Vascular ultrasound measures before pregnancy and pregnancy complications: A prospective cohort study

<p><i>Objectives</i>: To examine the relationship between pre-pregnancy indicators of cardiovascular risk and pregnancy complications and outcomes. <i>Study design</i>: Data from 359 female participants in the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study were linked with the national birth registry. Flow-mediated dilatation (FMD; maximum change in the left brachial artery diameter after rest and hyperemia); carotid intima-media thickness (IMT); Young’s elastic modulus (YEM); and carotid artery distensibility (Cdist) at the visit prior to the pregnancy were examined as predictors of hypertensive disorders, birthweight, and gestational age using multivariable linear regression with adjustment for confounders (age, BMI, smoking, and socioeconomic status). <i>Results</i>: No relations were seen between FMD, IMT, or the stiffness indices, and hypertensive disorders. Higher pre-pregnancy FMD was associated with lower gestational age, while increased Cdist was associated with reduced birthweight-for-gestational-age. <i>Conclusions</i>: Some cardiovascular ultrasound measures of pre-pregnancy may predict pregnancy complications, but the association is likely to be small.</p

IV approach, study sample (N = 753), women (N = 479), men (N = 274).

<p>Significant at **5%, and</p><p>***1% level.</p><p>Heteroskedasticity-robust standard errors are shown in the parentheses.</p><p>Total steps and aerobic steps are transformed with natural logs.</p><p>Two model specifications, one without control variables, excluding age (Model 1), and one with full set of control variables (Model 2). Added control variables: the vector of socioeconomic characteristics and health status observed in 2007, and family background factors observed in 1980.</p><p>Instruments used: Income, obtained in 2007 and household income obtained in 1980.</p><p>Because the Sargan test is not available with cluster robust standard errors, the test was executed with non-robust errors. Thus, the results should be treated with a care.</p><p>IV approach, study sample (N = 753), women (N = 479), men (N = 274).</p

Correlation between different physical activity measures among women (N = 479) and among men (N = 274).

<p>*** Significance at the 1% level.</p><p>Correlation between different physical activity measures among women (N = 479) and among men (N = 274).</p

Socioeconomic status in childhood and adulthood: associations with dispositional optimism and pessimism over a 21-year follow-up.

We examined whether dispositional optimism and pessimism (overall LOT-R and optimism and pessimism component scores) of 694 adults aged 24 and 27 were associated with socioeconomic status (SES) measured concurrently and in childhood at ages 3 and 6. SES measures included education, occupational status and unemployment, and income. Concurrent adulthood SES was associated with the overall LOT-R and optimism and the pessimism component scores. Childhood family SES predicted overall LOT-R and pessimism component scores, even after controlling statistically for the adulthood SES. Social mobility between SES of family of origin and current SES also influenced the scores. The current findings suggest that the foundation of dispositional optimism and pessimism is related to early SES of the family.</p

Correlations and Pairwise Causality Statistics between the Study Variables.

<p>Positive value of <i>T_kernel</i> or <i>T_entropy</i> suggests that the first-mentioned variable in comparison is causal antecedent of the secondly mentioned, whereas a negative value implies the opposite. Parentheses give 95% bootstrap-percentile confidence intervals of estimates, except for ordinary correlation for which standard asymptotic theory was used. Statistically significant comparisons are highlighted with bold font.</p><p>Δ_6y =  change over six years (from 2001 to 2007).</p><p>Δ_10y =  change over ten years (from 2001 to 2011).</p><p>Waist  =  Waist circumference.</p><p><i>r</i> =  Correlation coefficient.</p><p><i>T_kernel</i> =  DirectLiNGAM- and Kernel-based measure of pairwise causality.</p><p><i>T_entropy</i> =  Approximate-entropy and asymptotic-likelihood –based measure of pairwise causality.</p

Sample Characteristics and Attrition in the Young Finns Study.

<p>Note: p-value is from t- or chi-squared test for the difference between the study and attrition samples, and s.d. denotes standard deviation. Attrition sample consists of participants who lacked information either regarding depression or regarding sleep. Some had one but not other, allowing comparison against those with both. For such cases, n denotes sample size for this sub-sample.</p

Total Test Information for the items of BDI-II (solid line) and for those of mBDI (dashed line).

<p>Units of the horizontal axis represent standard deviations of the latent/general depression as estimated by unidimensional Graded Response Model. Information per latent depression value holds no absolute meaning; it is estimated by integral over an adjacent step in 200 point discretization of horizontal axis. In addition to (Fisher) Information-content of the scales, the thin dotted line plots a Gaussian kernel density estimate from the factor scores of the estimated Graded Response Model, normalized to maximum of one; this serves to illustrate which severity-levels were actually present in the population-based Young Finns data set.</p

Linear Regression Models with a quadratic term (dashed line) and without it (solid line).

<p>Residual plots are for the model with only the linear term included. Jitter, that is a uniform random variable on the interval [−0.3, 0.3], was added to x-axis for enhanced discernibility, but did not enter to model estimation.</p

Age in 2011, and TV time at various time points by TV time group (constantly low, moderate, high, increased, or decreased) and by sex.

<p>SD =  Standard deviation.</p><p>n =  All available observations for the variable in question.</p

Pairwise Causality Comparisons for 2000 Bootstrap Re-samples in the Data from Wisconsin Longitudinal Study.

a<p>non-standardized original variables.</p>b<p>standardized variables; Skew- and Tanh-based statistic always require latter. Second and third column report the percentages of ‘wins’ in the indicated pairwise comparison, whereas the two last columns summarize the statistic implying the result over the 2000 re-samples. mCES-D = modified Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale.</p