Central adiposity and left ventricular mass in obese children.

AIM: The impact of central adiposity on left ventricular (LV) mass in childhood obesity has been little explored. This study evaluates whether central obesity influences LV mass and function in obese children. METHODS AND RESULTS: Biochemical, anthropometric and echocardiographic measurements were taken in obese (n=111, mean age 10.6+/-2.5 years) and non-obese children (n=30, mean age 10.8+/-3.0 years). Left ventricular function was analyzed by conventional and tissue Doppler echocardiography. LV mass was calculated according to the Penn convention and indexed for height(2.7) (LVM(i)). The obese group showed increased levels of LVM(i) as compared to the non-obese group (35.7+/-8.5 vs 23.5+/-2.8 g/h(2.7), p<0.0001). Among obese children, we observed a significant increase of LVM(i) across tertile of waist-height ratio (WHtR). The subjects identified by the highest tertile of WHtR, as compared to subjects identified by the lowest tertile, showed higher levels of BMI (29.5+/-5.4 vs 31.0+/-5.0 kg/m(2), p<0.0001) and LVM(i) (32.1+/-6.5 vs 37.1+/-8.5 g/h(2.7), p<0.01). Among obese children a positive correlation (standardized for age and gender) was found between LVM(i) and BMI (r=0.282, p<0.01) and WHtR (r=0.334, p<0.0001). To analyze the independent predictors of LVM(i), a stepwise linear regression analysis was performed using age, gender, BMI, blood pressure, heart rate, HOMA-IR and WHtR as independent variables. LVM(i) was independently associated only with WHtR (beta=0.309, t=3.238, p=0.002). CONCLUSION: Obese children show an increased LVM(i) and a preserved LV function. Central adiposity is the major determinant of left ventricular mass.

Early detection of diabetic cardiomyopathy: usefulness of tissue Doppler imaging.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to evaluate whether tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) detects a pre-clinical impairment of diastolic function in subjects with Type 2 diabetes with short duration of disease and normal cardiac function with conventional echocardiography (CE), and whether echocardiographic parameters are related to metabolic abnormalities. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We studied 40 non-obese, normotensive, uncomplicated Type 2 diabetic subjects with short duration of disease and 20 control subjects. All participants underwent both CE and TDI echocardiography. With TDI, early velocity (Ea), atrial velocity (Aa), their ratio (Ea/Aa) and systolic velocity (Sa) were measured at the lateral corner of mitral annulus. Glycosylated haemoglobin, fasting plasma glucose and insulin were determined and homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR), as an index of insulin resistance, was calculated. RESULTS: Cardiac function with CE was similar in the two groups. Using TDI, diabetic subjects showed a lower Ea velocity (15.5+/-3.9 vs. 19.4+/-3.5 cm/s, P<0.0001), an increased Aa velocity (15.5+/-2.4 vs. 14.1+/-2.4 cm/s, P<0.05) and a reduced Ea/Aa ratio (1.00+/-0.2 vs. 1.39+/-0.3, P<0.0001), compared with control subjects. Linear regression analysis in the diabetic group showed that only HOMA-IR was negatively associated with Ea/Aa ratio (P=0.026). No significant association was observed with other metabolic variables. CONCLUSION: An early stage of diabetic cardiomyopathy can be evidenced by TDI in Type 2 diabetic subjects even in the presence of a normal cardiac function with CE. This abnormality is associated with insulin resistance.

[Traffic accidents resulting in injuries: underreporting, characteristics, and case fatality rate]. / Acidentes de trânsito com vítimas: sub-registro, caracterização e letalidade.

In order to describe traffic accidents in a medium-sized Brazilian city and compare the risks of injury and death among different types of vehicles and pedestrians, all traffic accidents identified through police and hospital emergency records were registered for two years Deaths by such accidents were identified and confirmed through the coroner's office. The number of registered vehicles in the municipality was obtained through the State traffic authority. Morbidity and mortality rates were calculated and tests of association between selected variables performed. There was a relevant underreporting of accidents by the police (up to 53%), which varied according to the type of accident and time of occurrence. The highest case fatality rate was observed among bicyclists and pedestrians (around 5%), followed by motorcyclists (3%). Pedestrians formed the highest contingent of deaths. Motorcyclists had an eightfold risk of dying, a fourfold risk of injury, and a twofold risk of running over pedestrians as compared to automobile drivers. We conclude that pedestrians and motorcyclists are priority groups for interventions aimed at reducing injury and death from traffic accidents.

