Enhanced heat loss responses induced by short-term endurance training in exercising women.

We investigated the effects of short-term endurance training and detraining on sweating and cutaneous vasodilatation during exercise in young women, taking into account changes in maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) and the phase of the menstrual cycle. Eleven untrained women participated in endurance training; cycle exercise at approximately 60% VO2max for 60 min day(-1), 4-5 days week(-1) (30 degrees C, 45% relative humidity) for three complete menstrual cycles. The standard exercise test consisted of exercise at 50% VO2max for 30 min (25 degrees C, 45% relative humidity), and was conducted before training (Pre), during training sessions (T1, T2 and T3) and after cessation of training (D1 and D2). Values of VO2max increased significantly from 32.7 +/- 1.2 to 37.8 +/- 1.2 ml min(-1) kg(-1) at the end of the training. Local sweat rate in the chest and thigh, but not in the back and forearm, were significantly greater during T1 and T2 only in women who started training from the midfollicular phase. Cutaneous blood flow did not change with training. The threshold oesophageal temperatures for heat loss responses were significantly decreased during T1 versus Pre (averaged values for each body site: sweating, 37.49 +/- 0.08 versus 37.22 +/- 0.12 degrees C; and cutaneous vasodilatation, 37.40 +/- 0.07 versus 37.17 +/- 0.10 degrees C) and maintained through T3; the sensitivities of heat loss responses were not altered. These changes returned to the Pre level by D1. Our data indicate that physical training improves heat loss responses by decreasing the threshold temperatures and that these effects occur within a month of training and disappear within a month after cessation of training. The degree of increase in sweating with training differs among body sites and might be affected by the phase of the menstrual cycle.

[Elderly case of systemic lupus erythematosus who showed lupus peritonitis as the initial symptom].

A 64-year-old woman who admitted because of abdominal pain and ascites. She was diagnosed as having systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and lupus peritonitis based on anti ds-DNA antibody, ANA positive, serositis and renal dysfunction. She was successfully treated by intravenous pulse therapy with methylprednisolone, but her enteritis recurred after switching to oral administration. She recovered following pulse therapy with methylprednisolone and extracorporeal apheresis. This case was characterized by a rather old age of onset and the peculiar initial symptoms of peritonitis.

Effects of sex, age and BMI on screening tests for impaired glucose tolerance.

The discriminating abilities of fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and HbA1c were compared on screening tests for impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and IGT plus diabetes mellitus by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Furthermore, effects of sex, age and BMI were examined on sensitivity and specificity of the optimal cutoff points. This study included 997 subjects who were recruited for 75 g OGTT after the first screening of the Japan Diabetes Prevention Program. According to the 1997 criteria of the American Diabetes Association (ADA), 140 subjects were classified as diabetic and 256 as IGT. The areas under the ROC curves of FPG were significantly larger than those of HbA1c. The optimal cutoff points of FPG were 102 mg/dl for IGT and 105 mg/dl for IGT plus diabetes mellitus. Those of HbA1c were both 5.3%. In screening with FPG, females had significantly lower sensitivity and higher specificity than males, and the specificity for IGT plus diabetes mellitus was the lowest in the obese group. In screening with HbA1c, the specificity was low in the older and the obese groups. We concluded that FPG was superior to HbA1c for screening of IGT and IGT plus diabetes mellitus and the optimal cutoff point of FPG would be 102 mg/dl or greater.

[Relationship between the frequency of menstrual pain and bodyweight in female adolescents].

PURPOSE: Many female adolescents suffer menstrual pain and their daily activities are often adversely affected. It is, therefore, necessary to clarify what factors are associated with menstrual pain in order to assist in improving their quality of life (QOL). The purpose of the present study was to examine if adolescents' physique, which reflects their diet and physical activities, has any influence on the frequency of menstrual pain. Especial attention was concentrated on the Body Mass Index (BMI). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Using a cross-sectional sample of 2,718 college women aged 18 to 21, both a measurement of body weight and height and a survey with a self-administered questionnaire were carried out in April 2000. The data for the 2,282 college women who properly answered questions were analyzed to study the association of the frequency of menstrual pain with age, physique, exercising habits and factors associated with menstruation such as menarcheal age, menstrual cycle, menstrual duration and menstrual flow. RESULTS: Of the 2,282 college women studied, 34.1% regularly experienced menstrual pain, 48.7% sometimes and 17.2% seldom. When the college women studied were divided into three groups according to an old definition of obesity by Nippon Himan Gakkai, 34.8% of them belonged to the underweight group (BMI < 19.8), 53.8% to the normal group (19.8 < or = BMI < 24.2) and 11.4% were overweight (BMI > or = 24.2). Logistic analysis showed the odds ratio (OR) for the underweight group regularly experienced menstrual pain to be 1.3 (95% confidence intervals (CI): 1.1-1.6) while that for the overweight group was 1.1 (95% CI: 0.8-1.5), taking the normal group as the reference. Early menarche and heavy menstrual flow increased the risk of experiencing menstrual pain while irregular menstrual cycle was associated with decrease. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of menstrual pain among the college women studied was very high, 82.8%, the frequency being greatest in the underweight group (BMI < 19.8). Given the current trend for young women to wish to be thin and the fact that nearly half of Japanese females aged 15 to 24 are already lean, this study suggests that it is very important to take measures to counteract young women's enthusiasm for excessive dieting or other approaches to weight loss since this will help reduce their menstrual pain and improve their QOL.