Design and baseline characteristics of a population-based study of eye disease in southern Chinese people: the Dongguan Eye Study.

BACKGROUND: To describe the study design, methodology and baseline characteristics of the Dongguan Eye Study. DESIGN: Population-based, cross-sectional study PARTICIPANTS: A total of 8952 rural-dwelling residents aged 40 years or older in Hengli, Dongguan. METHODS: The Dongguan Eye Study was conducted from September 2011 to February 2012. The interview covered demographic data, socio-economic status and health- and vision-related quality of life. Physical measurements included height, weight, waist and hip circumference, heart rate and blood pressure. Laboratory tests included fasting blood glucose, haemoglobin A1c, oral glucose tolerance, serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen and uric acid. Ophthalmic examinations included visual acuity and autorefraction testing, intraocular pressure measurement, slit-lamp examination, ocular biometry, gonioscopy, fundus photography, retinal nerve fibre layer imaging and visual field testing. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Prevalence and risk factors for visual impairment, blindness, eye diseases and their associations with systemic medical indicators or health-related lifestyles, as well as epidemiological data on diabetic subjects. Methodology, response rates and baseline characteristics are presented. RESULTS: Of the 11 357 individuals eligible for the Dongguan Eye Study, 8952 (78.82%) subjects participated. All participants were self-identified Han Chinese. The average age was 54.0 years, 59.9% were female, 48.4% were farmers and 77.2% had elementary or junior middle school educational levels. The average body mass index and waist-hip ratio were 24.6 ± 3.9 kg/m(2) and 0.9 ± 0.2. CONCLUSIONS: Data from the Dongguan Eye Study provide information concerning the prevalence, risk factors and impacts of eye diseases in rural residents undergoing urbanization in southern China.

Single Fasting Plasma Glucose Versus 75-g Oral Glucose-Tolerance Test in Prediction of Adverse Perinatal Outcomes: A Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: There remains uncertainty regarding whether a single fasting glucose measurement is sufficient to predict risk of adverse perinatal outcomes. METHODS: We included 12,594 pregnant women who underwent a 75-g oral glucose-tolerance test (OGTT) at 22-28weeks' gestation in the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study, China. Outcomes were large for gestational age (LGA) baby, cesarean section, and spontaneous preterm birth. We calculated the area under the receiver operator characteristic curves (AUCs) to assess the capacity of OGTT glucose values to predict adverse outcomes, and compared the AUCs of different components of OGTT. RESULTS: 1325 women had a LGA baby (10.5%). Glucose measurements were linearly associated with LGA, with strongest associations for fasting glucose (odds ratio 1.37, 95% confidence interval 1.30-1.45). Weaker associations were observed for cesarean section and spontaneous preterm birth. Fasting glucose have a comparable discriminative power for prediction of LGA to the combination of fasting, 1h, and 2h glucose values during OGTT (AUCs, 0.611 vs. 0.614, P=0.166). The LGA risk was consistently increased in women with abnormal fasting glucose (≥5.1mmol/l), irrespective of 1h or 2h glucose levels. CONCLUSIONS: A single fasting glucose measurement performs comparably to 75-g OGTT in predicting risk of having a LGA baby.

Maternal Dietary Patterns and Fetal Growth: A Large Prospective Cohort Study in China.

There was limited evidence revealing the association of Chinese maternal dietary patterns with fetal growth. We aimed to examine the relationship of maternal dietary patterns during pregnancy to neonatal birth weight and birth weight for gestational age in a Chinese population. A total of 6954 mother-child pairs were included from the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study. Maternal diet during pregnancy was assessed using a self-administered food frequency questionnaire. Cluster analysis was used to identify dietary patterns. The following six dietary patterns were identified: "Cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups" (n 1026, 14.8%), "Dairy" (n 1020, 14.7%), "Fruits, nuts, and Cantonese desserts" (n 799, 11.5%), "Meats" (n 1066, 15.3%), "Vegetables" (n 1383, 19.9%), and "Varied" (n 1224, 17.6%). The mean neonatal birth weight Z scores of women in the above patterns were 0.02, 0.07, 0.20, 0.01, 0.06, and 0.14, respectively. Women in the "Fruits, nuts, and Cantonese desserts" and "Varied" groups had significantly heavier infants compared with those in the "Cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups" group. Compared with women in the "Cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups" group, those in the "Varied" group had marginally significantly lower odds of having a small-for-gestational age (SGA) infant after adjustment for other confounders (OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.57, 1.04, p = 0.08). These findings suggest that compared to a traditional Cantonese diet high in cereals, eggs, and Cantonese soups, a diet high in fruits, nuts, and Cantonese desserts might be associated with a higher birth weight, while a varied diet might be associated with a greater birth weight and also a decreased risk of having a SGA baby.

Serum Enzyme Profiles Differentiate Five Types of Muscular Dystrophy.

BACKGROUND: Differentiation among types of muscular dystrophy (MD) has remained challenging. In this retrospective study, we sought to develop a methodology for differentiation of MD types using analysis of serum enzyme profiles. METHODS: The serum levels of enzymes from 232 patients, including 120 with DMD, 36 with BMD, 36 with FSHD, 46 with LGMD, and 11 with EDMD, were evaluated. RESULTS: The characteristic profiles of serum enzymes facilitated differentiation of these five types of MD. DMD was characterized by simultaneous elevation of ALT, AST, LDH, and ALP; BMD and LGMD were characterized by elevation of ALT, AST, and LDH; and FSHD and EDMD were characterized by a lack of abnormal serum enzyme levels. We further developed discriminant functions to distinguish BMD and LGMD. For LGMD, LGMD2B patients had significantly higher ALP levels than non-LGMD2B patients (98 ± 59 U/L versus 45 ± 9 U/L, resp., p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our approach enabled the determination of MD subtypes using serum enzyme profiles prior to genetic testing, which will increase the chance a mutation will be found in the first gene analyzed.

Serum creatinine level: a supplemental index to distinguish Duchenne muscular dystrophy from Becker muscular dystrophy.

BACKGROUND: To improve assessment of dystrophinopathy, the aim of this study was to identify whether serum creatinine (Crn) level reflects disease severity. METHODS: Biochemical, Vignos score, and genetic data were collected on 212 boys with dystrophinopathy. RESULTS: Serum Crn level had a strong inverse correlation with Vignos score by simple correlation (r = -0.793) and partial correlation analysis after adjustment for age, height, and weight (r = -0.791; both P < 0.01). Serum Crn level was significantly higher in patients with in-frame than out-of-frame mutations (Z = -4.716, P < 0.01) and in Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) patients than Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) patients at ages 4, 5, 7, and 9 yr (all P < 0.0125). After adjusting for age, height, and weight, BMD patients still had a significantly higher serum Crn level than DMD patients (ß = 7.140, t = 6.277, P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Serum Crn level reflected disease severity and may serve as a supplemental index to distinguish DMD from BMD in clinical practice.