Metabolic Syndrome and Its Individual Components among Jordanian Children and Adolescents

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MeS) and its individual components in Jordanian children and adolescents aged 7–18 years and determine the factors that are associated with clustering of metabolic abnormalities. MeS was defined using the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) definition. The prevalence of MeS was estimated from 512 subjects who had complete information on all MeS components. The prevalence of MeS according to IDF criteria was 1.4% in subjects aged between 10 and 15.9 years and 3.6% in subjects aged between 16 and 18 years. When categorized according to body mass index (BMI), the prevalence of the MeS was 15.1% in obese subjects, compared to 0.3% in subjects with normal BMI, and 3.0% in overweight subjects. In conclusion, our results indicate that although the prevalence of MeS is low in Jordanian children and adolescents, a large proportion of them had one or two metabolic abnormalities

In Vivo Visualization of Hair Follicles by Ultrasound Biomicroscopy in Alopecia Areata and its Correlation with Histopathology

Ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) is a non-invasive imaging technique used in examination of several skin diseases but never in imaging hair and scalp diseases.  Main objective of this investigation was assessment of the efficacy of UBM for in vivo visualization of hair follicles in cases of alopecia areata (AA) and correlation of findings with histopathological findings. This study included 30 patients with AA. Two areas, one with AA and a control area, were marked, examined by UBM and then biopsied for histopathological examination. In patients with alopecia totalis (AT) or universalis (AU) only an AA area was examined. Non-echogenic conical shadows reaching the epidermal entrance echo (probably corresponding to the hair follicles) were seen and were wider and fewer in number in areas of AA than in normal control areas. No significant difference was found regarding number and width of hair follicles between UBM and histopathological examination. However, a significant increase in length of follicles in histopathology was detected, indicating that the UBM image was probably unable to reach the deepest part of the follicle. Main limitation of the study is small number of cases. No significant difference was found between UBM and histological measurements of hair follicle number and width in patients with AA, making UBM a useful tool for in vivo visualization of hair follicles. </p

Computer Vision and Sensor Fusion for Autonomous Vehicles

Cars, particularly manually-driven cars, are one of the most commonly used modes of transportation today. However, millions of people are either killed or left with disabilities annually due to road traffic accidents caused by human error or sensor failures. Despite that, a lot of people seem reluctant to look into alternatives to manually driven vehicle transportation. This is understandable as driving cars has been the trustworthy mode of transportation for many years, and it is widely used in everyday life around the world. However, technological advances in the fields of machine learning and cyber-physical systems contributed to the emergence of nearly or fully autonomous vehicles, or driverless cars, as a true viable alternative for the current human-controlled driving mode. The technology still has a long way to go, mainly because the advances in vision and depth measurement sensors such as LIDARs can not achieve the levels of safety needed to make fully autonomous cars. Progress on this front is being made every day, and it seems inevitable that they will be readily available in the near future. Our team aims to further investigate the application of Computer Vision and sensor fusion to achieve independent self-driving without external guides. To accomplish this, we combine a depth camera with a LiDAR to provide better coverage of the surroundings and allow more accurate detection and thus accurate avoidance of obstacles. We are mounting the vision system on a model driverless car and using the vision data to guide the car control system. A computer vision algorithm will be run by the NVIDIA Jetson Nano to determine what course of action the car should take. The final prototype should be capable of driving at a reasonable speed without colliding with any objects and making decisions such as braking or turning when necessary

In Vivo Visualization of Hair Follicles by Ultrasound Biomicroscopy in Alopecia Areata and its Correlation with Histopathology

Ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) is a non-invasive imaging technique used in examination of several skin diseases but never in imaging hair and scalp diseases.  Main objective of this investigation was assessment of the efficacy of UBM for in vivo visualization of hair follicles in cases of alopecia areata (AA) and correlation of findings with histopathological findings. This study included 30 patients with AA. Two areas, one with AA and a control area, were marked, examined by UBM and then biopsied for histopathological examination. In patients with alopecia totalis (AT) or universalis (AU) only an AA area was examined. Non-echogenic conical shadows reaching the epidermal entrance echo (probably corresponding to the hair follicles) were seen and were wider and fewer in number in areas of AA than in normal control areas. No significant difference was found regarding number and width of hair follicles between UBM and histopathological examination. However, a significant increase in length of follicles in histopathology was detected, indicating that the UBM image was probably unable to reach the deepest part of the follicle. Main limitation of the study is small number of cases. No significant difference was found between UBM and histological measurements of hair follicle number and width in patients with AA, making UBM a useful tool for in vivo visualization of hair follicles. </p

De novo mutations in EIF2B1 affecting eIF2 signaling cause neonatal/early onset diabetes and transient hepatic dysfunction

Permanent neonatal diabetes is caused by reduced β-cell number or impaired β-cell function. Understanding the genetic basis of this disorder highlights fundamental β-cell mechanisms. We performed trio genome sequencing for 44 permanent neonatal diabetes patients and their unaffected parents to identify causative de novo variants. Replication studies were performed in 188 patients diagnosed with diabetes before 2 years of age without a genetic diagnosis. EIF2B1 (encoding the eIF2B complex α subunit) was the only gene with novel de novo variants (all missense) in at least three patients. Replication studies identified 2 further patients with de novo EIF2B1 variants. In addition to diabetes, 4/5 patients had hepatitis-like episodes in childhood. The EIF2B1 de novo mutations were found to map to the same protein surface. We propose that these variants render the eIF2B complex insensitive to eIF2 phosphorylation which occurs under stress conditions and triggers expression of stress-response genes. Failure of eIF2B to sense eIF2 phosphorylation likely leads to unregulated unfolded protein response and cell death. Our results establish de novo EIF2B1 mutations as a novel cause of permanent diabetes and liver dysfunction. These findings confirm the importance of cell stress regulation for β-cells and highlight EIF2B1’s fundamental role within this pathway.Includes NIHR and Wellcome Trust. Wellcome Trust 200848/Z/16/

Relationship between 25-hydroxyvitamin D and metabolic syndrome among Jordanian adults

Evidence of the association between 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and metabolic syndrome (MeS) remains uncertain and incongruent. This study aimed to determine the association between 25(OH)D and MeS among Jordanian adults. A complex multistage sampling technique was used to select a national population-based household sample. The present report deals exclusively with adults aged > 18 years who had complete information on all components of MeS (n = 3,234). A structured questionnaire was used to collect all relevant information. Anthropometric, clinical, and laboratory measurements were obtained. MeS was defined according to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) definition. Of the total, 42.0% had MeS and 31.7% had 25(OH)D < 30 ng/ml. In a stratified analysis, the prevalence of MeS did not differ significantly between subjects with low and normal 25(OH)D levels for men and women in all age groups. In the multivariate analysis, the odds of MeS were not significantly different between subjects with low and normal 25(OH)D levels (OR = 0.85, 95% CI: 0.70, 1.05, P-value = 0.133). The association between 25(OH)D and MeS remained non-significant when 25(OH)D was analyzed as a continuous variable (OR = 1.004, 95% CI; 1.000, 1.008, P = 0.057) and when analyzed based on quartiles. None of the individual components of MeS were significantly associated with 25(OH)D level. This study does not provide evidence to support the association between 25(OH)D level and MeS or its individual components. Prospective studies are necessary to better determine the roles of 25(OH)D levels in the etiology of MeS

Contributions of mean and shape of blood pressure distribution to worldwide trends and variations in raised blood pressure: A pooled analysis of 1018 population-based measurement studies with 88.6 million participants

© The Author(s) 2018. Background: Change in the prevalence of raised blood pressure could be due to both shifts in the entire distribution of blood pressure (representing the combined effects of public health interventions and secular trends) and changes in its high-blood-pressure tail (representing successful clinical interventions to control blood pressure in the hypertensive population). Our aim was to quantify the contributions of these two phenomena to the worldwide trends in the prevalence of raised blood pressure. Methods: We pooled 1018 population-based studies with blood pressure measurements on 88.6 million participants from 1985 to 2016. We first calculated mean systolic blood pressure (SBP), mean diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and prevalence of raised blood pressure by sex and 10-year age group from 20-29 years to 70-79 years in each study, taking into account complex survey design and survey sample weights, where relevant. We used a linear mixed effect model to quantify the association between (probittransformed) prevalence of raised blood pressure and age-group- and sex-specific mean blood pressure. We calculated the contributions of change in mean SBP and DBP, and of change in the prevalence-mean association, to the change in prevalence of raised blood pressure. Results: In 2005-16, at the same level of population mean SBP and DBP, men and women in South Asia and in Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa would have the highest prevalence of raised blood pressure, and men and women in the highincome Asia Pacific and high-income Western regions would have the lowest. In most region-sex-age groups where the prevalence of raised blood pressure declined, one half or more of the decline was due to the decline in mean blood pressure. Where prevalence of raised blood pressure has increased, the change was entirely driven by increasing mean blood pressure, offset partly by the change in the prevalence-mean association. Conclusions: Change in mean blood pressure is the main driver of the worldwide change in the prevalence of raised blood pressure, but change in the high-blood-pressure tail of the distribution has also contributed to the change in prevalence, especially in older age groups

Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants

Summary Background Comparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents. Methods For this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence. Findings We pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls. Interpretation The height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks