Sedimentation history and excess metal deposition in estuarine barrier-island system of the Nakdong River, South Korea.

Human activities, such as dam construction and reclamation, can affect sedimentation rates as well as sediment topography and transport in estuaries such as the Nakdong River Estuary. To investigate the sedimentation history, two sediment cores (1-2 m long) were sampled in tidal flats of the estuary. In addition, surface sediments were collected to study present sedimentation environments that appear to be three environments locally: 1) fine-grained sediment deposition; 2) sediments under stronger hydraulic energy; and 3) sandy sediments with good sorting. At the fine sediment deposition, environmental sensitive fraction of elements (Cu, Pb, As, and Co) show an increased sedimentation flux after the dam construction. On the other hand, organic matter-normalized Pb-210 concentrations in sediment core reveal that marine-originated organic matter is predominant in the upper ~45 cm of sediment layers, indicating a significant change in sedimentation history related to massive sedimentation within the Nakdong River Estuary.

Relation of coronary atherosclerosis and metabolic syndrome in asymptomatic subjects: evaluation with coronary CT angiography.

To assess the relationship between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and coronary atherosclerosis using coronary CT angiography (CCTA) as the evaluation tool in asymptomatic cardiovascular disease (CVD) free subjects. The presence and extent of coronary atherosclerosis in 755 asymptomatic self-referred subjects were measured using CCTA. The relationships between coronary atherosclerosis, MetS, and other clinical factors were assessed. To further investigate the relationship between MetS and the presence and extent of coronary plaque, subjects were divided into 3 subgroups according to the number of metabolic factors (MF0, 1-2 or ≥ 3) and the number of coronary segments with plaque (segment involvement score: SIS0, 1, ≥ 2). MetS showed significant association with the presence of coronary plaque after adjustment for other clinical factors [odds radio (OR) 1.791 (1.159-2.775), P = 0.009]. Among metabolic components, abdominal obesity and high blood pressure were significantly associated with the presence of coronary plaque [OR 1.708 (1.189-2.455), P = 0.004; OR 1.677 (1.165-2.415), P = 0.005]. Coronary plaque was more frequently found in subgroups with a higher number of metabolic factors (32.4, 36.7 and 52.1 %). Higher SISs were also found in subjects with more MetS components (SIS1: 14.6, 16.2 and 27.2 %; SIS ≥ 2: 17, 19.7 and 23.7 %). In asymptomatic CVD free subjects, MetS and number of metabolic factors were related with an increased risk of the presence and the extent of coronary plaque. Abdominal obesity and high blood pressure were significantly associated with the presence of coronary plaque.