Wen-Ko Chiou

The Relationship between Serum Uric Acid Level and Metabolic Syndrome: Differences by Sex and Age in Taiwanese

Background Metabolic syndrome (MetS) and hyperuricemia are important risk factors for cardiovascular disease. However, findings regarding the relationship between serum uric acid (UA) level and components of MetS have been inconsistent. This study was performed to explore the potential value of UA level as a marker of MetS among male and female Chinese of different ages. Methods A total of 5896 subjects (2960 females and 2936 males) were recruited from the Department of Health Management at the Chang Gung Medical Center. Hyperuricemia was defined as a serum UA value >7.0 mg/dL for males or >6.0 mg/dL for females. MetS was defined according to the criteria of the Adult Treatment Panel III, as modified for Chinese subjects. Serum UA was used to differentiate MetS and to calculate epidemiological indices by means of discriminate analysis and logistic regression. Results The sensitivity and specificity of serum UA concentration as a marker of MetS ranged from 55.2% to 61.4% and 61.9% to 68.4%, respectively. Subjects with high UA had a higher risk of MetS, with odds ratios ranging from 1.23 to 1.82 (P < 0.01). A positive correlation between serum UA and MetS was observed in both sexes. Serum UA and the occurrence of MetS rose with increasing age in females; in males, however, UA values did not vary with age. Conclusions Serum UA is more closely associated with MetS in females than in males. High UA among middle-aged women may predict the development of MetS.

Significance and association of serum uric acid (UA) levels with components of metabolic syndrome (MS) in the elderly

UNLABELLED Information concerning the association of serum UA levels and the development of MS in the Chinese aging population is limited. The aims of this study were to investigate age-related metabolic disorders and analyze the relationship between serum UA levels and the components of MS in the elderly. This cross-sectional observational study was performed in subjects from the Department of Health Examination, including 1182 subjects aged ≧65 years; among these subjects, 528 were women (mean age, 70.7 ± 4.8 years) and 654 were men (mean age, 71.4 ± 5.3 years). All the subjects underwent three-dimensional (3-D) whole-body scanning for accurate anthropometric measurements. Data analyses were performed using SPSS software. RESULTS MS, hyperuricemia, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus (DM) were present in 53.9%, 40.6%, 33.1%, and 30.1% of the subjects, respectively. Univariate statistical analysis showed that age, blood pressure, blood sugar levels, high-density lipoprotein levels, triglyceride levels, WBC count, and related anthropometric indices differed significantly in subjects categorized according to serum UA levels. In conclusion, our study showed that a high percentage of elderly subjects had hyperuricemia. The results showed an association between serum UA levels and cardiovascular risk factors, and this finding warrants concern with regard to the aging population.

Correlation of the dysmetabolic risk factors with different anthropometric measurements.

Metabolic syndrome is a common disorder in Taiwan. For this study 431 subjects were randomly selected from visitors to the Department of Health Management. Blood pressure, blood glucose, lipid, uric acid levels and anthropometric measurements with immunoreactive insulin (IRI) and leptin levels were all correlated. We randomly selected 431 subjects who visited the Department of Health Management. Whole body three-dimensional (3-D) laser scanner scans were employed for the anthropometric measurements. The metabolic index (MI) was designed using anthropometric parameters. Of the 431 subjects, 50% had displayed a body mass index (BMI) equal to or exceeding 25 kg/m2. Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis revealed that MI constituted another index for correlating metabolic parameters by comparing MI with BMI and waist circumference to hip circumference ratio (WHR). Most data related to metabolic syndrome showed statistically significant differences between high and low IRI groups, comprising uric acid, total cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, triglyceride, LDL, Chol/HDL ratio, and LDL/HDL ratio. Both IRI and leptin revealed statistical association with BMI, WHR, waist cross section area to hip cross section area ratio (WHAR), and MI in the study. Hypercholesterolemia appeared in 14.6% of the subjects. Elevated low-density lipoprotein (≥130 mg/dL) affected 36.9% of the subjects. In conclusion, MI calculated from 3-D body scanner correlated with many important metabolic risk factors and associated with clinical disorders like DM, hyperlipidemia, hyperuricemia and hypertension.Metabolic syndrome is a common disorder in Taiwan. For this study 431 subjects were randomly selected from visitors to the Department of Health Management. Blood pressure, blood glucose, lipid, uric acid levels and anthropometric measurements with immunoreactive insulin (IRI) and leptin levels were all correlated. We randomly selected 431 subjects who visited the Department of Health Management. Whole body three-dimensional (3-D) laser scanner scans were employed for the anthropometric measurements. The metabolic index (MI) was designed using anthropometric parameters. Of the 431 subjects, 50% had displayed a body mass index (BMI) equal to or exceeding 25 kg/m2. Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis revealed that MI constituted another index for correlating metabolic parameters by comparing MI with BMI and waist circumference to hip circumference ratio (WHR). Most data related to metabolic syndrome showed statistically significant differences between high and low IRI groups, comprising uric acid, total cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, triglyceride, LDL, Chol/HDL ratio, and LDL/HDL ratio. Both IRI and leptin revealed statistical association with BMI, WHR, waist cross section area to hip cross section area ratio (WHAR), and MI in the study. Hypercholesterolemia appeared in 14.6% of the subjects. Elevated low-density lipoprotein (> or = 130 mg/dL) affected 36.9% of the subjects. In conclusion, MI calculated from 3-D body scanner correlated with many important metabolic risk factors and associated with clinical disorders like DM, hyperlipidemia, hyperuricemia and hypertension.

Diabetes Mellitus Increased Mortality Rates More in Gender-Specific than in Nongender-Specific Cancer Patients: A Retrospective Study of 149,491 Patients

Aims. Hyperinsulinemia in overweight status, obesity, and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is often accompanied by cancer. Gender is important in cancer epidemiology, clinical presentation, and response to therapy in different histological types of malignancy. Insufficient information is available concerning gender differences in DM with organ-specific and nonorgan-specific cancers. This study aimed to analyze gender differences in hospitalized cancer patients with or without type 2 DM. Methods. We retrospectively reviewed ten years of patients hospitalized in one institution, enrolling 36,457 female and 50,004 male cancer patients of which 5,992 females and 8,345 males were diagnosed as type 2 DM. Results. Statistically significant increases in incidence of type 2 DM were found in patients of both genders with pancreatic, liver, and urinary tract cancer. Increased incidence of type 2 DM was found in lung and hematologic malignancies in females and prostate cancer in males. Increases in mortality rates of females with type 2 DM (2.98%) were higher than those in males. DM increased mortality rates in gender-specific cancers from 1.91% (uterus, HR: 1.33) to 5.04% (ovary, HR: 1.49). Conclusion. Type 2 DM increased mortality of cancer patients of both genders, with higher increases in gender-specific than in nongender-specific cancers.

Mining Three-Dimensional Anthropometric Body Surface Scanning Data for Hypertension Detection

Hypertension is a major disease, being one of the top ten causes of death in Taiwan. The exploration of three-dimensional (3-D) anthropometry scanning data along with other existing subject medical profiles using data mining techniques becomes an important research issue for medical decision support. This research attempts to construct a prediction model for hypertension using anthropometric body surface scanning data. This research adopts classification trees to reveal the relationship between a subjects 3-D scanning data and hypertension disease using the hybrid of the association rule algorithm (ARA) and genetic algorithms (GAs) approach. The ARA is adopted to obtain useful clues based on which the GA is able to proceed its searching tasks in a more efficient way. The proposed approach was experimented and compared with a regular genetic algorithm in predicting a subjects hypertension disease. Better computational efficiency and more accurate prediction results from the proposed approach are demonstrated

Association of hematological factors with components of the metabolic syndrome in older and younger adults

