Comment on Xiang et al. Association between the Triglyceride-Glucose Index and Vitamin D Status in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Nutrients 2023, 15, 639.

We read with great interest the article entitled "Association between the Triglyceride-Glucose Index and Vitamin D Status in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus" by Xiang Q et al. [...].

Lipid profile as an indicator of COVID-19 severity: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic. Studies reported dyslipidemia in patients with COVID-19. Herein, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of published articles to evaluate the association of the lipid profile with the severity and mortality in COVID-19 patients. METHODS: PubMed/Medline, Europe PMC, and Google Scholar were searched for studies published between January 1, 2020 and January 13, 2021. Random or Fixed effects models were used to calculate the mean difference (MD) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Statistical heterogeneity was assessed using Cochran's Q test and I2 statistics. RESULTS: This meta-analysis included 19 studies. Of which, 12 studies were categorized by severity, 04 studies by mortality, and 03 studies by both severity and mortality. Our findings revealed significantly decreased levels of total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in the severe group when compared with the non-severe group in a random effect model. Similarly, random effect model results demonstrated significantly lower levels of HDL-C and LDL-C in the non-survivor group when compared with the survivor group. The level of TC was also found to be decreased in the non-survivor group when compared to the survivor group in a fixed-effect model. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the lipid profile is associated with both the severity and mortality in COVID-19 patients. Hence, the lipid profile may be used for assessing the severity and prognosis of COVID-19. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42021216316.

The dynamics of inflammatory markers in coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic and high mortality rate among severe or critical COVID-19 is linked with SARS-CoV-2 infection-induced hyperinflammation of the innate and adaptive immune systems and the resulting cytokine storm. This paper attempts to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of published articles, to evaluate the association of inflammatory parameters with the severity and mortality in COVID-19 patients. METHODS: A comprehensive systematic literature search of medical electronic databases including Pubmed/Medline, Europe PMC, and Google Scholar was performed for relevant data published from January 1, 2020 to June 26, 2020. Observational studies reporting clear extractable data on inflammatory parameters in laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 patients were included. Screening of articles, data extraction and quality assessment were carried out by two authors independently. Standardized mean difference (SMD)/mean difference (MD/WMD) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using random or fixed-effects models. RESULTS: A total of 83 studies were included in the meta-analysis. Of which, 54 studies were grouped by severity, 25 studies were grouped by mortality, and 04 studies were grouped by both severity and mortality. Random effect model results demonstrated that patients with severe COVID-19 group had significantly higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), procalcitonin (PCT), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-10 (IL-10), interleukin-2R (IL-2R), serum amyloid A (SAA) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) compared to those in the non-severe group. Similarly, the fixed-effect model revealed significant higher ferritin level in the severe group when compared with the non-severe group. Furthermore, the random effect model results demonstrated that the non-survivor group had significantly higher levels of CRP, PCT, IL-6, ferritin, and NLR when compared with the survivor group. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the measurement of these inflammatory parameters could help the physicians to rapidly identify severe COVID-19 patients, hence facilitating the early initiation of effective treatment. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42020193169.

Health risks and interventions in prediabetes: A review.

Prediabetes is a condition which appears prior to the development of diabetes in which blood glucose is abnormally high but do not reach the diagnostic threshold of type 2 diabetes mellitus. It is characterized by a cluster of metabolic abnormalities viz. dysglycemia, dyslipidemia, hypertension, physical inactivity, obesity, insulin resistance, procoagulant state, endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress and inflammation, placing prediabetic subjects to an increased risk for diabetes and its complications. Recent studies demonstrate that complications of diabetes i.e. microvascular and macrovascular complications may manifest in some prediabetic subjects. This article reviews prediabetes-related risk factors and health issues. In addition, this article also highlights the interventions to prevent the development of diabetes in prediabetic subjects.

Association of myeloperoxidase with cardiovascular disease risk factors in prediabetic subjects.

INTRODUCTION: Prediabetes is a chronic low-grade inflammatory disease and considered as a risk factor for the development of diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. Myeloperoxidase (MPO) is a leukocyte-derived enzyme, linked to both oxidative stress and inflammation and has been proposed as a possible mediator of atherosclerosis, the major cause of cardiovascular disease. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the level of MPO in prediabetic subjects and correlate it with other cardiovascular disease risk factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, a total of 400 subjects were recruited. Of them, 200 were prediabetic subjects and 200 were age and gender-matched controls. For each subject, blood pressure, weight, height, waist circumference, hip circumference and lipid parameters were measured. In addition, MPO was determined. RESULTS: MPO was significantly increased in prediabetic subjects as compared to controls. In correlation analysis, MPO was found to be significantly and positively correlated with all the cardiovascular disease risk factors i.e. age, body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), blood pressure [both systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP)], lipid parameters except high density lipoprotein (HDL) to which it was negatively correlated. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, MPO is well correlated with cardiovascular disease risk factors in prediabetes. Hence, MPO could be used to detect cardiovascular risk among prediabetic subjects and also can be used as an early biomarker of oxidative stress and inflammation in prediabetes.

Cross-sectional correlates of oxidative stress and inflammation with glucose intolerance in prediabetes.

