The metabolic syndrome increases cardiovascular mortality in Taiwanese elderly.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) is high among the elderly. However, evidence that mortality increases with MetS is rare. In this study, we investigated the relationship between MetS, cardiovascular disease (CVD) and all cause mortality in the elderly. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total 10 547 participants, aged 65 years and older, of baseline cohort were recruited from four nationwide Health Screening Centres in Taiwan from 1998 to 1999. The metabolic syndrome was defined according to the America Heart Association/National Heart Lung Blood Institute definition. Cox proportional hazards regression analyses were used to estimate the relative risks (RRs) of CVD and all cause mortality for those with MetS for up to 8 years of follow-up. RESULTS: The baseline prevalence of MetS was 50.1% (45.6% in men and 54.4% in women, respectively). A total of 1312 participants died; of these, 300 participants died from CVD. Adjusted for age, gender, smoking, total cholesterol and estimated glomerular filtration rate, the RRs for CVD and all cause mortality among participants with MetS were 1.48 (95% confidence interval = 1.16-1.90) and 1.16 (1.03-1.30), respectively, for participants compared to those without MetS. The mean RRs for CVD, however, ranged from 1.21 to 5.31 among different combinations of MetS components. CONCLUSION: The elderly with MetS, compared to those without MetS, had a higher CVD and all cause mortality in Taiwan. Furthermore, different combinations of MetS components posed different risks to the mortality, which deserves further research in the future.

TNF receptor I polymorphism is associated with persistent palindromic rheumatism.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the association between tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha), TNF receptor superfamily member 1A (TNFRSF1A, also known as TNFRI), TNFRSF1B (TNFRII), and interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and the susceptibility to persistent palindromic rheumatism (PR). METHODS: Fifty-six unrelated patients with persistent PR and 100 unrelated healthy controls were genotyped for TNFalpha -308G/A, -238G/A, and +488G/A, TNFRSF1A -609G/T and +36A/G, TNFRSF1B +676T/G and +1663G/A, and IL-1beta -511C/T, -31T/C, and +3954C/T using real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS: The TNFRSF1A +36G allele [odds ratio (OR) = 3.94, p = 0.003, corrected p (p(c)) = 0.03] and the TNFRSF1A +36AG genotype (OR = 4.81, p = 0.002, p(c) = 0.04) were significantly associated with persistent PR. The frequency of TNFRSF1B +676T/+1663A was increased in PR patients (OR = 2.12, p = 0.01), but failed to reach statistical significance after Bonferroni correction. No correlation was observed between persistent PR and TNFalpha, TNFRSF1A -609G/T, or IL-1beta SNPs. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study provide evidence of an association between persistent PR and SNPs within the TNFRSF1A gene, and suggest that TNFRI is involved in the aetiopathogenesis of PR.

Familial resemblance of adiposity-related parameters: results from a health check-up population in Taiwan.

The mechanisms of obesity is still unclear, however, genetic and environmental factors are two major possible causes of obesity. The purpose of this study was to assess the degree of familial resemblance of different obesity-related parameters in a health check-up population in Taiwan. We measured body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and percentage of body fat (BFAT) anthropometrics in 1724 members of 431 families participating in the MJ Health Screening program. Each family contributed four members, i.e. father, mother, son, and daughter. All the participants were free from coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and generally in good health. The degree of familial aggregation was measured by heritability that was calculated based on age-adjusted familial (parent-offspring, sibling, spouse) correlations. The maximal heritability estimates were 39, 30 and 35% for BMI, WHR and BFAT, respectively. For WHR, the correlation between spouses was not significant and the heritability appears to be predominantly due to genetic causes. Furthermore, for BMI and BFAT, the spouse correlations were 0.08 and 0.11, respectively. The heritabilities for BMI and BFAT were mostly explained by genetic factors and familial environmental factors such as dietary habits or physical activity. The familial resemblance of various obesity-related parameters was moderate in a health check-up population in Taiwan. While the heritability for WHR appears to be mainly due to genetic factors, the familial resemblance for BMI and percentage of BFAT may involve both genetic and familial environmental factors.

