The ratio of main pulmonary artery to ascending aorta diameter is associated with the right ventricular outflow tract ventriculararrhythmias.

BACKGROUND: Although outflow tract (OT) ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) are generally regarded as benign, the relationship between circulation pressure and VAs has received considerable attention in recent years. Previous studies have shown that the ratio of main pulmonary artery (MPA) to ascending aorta (AA) diameter is associated with pulmonary pressure. Here, we investigated whether an elevated MPA/AA ratio is associated with right ventricular OT (RVOT) VAs. METHODS: A total of 67 patients with OT VAs (47 patients with RVOT and 20 patients with LVOT) who underwent cardiac multidetector computed tomography and radiofrequency ablation were enrolled in this study. MPA and AA diameters were measured at the level of the bifurcation of the pulmonary artery. According to the MPA/AA ratio, patients were further divided into two groups: the MPA/AA ratio abnormal group (n = 19), which is defined as MPA/AA ratio ≥ 0.9, and the MPA/AA ratio normal group (n = 48) consisting of patients with an MPA/AA ratio < 0.9. RESULTS: Patients with RVOT VAs exhibited an elevated MPA/AA ratio (0.84 ± 0.11 vs. 0.75 ± 0.11, p = 0.006). Furthermore, this MPA/AA ratio was shown to be an independent predictor for RVOT VAs (p = 0.013, 95% confidence interval: 1.016-1.145), with an abnormal MPA/AA ratio increasing the odds of RVOT VAs 5.1-fold in patients with OT VAs. CONCLUSION: Patients with RVOT VAs exhibited significantly higher MPA/AA ratios compared with those LVOT VAs. The MPA/AA ratio was showed to be an independent predictor RVOT VAs.

Validity and reliability of the Tibetan version of s-EMBU for measuring parenting styles.

Parenting style experienced during childhood has profound effects on children's futures. Scales developed in other countries have never been validated in the Tibetan context. The present study aimed to examine the construct validity and reliability of a Tibetan translation of the 23-item short form of the Egna Minnen Beträffande Uppfostran [One's Memories of Upbringing] (s-EMBU) and to test the correlation between the parenting styles of fathers and mothers. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a sample of 847 students aged 12-21 years from Lhasa, Tibet, during September and October 2015 with a participation rate of 97.7%. The Tibetan translation of self-completed s-EMBU was administered. Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to test the scale's validity on the first half of the sample and was then cross-validated with the second half of the sample. The final model consisted of six factors: three (rejection, emotional warmth, and overprotection) for each parent, equality constrained on factor loadings, factor correlations, and error variance between father and mother. Father-mother correlation coefficients ranged from 0.81 to 0.86, and the level of consistency ranged from 0.62 to 0.82. Thus, the slightly modified s-EMBU is suitable for use in the Tibetan culture where both the father and the mother have consistent parenting styles.