Low pulmonary function is related with a high risk of sarcopenia in community-dwelling older adults: the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2008-2011.

UNLABELLED: Sarcopenia is the age-related reduction of skeletal muscle mass in older individuals. Respiratory muscle strength may be related to skeletal muscle mass and, thus, the present study attempted to estimate the risk of sarcopenia relative to decreased pulmonary function. The present findings demonstrated that low pulmonary function was associated with low muscle mass in community-dwelling older adults. INTRODUCTION: Lean body mass is related to pulmonary function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, the relationship between muscle mass and pulmonary function in healthy older adults has yet to be clarified. Thus, the present study investigated the association of pulmonary function with muscle mass in an older community-dwelling Korean population. METHODS: This study included 463 disease-free subjects over 65 years of age who underwent anthropometric measurements, laboratory tests, spirometry, and the estimation of appendicular skeletal muscle (ASM) mass in the 2008-2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). Low muscle mass was defined as the value of ASM divided by height squared (ASM/height(2)) that was less than two standard deviations (SD) below the sex-specific mean of the young reference group. RESULTS: Forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1[L]) and forced vital capacity (FVC[L]) were positively correlated with ASM/height(2) in males (p < 0.001 and p = 0.001, respectively) but not in females (p = 0.360 and p = 0.779, respectively). A univariate logistic regression analysis revealed that males with low FEV1 or FVC were more likely to have low muscle mass (odds ratio [OR] = 3.11, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.62-5.99 for FEV1; OR = 1.99, 95% CI 1.13-3.53 for FVC); similar results were found for females, but the significance was lower (OR = 11.37, 95% CI 0.97-132.91 for FEV1; OR = 7.31, 95% CI 1.25-42.74 for FVC). After adjusting for age, smoking, and moderate physical activity, a low FEV1 value was associated with low muscle mass in both males (OR = 2.90, 95% CI 1.50-5.63) and females (OR = 9.15, 95% CI 1.53-54.77). CONCLUSIONS: Using nationally representative data from the 2008-2011 KNHANES, low pulmonary function was found to be associated with low muscle mass in community-dwelling older Korean adults.

Correlation of diffusion tensor imaging and phase-contrast MR with clinical parameters of cervical spinal cord injuries.

STUDY DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study. OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to characterize the diffusion properties across segments of the spinal cord and peak cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) velocities in the stenotic spinal canal, and to determine the correlation between these properties and clinical and electrophysiological parameters in patients with cervical spinal cord injury (SCI). SETTING: This study was conducted in the University teaching hospital. METHODS: The study involved 17 patients with cervical SCI. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and fractional anisotropy (FA) of the spinal cord and peak systolic and diastolic velocities of CSF were measured at the level of maximum compression (region 1) and at the levels above (region 2) and below (region 3) the level of injury with no signal change in conventional magnetic resonance imaging. Neurological and electrophysiological parameters were measured, including American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) Impairment Scale (AIS), ASIA motor score, ASIA sensory score, Modified Barthel Index, Spinal Cord Independence Measure III (SCIM III), somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) and motor evoked potentials (MEP). RESULTS: The ADC was significantly higher and the FA was significantly lower in regions 1, 2 and 3 of the SCI patients than in the normal controls (P<0.05 each). FA of the level below correlated with AIS, ASIA sensory score and SCIM III score, and FA of the level above correlated with SSEP latencies and MEP amplitudes (P<0.05 each). The reductions in FA correlated with CSF flow, functional measurements and evoked potentials. CONCLUSIONS: Diffusion tensor imaging can be used to quantify the proximal and distal extents of spinal cord damage. Reductions in FA were correlated with CSF flow, functional measurements and evoked potentials.

The relationship between pulmonary function and bone mineral density in healthy nonsmoking women: the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2010.

