Assessment of leukocyte and systemic inflammation index ratios in dyslipidemia patients with dry eye disease: a retrospective case‒control study.

BACKGROUND: Dry eye disease (DED) is a complication of dyslipidemia (DLP) that is caused by metabolic syndrome and increased inflammation. This research aimed to assess leukocyte and systemic inflammation index ratios as potential biomarkers for systemic inflammation in dyslipidemia patients with dry eye disease (DLP-DED). METHODS: Several blood biomarkers were studied in 32 patients with DLP-DED (study group) and 63 patients with DLP-only (control group). The evaluated blood biomarkers included specific systemic inflammation index ratios, such as the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte and platelet ratio (NLPR), and lipid profiles, such as total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), triglyceride (TG), albumin (ALB), and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. RESULTS: Lymphocyte levels were significantly greater in the DLP-DED group than in the DLP-only group (P = 0.044). In addition, a significant negative correlation between HDL and the NLPR (P = 0.007; r= -0.428) and a significant negative correlation between the serum ALB concentration and the PLR (P = 0.008; r= -0.420) were identified as potential inflammatory predictors of DLP-DED. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that patients with DLP-DED may benefit from routine blood monitoring of their elevated lipid profile and blood inflammatory biomarkers, such as CRP, leukocytes, and systemic inflammation index ratios (NLR, PLR, MLR, and NLPR), to reduce the complications of DLP on ocular health. The correlation data suggest that the NLPR, PLR, serum ALB concentration, and serum HDL concentration may be valuable inflammatory biomarkers in DLP-DED patients. More research is required to ascertain the significance of the NLR, PLR, MLR, and NLPR and the additive role that leukocytes play.

Prescription-based cost analysis of medicines for cardiovascular risk factors at Indian Council of Medical Research-Rational Use of Medicine Centre Hospitals of India.

OBJECTIVES: India has taken several initiatives to provide health care to its population while keeping the related expenditure minimum. Since cardiovascular diseases are the most prevalent chronic conditions, in the present study, we aimed to analyze the difference in prices of medicines prescribed for three cardiovascular risk factors, based on (a) listed and not listed in the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) and (b) generic and branded drugs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Outpatient prescriptions for diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and dyslipidemia were retrospectively analyzed from 12 tertiary centers. The prices of medicines prescribed were compared based on presence or absence in NLEM India-2015 and prescribing by generic versus brand name. The price was standardized and presented as average price per medicine per year for a given medicine. The results are presented in Indian rupee (INR) and as median (range). RESULTS: Of the 4,736 prescriptions collected, 843 contained oral antidiabetic, antihypertensive, and/or hypolipidemic medicines. The price per medicine per year for NLEM oral antidiabetics was INR 2849 (2593-3104) and for non-NLEM was INR 5343 (2964-14364). It was INR 806 (243-2132) for generic and INR 3809 (1968-14364) for branded antidiabetics. Antihypertensives and hypolipidemics followed the trend. The price of branded non-NLEM medicines was 5-22 times higher compared to generic NLEM which, for a population of 1.37 billion, would translate to a potential saving of 346.8 billion INR for statins. The variability was significant for sulfonylureas, angiotensin receptor blockers, beta-blockers, diuretics, and statins (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: The study highlights an urgent need for intervention to actualize the maximum benefit of government policies and minimize the out-of-pocket expenditure on medicines.

