Components of the metabolic syndrome as predictors of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes in middle-aged Japanese men.

To determine whether the clustered features of the metabolic syndrome precede the 7 year incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes, we examined 6182 Japanese male office workers aged 35-59 years without any history of CVD. The 5588 subjects without type 2 diabetes also constituted the nondiabetic cohort, and were re-examined over seven successive years. Components of the metabolic syndrome included glycemic disorder (type 2 diabetes for the risk of CVD and impaired fasting glucose for the risk of type 2 diabetes), systemic obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, proteinuria, and elevated white blood cell (WBC) count. After controlling for age, family history of diabetes, alcohol intake, and cigarette smoking, the multivariate-adjusted relative risk of incidence of CVD compared with absence of components was 3.18, 3.48, 12.55, and 14.15 (P for trend <0.001), for the presence of 1,2,3, and > or =4 components, respectively. The corresponding relative risks of incidence of type 2 diabetes were 1.92, 4.36, 6.44, and 15.08 (P for trend <0.001). In both non-smokers and current smokers, the multivariate-adjusted relative risks of incidence of CVD and type 2 diabetes increased as the number of components increased (P for trend <0.001 for all). Our findings indicate that clustered features of the metabolic syndrome are closely associated with development of CVD and type 2 diabetes in middle-aged Japanese.

Self-reported hearing difficulty and hearing impairment in Japanese people living in a community.

Nine hundred and eighteen people aged 40 years and over were examined to assess the relationship between self-reported hearing difficulty and hearing impairment at 1 kHz and 4kHz during annual health check-ups. After adjustment for potential confounding factors of self-reported hearing difficulty such as age, sex, noise exposure, ear disease and tinnitus. the odds ratios for self-reported hearing difficulty at 1 kHz compared with a hearing threshold of 30 dB were 1.74. 3.37 and 4.97 for hearing thresholds of 40 dB, 50 dB, and over 50 dB, respectively (p-value for trend = 0.003). At 4 kHz, the respective odds ratios for self-reported hearing difficulty were 1.53, 2.59 and 1.83 (p-value for trend = 0.012). These results suggest that self-reported hearing difficulty is closely associated with the severity of hearing impairment at 1 kHz and 4 kHz in a community-residing population and that people with hearing impairment at 1 kHz would be more sensitive to their hearing difficulty than those with hearing impairment at 4 kHz.

Clustering of components of the metabolic syndrome and risk for development of type 2 diabetes in Japanese male office workers.

To investigate the effects of the clustering of components of the metabolic syndrome (MS) on development of diabetes, we examined 3298 Japanese male office workers aged 35-59 years who did not have type 2 diabetes (a fasting plasma glucose level of > or =7.0 mmol/l or receipt of hypoglycemic medication) or a history of cardiovascular disease. Fasting plasma glucose levels were measured at periodic annual health examinations from May 1994 through May 2001. After adjustment for potential risk factors for diabetes, the multivariate-adjusted relative risk of type 2 diabetes compared with the subjects without components of the MS was 1.58 (95% CI: 1.08-2.32), 2.48 (95% CI: 1.69-3.63), 3.10 (95% CI: 2.05-4.68), and 5.22 (95% CI: 3.49-7.83) (P-value for trend <0.001) for those with 1, 2, 3, and > or =4 components, respectively. Even after the subjects were stratified according to fasting plasma glucose level, the clustering of components of the MS was associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes for subjects in all three categories of low-normal fasting glucose (a fasting plasma glucose level of <5.1 mmol/l), high-normal fasting glucose (a fasting plasma glucose level of 5.0-6.0 mmol/l), and impaired fasting glucose (a fasting plasma glucose level of 6.1-6.9 mmol/l). These results indicate that clustering of components of the MS associated with diabetes precedes an increase in the risk of type 2 diabetes in Japanese men.

Porcelain veneer bonding to dentin and the curing performance of plasma-arc light with respect to porcelain thickness.

Plasma and halogen lamp units were used to photo-cure a composite resin for porcelain bonding. Mean shear bond strengths to dentin after light curing through porcelain of 1 and 2 mm thickness ranged from 20 to 27 MPa before and after thermocycling, indicating no significant effects due to porcelain thickness, curing method, or thermocycling, except for plasma curing for 3 s through porcelain of 2 mm thickness that overcame thermocycling. The mean bond strength in this group was significantly lower than both that before thermocycling and that of the porcelain of 1 mm thickness. Knoop hardness values for plasma curing for 3 s through porcelain of 2 mm thickness were significantly lower than the others. These results suggest that plasma light for 3 s is not sufficient to cure composite resin cement through porcelain of 2 mm thickness.