Need for weight management in Switzerland: findings from National Blood Pressure Week 2009

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Swiss Health Survey (SHS) provides the only source of data for monitoring overweight and obesity in the general population in Switzerland. However, this survey reports body mass index (BMI) based on self-reported height and weight, and is therefore subject to measurement errors. Moreover, it is not possible to differentiate between overall and abdominal overweight. In this study, we aimed to gain a better understanding of the need for weight management in the general population of Switzerland by exploring and comparing prevalence rates of BMI and waist circumference (WC) based on physical measurements by trained observers, based on data from the 2009 National Blood Pressure Week (NBPW).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Sample selection was based on a one-stage cluster design. A total of 385 pharmacies representing 3,600 subjects were randomly selected from pharmacies participating in NBPW. BMI measures based on physical weight and height (NBPW) were compared with self-reported BMI measures from the SHS. BMI and WC measurements from NBPW were then used to produce population estimates of overweight and obesity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>BMI-based overall prevalence of overweight and obesity was 43.6%, which was 4.7% higher than the value based on the respective SHS data. Overweight and obesity were more common in men (54.3%) than in women (33.5%). However, the overall prevalence of increased WC in the general population was estimated to be 64.4%, with more women (68.4%) than men (60.1%) exhibiting a WC above the threshold. The prevalence of subjects requiring weight management in the Swiss population remained high, even after adjusting WC for false positive and negative cases.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Firstly, it may be more appropriate for health promotion programs to address the wider group identified by WC, which includes subjects who need to reduce their weight, or gain no further weight. Secondly, the gender differences are reversed depending on the use of WC or BMI to identify subjects suitable for health promotion programs; more women than men are identified by WC, and more men than women using BMI. These differences should be accounted for in gender-specific health promotion programs.</p

New endoperoxides highly active in vivo and in vitro against artemisinin-resistant Plasmodium falciparum

Background: The emergence and spread of Plasmodium falciparum resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapy in Southeast Asia prompted the need to develop new endoperoxide-type drugs. Methods: A chemically diverse library of endoperoxides was designed and synthesized. The compounds were screened for in vitro and in vivo anti-malarial activity using, respectively, the SYBR Green I assay and a mouse model. Ring survival and mature stage survival assays were performed against artemisinin-resistant and artemisinin-sensitive P. falciparum strains. Cytotoxicity was evaluated against mammalian cell lines V79 and HepG2, using the MTT assay. Results: The synthesis and anti-malarial activity of 21 new endoperoxide-derived compounds is reported, where the peroxide pharmacophore is part of a trioxolane (ozonide) or a tetraoxane moiety, flanked by adamantane and a substituted cyclohexyl ring. Eight compounds exhibited sub-micromolar anti-malarial activity (IC50 0.3–71.1 nM), no cross-resistance with artemisinin or quinolone derivatives and negligible cytotoxicity towards mammalian cells. From these, six produced ring stage survival < 1% against the resistant strain IPC5202 and three of them totally suppressed Plasmodium berghei parasitaemia in mice after oral administration. Conclusion: The investigated, trioxolane–tetrazole conjugates LC131 and LC136 emerged as potential anti-malarial candidates; they show negligible toxicity towards mammalian cells, ability to kill intra-erythrocytic asexual stages of artemisinin-resistant P. falciparum and capacity to totally suppress P. berghei parasitaemia in mice.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio