Influence of Biomedical Factors on the Five Viscera Score (FVS) on Middle-Aged and Elderly Individuals: Application of Structural Equation Modeling

The five viscera score (FVS) is a diagnostic scale for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). The purposes of current study are to elucidate the characteristics of FVS obtained from middle-aged to elderly individuals and to investigate the validity of FVS using biological medical data of middle-aged and elderly individuals. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to conduct assessments between FVS and medical data. Eighty men and 99 women participated in this study, whose mean ages (SD) were 58 ± 7 years in both genders showing no significant difference. FVS of women was significantly higher than that of men in the spleen of the 50s (P=0.019) and liver of the 60s age group (P=0.030). By SEM, the following biomedical factors were found to influence viscera: gender, diastolic blood pressure, and HDL-C for the liver; GLU, GOT, and γ-GTP for the spleen; age, BMI, and HCRP for the lungs; and HbA1c and creatinine clearance for the kidneys. These results provide objective evidence that FVS can be used for TCM diagnosis in middle-aged and elderly individuals

A comparison of hand-arm vibration syndrome between Malaysian and Japanese workers

A Comparison of Hand-arm Vibration Syndrome between Malaysian and Japanese Workers: Anselm Ting SU, et al. Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia-The evidence on hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) in tropical environments is limited. The legislation for the control of occupational vibration exposure has yet to be established in Malaysia. Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical characteristics of HAVS in a tropical environment in comparison with a temperate environment. Methods: We conducted a series medical examinations among the forestry, construction and automobile industry workers in Malaysia adopting the compulsory medical examination procedure used by Wakayama Medical University for Japanese vibratory tools workers. We matched the duration of vibration exposure and compared our results against the Japanese workers. We also compared the results of the Malaysian tree fellers against a group of symptomatic Japanese tree fellers diagnosed with HAVS. Results: Malaysian subjects reported a similar prevalence of finger tingling, numbness and dullness (Malaysian=25.0%, Japanese=21.5%, p=0.444) but had a lower finger skin temperature (FST) and higher vibrotactile perception threshold (VPT) values as compared with the Japanese workers. No white finger was reported in Malaysiansubjects. The FST and VPT of the Malaysian tree fellers were at least as bad as the Japanese tree fellers despite a shorter duration (mean difference=20.12 years, 95%CI=14.50, 25.40) of vibration exposure. Conclusions: Although the vascular disorder does not manifest clinically in the tropical environment, the severity of HAVS can be as bad as in the temperate environment with predominantly neurological disorder. Hence, it is essential to formulate national legislation for the control of the occupational vibration exposure

Gender Difference in Lung Cancer Susceptibility

Several epidemiological studies indicate that for a given number of cigarette smoked, females may be at higher risk of lung cancer compared with males. Females who smoke appear to be at higher risk of developing small cell lung cancer than squamous cell lung cancer, whereas men who smoke have a similar risk for the two histologic conditions.Molecular epidemiological studies have also indicated gender differences in the genetic and biochemical alterations in lung cancer. Higher levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts were observed in female lung cancer patients compared with males, even though the level of tobacco carcinogens was lower among the females than among the males. A higher frequency of G to T transversion mutations in the p53 gene has been observed in females compared with males. Gender differences have been identified in the expression of cytochrome P4501 A1 gene or gastrin-releasing peptide receptor gene, with females exhibiting higher gene expression.Thus, the risk for lung cancer is consistently higher in females than in males at every level of exposure to cigarette smoking; odds ratios for an sociation of lung cancer with smoking are 1.4-fold to 1.9-fold higher for females than for males, depending on the histologic type of lung cancer.Whether lung cancer represents a different disease in women than in men is unclear. If the hypothesis regarding gender differences in genetic susceptibility to lung cancer proves to be true, education for reducing passive and active exposure to cigarette smoke must have a high priority for female\u27s health