Assessment of subclinical left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus under follow-up at Tikur Anbessa specialized hospital, Ethiopia: a case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Individuals with diabetes mellitus are at increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, which in turn are the most common cause of morbidity and mortality in the diabetic population. A peculiar feature of cardiovascular diseases in this population is that they can have significant cardiac disease while remaining asymptomatic. There is a paucity of data regarding subclinical cardiac imaging features among diabetic adults in Africa, particularly in Ethiopia. This study was conducted to compare the magnitude and spectrum of left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction among asymptomatic type 2 diabetic adults versus a normotensive, non-diabetic control group and to evaluate the determinants of left ventricular diastolic and systolic dysfunction. METHODS: This was a case-control study conducted at Tikur Anbessa specialized hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A standard transthoracic echocardiography was done for all study participants with type 2 diabetes mellitus and their normotensive and non-diabetic controls. Structured questionnaires were used to collect demographic and clinical characteristics and laboratory test results. Statistical analysis was done using the SPSS 25.0 software. The data was summarized using descriptive statistics. Bivariate and multivariate analysis was performed to determine the association between variables and echocardiographic parameters. The strength of statistical association was measured by adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals, with significant differences taken at p < 0.05. RESULTS: We analyzed age- and sex-matched 100 participants in the study (diabetic) group and 200 individuals in the control group. Left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction were significantly more prevalent among diabetic adults than their sex and age matched controls. Among diabetic individuals, ages of 60 years and above, dyslipidemia, use of Metformin and Glibenclamide, high serum triglyceride level, presence of neuropathy and use of statins correlated significantly with the presence of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction. Chronic kidney disease and neuropathy were determinants of left ventricular systolic dysfunction. CONCLUSION: Left ventricular systolic and diastolic dysfunction were significantly more prevalent among diabetic patients than their sex- and age-matched controls in our study. We recommend early screening for subclinical left ventricular dysfunction, especially in the elderly and in those with chronic kidney disease, dyslipidemia, and microvascular complications such as neuropathy.

Prevalence and management of dyslipidemia in primary care practices in Canada.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence of dyslipidemia and to describe its management in Canadian primary care. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study using primary care electronic medical record data. SETTING: Canada. PARTICIPANTS: Adults aged 40 years or older who saw a Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network contributor between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2019. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Presence or absence of dyslipidemia as identified by a validated case definition and the treatment status of patients identified as having dyslipidemia based on having been prescribed a lipid-lowering agent (LLA). RESULTS: In total, 50.0% of the 773,081 patients 40 years of age or older who had had a primary care visit in 2018 or 2019 were identified as having dyslipidemia. Dyslipidemia was more prevalent in patients 65 or older (61.5%), in males (56.7%) versus females (44.7%), and in those living in urban areas (50.0%) versus rural areas (45.2%). In patients with documented dyslipidemia, 42.8% had evidence of treatment with an LLA. Stratifying patients by Framingham risk score revealed that those in the high-risk category were more likely to have been prescribed an LLA (65.0%) compared with those in the intermediate-risk group (48.7%) or the low-risk group (22.8%). The strongest determinants of receiving LLA treatment for dyslipidemia include sex, with males being 1.95 times more likely to have been treated compared with females (95% CI 1.91 to 1.98; P<.0001); and body mass index, with those with obesity having a significantly increased likelihood of being treated with an LLA (adjusted odds ratio of 1.36, 95% CI 1.32 to 1.41; P<.0001). CONCLUSION: This study provides an updated look at the prevalence and treatment of dyslipidemia among Canadians. Half of patients aged 40 years or older have dyslipidemia, with an even higher prevalence observed among adults aged 65 years or older, males, and those with obesity or other chronic conditions. There are still gaps in treatment among those with documented dyslipidemia, principally among those calculated to have high or intermediate Framingham risk scores. Particular attention should also be paid to those at higher risk for not receiving treatment, including female patients and those within normal body mass index ranges.

Prescription drug coverage and effective coverage of three chronic conditions of high prevalence in Chile: Hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidemia.

BACKGROUND: Access to medicines is a serious problem globally and in Chile. Despite the creation of coverage policies, part of the population with chronic conditions of high prevalence, still does not have access to the medicines it requires and disease control continues to be low. The objective of the study was to estimate the medication use and effective coverage for diabetes, dyslipidemia and hypertension in Chile, analyzing them according to sociodemographic variables and social determinants of health. METHODS: Cross-sectional analytical study with information from the 2016-2017 National Health Survey (sample = 6,233 people aged 15 years or older, expanded = 14,518,969). Descriptive analyses of medication use and effective coverage for hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidemia were carried out, and multivariate logistic regression models were developed to analyze possible associations with variables of interest. RESULTS: 60% of people with hypertension or diabetes use medications and only 27.7% in dyslipidemia. While 54.2% of those with diabetes have their glycemia controlled, in hypertension and dyslipidemia the effective coverage drops to 33.3% and 6.6%, respectively. There are no differences in use by health system, but there are differences in the control of hypertension and diabetes, favoring beneficiaries of the private subsystem. Effective coverage of dyslipidemia and hypertension also increases in those using medications. The drugs coincide with the established protocols, although beneficiaries of the private sector report greater use of innovative drugs. CONCLUSION: A significant proportion of Chileans with hypertension, diabetes or dyslipidemia still do not use the required medications and do not control their conditions.

