Body mass index, central obesity, and dietary patterns in a group of young adult men

Over the last decades, obesity has been increased in alarming rates not only in our country but also worldwide, tending to become one of the major health problems in the western world. Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to explore the relationship between dietary patterns and body mass index, as well as central obesity in young adult men. Method and Material: Study sample consisted of 1,000 army recruits and data was collected during their first referral for medical examination post recruitment. Collection of data was performed by means of a specifically designed questionnaire, which recruits were asked to complete themselves. Basic anthropometric measures were calculated and recorded by the examining physicians. Analysis of data was performed using the SPSS 15 statistical package and one-way ANOVA and t-tests were applied for the statistical process. Results: Regarding age, 13.8% of participants were 19-21 years old; 50.8% were 22-24 years old, and 30.7% were 25-27 years old, while 4.7% of participants were 28-30 years old. Regarding educational background, a 4.7% had received only basic education; 31.6% had received high-school education; and 63.7% had attended some college or university. 54.8% of participants considered their weight being "normal"; 5.1% considered weight being slightly or excessively above normal rates; and 40.3% reported that their weight was below normal rates. However, measurement results showed that only 58.7% of recruits were actually of normal body weight; 37.2% were overweight; and 4.1% were obese. Regarding central obesity, 50.3% of responders were classified as belonging to "low risk" group, with a 48.6% belonging to "moderate risk" group, and another 1.1% to "high risk" group. Statistic analysis of data revealed that the specific pattern of nourishment is associated to body mass index and to central obesity. More in advance, it was found that persons possessing optimal body weight were consuming significantly more frequently poultry, fish, or roast beef, p=0,022, as well as less bread, p=0,036 compared to the overweight participants. In addition, persons possessing optimal body weight were found to consume more frequently refreshers, sports drinks or soft drinks, p=<0,001, as well as snacks and desserts, p=<0,001 compared to both overweight and obese persons. Interestingly, persons with normal body weight reported consuming significantly more frequently fast-food meals, eggs, and sandwiches in their lunch-time, p=0,007 and p=0,040, respectively. Relatively to central obesity, recruits in "moderate risk" consumed significantly more frequently fast-food meals, p=0,005, more bread, p=0,035 and less fruit, p=0,030 than those in "low risk" for central obesity. Conclusions: Results of the present study suggest that the pattern of nourishment is not directly correlated to body mass index, but rather to central obesity

Functional role of the secretin/secretin receptor signaling during cholestatic liver injury

Liver diseases are a major health concern and affect a large proportion of people worldwide. There are over 100 types of liver disorders, including cirrhosis, cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), hepatocellular carcinoma, and hepatitis. Despite the relevant number of people who are affected by liver diseases, and the increased awareness with regard to these disorders, the number of deaths corresponding to liver injury is expected to increase in the foreseeable future. One of the possible reasons for this is that a complete comprehension of the mechanisms of hepatic damage involving specific liver anatomical districts is lacking, and, as a consequence, current treatments available are suboptimal

Functional Role of the Secretin/Secretin Receptor Signaling During Cholestatic Liver Injury

Liver diseases are a major health concern and affect a large proportion of people worldwide. There are over 100 types of liver disorders, including cirrhosis, cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), hepatocellular carcinoma, and hepatitis. Despite the relevant number of people who are affected by liver diseases, and the increased awareness with regard to these disorders, the number of deaths corresponding to liver injury is expected to increase in the foreseeable future. One of the possible reasons for this is that a complete comprehension of the mechanisms of hepatic damage involving specific liver anatomical districts is lacking, and, as a consequence, current treatments available are suboptimal. A major burden in the clinical setting are chronic cholestatic liver diseases (e.g., primary biliary cholangitis [PBC], primary sclerosing cholangitis [PSC], biliary atresia), which target the biliary epithelium and are characterized by cholestasis.(1, 2) Because the secretin (Sct)/secretin receptor (SR) axis (expressed only by cholangiocytes in the liver)(3, 4) is the major regulator of ductal bile secretion,(5, 6) it is intuitive that this axis plays a key role in the maintenance of biliary homeostasis during the progression of cholangiopathies. For instance, PBC is characterized by reduced bicarbonate secretion, a phenomenon possibly impeding the formation of an HCO3 canalicular film (“bicarbonate umbrella”) on bile ducts, which has protective properties against highly concentrated bile acids (BAs).(1, 7, 8) In this review, we examined the molecular mechanisms by which the Sct/SR axis regulates biliary function and the homeostasis of the biliary epithelium in normal and pathophysiological conditions

