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Baldness and Ischemic Heart Disease in a National Sample of Men
Ford, Earl S.
Freedman, David S.
Byers, Tim
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
A weak positive association between male pattern baldness and ischemic heart disease has been suggested previously. The authors examined this issue by using data from the Epidemiologic Follow-up Study of the First National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. As part of the baseline medical examination between 1971 and 1975, the presence and degree of male alopecia (none, minimal, moderate, and severe) were recorded for a subset of participants. Among 3, 932 men aged 25–76 years who had complete data, 378 deaths and 939 incident events from ischemic heart disease occurred during an average follow-up period of 14 years. Among 2,019 men who were younger than age 55 years at baseline (61 deaths and 239 incident events of ischemic heart disease), severe baldness was positively associated with ischemic heart disease mortality (rate ratio = 2.51, 95% confidence interval 1.01–6.24) and somewhat less associated with ischemic heart disease incidence (rate ratio = 1.72, 95% confidence interval 0.96–3.08). No dose-response relation with degree of baldness was seen. Arthough these findings are tempered by the absence of information concerning the type of baldness (frontal or vertex), they provide support for earlier studies that indicate male pattern baldness that occurs before age 55 years may be by some mechanism related to ischemic heart disease.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/651
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008797
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/6582015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Lowered Risks of Hypertension and Cerebrovascular Disease after Vitamin/Mineral Supplementation: The Linxian Nutrition Intervention Trial
Mark, Steven D.
Wang, Wen
Fraumeni, Joseph F.
Li, Jun-Yao
Taylor, Philip R.
Wang, Guo-Qing
Guo, Wande
Dawsey, Sanford M.
Li, Bing
Blot, William J.
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
A total of 3,318 men and women from a region in rural China were randomized to receive daily either a multiple vitamin/mineral supplement or a placebo. Deaths that occurred in the participants were ascertained and classified according to cause over the 6-year period from 1985 to 1991. At the end of supplementation, blood pressure readings were taken, and the prevalence of hypertension was determined. There was a slight reduction in overall mortality in the supplement group (relative risk (RR) = 0.93, 95% confidence interval (Cl) 0.75–1.16), with the decreased relative risk most pronounced for cerebrovascular disease deaths (RR = 0.63, 95% Cl 0.37–1.07). This benefit was greater for men (RR = 0.42, 95% Cl 0.19–0.93) than for women (RR = 0.93, 95% Cl 0.44–1.98). Among the survivors, the presence of elevations in both systolic and diastolic blood pressures was less common in those who received the supplement (RR for men = 0.43, 95% Cl 0.28–0.65; RR for women = 0.92, 95% Cl 0.68–1.24). This study indicates that supplementation with a multivitamin/mineral combination may have reduced mortality from cerebrovascular disease and the prevalence of hypertension in this rural population with a micronutrient-poor diet.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/658
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008798
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/6652015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Association of Fibrinogen and Coagulation Factors Vll and VIII with Cardiovascular Risk Factors in the Elderly: The Cardiovascular Health Study
Cushman, Mary
Yanez, David
Psaty, Bruce M.
Fried, Linda P.
Heiss, Gerardo
Lee, Marshal
Polak, Joseph F.
Savage, Peter J.
Tracy, Russell P.
Cardiovascular Health Study Investigators,
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
The cross-sectional correlates of three hemostatic factors–fibrinogen, factor VII, and factor VIII–were examined in the Cardiovascular Health Study, a population-based cohort study of 5,201 subjects over age 65 years. Subjects were recruited in 1989–1990 in Forsyth County, North Carolina; Sacramento County, California; Washington County, Maryland; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In multivariate linear regression models, cardiac risk factors significantly associated with fibrinogen were current smoking, race, lipids, and white blood count. In women, alcohol use, obesity, physical activity, and insulin level were also significant, while in men hypertension was correlated. The significant correlates of factor VII were lipids and white blood count in men and estrogen use, alcohol use, race, lipids, insulin level, white blood count, and obesity in women. The independent correlates of factor VIII were insulin, glucose, and race in both sexes; low density lipoprotein cholesterol, white blood count, and diuretic use in men; and alcohol use in women. In multivariate models, factors known to be modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease accounted for more of the population variance of these hemostatic factors in women than in men, especially for factor VII. The hemostatic factors may mediate some effects of risk factors on disease, and this should be considered in longitudinal studies.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/665
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008799
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/6772015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Heterogeneity of Hip Fracture: Age, Race, Sex, and Geographic Patterns of Femoral Neck and Trochanteric Fractures among the US Elderly
Karagas, Margaret R.