Acidentes de trânsito com vítimas: sub-registro, caracterização e letalidade / Motor vehicle accidents resulting in injuries: underreporting, characteristics, and case fatality rate

Com o objetivo de descrever os acidentes de trânsito de uma cidade de porte médio e comparar os riscos de lesäo e morte de diferentes tipos de veículos e pedestres, foram registrados dados de todos os acidentes de trânsito identificados por meio de boletins de ocorrência e de fichas de atendimento de pronto-socorro durante um período de dois anos. Os óbitos por acidentes de trânsito foram rastreados e verificados junto ao Instituto Médico Legal e o número de veículos registrados no município obtido através do Departamento Estadual de Trânsito do Rio Grande do Sul. Foram calculadas taxas de acidente e morte por habitante e por veículo, e realizados testes de associaçäo entre variáveis. Observou-se um sub-registro importante de acidentes a partir do boletim de ocorrência (até 53 por cento), que variou em funçäo do tipo do acidente e da hora de ocorrência. A maior letalidade ocorreu entre ciclistas e pedestres (cerca de 5 por cento), seguidos pelos motociclistas (3 por cento), sendo pedestres o maior contingente de vítimas fatais. Encontrou-se um risco oito vezes maior de morte, quatro vezes maior de lesäo e duas vezes maior de atropelar um pedestre para os motociclistas, comparados com os automobilistas. Concluímos que os pedestres e motociclistas säo os grupos prioritários para intervençöes preventivas

[Identification of patients with acute myocardial infarction that may be discharged early: prospective evaluation with simple clinical and instrumental indicators]. / Identificazione di pazienti con infarto miocardico acuto dimissibili precocemente: valutazione prospettica mediante semplici indicatori clinici e strumentali.

BACKGROUND: The hospital stay for "uncomplicated" acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is often too long. A reduction in the length of hospitalization, if proven to be safe, is advantageous in terms of costs and health organization. Accordingly the aims of the present, prospective study, were to evaluate: 1) the patients with AMI eligible for early discharge; 2) the incidence of adverse cardiovascular events within 2 weeks of myocardial infarction; 3) the incidence of cardiovascular mortality at 6-month follow-up. METHODS: On the fifth day after AMI, 331 of 526 patients, consecutively admitted to our coronary care unit between March 1997 and August 1999, were assigned to "complicated" and "uncomplicated" AMI groups, according to clinical and non-invasive criteria. Uncomplicated myocardial infarction eligible for early discharge was defined in patients < 75 years, as the absence of a high risk personality, stroke, left bundle branch block, transient myocardial ischemia after the first 24 hours from AMI, clinical signs or echocardiographic evidence of left ventricular dysfunction (ejection fraction < 40%), ventricular fibrillation, sustained ventricular tachycardia, symptomatic bradyarrhythmias after the first 48 hours from AMI, cardioversion or defibrillation (after the first 48 hours) or the need for coronary angioplasty or coronary artery bypass grafting. Uncomplicated patients were discharged on the sixth day after AMI (hospital stay 6.5+/-0.72 days). A symptom-limited ergometric stress test was planned in the uncomplicated group 14 days after AMI. "Hard" (death, reinfarction) and "non-hard" (unstable angina, myocardial revascularization) adverse cardiovascular events were monitored at 2 weeks of follow-up, and cardiovascular mortality at 6-month follow-up. RESULTS: Four (1.2%) hard (0.3% exitus and 0.9% reinfarction) and 7 (2.1%) non-hard adverse events occurred among patients with uncomplicated AMI at 2 weeks of follow-up. Patients with uncomplicated AMI who developed adverse events, presented during the primary coronary event creatine kinase (CK) and CK-MB serum levels which were significantly lower than those observed in patients who did not present adverse events. In the complicated group (hospital stay 9.9+/-1.79 days), from day 6 to 14 after AMI, 65 (33%) hard and non-hard events occurred. A significant reduction in mortality between the uncomplicated and complicated group (2.11 vs 27.17%, p < 0.0001) was observed at 6-month follow-up. Multivariate analysis showed a statistically significant difference for age and thrombolytic treatment. CONCLUSIONS: This first Italian prospective study demonstrated the possibility of identifying, 5 days after AMI and on the basis of simple criteria and without a stress test, a low risk population of patients eligible for early discharge.