LipidSIM: Inferring mechanistic lipid biosynthesis perturbations from lipidomics with a flexible, low-parameter, Markov modeling framework.

Lipid metabolism is a complex and dynamic system involving numerous enzymes at the junction of multiple metabolic pathways. Disruption of these pathways leads to systematic dyslipidemia, a hallmark of many pathological developments, such as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and diabetes. Recent advances in computational tools can provide insights into the dysregulation of lipid biosynthesis, but limitations remain due to the complexity of lipidomic data, limited knowledge of interactions among involved enzymes, and technical challenges in standardizing across different lipid types. Here, we present a low-parameter, biologically interpretable framework named Lipid Synthesis Investigative Markov model (LipidSIM), which models and predicts the source of perturbations in lipid biosynthesis from lipidomic data. LipidSIM achieves this by accounting for the interdependency between the lipid species via the lipid biosynthesis network and generates testable hypotheses regarding changes in lipid biosynthetic reactions. This feature allows the integration of lipidomics with other omics types, such as transcriptomics, to elucidate the direct driving mechanisms of altered lipidomes due to treatments or disease progression. To demonstrate the value of LipidSIM, we first applied it to hepatic lipidomics following Keap1 knockdown and found that changes in mRNA expression of the lipid pathways were consistent with the LipidSIM-predicted fluxes. Second, we used it to study lipidomic changes following intraperitoneal injection of CCl4 to induce fast NAFLD/NASH development and the progression of fibrosis and hepatic cancer. Finally, to show the power of LipidSIM for classifying samples with dyslipidemia, we used a Dgat2-knockdown study dataset. Thus, we show that as it demands no a priori knowledge of enzyme kinetics, LipidSIM is a valuable and intuitive framework for extracting biological insights from complex lipidomic data.

Comprehensive assessment of the combined impact of dyslipidemia and inflammation on chronic kidney disease development: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: There remains a limited comprehensive understanding of how dyslipidemia and chronic inflammation collectively contribute to the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD). OBJECTIVE: We aimed to identify clusters of individuals with five variables, including lipid profiles and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, and to assess whether the clusters were associated with incident CKD risk. METHODS: We used the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study-Ansan and Ansung data. K-means clustering analysis was performed to identify distinct clusters based on total cholesterol, triglyceride, non-high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-C, HDL-C, and CRP levels. Cox proportional hazards models were used to examine the association between incident CKD risk and the different clusters. RESULTS: During the mean 10-year follow-up period, CKD developed in 1,645 participants (690 men and 955 women) among a total of 8,053 participants with a mean age of 51.8 years. Four distinct clusters were identified: C1, low cholesterol group (LC); C2, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol group (HC); C3, insulin resistance and inflammation group (IIC); and C4, dyslipidemia and inflammation group (DIC). Cluster 4 had a significantly higher risk of incident CKD compared to clusters 2 (hazard ratio (HR) 1.455 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.234-1.715]; p < 0.001) and cluster 1 (HR 1.264 [95% CI 1.067-1.498]; p = 0.007) after adjusting for confounders. Cluster 3 had a significantly higher risk of incident CKD compared to clusters 2 and 1. CONCLUSION: Clusters 4 and 3 had higher risk of incident CKD compared to clusters 2 and 1. The combination of dyslipidemia with inflammation or insulin resistance with inflammation appears to be pivotal in the development of incident CKD.

Explaining the increase of incidence and mortality from cardiovascular disease in Indonesia: A global burden of disease study analysis (2000-2019).

