Family-environmental factors associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Chinese children: a case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common psychiatric disorders, affecting an estimated 5 to 12% of school-aged children worldwide. From 15 to 19 million Chinese children suffer from ADHD. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between family-environmental factors and ADHD in a sample of Chinese children. METHODS: A pair-matched, case-control study was conducted with 161 ADHD children and 161 non-ADHD children of matching age and sex, all from 5-18 years of age. The ADHD subjects and the normal controls were all evaluated via structured diagnostic interviews. We examined the association between family-environmental factors and ADHD using the conditional multiple logistic regression with backward stepwise selection to predict the associated factors of ADHD. RESULTS: Having experienced emotional abuse and being a single child were both significant factors associated with children diagnosed with ADHD. ADHD subjects were more likely to have suffered from emotional abuse (OR = 11.09, 95% CI = 2.15-57.29, P = 0.004) and have been a single child in the family (OR = 6.32, 95% CI = 2.09-19.14, P = 0.001) when compared to normal controls. The results were not modified by other confounding factors. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide evidence that family-environmental factors are associated with ADHD among children in China. These findings, if confirmed by future research, may help to decrease ADHD by increasing the awareness of the effects of childhood emotional abuse.

Alterations of serum biomarkers associated with lung ventilation function impairment in coal workers: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have demonstrated that alterations in certain circulating biomarkers may be correlated with Coal workers' pneumoconiosis (CWP). This study investigated the relationship between changes of serum biomarkers and pulmonary function during the development of CWP. METHODS: Lung function parameters and specific serum indices were measured in 69 non-smoking coal workers, including 34 miners with CWP, 24 asymptomatic miners and 11 miners with minimal symptoms. The associations between changes in pulmonary function and serum indices were tested with Pearson's correlation coefficients. Multivariable analysis was used to estimate the predictive power of potential determinant variables for lung function. RESULTS: Compared to healthy miners, lung function (FVC, FEV1, FEF50, FEF75, FEF25-75 % of predicted values) was decreased in miners with CWP (p < 0.05). Increased serum matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) was associated with decreased FVC% of predicted values in the asymptomatic miners (r = -0.503, p = 0.014). CONCLUSIONS: In coal mine workers, alterations of lung function parameters are associated with the development of CWP and with changes in circulating MMP-9, TIMP-9, IL-13 and IL-18R. These serum biomarkers may likely reflect the pathogenesis and progression of CWP in coal workers, and may provide for the importance of serum indicators in the early diagnosis of lung function injury in coal miners.