prevalence of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk factors in a group of obese Saudi children and adolescents: a hospital-based study

We assessed the distribution of risk factors associated with the metabolic syndrome in a group of obese Saudi children and adolescents. No previous studies had addressed this issue in the Saudi pediatric population. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients evaluated for obesity between 2004 and 2008 and collected data on age, weight, height, body mass index [BMI], BP, fasting lipid profile, fasting glucose, insulin concentrations, and insulin resistance based on the homeostasis assessment model-insulin resistance [HOMA-IR] score. Obesity was defined as a BMI above the 95 th percentile for age and gender and metabolic syndrome was diagnosed according to standard criteria. We studied 57 obese Saudi children and adolescents with a mean [standard deviation] age of 9.8 [3.5] years. Mean weight and body mass index [BMI] were 63.7 [28.3] kg and 31.6 [8.0] kg/m[2], respectively. Systolic BP was elevated in 24 [42%] of the 57 subjects. Of the 39 children who had a lipid profile in their records, 10 had hypertriglyceridemia, 8 had hypercholesterolemia, 6 had elevated LDL cholesterol levels, and 6 had low HDL cholesterol levels. Impaired fasting glucose was found in 10 of 38 patients in which it was measured, and 9 of 25 patients had fasting hyperinsulinemia. Eleven of 37 patients [29.7%] met the diagnosis of the metabolic syndrome. Diastolic BP correlated positively with BMI [r=0.440, P=.001], and HDL cholesterol correlated negatively with weight and BMI [r=-0.487, P=.002 and r=-0.317, P=.05]. HOMA-IR correlated positively with BMI and triglyceride levels and negatively with HDL cholesterol levels. Obese Saudi children and adolescents have multiple risk factors associated with metabolic syndrome

Oral sucrose and a pacifier for pain relief during simple procedures in preterm infants: a randomized controlled trial

Previous randomized trials of the analgesic effects of sucrose, glucose, and a pacifier in term neonates have shown that the pacifier resulted in lower pain scores than glucose or sucrose, but the pacifier with and without sucrose did not differ. The current study was designed to assess the analgesic effect of pharmacologic [sucrose, water] and a non-pharmacologic measures [pacifier] in preterm infants and to find whether there is any synergism between these intervention in relieving pain during painful procedures. In this double-blind, randomized, controlled study, 36 preterm infants [mean 31 weeks gestational age, range 27 to 36 weeks] were randomly allocated to six different regimens [0.5 mL sterile water with pacifier, 0.5 mL sterile water without pacifier, 0.5 mL sucrose 24% with pacifier, 0.5 mL sucrose 24% without pacifier, pacifier alone and control group] during a stay in intensive care of up to 15 days. Pain scores were measured with the Premature Infant Pain Profile [PIPP], a validated behavioral acute pain scale. Of all the regimens, the lowest pain scores occurred with the use of 24% sucrose solution combined with pacifier. The mean pain score for the combination of sucrose with pacifier was 0.7 as compared to 1.4 for the sterile water with pacifier group [P < .05]. The synergistic effect of the combination of sucrose and non-nutritive sucking was clinically effective and safe in relieving the pain of simple procedures such as venipuncture or heel stick in preterm and term infants, but further research is needed on these interventions alone and in combination with other behav-ioral interventions in neonates