BACKGROUND: In the last two decades, there has been a discernible shift in the distribution of mortality attributed to cardiovascular disease (CVD) between developing and developed nations; in developed nations, the percentage of deaths caused by CVD decreased from 48% in 1990 to 43% in 2010, while in developing nations, they increased from 18% to 25%. In Indonesia, CVD death has increased substantially and remained elevated in the last ten years. Current behavioral and metabolic risk factors, including hyperglycemia, obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and smoking, enhance the risk of CVD mortality, according to several studies. AIMS: We undertook a study to determine whether the increase in mortality and incidence of CVD can be attributed to changes in the most common metabolic and behavioral risk factors from 2000 to 2019 across 34 Indonesian provinces. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data from 34 province for CVD incidence and mortality and data on changes in metabolic and behavioural risk factors between 2000 and 2019 in Indonesia were obtained from the Global Burden study (GBD) by The Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). A statistical model was applied to calculate the fatalities attributable to the risk factors change using Population attributable fractions (PAF) and baseline year death numbers. Furthermore, we ran multivariate regressions on Summary Exposure Value of risk factors associated with the increasing mortality, incidence rates in a lag year analysis. R software used to measure heteroscedasticity-consistent standard errors with coeftest and coefci. Covariates were added to adjusted models, including the Socio-demographic Index, Primary health care facilities coverage, and GDP per capita. RESULTS: The age-standardized mortality rate for CVD from 2000 to 2019 in Indonesia, increased from 356.05 to 412.46 deaths per 100,000 population among men and decreased from 357.52 to 354.07 deaths per 100,000 population among women, resulting in an increase of 270.928 per 100,0000 inhabitants of CVD deaths. In the same period, there was an increase in exposure to risk factors such as obesity by +9%, smoking by +1%, dyslipidemia by +1.3%, hyperglycemia by +2%, and hypertension by +1.2%. During this time span, an additional 14,517 men and 17,917 women died from CVD, which was attributable to higher obesity exposure. We apply multivariate regression with province-fixed and year-fixed analysis and find strong correlation between hyperglycemia in women (6; 95%CI 0 to 12, death per 1-point increase in hyperglycemia exposure) with an increasing death rate in ischemic heart disease. We also performed a year lag analysis and discovered a robust association between high low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels in men and women and the growing incidence of ischemic heart disease. The association between a 10-year lag of high LDL and the incidence of ischemic heart disease was five times stronger than that observed for other risk factors, particularly in men (5; 95%CI 2 to 8, incidence per 1-point increase in high LDL exposure). CONCLUSION: Hyperglycemia in women is an important risk factor associated with increasing mortality due to Ischemic Heart Disease (IHD) in Indonesia This study also revealed that the presence of high LDL in both men and women were associated with an increase incidence of IHD that manifested several years subsequent to exposure to the risk factor. Additionally, the highest cardiovascular death portion were attributed to obesity. These findings suggest that policymakers should control high LDL and hyperglycemia 10 years earlier prior to the occurrence of IHD and employ personalized therapy to regulate associated risks.

ASSESSMENT OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE RISK FACTORS IN PATIENTS WITH CORONARY HEART DISEASE COMBINED WITH NONALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE.

OBJECTIVE: The aim: To study the risk factors of cardiovascular diseases in patients with coronary heart disease with stable angina pectoris II functional class in combi¬nation with NAFLD. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Materials and methods: The study included 245 patients with a diagnosis of CHD, stable angina pectoris II functional class (FC), who were being treated at the Communal Nonprofit Enterprise «Central City Clinical Hospital¼ of Uzhhorod City Council. We singled out 2 groups of patients: group 1 (n=145) - patients with CHD with stable angina pectoris II FC in combination with NAFLD and group 2 (n=100) - patients with CHD with stable angina pectoris II FC. RESULTS: Results: Analysis of the frequency of occurrence of CVD risk factors in patients with CHD showed that among patients of group 1 there are 50% more people with abdominal obesity, excess body and dyslipidemia. The reliability between the groups in the occurrence of hypertension and type 2 diabetes was not revealed. The obtained results confirm the data that the prevalence of NAFLD increases with increasing body weight and a high degree of obesity increases the risk of its development. CONCLUSION: Conclusions: The most frequent risk factors for CVD in patients with coronary artery disease in combination with NAFLD are hypertension, obesity, and dyslipidemia.

Behavioral and metabolic risk factors associated with periodontitis in Brazil, 1990-2019: a multidimensional analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.