UNLABELLED: The aim of this study was to examine the association between pulmonary function and bone mineral density (BMD) in subjects who had never smoked. Pulmonary function was associated with BMD in premenopausal, but not postmenopausal, women. INTRODUCTION: It has been reported that low bone mass is common in patients with pulmonary disorders such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. However, in healthy nonsmoking women, the relationship between bone mass and pulmonary function has yet to be clarified. The object of this study was to determine whether pulmonary function is related to BMD in healthy nonsmoking women based on menopausal status. METHODS: This study was a cross-sectional study based on data obtained from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), a nationwide representative survey conducted by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare in 2010. This study included 456 subjects who had never smoked and analyzed data concerning pulmonary function and BMD. RESULTS: Functional vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) were correlated with BMD at lumbar spine, femur neck (FN), and total hip in premenopausal women (p = 0.030, p = 0.003, p = 0.019, respectively, for FVC; p = 0.015, p = 0.006, p = 0.059, respectively, for FEV1). However, FVC and FEV1 were only correlated with BMD at FN in postmenopausal women (p = 0.003 for FVC; p = 0.006 for FEV1). Body mass index (BMI), FVC, and FEV1 were significantly related with BMD at FN, even after adjusting for age and other confounding factors (ß = 0.334, p < 0.001; ß = 0.145, p = 0.017; and ß = 0.129, p = 0.037, respectively) in premenopausal women. However, only age and BMI were correlated with BMD at FN (ß = -0.268, p = 0.001 and ß = 0.384, p > 0.001) in postmenopausal women after adjusting for confounding factors. CONCLUSIONS: Pulmonary function, including FVC and FEV1 are associated with BMD at FN in healthy nonsmoking premenopausal women but not in postmenopausal women.

Factors associated with early onset post-traumatic syringomyelia.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective study. OBJECTIVES: To identify factors associated with the development of early onset post-traumatic syringomyelia within 5 years of spinal cord injury. SETTING: Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Korea. METHODS: We retrospectively examined the records of 502 patients with traumatic cervical or thoracic spinal cord injury who underwent follow-up magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations more than once a year for at least 5 years. Patients were assessed in terms of the neurological level of injury, the severity of initial spinal cord injury, the use of surgery and the extent of spinal canal involvement. The latter was evaluated by calculating the shortest antero-posterior diameter of the injured vertebral canal and the spinal reserve capacity as shown on MRI at the time of trauma onset and at the time of diagnosis of syringomyelia. RESULTS: Syringomyelia developed within 5 years in 37 (7.3%) of the 502 patients. The mean age of these 37 patients was 44.6 years (range, 17-67 years) and the mean interval from spinal cord injury to onset of syringomyelia was 38.8 months (range, 2-54 months). The development of post-traumatic syringomyelia within 5 years was not significantly related to the severity or level of injury, the use of spinal surgery or the extent of spinal canal encroachment (P≥0.05 for each comparison). CONCLUSION: Early onset syringomyelia occurring within 5 years after spinal cord injury was not associated with neurological injury level, severity of injury, the use of spinal surgery or canal encroachment.

Geographical distribution and accumulation features of organochlorine residues in bivalves from coastal areas of South Korea.

As a part of Mussel Watch Program in Korea, the contamination levels and accumulation features of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) were assessed for 82 bivalve samples collected from 66 sites along the entire coast of Korea. The dry weight based sigmaPCBs and sigmaOCPs ranged from 4.4 ng g(-1) to 422.0 ng g(-1) (geometric mean = 36.9 ng g(-1)) and from 9.95 ng g(-1) to 131.37 (34.88) ng g(-1), respectively. PCB was predominant in Korean coast, followed by DDTs, HCHs, and Chlordanes. From the observed log normal distribution of PCB and each OCP, low- and high-levels were defined as geometric mean +/- 1 S.D., respectively. The levels at the sites near urban and/or industrial areas often exceeded the high-levels and the spatial distributions of sigmaDDTs and sigmaCHLs were correlated with that of sigmaPCBs, indicating terrestrial input pathways. Even distribution of sigmaHCHs suggested a possibility of atmospheric input pathway of HCHs. The observed isomer ratios of DDTs, HCHs, and CHLs indicated that aging has occurred.

Unmyelinated fibers in human spinal ventral roots: C4 to S2.

STUDY DESIGN: Histological examination of human spinal ventral roots. OBJECTIVES: To determine the proportion of unmyelinated fibers in human ventral roots from the 4th cervical (C4) to 2nd sacral (S2) segment, and to evaluate differences in the proportions of unmyelinated fibers between the cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral segments, and between autonomic and other segments. SETTING: University Teaching Hospital, Busan, Korea. METHODS: Eight embalmed adult human cadavers (six males and two females; mean age 56.3 years) were collected. The ventral root samples were obtained by transverse cuts of the ventral roots within 1 cm proximal to the medial portion of the dorsal root ganglion from the C4 to S2 segment. The number of unmyelinated and myelinated fibers was counted in four fields, and the mean number of unmyelinated fibers was calculated. The percentage of unmyelinated fibers was calculated from the ratio of unmyelinated fibers to total fibers (myelinated fibers+unmyelinated fibers). RESULTS: The mean percentages of unmyelinated axons in cervical (C4-C8), thoracic (T1-T12), lumbar (L1-L5) and sacral (S1-S2) ventral roots were 16.3, 21.4, 17.8 and 20.7%, respectively. The percentage of unmyelinated fibers in thoracic ventral roots was higher than that for other segments (P<0.001). There was no significant difference in proportions of unmyelinated fibers between the sympathetic segments (T11-L2), parasympathetic segments (S2) and the other segments (C4-T10 and L3-S1) (P=0.1784). CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 20% of human spinal ventral root fibers were unmyelinated. The proportion of unmyelinated fibers was highest in the thoracic segments.

