Cardiovascular Diseases ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Humans ; Metabolic Syndrome

Cardiovascular Diseases ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Disasters ; Earthquakes ; Humans

Cardiovascular Diseases ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Humans ; Hypertension ; complications ; Risk Factors

Alcohol Drinking ; adverse effects ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Risk Assessment

Cerebro-cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of compensable occupational diseases in Korea as in Japan or Taiwan. However, most countries accept only cardiovascular diseases (ischemic heart diseases) as compensable occupational diseases if any, but not cerebrovascular diseases. Korea has a prescribed list of compensable occupational diseases. CVD was not included in the list until 1993. In the early 1990s, a case of cerebral infarction was accepted as occupational disease by the Supreme Court. The decision was based on the concept that workers' compensation system is one of the social security systems. In 1994, the government has established a diagnostic criterion of CVD. The crude rate of compensated cerebrovascular disease decreased by 60.0% from 18.5 in 2003 to 7.4 in 2008 per 100,000 workers, and that of compensated coronary heart disease decreased by 60.5% from 3.8 in 2003 to 1.5 in 2008 per 100,000 workers. The compensated cases of CVD dramatically increased and reached its peak in 2003. Since many preventive activities were performed by the government and employers, the compensated cases have slowly decreased since 2003 and sharply decreased after 2008 when the diagnostic criterion was amended. The strategic approach is needed essentially because CVDs are common, serious and preventable diseases which lead to economic burden.
*Cardiovascular Diseases/economics/epidemiology/etiology/prevention & control ; *Cerebrovascular Disorders/economics/epidemiology/etiology/prevention & control ; Humans ; Occupational Diseases/economics/*epidemiology/etiology/prevention & control ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Risk Factors ; *Workers' Compensation/economics/legislation & jurisprudence

No definitive recommendation is available concerning optimal antithrombotic therapy in pregnant women with a mechanical heart valve. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the clinical results of nadroparin treatment with respect to pregnancy outcome and maternal complications. From 1997 to 2005, 31 pregnancies were reviewed in 25 women. Nadroparin (7,500 U, twice daily) was used in 23 pregnancies between 6 and 12 weeks of gestation and close-to-term only, and coumarin derivatives were used with aspirin at other times. Eight pregnant women treated with coumarin derivatives throughout pregnancy were compared to evaluate the safety and efficacy of nadroparin. No maternal death or bleeding complication occurred in either of the two groups, and frequencies of maternal thromboembolism including valve thrombosis (8.7% vs. 12.5%, p>0.05) were similar. However, the frequencies of live born (91.3% vs. 50%, p=0.01) and healthy babies (90.4% vs. 25%, p<0.01) were significantly higher, and the fetal loss rate was significantly lower (8.7% vs. 50%, p=0.01) in the nadroparin-treated group. Regarding the efficacy and safety of antithrombotic treatment in pregnant women with prosthetic heart valves, nadroparin treatment during the first trimester is an acceptable regimen and produces better results than coumarin derivatives.
Treatment Outcome ; Thrombosis/etiology/*prevention & control ; Pregnancy Outcome ; Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular/*etiology/*prevention & control ; Pregnancy ; Nadroparin/*administration & dosage/*adverse effects ; Hydrocephalus/chemically induced ; Humans ; Heart Valve Prosthesis/*adverse effects ; Heart Valve Diseases/etiology/*prevention & control ; Female ; Coumarins/administration & dosage ; Adult

Hyperglycemia significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in diabetics. However, it has been shown by a series of large scale international studies that intensive lowering of blood glucose levels not only has very limited benefits against cardiovascular problems in patients, but may even be harmful to patients at a high risk for CVD and/or poor long-term control of blood glucose levels. Therefore, Western medicine is faced with a paradox. One way to solve this may be administration of Chinese herbal medicines that not only regulate blood glucose, blood fat levels and blood pressure, but also act on multiple targets. These medicines can eliminate cytotoxicity of high glucose through anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant methods, regulation of cytokines and multiple signaling molecules, and maintenance of cell vitality and the cell cycle, etc. This allows hyperglycemic conditions to exist in a healthy manner, which is called "harmless hyperglycemia" Furthermore, these cardiovascular benefits go beyond lowering blood glucose levels. The mechanisms of action not only avoid cardiovascular injury caused by intensive lowering of blood glucose levels, but also decrease the cardiovascular dangers posed by hyperglycemia.
Blood Glucose ; analysis ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; prevention & control ; Diabetes Mellitus ; blood ; drug therapy ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Hyperglycemia ; complications ; etiology