Background and aims: This study retrospectively examined the characteristics of metabolic syndrome in an aged population and assessed the risk factors for these subjects. Methods: A total of 1332 aged subjects (>-65 years; mean age 71.0±5.0 years) were enrolled from 6903 subjects recruited from the Department of Health Management at Chang Gung Medical Center. Of these 6903 subjects, 1665 (814 females and 851 males) were diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. Whole body three-dimensional (3-D) laser scanning was employed for anthropometric measurements. Furthermore, health index (HI) was derived by the following equation: HI = (body weight × 2 × waist area)/[body height2 × (breast area + hip area)]. Results: Among the 6903 subjects, no significant difference in gender was noted between groups with and without metabolic syndrome (p=0.142). For subjects >64 years, the incidence of metabolic syndrome in females is higher than in males. Subjects are categorized into four groups based on age and whether they had metabolic syndrome. Group A (4402 cases) consists of subjects <65 years old without metabolic syndrome. Group B (836 cases) comprises subjects >64 years old and without metabolic syndrome. Group C (1169 cases) contains subjects <65 years old with metabolic syndrome and group D (496 cases) is composed of subjects >64 years old with metabolic syndrome. Of the aged 1332 subjects, 595 were females (mean age, 70.6±4.6 years) and 737 were males (mean age, 71.3±5.3years), 37.2% (496/1332) had metabolic syndrome, 19.9% had DM and 21.8% had hypertension. These subjects had decreased BMI with age. Additionally, WHR peaked at an age range of 75–79 years. Of the aged subjects, also overweight, 42.8% and 33.6% were diagnosed with hypertension and DM, respectively; both ratios higher than those for non-overweight subjects (25.3% and 26.2%, respectively). Of the four groups in this study, the ratios for DM, hypertension, and WHR, HI, and LDL levels progressively increased through groups A to D. WBC count differs statistically significantly between these groups. Statistical analysis of WBC count, RBC and hemoglobin (Hb) with different parameters demonstrates significant elevation of WBC counts with the components of metabolic syndrome in aged subjects. Conclusions: WBC count, RBC count and Hb are associated with metabolic syndrome components in younger and old adults of both genders. The incidence of metabolic syndrome marker increased after menopause onset in the female population in this study.

Validation of a facial pictorial rating of perceived exertion scale for evaluating physical tasks

A new pictorial rating of perceived exertion (RPE) scale that focuses on the facial expression of effort was developed for evaluating physical tasks. This study aimed to examine the concurrent validity and construct validity of the facial pictorial RPE scale. Twenty-two males and eighteen females were recruited. Concurrent validity was established by correlating the scale with respiratory rate (RR) and heart rate (HR) responses to a load-incremented cycle ergometer protocol. Construct validity was established by correlating RPE derived from the facial pictorial RPE scale with RPE derived from the Borg scale. Both concurrent and construct evidence supported the use of the facial pictorial RPE scale by males and females to estimate RPE during the incremental cycle ergometer test. This validation implies that adult participants could establish the link between the symbolic representation of pictorial faces and the sensory cues provided by HR and RR.

Notebook computer use with different monitor tilt angle: effects on posture, muscle activity and discomfort of neck pain users.

This study aimed to evaluate the posture, muscle activities, and self reported discomforts of neck pain notebook computer users on three monitor tilt conditions: 100°, 115°, and 130°. Six subjects were recruited in this study to completed typing tasks. Results showed subjects have a trend to show the forward head posture in the condition that monitor was set at 100°, and the significant less neck and shoulder discomfort were noted in the condition that monitor was set at 130°. These result suggested neck pain notebook user to set their monitor tilt angle at 130°.

The impact of type 2 diabetes mellitus on mortality in hospitalized female cancer patients in Taiwan

The goal of this study was to determine the relationships among type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), specific cancer histological types and mortality in hospitalized women.

Application of Virtual Reality Technology in Online Fashion Store Development

Clothes fitting simulation is of great importance in assisting online fashion shopping. Recently, human mannequin and clothes simulations have improved to the point that they can generate realistic animation of clothes in real-time. However, under the constraints of online technologies, e.g. server calculation and download speed, this function is only available with larger online retailers. With the consideration of a low cost system installation and limited Internet download speeds, an experimental online toolkit development was undertaken. It consisted of creating and adjusting the digital human model, digitalising clothes data and virtually fitting clothes. Finally, the whole process was integrated into an online fashion shop.