Stendermoesgaard4994

04 ± 12.96, 246.28 ± 7.60 and 270.00 ± 10.68 g, respectively). It is concluded that the follistatin gene expressed differently during the embryonic and post-embryonic period across the breeds and the coding region of the gene was polymorphic having significant effects on growth traits in chicken.Background While the overweight and obesity epidemic in the adolescent population is well described, a comprehensive evaluation of cardiometabolic health markers has not been reported. Our purpose was therefore to determine the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors among non-diabetic individuals 12 to19 years of age in the United States. Methods We analyzed data from nationally representative samples of U.S. adolescents (NHANES, 2007-2016). Optimal cardiometabolic health was defined as an absence of risk factors, that is, at least normal values on each of the following 11 measures body mass index (BMI) percentile, waist circumference percentile, blood pressure, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, non-HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, fasting plasma glucose, alanine aminotransferase, and insulin resistance. Domain analyses were conducted with Rao-Scott chi-square tests of independence. Multivariable linear/logistic regressions examined sociodemographic associations with cardiometabolic health. Results Less than a quarter of the population (22.0%; 95% CI; 19.4%-24.8%) was found to have no cardiometabolic risk factors. Among individuals with a normal BMI, 35.7% (95% CI; 31.6%-40.1%) had no cardiometabolic risk factors. Family poverty-to-income ratio was identified as an independent predictor of cardiometabolic health (P = 0.01). A consistent trend was present between increasing BMI percentile and number of cardiometabolic risk markers. Conclusions The overall prevalence of U.S. adolescents with no cardiometabolic risk factors is less than 25%. Even among those without increased BMI, less than half meet all metabolic health criteria. In addition, socioeconomic disparities are predictors of metabolic health.This study gave an insight on how we can utilise the unique features of bio-composites of albumen-glycerol, reinforced with natural fibres in the production of orthopaedic cast. Studies on the use of natural fibres as a replacement to man-made fibres in fibre-reinforced composites has increased and opened up for further industrial possibilities. They have the advantages of low density, low cost, biodegradable and environmental friendly. However, the main disadvantages of natural fibres in manufacturing composites are the poor compatibility between fibre and matrix and the relatively high moisture sorption. Therefore, chemical treatments were used in modifying the fibres surface properties. click here This work documents an attempt to create an alternative fibre reinforced composite material for possible use in the replacement of Plaster of Paris (POP), used for making orthopaedic cast. The matrix is an albumen/glycerol mix and the fibres are raffia, kenaf and sisal fibres. The bio-composites were analysed by standard methods such as mechanical tests, TGA and SEM. The mechanical properties of this composite material showed a promising future in the orthopaedic field. Natural fibre cast as external immobilising is considered a better orthopaedic modality than the POP as it provides rigid fixation, less time consuming and fewer complications.Background Myocardial infarction and premature death have been observed in patients with psoriasis. Although inflammation-driven accelerated atherosclerosis has been proposed as a mechanism, the relationship between subclinical noncalcified coronary burden (NCB), functional coronary flow impairment, and myocardial injury is unclear. link2 Methods and Results In an ongoing longitudinal cohort study, 202 consecutive patients with psoriasis (168 at 1 year) underwent coronary computed tomography angiography to identify coronary plaque, quantify NCB, and calculate coronary fractional flow reserve by computed tomography. Serum high-sensitivity troponin-T (hs-cTn-T) was measured using a fifth-generation assay. Overall, patients were middle-aged, predominantly male, and low cardiovascular risk. A higher than median NCB associated with a positive hs-cTn-T (fully adjusted model [odds ratio (OR), 1.72; 95% CI, 1.10-2.69, P=0.018]) at baseline. Additionally, patients with a higher than median baseline NCB had higher odds of positive hs-cTn-T at 1 year in fully adjusted analyses (adjusted OR, 2.36; 95% CI, 1.47-3.79, P2- fold higher odds of positive hs-cTn-T. These findings underscore the importance of early vascular disease in driving myocardial injury, and support conduct of myocardial perfusion studies to better understand these findings.Background Emergency department (ED) visits are common for older patients with chronic, life-limiting illnesses and may offer a valuable opportunity for clinicians to initiate proactive goals of care conversations (GoCC) to ensure end-of-life care that aligns with the patients' values, goals, and preferences. Objectives The purpose of this study is to assess whether GoCC are occurring with patients in Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) EDs, to characterize these patients' goals of care and life-sustaining treatment (LST) decisions, and to examine the extent to which palliative or hospice consultations occur following the ED visit. Design We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study using health record data. Settings/Subjects A total of 10,780 patients receiving care in VA, whose first GoCC occurred during an ED visit. Results Of the patients in the study, approximately half were at least 70 years of age, three-quarters were white, and half had multiple serious disease comorbidities. The percentage of patients who desired cardiopulmonary resuscitation was lower among the highest risk (i.e., of hospitalization and death) patients (64% vs. 51%). The percentage of patients wanting other LSTs (e.g., mechanical ventilation) was higher among the lowest risk patients; and the percentage of patients requesting limits to LSTs was highest among higher risk patients. Eighteen percent of patients had a palliative or hospice care consult within three months of their ED visit. Conclusions In this study, we verified that GoCC are being initiated in the ED with Veterans at differing stages in their illness trajectory and that higher proportions of higher risk patients preferred to limit LSTs.Background A combination of clinical and electrocardiographic risk factors is used for risk stratification in Brugada syndrome. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the incorporation of latent variables between variables using nonnegative matrix factorization can improve risk stratification compared with logistic regression. Methods and Results This was a retrospective cohort study of patients presented with Brugada electrocardiographic patterns between 2000 and 2016 from Hong Kong, China. The primary outcome was spontaneous ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation. The external validation cohort included patients from 3 countries. A total of 149 patients with Brugada syndrome (84% males, median age of presentation 50 [38-61] years) were included. Compared with the nonarrhythmic group (n=117, 79%), the spontaneous ventricular tachycardia/ ventricular fibrillation group (n=32, 21%) were more likely to suffer from syncope (69% versus 37%, P=0.001) and atrial fibrillation (16% versus 4%, P=0.023) extracting latent features between different variables.Studies using cotinine levels to define smokers have generally failed to detect an association between smoking and multiple sclerosis (MS). Using a Swedish population-based case-control study, we show that associations in relation to MS risk and progression differ considerably depending on how smoking is measured. The risk of conversion into secondary progressive disease was increased among smokers when self-reported smoking history, but not presumed cotinine levels, was used to define smokers. Defining smoking by cotinine levels without distinguishing between different sources of nicotine may lead to severely biased estimates of the association between smoking and both MS risk and progression.