BACKGROUND: Prediabetes is a condition in which blood glucose level is above the normal but below the diagnostic value of diabetes mellitus. Besides progression to diabetes mellitus, prediabetic subjects are at risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). It is associated with oxidative stress and inflammation and therefore this research was conducted with the aim to evaluate the risk of cardiovascular disease in prediabetic subjects by measuring the markers of oxidative stress and inflammation and their possible correlation with glucose intolerance. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 400 human subjects were recruited for the present cross-sectional study. Of them, 200 were prediabetic subjects and 200 were age and gender-matched control subjects. Blood samples were collected from all participants and analyzed for 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxy-guanosine (8-OHdG), malondialdehyde (MDA), reduced glutathione (GSH) and high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP). RESULTS: The markers of oxidative stress i.e. 8-OHdG and MDA were found to be significantly increased in prediabetic subjects as compared to control subjects except GSH, which was significantly reduced in prediabetic subjects. Similarly, hs-CRP (a marker of inflammation) was significantly increased in prediabetic subjects compared to controls. On correlation analysis, 8-OHdG, MDA and hs-CRP were significantly and positively correlated with glucose intolerance in prediabetes whereas GSH showed significant negative correlation with glucose intolerance. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, markers of oxidative stress and inflammation should be taken into consideration while evaluating the risk for CVD in prediabetes since these markers were well correlated with glucose intolerance in prediabetic subjects.

Glycogen Phosphorylase BB: A more Sensitive and Specific Marker than Other Cardiac Markers for Early Diagnosis of Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Cardiac markers are used to evaluate functions of heart. However, there are no satisfactory cardiac biomarkers for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) within 4 h of onset of chest pain. Among novel cardiac markers, glycogen phosphorylase BB (GPBB) is of particular interest as it is increased in the early hours after AMI. The present study was conducted with the objective to find out the sensitivity and specificity of GPBB over other cardiac markers i.e. myoglobin and CKMB in patients of AMI within 4 h after the onset of chest pain. The study includes 100 AMI patients and 100 normal healthy individuals as controls. In all the cases and controls, serum GPBB and myoglobin concentrations were measured by ELISA where as CK-MB was measured by diagnostic kit supplied by ERBA. The sensitivity and specificity of glycogen phosphorylase BB (GPBB) were greater than CK-MB and myoglobin in patients of AMI within 4 h after the onset of chest pain. Hence, glycogen phosphorylase BB (GPBB) can be used as additional biomarker for the early diagnosis of AMI.

Relationship between Atherogenic Indices and Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in Prediabetes: A Cross-Sectional Study from Central India.

Prediabetes is the precursor stage of diabetes mellitus and is also considered to be a risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease. Atherogenic indices have been used for assessment of risk for cardiovascular disease development. To date, there is no data on evaluating the relationship between atherogenic indices (cardiac risk ratio (CRR), atherogenic coefficient (AC), and atherogenic index of plasma (AIP)) and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in prediabetes. Hence, we aimed to determine atherogenic indices (CRR, AC, and AIP) and CIMT in prediabetic subjects and then sought to evaluate the relationship between them. A total of 400 human subjects were included in the present study, out of which 200 were prediabetic subjects and 200 were normal healthy control subjects. For each subject, CRR, AC, and AIP were calculated from routine lipid parameters and carotid intima-media thickness was measured as well. Atherogenic indices, that is, CRR, AC, and AIP, were significantly increased in prediabetic subjects as compared to the controls (5.87 ± 0.87 vs. 4.23 ± 0.50, p < 0.001; 4.87 ± 0.87 vs. 3.23 ± 0.50, p < 0.001; and 0.29 ± 0.07 vs. 0.09 ± 0.09, p < 0.001, respectively). Moreover, a significant and positive correlation was observed between CIMT and AIP (r = 0.529, p < 0.01), CRR (r = 0.495, p < 0.01), and AC (r = 0.495, p < 0.01). Prediabetic subjects present abnormalities in atherogenic indices and CIMT, which indicate a greater propensity of prediabetes for the development of cardiovascular disease. Hence, atherogenic indices can be used in addition to routine lipid parameters for the better assessment of subclinical atherosclerosis in prediabetic subjects.

Oxidative DNA Damage and Carotid Intima Media Thickness as Predictors of Cardiovascular Disease in Prediabetic Subjects.

Prediabetes is considered as a risk factor for the development of diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. The present study was conducted with the aim of finding out the relationship between oxidative DNA damage and carotid intima media thickness for the prediction of cardiovascular disease in prediabetic subjects. The study included 100 prediabetic subjects and 100 normal individuals as controls. In both cases and controls, 8-OHdG was measured by ELISA, and CIMT was measured by B mode ultrasonography. Both 8-OHdG and CIMT were significantly higher in subjects with prediabetes as compared to controls (185.80 ± 10.72 pg/mL vs. 126.13 ± 16.01 pg/mL, p < 0.001 and 0.70 ± 0.04 mm vs. 0.57 ± 0.03 mm, p < 0.001, respectively). There was significant and positive correlation of IGT with 8-OHdG (r = 0.783; p < 0.001) and CIMT (r = 0.787; p < 0.001) in prediabetic subjects. Moreover, 8-OHdG showed significant positive correlation with CIMT (r = 0.704; p < 0.001) in prediabetic subjects. In conclusion, increased 8-OHdG and CIMT in prediabetic subjects indicate that biochemical changes of atherosclerosis start even before the onset of diabetes mellitus. Hence, 8-OHdG and CIMT could be used as indicators of cardiovascular disease risk in these subjects.