OBJECTIVES: Periodontitis is a non-communicable disease (NCD) that may be linked to other NCDs through shared risk factors. Accordingly, we analyzed the relationship between periodontitis and behavioral and metabolic risks common to NCDs in Brazilian adults over three decades. METHODS: Indicators of periodontitis, behavioral risks (smoking, alcohol use, sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB), and physical activity), and metabolic risks (overweight/obesity, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension) in Brazilian adults (25-49 y-old) between 1990 to 2019 were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. Data were adjusted for Gini index. Fixed-effects and Prais-Winsten regressions were performed (p < 0.05). RESULTS: The prevalence of periodontitis has increased among Brazilians since 2005. High-SSB diet, alcohol use, and metabolic risks increased between 1990-2019, whereas smoking decreased. In crude models, periodontitis prevalence increased with alcohol use (2545.1; 95%CI: 2307.9-2782.3), high-SSB diet (365.5; 95%CI: 322.5-408.4), low physical activity (1784.4; 95%CI: 763.7-2805.0), overweight/obesity (172.3; 95%CI: 156.3-188.4), dyslipidemia (734.5; 95%CI: 624.7-844.2), and hyperglycemia (1774.3; 95%CI: 1555.9-1992.7). After adjustment for the Gini index, periodontitis prevalence raised with a high-SBB diet (1416.0; 95%CI: 1120.2-1711.8), overweight/obesity (629.9; 95%CI: 573.1-686.8), dyslipidemia (2035.8; 95%CI: 1728.1-2343.5), and hyperglycemia (8918.1; 95%CI: 7979.8-9856.3). CONCLUSIONS: Periodontitis has increased in Brazil since 2005, despite the smoking reduction. Sugar-sweetened beverage was the behavioral risk that mostly accompanied the periodontal trend. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Our results support upstream strategies targeting commercial, social, political, and structural determinants to tackle NCDs and reduce oral health inequities.

Habitual physical activity minimizes healthcare costs resulting from comorbidities among adults with cardiovascular diseases.

BACKGROUND: Habitual physical activity (HPA) can be used as a non-pharmacological strategy to prevent and control chronic diseases, as well as playing a role in minimizing healthcare costs. OBJECTIVE: To verify the impact of HPA on healthcare costs at different levels of care, over 24 months, in an adult population with cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including individuals with or without comorbidities. METHODS: Two-hundred and seventy-eight adults with CVD, aged between 30 and 65 years, participated in the study. Information on healthcare costs was obtained from medical records and included primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. Comorbidities such as diabetes, dyslipidemia, arterial hypertension, and obesity were registered. HPA was measured using the Baecke questionnaire. Comparisons between groups were performed using Student's t (

Analysis of factors affecting nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in Chinese steel workers and risk assessment studies.

BACKGROUND: The global incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is rapidly escalating, positioning it as a principal public health challenge with significant implications for population well-being. Given its status as a cornerstone of China's economic structure, the steel industry employs a substantial workforce, consequently bringing associated health issues under increasing scrutiny. Establishing a risk assessment model for NAFLD within steelworkers aids in disease risk stratification among this demographic, thereby facilitating early intervention measures to protect the health of this significant populace. METHODS: Use of cross-sectional studies. A total of 3328 steelworkers who underwent occupational health evaluations between January and September 2017 were included in this study. Hepatic steatosis was uniformly diagnosed via abdominal ultrasound. Influential factors were pinpointed using chi-square (χ2) tests and unconditional logistic regression analysis, with model inclusion variables identified by pertinent literature. Assessment models encompassing logistic regression, random forest, and XGBoost were constructed, and their effectiveness was juxtaposed in terms of accuracy, area under the curve (AUC), and F1 score. Subsequently, a scoring system for NAFLD risk was established, premised on the optimal model. RESULTS: The findings indicated that sex, overweight, obesity, hyperuricemia, dyslipidemia, occupational dust exposure, and ALT serve as risk factors for NAFLD in steelworkers, with corresponding odds ratios (OR, 95% confidence interval (CI)) of 0.672 (0.487-0.928), 4.971 (3.981-6.207), 16.887 (12.99-21.953), 2.124 (1.77-2.548), 2.315 (1.63-3.288), 1.254 (1.014-1.551), and 3.629 (2.705-4.869), respectively. The sensitivity of the three models was reported as 0.607, 0.680 and 0.564, respectively, while the precision was 0.708, 0.643, and 0.701, respectively. The AUC measurements were 0.839, 0.839, and 0.832, and the Brier scores were 0.150, 0.153, and 0.155, respectively. The F1 score results were 0.654, 0.661, and 0.625, with log loss measures at 0.460, 0.661, and 0.564, respectively. R2 values were reported as 0.789, 0.771, and 0.778, respectively. Performance was comparable across all three models, with no significant differences observed. The NAFLD risk score system exhibited exceptional risk detection capabilities with an established cutoff value of 86. CONCLUSIONS: The study identified sex, BMI, dyslipidemia, hyperuricemia, occupational dust exposure, and ALT as significant risk factors for NAFLD among steelworkers. The traditional logistic regression model proved equally effective as the random forest and XGBoost models in assessing NAFLD risk. The optimal cutoff value for risk assessment was determined to be 86. This study provides clinicians with a visually accessible risk stratification approach to gauge the propensity for NAFLD in steelworkers, thereby aiding early identification and intervention among those at risk.