Spectroscopic analysis of Tm(3+) in PbO-Bi(2)O(3)-Ga(2)O(3) glass.

Tm(3+)-doped heavy metal oxide glasses in the PbO-Bi(2)O(3)-Ga(2)O(3) system were prepared, and their emission characteristics were examined. Three emission bands at the infrared wavelength region were observed, at 1.46, 1.79, and 2.36 µm, which are associated with the (3)H(4) ? (3)F(4), (3)F(4) ? (3)H(6), and (3)H(4) ? (3)H(5), transitions, respectively. Measured fluorescence lifetimes for the first two transitions were 0.160 and 1.035 ms, respectively. Oscillator strengths and intensity parameters suggest that the ionicity of Tm-Obonds in the glass is higher when compared with those in other oxide glass hosts. Higher radiative transition probabilities of the three infrared emissions than those calculated for other glasses appear to provide potentials for future laser applications.

Gross quantitative measurements of spinal cord segments in human.

STUDY DESIGN: Anatomical measurement. OBJECTIVE: To obtain quantitative anatomical data on each spinal cord segment in human, and determine the presence of correlations between the measures. SETTING: Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan, Korea. METHODS: A total of 15 embalmed Korean adult human cadavers (13 males, two females; mean age 57.3 years) were used. The length of each cord segment was defined as the root attachment length plus the upper inter-root length. After performing a total vertebrectomy, a transverse cut was made at the approximate proximal and distal point of each segment from segment C3 to S5. Sagittal and transverse diameters at the proximal end of each segment, and cross-sectional area, height, and volume of the segment were measured. RESULTS: The transverse diameter was largest at segment C5, and decreased progressively to segment T8. However, the sagittal diameter of each segment did not change distinctly with the segment. The cervical and lumbar enlargements were determined by the transverse diameters of the segments. Segment C5 had the largest cross-sectional area, at 75.0 mm(2). Segment T6 was the longest, averaging 22.4 mm in length. The longest segment in the cervical spinal cord was segment C5, at 15.5 mm, and segment L1 in the lumbar spinal cord. The volume was largest at segment C5, with a value of 1173.9 mm(3). CONCLUSIONS: We found characteristic quantitative differences in the values of the parameters measured in the thoracic spinal cord compared to those measured in the cervical and lumbar or lumbosacral spinal cords. These measurements of spinal cord segments appear to provide valuable and practical standard quantitative features and may provide basic data for understanding the morphometric characteristics relevant to pathophysiologic conditions of the spinal cord.

Accumulation of tributyltin in olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus: its effect on hepatic cytochrome P450.

Accumulation of tributyltin (TBT) was determined in liver of olive flounder exposed to TBT (3.65, 36.5, 365, 3,650, and 7,300 ng Sn/L) for 10 or 30 days, followed by 60 days depuration. Effect of TBT on hepatic cytochrome P450 content was also measured in liver of olive flounder. TBT was highly accumulated in liver of fish during the 10- to 30-day exposures, and hepatic cytochrome P450 content decreased with increasing TBT concentration. Hepatic cytochrome P450 contents were affected in olive flounder exposed to even environmentally relevant TBT concentrations, such as 3.65 ng Sn/L. In addition, the liver TBT levels demonstrated strong negative correlation to the hepatic cytochrome P450 content. The effects started to appear from 20 ng Sn/g dry weight of TBT in liver. Tributyltin concentrations and hepatic cytochrome P450 were also determined in feral fine-spotted flounder. The relationship between other organic pollutants known as cytochrome P450 inducers (e.g., polychlorinated biphenyls) as well as TBT and hepatic cytochrome P450 in the feral fish implied that TBT even at ppt level could impose antagonistic effects on hepatic cytochrome P450 induction.