To investigate the performance of a narrow-scope knowledge-based RapidPlan (RP) model, for optimisation of intensity-modulated proton therapy (IMPT) plans applied to patients with locally advanced carcinoma in the gastroesophageal junction.

A cohort of 60 patients was retrospectively selected; 45 were used to 'train' a dose-volume histogram predictive model; the remaining 15 provided independent validation. The performance of the RP model was benchmarked against manual optimisation. Quantitative assessment was based on several dose-volume metrics.

Manual and RP-optimised IMPT plans resulted dosimetrically similar, and the planning dose-volume objectives were met for all structures. Concerning the validation set, the comparison of the manual vs RP-based plans, respectively, showed for the target (PTV) the homogeneity index was 6.3 ± 2.2 vs 5.9 ± 1.2, and V98% was 89.3 ± 2.9 vs 91.4 ± 2.2% (this was 97.2 ± 1.9 vs 98.8 ± 1.1 for the CTV). Regarding the organs at risk, no significant differences were report-based optimisation could be displayed. The data also showed a high correlation between predicted and achieved doses in support of the valuable predictive power of the RP method.Background The impact of the new 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) hypertension guideline on dementia risk at the population level has not been evaluated. Methods and Results We studied dementia-free participants in the ARIC (Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities) Study cohort in 1987 to 1989. Hypertension was defined by 2003 Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure and 2017 ACC/AHA guidelines using blood pressure measured at baseline. Dementia was defined using adjudicated consensus diagnoses, informant telephone interviews, and discharge codes from hospitalizations and death certificates. Cox regression estimated hazard ratios (HRs) for dementia and 95% CIs by hypertension categories, adjusting for confounders. Population attributable fraction of dementia was calculated by hypertension categories. Among 13 971 participants followed up for a median of 23 years, 1381 dementia cases were identict on dementia incidence using ACC/AHA categories was similar to the impact of the Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure.Malnutrition is associated with treatment-related toxicities (TRT) in adults with solid tumors and in children with leukemia. Few studies have assessed whether malnutrition in pediatric patients treated for solid tumors impacts risk for TRT, relapse, and/or survival. To address this knowledge gap, this retrospective study evaluated the association between body mass index (BMI) at diagnosis, and imputed BMI during therapy, on the prevalence of TRT, specific toxicities, relapse, and survival in pediatric patients with solid tumors treated with cisplatin-containing regimens. Kaplan-Meier curves and regression models evaluated the association between patient-specific characteristics (including BMI) and TRT, relapse, and survival. The cohort included 221 patients, of whom 22% were malnourished at diagnosis (10% were underweight and 12% were obese). Most patients (60%) experienced at least one severe TRT, and 30% developed more than one severe TRT. link3 Most patients with obesity at diagnosis remained obese during therapy (62%).