Lu-Yao, Grace L.
Barrett, Jane A.
Beach, Michael L.
Baron, John A.
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
To explore potential etiologic differences in the two major types of hip fracture, the authors computed the incidence rates of fractures of the femoral neck and trochanteric region of the proximal femur using a 5% sample of the US Medicare population aged 65–99 years. For the period they examined, July 1, 1986, through June 30, 1990, the rates of both hip fracture types increased with age in all race and sex categories. The proportion of hip fractures that occurred in the trochanteric region rose steeply with age among white women, but not among black women, white men, or black men. Within the United States, a north-to-south gradient in rates of both fracture types was observed among women, while no clear pattern was found for men. These findings raise the possibility of etiologic differences in the two fracture types, and the results provide further evidence of sex and racial differences in the risk of osteoporotic fractures.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/677
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008800
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/6832015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Aspirin Use and Cognitive Function in the Elderly
Stümer, Til
Glynn, Robert J.
Field, Terry S.
Taylor, James O.
Hennekens, Charles H.
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
Decline in cognitive function in the elderly is common and represents a major clinical and public health concern. Aspirin may reduce the decline in cognitive function by influencing multi-infarct dementia, but data are sparse. The East Boston Senior Hearth Project is a population-based cohort study that enrolled 3,809 community-dwelling residents aged 65 years and older in 1982–1983 and followed them with home visits every 3 years until 1988–1989. Trained interviewers assessed cognitive function by using the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire and assessed medication use, including over-the-counter drugs. Response to the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire was scored as high, medium, or low, and decline was defined as transition to a lower category. Participants who used drugs containing aspirin in the 2 weeks prior to the interview were classified as aspirin users. Multiple logistic regression was used to obtain adjusted odds ratios and their 95% confidence intervals for decline of cognitive function. The estimating equation approach was used to adjust the standard errors for repeated measurements. Aspirin users had an odds ratio for cognitive decline of 0.97 (95% confidence interval 0.82–1.15). Low frequency of aspirin use (less than daily) was associated with an odds ratio of 0.87 (95% confidence interval 0.69–1.09). Although no substantial effect was observed, the data are also compatible with a modest benefit of aspirin, especially with intermittent use, on decline of cognitive function. Concem about small residual biases from self-selection or confounding suggests that randomized trials will be necessary to provide definitive data on this question.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/683
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008801
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/6922015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Alcohol Use and Prostate Cancer Risk in US Blacks and Whites
Hayes, Richard B.
Brown, Linda Morris
Schoenberg, Janet B.
Greenberg, Raymond S.
Silverman, Debra T.
Schwartz, Ann G.
Swanson, G. Marie
Benichou, Jacques
Liff, Jonathan M.
Hoover, Robert N.
Pottern, Linda M.