Risk Factors, Presentation, and Outcome in Acute Stroke according to Social Position Indicators in Patients Hospitalised in a Referral Centre in Bogotá 2011-2019.

INTRODUCTION: Treatment of stroke is time-dependent and it challenges patients' social and demographic context for timely consultation and effective access to reperfusion therapies. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to relate indicators of social position to cardiovascular risk factors, time of arrival, access to reperfusion therapy, and mortality in the setting of acute stroke. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of patients with a diagnosis of ischaemic stroke in a referral hospital in Bogotá was performed. A simple random sample with a 5% margin of error and 95% confidence interval was selected. Patients were characterised according to educational level, place of origin, marital status, occupation, duration of symptoms before consultation, cardiovascular risk factors, access to reperfusion therapy, and mortality during hospitalisation. RESULTS: 558 patients were included with a slight predominance of women. Diagnosis of diabetes was more common in women and smoking in men (n = 68, 28.4% vs. n = 51, 15.9%; p = 0.0004). Rural origin was associated with higher prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidaemia (hypertension n = 45, 73.8% vs. n = 282, 57.4%; p = 0.007; diabetes n = 20, 33.3% vs. 109, 19.5%; p = 0.02; dyslipidaemia n = 19, 32.7% vs. n = 93, 18.9%; p = 0.02). Mortality was higher in rural patients (n = 8, 14.2% vs. n = 30, 6.1%; p = 0.03). Lower schooling was associated with higher frequency of hypertension and dyslipidaemia (hypertension n = 152, 76.0% vs. n = 94, 46.3%; p ≤ 0.0001; dyslipidaemia n = 56, 28% vs. n = 35, 17.0%; p = 0.009) as well as with late consultation (n = 30, 15% vs. n = 59, 28.7%; p = 0.0011) and lower probability of accessing reperfusion therapy (n = 12, 6% vs. n = 45, 22%; p ≤ 0.0001). Formal employment was associated with a visit to the emergency department in less than 3 h (n = 50, 25.2% vs. n = 58, 18%, p = 0.04 and a higher probability of accessing reperfusion therapy (n = 35, 17.6% vs. n = 33, 10.2%; p = 0.01). Finally, living in a household with a stratum higher than 3 was associated with a consultation before 3 h (n = 77, 25.5% vs. n = 39, 15.6%; p = 0.004) and a higher probability of reperfusion therapy (n = 57, 18.9% vs. n = 13, 5.2%; p ≤ 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Indicators of socio-economic status are related to mortality, consultation time, and access to reperfusion therapy. Mortality and reperfusion therapy are inequitably distributed and, therefore, more attention needs to be directed to the cause of these disparities in order to reduce the access gap in the context of acute stroke in Bogotá.

Education level as a predictor of the onset of health problems among China's middle-aged population: Cox regression analysis.