Prevalence and clustering of cardiovascular risk factors among healthy adults in a Chinese population: the MJ Health Screening Center Study in Taiwan.

OBJECTIVE: To gain insight into the prevalence and clustering of multiple cardiovascular risk factors in a healthy Chinese adult population in Taiwan. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study was carried out in 1996. SUBJECTS: A total of 46,603 subjects (23,485 men and 23,118 women) who were aged 20--59 y and attended a private health screening center for health examination of their own volition. MEASUREMENTS: Multiple cardiovascular risk factors including cigarette smoking, overweight (23 kg/m(2)< or =body mass index (BMI)<25 kg/m(2)) and obesity (BMI> or =25 kg/m(2)), lipid disorder (a ratio of total cholesterol level to the level of high density lipoprotein cholesterol>5 or use of lipid-lowering drugs), hypertension (systolic blood pressure> or =140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure> or =90 mmHg or use of anti-hypertensive medications), and diabetes mellitus (fasting serum plasma glucose level> or =126 mg/dl or use of anti-diabetic medications) were determined. RESULTS: In comparison to women, men had a higher prevalence of current smoking (42.1 vs 5.6%), overweight (25.1 vs 17.1%) and obesity (33.1 vs 21.5%), lipid disorder (45.1 vs 19.6%), hypertension (17.4 vs 13.2%), as well as diabetes mellitus (4.1 vs 3.4%). The prevalence of men or women having two or more of the cardiovascular risk factors of interest was 54.3 and 21.7%, respectively. With advancing age, the prevalence of risk factors became greater for both genders. More importantly, the clustering of risk factors increased monotonically with increasing BMI levels for men and women. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence and clustering of cardiovascular risk factors are commonplace in this healthy Chinese adult population. Considering the significant association between clustering of risk factors under study and BMI levels, this study gives an indication that population-based multifactorial interventions may work out favorably for specific groups.

Left multicystic dysplastic kidney with contralateral ectopic kidney and ureterovesicle junction obstruction.

Multicystic dysplastic kidney (MCDK) represents the most common cause of abdominal mass in the neonatal period. It is usually combined with contralateral genitourinary tract anomaly. Because the multicystic dysplastic kidney is usually dysfunctional, it is important to evaluate and monitor the remaining preserved function of the contralateral kidney regularly. The presence of severe obstructive lesion over contralateral kidney is often life-threatening. Prompt treatment should therefore be given as early as possible to preserve the remaining renal function. We here report one rare case of left MCDK with contralateral ectopic kidney and ureterovesicle junction (UVJ) obstruction. As the best as we know, this report is the first case report of MCDK with contralateral ectopic kidney and UVJ obstruction.

Left multicystic dysplastic kidney with contralateral ureteropelvic obstruction: report of one case.

Multicystic dysplastic kidney (MCDK) is a common cause of abdominal mass in neonates. It is frequently associated with malformation of the contralateral kidney, such as ureteropelvic obstruction, etc. Because MCDK is usually functionless, it is important to evaluate the condition of the contralateral kidney. The presence of severe obstruction in the contralateral ureteropelvic junction is life-threatening and prompt treatment should be made to preserve the remaining renal function. We report on a neonate with left MCDK and contralateral ureteropelvic obstruction, presenting as anuria after birth, and also we review the literature.