Adolescent ; Blood Glucose ; analysis ; Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; etiology ; Child ; China ; epidemiology ; Diabetes Mellitus ; etiology ; Humans ; Metabolic Syndrome ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Obesity ; complications ; Practice Guidelines as Topic ; Risk Factors ; Waist-Hip Ratio

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify subgroups of the physical and behavioral risk profiles for cardiovascular disease among industrial workers, and to examine predicting factors for the subgroups. SAMPLE AND METHOD: Health records of 2,616 male and female workers aged 19-56 years who were employed in an airplane manufacturing industry were analyzed. Data were analyzed using the Latent class cluster analysis. RESULTS: Four different clusters (two high-risk groups, one low-risk group, and one normal group) were found and these clusters were significantly different by age, gender, and work type (p<.05). The two high-risk groups had higher chances of drinking alcohol, elevated BMI, FBS, total cholesterol, having hypertension, and were significantly older, and had relatively high chances of being day workers rather than other groups. The low-risk group had higher chances of drinking alcohol, higher BMI and total cholesterols compared to normal group, and highest portions of current smokers and shift workers in the four clusters and their mean BP was within prehypertension criteria. CONCLUSION: Industrial nurses should guide the lifestyle behaviors and risk factors of the high risk groups for CVD and need to intervene early for behavioral change for the low-risk group who are young and shift workers. Age, and work environment should be considered in planning for targeted preventive interventions for industrial workers.
Work Schedule Tolerance ; Risk Factors ; Occupations ; *Occupational Health ; Middle Aged ; Male ; Life Style ; Korea/epidemiology ; *Industry ; Humans ; Health Status ; Female ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Cluster Analysis ; Cardiovascular Diseases/epidemiology/etiology/*prevention & control ; Adult

OBJECTIVETo verify Working Group for Obesity in China (WGOC) recommended body mass index (BMI) classification reference for overweight and obesity in Chinese children and adolescents using the data of 2002 China Nationwide Nutrition and Health Survey.

METHODSPediatric metabolic syndrome (MetS) and abnormality of each risk factor for MetS were defined using the criteria for US adolescents. Definition of hyper-TC, LDL, and dyslipidemia in adults was applied as well. The average level and abnormality rate of the metabolic indicators were described by BMI percentiles and compared with general linear model analysis. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to summarize the potential of BMI to discriminate between the presence and absence of the abnormality of these indicators.

RESULTSThere was neither significantly increasing nor significantly decreasing trend of biochemical parameter levels in low BMI percentile range (<65th). Slight increasing trend from the 75th and a significant increase were found when BMI > or =85th percentile. In general, the prevalence of the examined risk factors varied slightly when BMI percentile<75th, and substantial increases were consistently seen when BMI percentile > or =75th. As an indicator of hyper-TG, hypertension and MetS, the sensitivity and specificity were equal at the point of BMI<75th percentile, and the Youden's index of risk factors also reached peak point before 75th percentile except for MetS. When the BMI percentile was used as the screening indicator of MetS, Youden's index reached peak point at 85th percentile, just the point in the ROC graph that was nearest to the upper left corner.

CONCLUSIONThe BMI classification reference for overweight and obesity recommended by WGOC is rational to predict and prevent health risks in Chinese children and adolescents. Lower screening cut-off points, such as 83th percentile or 80th percentile, should not be excluded when they are considered as overweight criteria in future intervention or prevention studies.

Adolescent ; Blood Glucose ; Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; etiology ; prevention & control ; Child ; China ; Cholesterol ; blood ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Obesity ; diagnosis ; physiopathology ; Overweight ; Reference Values ; Risk Factors ; Triglycerides ; blood