Background: Despite the importance of midlife with reference to one's health, educational inequalities in midlife health have attracted little attention in China. Using Cox proportional hazards regression analysis, this study examined the association between educational attainment and the onset of midlife health problems and investigated the potential mediating effects of socioeconomic position (SEP) other than educational attainment, depression, and health behavior. Methods: Data were extracted from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Survey (CHALRS) from 2011 (baseline) to 2018 (latest data). Participants aged 45-59 years at baseline were studied (N = 8,050). Health outcomes included the onset of poor self-rated health (SRH), limitation in activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental ADL (IADL), multimorbidity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, heart diseases, and stroke over the 7-year follow-up period. Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine the associations of the outcomes with educational attainment, while controlling for potential mediators (other SEP, depression, and health behaviors). Results: Lower educational level was associated with increased incidences of poor SRH and ADL/IADL limitations, but with decreased incidences of dyslipidemia and heart disease. After adjusting for baseline covariates, the RII was 2.17 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.74, 2.70) for poor SRH, 2.15 (95% CI: 1.42, 3.26) for ADL limitation, 3.84 (95% CI: 2.98, 4.94) for IADL limitation, 0.52 (95% CI: 0.40, 0.68) for dyslipidemia, and 0.55 (95% CI: 0.40, 0.74) for heart disease. Significant proportions (2.1 to 27.0%) of the RII were explained by the mediators. No sex or urban-rural differences were found in this study. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that educational attainment is an important predictor of the incidences of key midlife health problems, with significant mediating effects exerted by other indicators of SEP, depression, and health behavior.

Assessment of cardiovascular risk factors in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies: a systematic review.

We performed a systematic review of cardiovascular risk factors in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) and their cardiovascular outcomes, including acute coronary syndrome and stroke. A qualitative systematic review was conducted from January 1956 to December 2022 according to the PRISMA protocol using three electronic databases: PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. The studies were analyzed based on the following eligibility criteria: at least one combination of the terms described in the search strategy appeared in the title, written in English, Portuguese, or Spanish, and addressed risk factors for cardiovascular diseases in IIMs. Brief reports, reviews, papers addressing juvenile IIMs, congress proceedings, monographs, and dissertations were excluded. Twenty articles were included. According to the literature, most patients with IIMs are middle-aged North American or Asian women, with dyslipidemia and hypertension. The prevalence of the cardiovascular risk factors was generally low in IIMs, but with a high incidence of acute myocardial infarction. Further theoretical and prospective studies are needed to define the actual impact of each variable (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, smoking, alcoholism, obesity, and dyslipidemia) on the cardiovascular risk of patients with IIMs.

Medical Nutrition Therapy Provided by Dietitians is Effective and Saves Healthcare Costs in the Management of Adults with Dyslipidemia.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Referral to nutrition care providers in the USA such as registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs) for medical nutrition therapy (MNT) remains low. We summarize research on the effectiveness of MNT provided by dietitians versus usual care in the management of adults with dyslipidemia. Improvements in lipids/lipoproteins were examined. If reported, blood pressure (BP), fasting blood glucose (FBG) glycated hemoglobin (A1c), body mass index (BMI), and cost outcomes were also examined. RECENT FINDINGS: The synthesis of three systematic reviews included thirty randomized controlled trials. Multiple MNT visits (3-6) provided by dietitians, compared with usual care, resulted in significant improvements in total cholesterol (mean range: - 4.64 to - 20.84 mg/dl), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (mean range: - 1.55 to - 11.56 mg/dl), triglycerides (mean range: - 15.9 to - 32.55 mg/dl), SBP (mean range: - 4.7 to - 8.76 mm Hg), BMI (mean: - 0.4 kg/m2), and A1c (- 0.38%). Cost savings from MNT were attributed to a decrease in medication costs and improved quality of life years (QALY). Multiple MNT visits provided by dietitians compared with usual care improved lipids/lipoproteins, BP, A1c, weight status, and QALY with significant cost savings in adults with dyslipidemia and justify a universal nutrition policy for equitable access to MNT.

Risk Assessment of Dyslipidemias, Hyperglycemia, Hyperuricemia, and Hypertension Utilizing Self-Reported Body Silhouettes.

Objective: Self-reported body silhouette is an anthropometric instrument that has been utilized as a screening tool for underweight, overweight, obesity, and other abnormal anthropometric variables. Herein, we analyzed the risk associated with the self-reported body silhouette in the scope of dyslipidemias, hyperglycemia, hyperuricemia, and hypertension. Methods: Adult participants of the Health Workers Cohort Study enrolled between March 2004 and April 2006 were included. Then, risk analysis was performed considering dyslipidemias as serum triglycerides, high total cholesterol, high LDL-C, low HDL-C, hyperglycemia, hyperuricemia, and hypertension. Results: A total of 2,297 males and 5,003 females were analyzed. The median ages of the studied population was 39 (30-49) and 41 (31-50) years for males and females, respectively. Overall, there is a stepwise increase in the risk of presenting dyslipidemias, hyperglycemia, hyperuricemia, and hypertension as the self-reported body silhouette number increases, this tendency was observed in both males and females. Conclusion: Self-reported body silhouette is a useful risk assessment tool for dyslipidemias, hyperglycemia, hyperuricemia, and hypertension in Mexican adults. Applications of questioners containing this silhouette might be considered a valuable public health instrument due to their low cost, relative simplicity, and absence of specialized equipment, training, or respondent knowledge.

