OBJECTIVES

In Asia, younger individuals (below age 45) are diagnosed to have type 2 diabetes with increased rates of obesity defined by lower BMI yet with greater visceral adiposity (waist circumference and waisthip ratios). The prevalence data on type 1 diabetes is not well established, considered to be low, but is seen to be increasing as well. This changing phenotype therefore, presents a clinical dilemma in terms of correctly classifying diabetes and deciding on the consequent appropriate treatment. Distinguishing type 1 from type 2 diabetes has become more difficult with type 2 diabetes dramatically increasing in young adults and children. This study aims to define the characteristics of diabetes among young adults in the Philippines to provide a basis for appropriate management amidst changes in diabetes phenotypes seen globally.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional analytic study, we characterized the demographic, metabolic, and autoimmune features of diabetes among young adult Filipinos aged 18 to 45 years old consulting at a tertiary referral center in Manila, Philippines. Baseline serum A1c, FBS, 75-g oral glucose tolerance test, insulin, serum C-peptide, insulin autoantibodies, leptin, adiponectin, lipid profile, and thyroid function tests were obtained from the participants and analyzed. The homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) was used to estimate the insulin sensitivity.

RESULTS

A total of 348 patients with diabetes were included, with females comprising two-thirds of the participants. The mean age at diagnosis of diabetes was 35.9±7.22 years. The mean BMI was 28.12 kg/m2, with median waist to hip ratio (WHR) of 0·93. Metabolic syndrome was found in 60% of participants and 67.82% were obese by body mass index. The mean A1c was 9.07±2.52%. Good glucose control (A1c less than 7.0%) was seen in 23% of participants  while nearly half (48%) had HbA1c which was >9.0%. The median levels of fasting insulin and C-peptide were 12.62 (range 1.33–90.42) mIU/L and 0.78 ng/mL (range 0–16.2), respectively. 

Included participants were diagnosed with diabetes within a year and as such, majority did not have any micro- or macrovascular complications. The most common diabetes complication was sensory neuropathy detected by monofilament testing, which was found in 28% of participants, followed by non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy in 13%. A history of previous diabetic ketoacidosis was found in 10 patients (2.87%). Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) and insulin auto-antibodies were found in 3.2% and 19.3% of participants, respectively. Approximately half (51.73%) of the participants were insulin resistant by HOMA-IR.

CONCLUSION

In contrast with Caucasians and other Asians, diabetes among young Filipino adults is associated with lower BMI but with a similarly high visceral adiposity as shown by an elevated WHR. Metabolic syndrome with insulin resistance as defined by a variety of indices is predominant. Type 1 diabetes with autoantibodies occur in only a small fraction of this population. Data derived from this work can provide a framework for cluster analysis towards personalized management specific to this population.

Human ; Acids ; Adiponectin ; Adiposity ; Adult ; Aged ; Antibodies ; Asia ; Asian ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Autoantibodies ; Body Mass Index ; C-peptide ; Carboxy-lyases ; Child ; Cluster Analysis ; Demography ; Diabetes Complications ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Diabetic Ketoacidosis ; Diabetic Retinopathy ; Diagnosis ; Fasting ; Female ; Glucose ; Glucose Tolerance Test ; Glutamate Decarboxylase ; Glutamic Acid ; Insulin ; Insulin Resistance ; Ketosis ; Leptin ; Lipids ; Metabolic Syndrome ; Obesity ; Patients ; Peptides ; Phenotype ; Philippines ; Population ; Prevalence ; Serum ; Therapeutics ; Thyroid Gland ; Thyroid Function Tests ; Young Adult

Introduction: Ovarian cancer is considered the most lethal gynecologic malignancy because it is difficult to diagnose in its early stages. Ovarian malignancy prediction models may be useful in discriminating between benign and malignant masses, allowing for accurate and timely referral as well as proper therapeutic care Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic performance of the four ovarian prediction models: Risk of Malignancy Index‑4 (RMI‑4), Risk of Ovarian Malignancy Algorithm (ROMA), Copenhagen Index (CPH‑I), and International Ovarian Tumor Analysis (IOTA)‑Assessment of Different NEoplasias in the AdneXa (ADNEX) in identifying malignant and benign ovarian masses Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective, cross‑sectional, analytical diagnostic study in a tertiary hospital between January 2017 and December 2020. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, area under the curves (AUCs), sensitivities, specificities, positive and negative predictive values, and positive and negative likelihood ratios were used to assess the diagnostic performance of the prediction models. Results: We analyzed a total of 248 patients. One hundred and sixty‑one (65%) had benign tumors, 28 (11%) had borderline, and 59 (24%) had malignant tumors. The AUCs of all models were all above 90%, but when compared to the other models, CPH‑I had the best estimate. RMI‑4 had the highest sensitivity (98.3%) in diagnosing malignancy. For appropriately diagnosing benign disease, the IOTA‑ADNEX model exhibited the highest specificity (92.1%). Overall, RMI‑4 had the lowest diagnostic accuracy (74.6%), whereas IOTA‑ADNEX had the greatest (93.2%). Conclusion The four malignancy prediction models in this study were all useful tools in discriminating between benign and malignant ovarian tumors. IOTA‑ADNEX, CPH‑I, and ROMA all demonstrated overlapping diagnostic performances indicating that they are equal in that regard. In terms of sensitivity in predicting malignancy, RMI‑4 was the most sensitive. CPH‑I is the predictor with the best overall estimate. Lastly, IOTA‑ADNEX was the most specific, and displayed highest diagnostic accuracy among the four
Ovarian Neoplasms ; Roma ; Humans ; Female