Molecular analysis of major histocompatibility complex allelic associations with systemic lupus erythematosus in Taiwan.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association of HLA class II alleles/haplotypes, type I C2 deficiency gene, and tumor necrosis factor a gene promoter allele (TNF2) with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in the Chinese population in Taiwan. METHODS: The HLA-DRB1 and DQB1 alleles were studied in 105 SLE patients and 115 controls by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)/sequence-specific oligonucleotide probe method, the subtyping of DRB1*15/16 and DRB5 by PCR with sequence-specific primers, type I C2 deficiency gene by PCR, and TNF2 by PCR-Nco I restriction fragment length polymorphism. RESULTS: The frequencies of the HLA class II alleles DRB1*02, DRB1*1502, DRB5*0102, DQB1*0501, and DQB1*0602 and DR2-associated haplotypes DRB1* 1501,DRB5*0101,DQB1*0602 and DRB1*1502,DRB5* 0102,DQB1*0501 were higher among SLE patients than among controls; however, only DQB1*0501 was statistically significantly associated with SLE. No specific allele/haplotype was significantly associated with lupus nephritis. No subject had type I C2 deficiency. SLE patients had a marginally higher percentage of TNF2, which was in linkage disequilibrium with DR3. Since DR3 was not associated with SLE in this Taiwanese Chinese population, TNF2 might play a role in the immunopathogenesis of SLE. CONCLUSION: Although no HLA-DRB1 allele was found to be significantly associated with SLE, the associations with DQB1*0501 and TNF2 suggest that DQB1 and tumor necrosis factor a may be important genetic factors in SLE susceptibility in the Chinese population in Taiwan.

[Metabolic effects of chlorothiazide and propranolol on essential hypertension--a double-blind, cross-over design clinical trial].

Several studies have shown that antihypertensive drugs therapy could reduce morbidity and mortality of hypertension related complication such as stroke, congestive heart failure and renal failure, but there was no significant reduction of coronary heart disease. The benefit of the treatment on morbidity and mortality may be counterbalanced by adversed metabolic effects of long-term therapy. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the blood pressure-lowering and adverse metabolic effects of chlorothiazide and propranolol monotherapy. A double-blind, cross-over design clinical trial was performed for 42 cases (22 males and 20 females) with the mean age of 52 (from 30 to 59 years old). After 2 weeks run-in period, the patients were assigned to group A and B with age and sex stratification. Chlorothiazide and propranolol were given for 12 weeks in alternative with 2 weeks placebo washout period. Our studies have shown that, chlorothiazide and propranolol could reduce both systolic and diastolic blood pressure significantly. But they also associated with adverse metabolic effects. Serum uric acid and triglyceride increased and decreased the concentration of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). Those changes could counterbalance the benefit of blood pressure-lowering effect of antihypertension. Carefully monitoring the adverse metabolic effects closely is necessary in therapy with these drugs.

Three types of atrioventricular reciprocating tachycardia using bilateral accessory pathways in a patient with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.

Electrophysiologic studies were performed on a patient with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome and recurrent supraventricular tachycardia. Bilateral accessory pathways capable of antegrade and retrograde conduction and three different types of atrioventricular (AV) reciprocating tachycardia were demonstrated. One type of narrow QRS tachycardia used the normal AV pathway for antegrade conduction and the left-sided accessory pathway for retrograde conduction. Two types of wide QRS tachycardia (one with right bundle branch block and one with left bundle branch block) used both accessory pathways for antegrade and retrograde conduction, respectively, and were independent of the normal AV pathway. The data showed that bilateral accessory pathways have different electrophysiologic properties and participate in three different types of AV reciprocating tachycardia.

Diagnostic value of maximal treadmill exercise electrocardiogram in predicting coronary artery disease for asymptomatic Chinese male subjects.

The value of maximal treadmill exercise electrocardiogram (TEE) in predicting coronary artery disease was evaluated in a consecutive series of 168 asymptomatic Chinese males, aged 41 to 57 years (mean 53) during annual physical examinations. Their resting electrocardiograms (ECGs) showed no abnormal Q-waves. The end-point of TEE achieved the age-predicted maximal heart rate, and no subjects had classic angina pectoris during or after TEE. Thirty-five subjects had positive electrocardiographic changes defined as reversible horizontal or downsloping ST-segment depression greater than or equal to 1.0 mv which lasted greater than or equal to 0.08 sec. Exercise thallium-201 (T1-201) myocardial imaging was performed on all 35 subjects with positive TEE; 30 subjects (86%) demonstrated normal and 5 abnormal scintigrams. Sixteen of the 30 cases with normal T1-201 scans underwent coronary arteriography, of which 14 showed normal arteriograms and two showed a less than 49% stenosis of the luminal diameter in one major artery. Of the 5 cases with abnormal scintigrams, 4 were found to have greater than 50% stenoses in at least one major artery, and only one case had a less than 49% stenosis of the right coronary artery. We concluded that TEE alone for asymptomatic individuals provided limited value in diagnosing significant coronary artery disease, especially in areas of low prevalence.

