Prognostic value of ultra-sensitive pregnancy associated plasma protein-A in patients with acute coronary syndrome / 中国医学科学院学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the prognostic value of ultra-sensitive pregnancy associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) level in the early phase of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) attack.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Patients diagnosed as ACS were enrolled and the level of circulatory PAPP-A was measured within 12 hours after ACS attack. The patients were followed at the time of 1st, 6th, and 12th months post-ACS attack in order to observe the incidence of the cardiovascular adverse events. According to the highest quintile, the patients were divided into 2 groups: high level (≥26.08 μg/L) group and low level (<26.08 μg/L) group, to evaluate the association between the level of PAPP-A and the incidence of the cardiovascular events.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the low level group, the incidence of the composite outcome is significantly increased in the high level group, and the values of OR are 4.76, 4.38, 3.75 for 1st, 6th, 12th months respectively (P=0.000). For myocardial infarction (MI) + cardiac death (CD) the values of OR were 9.81, 6.08, 4.12 (P<0.01). Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrates that PAPP-A was an independent risk factor for the cardiovascular adverse events in the early, median, and late phase of ACS (P<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>In the early phase of ACS attack, the elevation of PAPP-A is an independent risk factor for the occurrence of cardiovascular adverse events.</p>

Cigarette smoking and Parkinson's disease: a population based case-control study / 中华流行病学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the association with cigarette smoking for Parkinson's disease (PD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>One hundred and fourteen PD cases and 205 controls matched on gender and race were recruited from ongoing PD prevalence survey and identified at the neurological clinic of Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Face to face questionnaire interview was carried out and data on smoking and alcohol consumption were analyzed in a population-based case control study.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>With never-smokers as the reference category, we observed reduced risk for PD among ever smokers (OR = 0.49, 95% CI: 0.30 - 0.79) current smokers (OR = 0.44, 95% CI: 0.23 - 0.86) and ex-smokers (OR = 0.54, 95% CI: 0.30 - 0.96). When comparing with non-smokers, the ever smokers stratified by years of smoking had an inverse association with those whose smoking history longer than 20 years (OR = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.18 - 0.70) and an mild protective association with those who smoked less than 20 years (OR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.35 - 1.07). Those who had quitted smoking for more than 20 years were less likely to have the disease than never smokers, and those who had quitted for less than 20 years were least likely to have PD. Those current smokers were still least likely to have the disease. Significant inverse gradient with pack-day smoker (trend P < 0.05), and the inverse association for cigarette smoking and PD were found not bing confounded by alcohol consumption.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The inverse association between PD and cigarette smoking and history of cessation was found. Further studies need to provide biochemical evidence on the relation between smoking and its protective effect on PD.</p>