INTRODUCTION: Haze is a recurrent problem in Southeast Asia. Exposure to haze is linked to ophthalmic, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, and mortality. In this study, we investigated the role of demographic factors, knowledge and perceived risk in influencing protective behaviours during the 2013 haze in Singapore. METHODS: We evaluated 696 adults in a cross-sectional study. Participants were sampled via a 2-stage simple random sampling without replacement from a large residential district in Singapore in 2015. The questionnaire measured the participant's knowledge, perceived risk and behaviours during the Southeast Asian haze crisis in 2013. Reliability and validity of the questionnaire were assessed using comparative fit index (≥0.96) and root mean square error of approximation (≤0.05). We performed structural equation modelling to examine the relationship between the hypothesised factors and protective behaviours. RESULTS: More than 95% of the individuals engaged in at least 1 form of protective behaviour. Knowledge was strongly associated with protective behaviours via direct effect (β=0.45, 95% CI 0.19-0.69, CONCLUSION Knowledge was associated with protective behaviours, suggesting the importance of public education. Efforts should target those of lower education level and smokers. The wearing of N95 masks correlates with uptake of other protective behaviours.
Adult ; Asia, Southeastern ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Ethnic Groups ; Humans ; Minority Groups ; Reproducibility of Results ; Singapore/epidemiology*

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; BRCA1 Protein/genetics* ; Breast Neoplasms/surgery* ; China ; Female ; Genetic Testing ; Humans ; Mastectomy

Objective: This study was aimed at examining the trends and correlates of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviors among Chinese children. Methods: A total of 4,341 subjects (6,936 observations) aged 6-17 years who participated in the China Health and Nutrition Survey (2004-2015) were included. Of the subjects, 41% participated in the survey twice or more. Random-effects ordinal regression models and repeated-measures mixed-effects models were used to examine the PA trends. Quantile regression models were applied to examine the factors influencing PA and sedentary behaviors. Results: From 2004 to 2015, the prevalence of physical inactivity among Chinese children aged 6-17 years increased by 5.5% [odds ratio ( Conclusions A declining PA trend among Chinese children aged 6-17 years was observed from 2004 to 2015, and certain subgroups and geographical areas are at higher risk of physical inactivity.
Adolescent ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/statistics & numerical data* ; Child ; Child Behavior/ethnology* ; China/epidemiology* ; Exercise ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Nutrition Surveys ; Regression Analysis ; Sedentary Behavior/ethnology*

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Blood Coagulation Disorders/therapy* ; China ; Consensus ; Hemorrhage ; Humans

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury/etiology* ; China ; Consensus ; Hematologic Diseases ; Humans

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; China ; Consensus ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation/adverse effects* ; Humans ; Transplantation Conditioning

Hypertension is a major problem of public health that endangers the health of the oldest old. However, the current guidelines for hypertension management do not uniformly diagnose hypertension among the oldest old, nor recommend a normal blood pressure range, which is not convictive enough to support the decision making to the prevention of blood pressure-related adverse events. This guideline gives guiding opinions on optimal blood pressure range for the Chinese oldest old, which applies to the staff of medical and health institutions at all levels nationwide to evaluate the blood pressure levels of the oldest old. It includes the sections of general principles, methods and standards of blood pressure evaluation, measurement conditions, specifications of blood pressure measurement, implementation approaches, etc. The guideline has important directive significance for improving the blood pressure management and decision-making level of the Chinese oldest old.
Aged, 80 and over ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Blood Pressure ; Blood Pressure Determination ; China ; Humans ; Hypertension/prevention & control*

Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; China ; Consensus ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Stroke/diagnosis*