Long-term effect of tiapamil in essential hypertension.

To evaluate the long-term effect of tiapamil, a new calcium antagonist, in hypertension, 20 adult patients suffering from mild to moderate hypertension were entered into a 58-week open study. In 10 patients, blood pressure returned to normal within 1-6 weeks with a daily dose of 600-900 mg tiapamil. In the remaining 10 patients, the blood pressure became normal after 8-28 weeks with a daily dose of 900-1,200 mg tiapamil. The more severe the hypertension, the higher the dose needed and the longer the time required for the blood pressure to return to normal. The overall results at the end of the 58-week treatment showed a significant decrease of the blood pressure to 142 (+/- 9)/88 (+/- 4) mmHg from a before treatment average of 166 (+/- 16)/105 (+/- 7) (p less than 0.001). There was no marked difference in the blood pressure between supine and sitting positions before or after treatment. Side effects were mild and self-limiting, with no patient being dropped from the study. Electrocardiogram (ECG) and laboratory values were not affected during the treatment with the exception of a moderate decrease in the blood glucose. Neither plasma renin activity, nor aldosterone concentration, nor serum cholesterol or triglyceride levels were altered during tiapamil administration. Tiapamil appears to be an effective and well-tolerated drug for use in mild to moderately severe hypertension.

Natural history of coronary artery disease in relation to angiographic, hemodynamic and clinical factors.

Studying the natural history of coronary artery disease could provide a frame of reference for prognosis and appraisal of treatment for patients having this disease. We studied a total of 465 consecutive patients with angiographically significant coronary artery disease, defined as greater than 50% stenosis in at least one principal artery, who were followed with medical treatment only from 1 to 7 years. Excluding patients with left main coronary disease, there were 73 deaths, of whom 63 were cardiac. The 5-year cumulative survival rates were 72% for the entire group, 87% for single vessel disease, 73% for double vessel disease and 51% for triple vessel disease. In single vessel disease, patients with left anterior descending artery involvement tended to have higher mortality. In double vessel disease, survival was worse with the combination of left anterior descending and right coronary artery involvements than the other 2 combinations. A history of myocardial infarction was not significantly different from angina in 5-year survival rate. Nevertheless, an abnormal Q-wave in ECG was associated with lower survival. History of hypertension and electrocardiographic left ventricular hypertrophy did not affect survival. While congestive heart failure, abnormal resting LVEDP and left ventricular asynergy were all associated with reduced survival. The left ventricular ejection fraction had highly prognostic value, only 42% of patients survived with ejection fraction less than 0.3 at the end of 5 years after angiography.

Antiarrhythmic activity of potassium canrenoate in man.

The efficacy of potassium canrenoate in suppressing frequent ventricular premature depolarizations and ventricular bigeminal and trigeminal rhythms thought to be due to digitalis overdose was studied in seven men and five women (average age, 54.5 years). A mean dose of 525 mg. (1.31 mEq.) of potassium canrenoate administered intravenously effectively suppressed the ventricular rhythm disturbances in eight of the 12 patients for from several minutes to 4 hours. The mean serum digoxin level determined in seven patients was greater than 2.3 ng. per milliliter. The ability of potassium canrenoate to counteract digitalis intoxication suggests that the molecule of canrenoate is unique in the clinical setting since it shows both diuretic and antiarrhythmic properties.