Epidemiology of intra-abdominal infection and sepsis in critically ill patients: “AbSeS”, a multinational observational cohort study and ESICM Trials Group Project

Purpose: To describe the epidemiology of intra-abdominal infection in an international cohort of ICU patients according to a new system that classifies cases according to setting of infection acquisition (community-acquired, early onset hospital-acquired, and late-onset hospital-acquired), anatomical disruption (absent or present with localized or diffuse peritonitis), and severity of disease expression (infection, sepsis, and septic shock). Methods: We performed a multicenter (n = 309), observational, epidemiological study including adult ICU patients diagnosed with intra-abdominal infection. Risk factors for mortality were assessed by logistic regression analysis. Results: The cohort included 2621 patients. Setting of infection acquisition was community-acquired in 31.6%, early onset hospital-acquired in 25%, and late-onset hospital-acquired in 43.4% of patients. Overall prevalence of antimicrobial resistance was 26.3% and difficult-to-treat resistant Gram-negative bacteria 4.3%, with great variation according to geographic region. No difference in prevalence of antimicrobial resistance was observed according to setting of infection acquisition. Overall mortality was 29.1%. Independent risk factors for mortality included late-onset hospital-acquired infection, diffuse peritonitis, sepsis, septic shock, older age, malnutrition, liver failure, congestive heart failure, antimicrobial resistance (either methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant enterococci, extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Gram-negative bacteria, or carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria) and source control failure evidenced by either the need for surgical revision or persistent inflammation. Conclusion: This multinational, heterogeneous cohort of ICU patients with intra-abdominal infection revealed that setting of infection acquisition, anatomical disruption, and severity of disease expression are disease-specific phenotypic characteristics associated with outcome, irrespective of the type of infection. Antimicrobial resistance is equally common in community-acquired as in hospital-acquired infection

Assessing anxiety and depression in parents of preterm infants

Purpose: To measure state and trait anxiety, as well as depression, among parents of preterm infants hospitalized in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Design: A convenience sample of 200 parents of preterm infants (124 mothers and 76 fathers) hospitalized in two Greek pediatric hospital NICUs participated in the study. Results: Among the 200 participating parents, mothers (which constituted 62% of the total sample) experienced higher levels of state anxiety, trait anxiety and depression than the fathers (p = 0.04, p &lt; 0.001 and p = 0.001, respectively). State anxiety scores were also higher in individuals aged ≥40 years (p = 0.038). Other factors that contributed to higher levels of state anxiety, trait anxiety and depression included being unemployed, living in rural areas and having complications during pregnancy. Conclusion: The severity of state anxiety, trait anxiety and depression among parents of preterm infants hospitalized in NICUs is influenced by various socio-demographic factors and by clinical characteristics of the infants. © 2018 Neonatal Nurses Associatio

Bullying and Suicidality in Children and Adolescents Without Predisposing Factors: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Published evidence has suggested that engaging in school or cyber bullying may potentially be associated with a suicidal ideation and suicide attempts. The aim of our review/meta-analysis was to evaluate the potential association between school and cyber bullying and suicidality (including suicidal ideation, planning and/or committing a suicide attempt) in children and adolescents (&lt; 19 years old) who are considered as a “healthy” population, without predispositions for suicidality factors (not subpopulations with characteristics that may constitute proneness to bullying and its consequences, including sexual minorities, drug users and youth with psychiatric comorbidity). Regarding school bullying, victims and bullies independently, and victims and bullies together, were significantly more likely to present suicidal ideation and commit a suicide attempt, compared to non-involved participants. Victims of school bullying were found to be significantly more likely to commit a suicide attempt that required medical treatment. Victims of cyber bullying were significantly more likely to present suicidal ideation and commit a suicide attempt. A positive relationship between involvement in both school bullying and cyber-bullying with suicidal ideation and suicidal behavior was observed. This review/meta-analysis contributes to further understanding bullying and suicidality as it includes results of participants without any predisposing factors for suicidality, thus providing more clear results with regard to the magnitude of the effects of both school and cyber bullying on suicidality. © 2018, Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature