral vascular disease in the cynomolgus monkey with coarctation of the aorta.

The role of hypertension in cardiovascular disease was studied in the hypertensive coarcted monkey during the feeding of an atherogenic and nonatherogenic diet. During the 15-month period of observation, half of the hypertensive coarcted monkeys developed cardiovascular disease which included heart failure, ischemic heart disease, stroke, and sudden death. There were no cardiovascular complications in the control normotensive monkeys except for one cholesterol-fed animal. The incidence of ischemic heart disease and sudden cardiac death was higher in monkeys with both hypertension and hypercholesterolemia than in those with hypertension or hypercholesterolemia alone. Postmortem studies revealed that the former monkeys had both hypertensive and atherosclerotic heart disease, whereas the monkeys with hypertension or hypercholesterolemia had either hypertensive or atherosclerotic heart disease. Hypertensive heart disease was characterized not only by hypertrophy of the left ventricle but also by focal myocardial degeneration and fibrosis and by focal thickening and narrowing of the small coronary arteries, particularly the sinus node artery and the atrioventricular node artery. The finding of transmural myocardial infarction in two monkeys with patient coronary arteries suggests a possible role of coronary artery spasm in ischemic heart disease in hypertension. The cerebral vascular complications of hypertension included hypertensive encephalopathy, transient "ischemic" attacks, and hemorrhagic stroke. The complications were associated with severe hypertension and with hypertensive vascular disease or hypertensive and atherosclerotic vascular disease of the cerebral arteries.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Communicable diseases monitored by disease surveillance in Kottayam district, Kerala state, India.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: A disease surveillance model developed in the North Arcot district, Tamil Nadu, was found to be practical, efficient, inexpensive and useful for public health action to monitor the success of ongoing interventions and to detect and intercept outbreaks. It was centred in the private (voluntary) sector with full co-operation and participation by the government sector. As Kerala state wanted to replicate this model in all districts, one district was chosen to pilot test it centred within the existing district public health system, soliciting participation from the private sector. A two-year (1999-2001) performance of this model is presented. METHODS: After elaborate preparations including the selection of 14 diseases to be reported and training of doctors in the private sector health care institutions and doctors and paramedical staff in all government health centres and hospitals, printed post cards were widely distributed. The business reply system was used so as to avoid handling postage stamps. Cards were received by the nodal officer in the district public health office and checked on a daily basis to detect disease prevalence and evidence of clustering in time and space. Swift action was taken on detecting case clustering. A monthly bulletin containing disease summaries and other useful information was freely distributed to all reporting centres. RESULTS: On an average, just over 100 disease reports were received every month. The most frequently reported diseases were, in the descending order, leptospirosis, acute dysentery, typhoid fever and acute hepatitis. Among vaccine-preventable childhood diseases, only measles was reported, but no diphtheria, tetanus or whooping cough. Several outbreaks were detected early and interventions applied to intercept them. The most striking example was that of cholera, the occurrence of which was detected swiftly for instituting highly successful control measures. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSION: The district level disease surveillance system centred in the government public health system has been highly successful. Disease surveillance was responsible for the government to obtain information on the prevalence of leptospirosis in the district. The reports enabled the public health officers to detect disease-clustering as the early signals of outbreaks and to take quick remedial measures.

Cluster Analysis↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Prevalence of coronary artery disease in patients with rheumatic heart disease in the current era.

BACKGROUND: This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of coronary artery disease in patients with rheumatic heart disease undergoing valve surgery. METHODS AND RESULTS: Consecutive patients with rheumatic heart disease (n=376) who were above the age of 40 years, and scheduled for valve surgery underwent diagnostic coronary angiogram to delineate coronary arteries. The patients were divided into three groups based on valve involvement (mitral valve, aortic valve, and combined aortic and mitral valve). Significant coronary artery disease was considered to be present if one or more coronaries showed 50% or more luminal stenosis. There were 287 (76.3%) males and 89 (23.7%) females. The mean age of the study population was 51.2+/-8.2 years. Eighty-nine (23.8%) patients had typical chest pain, 116 (30.6%) patients had atypical chest pain and 171 (45.5%) patients had no chest pain. Hypertension was noted in 88 (23.4%) patients, 65 (17.3%) patients had diabetes, 98 (26.1%) patients were smoker, and 66 (17.6%) patients had dyslipidemia, and 15 (4.0%) patients gave past history of myocardial infarction. Of the total 376 patients, 46 (12.2%) patients were found to have significant coronary artery disease. In patients with mitral vale disease the prevalence was 13.5% (13/96), while it was 15.3% (19/124) in patients with aortic valve disease and 9% (14/156) in those with combined mitral and aortic valve disease. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that the overall prevalence of coronary artery disease in a group of patients with rheumatic heart disease undergoing valve surgery in the current era is 12.2%. This prevalence is much lower than the figures reported earlier in the Western literature.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The relationship between serum prolactin levels and disease activity in patients with Behcet's disease.

The aim of this study was to determine the serum levels of prolactin in patients with Behcet's disease and to evaluate its correlation with disease activity. Serum prolactin levels were measured by a chemiluminescence method in 32 patients with Behcet's disease and compared with 20 age-and sex-matched healthy controls. The patients with Behcet's disease were subdivided into two groups according to disease activity: active (18 patients; 13 men and five women, average age 34.0 +/- 6.5 (28-48) years), and inactive (14 patients; 10 men and four women, average age 32.7 +/- 3.1 (22-49 years). Patients with active Behcet's disease had higher serum prolactin levels than the inactive and control groups. Prolactin levels in patients with active Behcet's disease differed significantly from the healthy control subjects (p < 0.05) only, but not the inactive group. Four patients out of 32 (12.5%) Behcet's disease patients showed mild hyperprolactinemia. All four of these cases were from the active Behcet's disease group. Prolactin levels were correlated with ESR (p < 0.05) and CRP (p < 0.05) levels in the active BD group, but not in the inactive BD and control groups. Our results suggest a possible role for this immunoregulatory hormone in the disease expression and pathogenesis of Behcet's disease.

Adult↗