Dyslipidemia treatment and attainment of LDL-cholesterol treatment goals in patients participating in the Managed Care for Acute Myocardial Infarction Survivors program.

BACKGROUND: Patients after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) are at very high cardiovascular (CV) risk. Therefore, appropriate management of dyslipidemia with adequate lipid-lowering therapy is crucial for preventing subsequent CV events in these patients. AIMS: Our analysis aimed to assess the treatment of dyslipidemia and attainment of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) treatment goals in patients after AMI who participated in the Managed Care for Acute Myocardial Infarction Survivors (MACAMIS) program. METHODS: This study is a retrospective analysis of consecutive patients with AMI who agreed to participate and completed the 12-month MACAMIS program at one of three tertiary referral cardiovascular centers in Poland between October 2017 and January 2021. RESULTS: 1499 patients after AMI were enrolled in the study. High-intensity statin therapy was prescribed for 85.5% of analyzed patients on hospital discharge. Combined therapy with high-intensity statin and ezetimibe increased from 2.1% on hospital discharge to 18.2% after 12 months. In the whole study cohort, 20.4% of patients achieved the LDL-C target of < 55 mg/dl ( < 1.4 mmol/l), and 26.9% of patients achieved at least a 50% reduction in LDL-C level one year after AMI. CONCLUSIONS: Our analysis suggests that participation in the managed care program might be associated with improved quality of dyslipidemia management in AMI patients. Nonetheless, only one-fifth of patients who completed the program achieved the treatment goal for LDL-C. This highlights the constant need for optimizing lipid-lowering therapy to meet treatment targets and reduce CV risk in patients after AMI.

The Healthy Eating Assessment Tool (HEAT): A Simplified 10-Point Assessment of CHILD-2 Dietary Compliance for Children and Adolescents with Dyslipidemia.

Traditional dietary assessment tools used to determine achievement of cholesterol-lowering dietary targets, defined in the Cardiovascular Health Integrated Lifestyle Diet (CHILD-2), are time intensive. We sought to determine the utility of the Healthy Eating Assessment Tool (HEAT), a simplified 10-point dietary assessment tool, in relation to meeting dietary cut points of the CHILD-2, as well as its association with markers of adiposity and lipid variables. We performed a 2-year single-center, prospective cross-sectional study of pediatric patients with dyslipidemia. HEAT score associations with meeting CHILD-2 fat targets were modest. Only patients with the highest HEAT scores (good 43%, excellent 64%) met the CHILD-2 cut point of <25% total fat calories (p = 0.03), with a non-significant trend for limiting the percentage of daily saturated fat to <8% (excellent 64%), and no association with cholesterol intake. There were more consistent associations with markers of adiposity (body mass index z-score r = -0.31, p = <0.01 and waist-to-height ratio r = -0.31, p = <0.01), and there was no independent association with lipid levels. While fat-restricted diets are safe, they are not particularly effective for treatment of dyslipidemia or for weight management alone. The HEAT may be a more useful and simplified way of assessing and tracking broader dietary goals in clinical practice.

Statins and Cancer Prevention-Association Does Not Mean Causation.

Statins are widely prescribed medications that inhibit 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG CoA) reductase and therefore reduce cholesterol synthesis. Given the key role of cholesterol in cancer, statins may therefore have anticancer activities. However, clinical studies investigating the association between statin usage and cancer development have been few and inconsistent. A recent study from Maeda-Minami and colleagues found a significant, though modest, decrease in cancer risk among statin users. However, does this finding mean statin usage directly reduces cancer risk or is merely associated with reduced cancer risk? This editorial analyzes Maeda-Minami and colleagues' study to provide commentary on statin's proposed role in preventing cancer. See related article, p. 37.