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
Prostate cancer is the most common malignancy in US men (more than 165,000 cases per annum) and occurs substantially more frequently in blacks than in whites. The causes of this disease are, however, poorly understood. Alcohol consumption, which has been clearly related to malignancies of the upper aerodigestive tract, may also increase risk of cancer at other sites, including the prostate. The authors investigated alcohol use as a risk factor for prostate cancer among US blacks and whites. A population-based, case-control study was carried out among 981 men (479 blacks and 502 whites) with pathologically confirmed prostate cancer diagnosed between August 1, 1986, and April 30, 1989, and 1,315 controls (594 blacks and 721 whites) who resided in Atlanta, Georgia; Detroit, Michigan; and 10 counties In New Jersey, geographic areas covered by three population-based cancer registries. in-person Interviews elicited information on alcohol use and other factors possibly related to prostate cancer. Compared with never-users, risk for prostate cancer increased with amount of alcohol drunk (<it>x</it>2<inf>trend</inf>, <it>p</it> < 0.001), with significantly elevated risks seen for those who had 22–56 drinks per week (odds ratio = 1.4; 95% confidence interval 1.0–1.8) and 57 or more drinks per week (odds ratio = 1.9; 95% confidence interval 1.3–2.7). The finding was consistent among blacks (<it>x</it>2<inf>trend</inf>, <it>p</it> < 0.01) and whites (<it>x</it>2<inf>trend</inf>, <it>p</it> < 0.05), and among young and old subjects; it was not restricted to a specific type of alcoholic beverage. in this first large study among US blacks and whites, increased risk for prostate cancer was associated with increased alcohol use. The risk was similar for whites and blacks and could not be attributed to tobacco use or to a number of other potential confounders.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/692
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008802
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/6982015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Body Size and Breast Cancer Risk among Women under Age 45 Years
Swanson, Christine A.
Coates, Ralph J.
Schoenberg, Janet B.
Malone, Kathleen E.
Gammon, Marilie D.
Stanford, Janet L.
Shorr, Irwin J.
Potischman, Nancy A.
Brinton, Louise A.
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
In a multicenter population-based case-control study that included 1,588 cases and 1,394 controls less than age 45 years, the authors examined the relation of adult body size and breast cancer risk among young women. Breast cancer patients and healthy controls were identified in Atlanta, Georgia; Seattle/Puget Sound, Washington; and central New Jersey. Cases were newly diagnosed with in situ or invasive breast cancer during the period of May 1, 1990, through December 31, 1992. Anthropometric variables thought to reflect early environmental factors (e.g., height, sitting height, frame size), obesity, and body fat distribution were measured directly. Height, but not sitting height or frame size, was a breast cancer risk factor. Risk of the disease was increased 46 percent among women in the fourth quartile of height (>167 cm) compared with women in the first quartile (<159 cm). Body weight, but not body fat distribution, was related to breast cancer risk. Risk of the disease was 35 percent lower among women in the highest quartile of Quetelet index (>28.8 kg/m2) compared with women in the lowest quartile (<22.0 kg/m2). Risk of the disease was increased about 2.1-fold (95 percent confidence interval 1.2–3.8) among women who were thin and tall compared with women who were heavy and short. Thus, breast cancer risk was increased substantially among younger women with a linear body type.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/698
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008803
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/7072015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Ethylene Glycol Ethers and Risks of Spontaneous Abortion and Subfertility
Correa, Adotfo
Gray, Ronald H.
Cohen, Rebecca
Rothman, Nathaniel
Shah, Faridah
Seacat, Hui
Com, Morton
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
Potential reproductive effects from occupational exposures to ethylene glycol ethers (EGE) are of concern since these organic solvents have been used widely in industry, and their reproductive toxicity has been well documented in animal studies. For determination of whether occupational exposure to EGE was associated with increased risks of spontaneous abortion and subferttlity (i.e., taking more than 1 year of unprotected intercourse to conceive), a retrospective cohort study was conducted among workers at two semiconductor manufacturing plants in the eastern United States in 1980–1989 as part of a larger evaluation of reproductive health. Reproductive and occupational histories were obtained from interviews of semiconductor manufacturing workers and spouses. Assessment of potential exposure to mixtures containing EGE (none, low, medium, and high) was based on reported processes and company records. There were 1,150 pregnancies to semiconductor manufacturers, 561 to female employees and 589 to wives of male employees. Among female manufacturers, potential exposure to mixtures containing EGE was associated with increased risks of spontaneous abortion (relative risk in the high exposure group = 2.8; 95% confidence interval (Cl) 1.4–5.6) and subfertility (odds ratio in the high exposure group = 4.6; 95% Cl 1.6–13.3). Both of these risks exhibited a dose-response relation with potential EGE exposure (<it>p</it> for trend = 0.02). Among spouses of male manufacturers potentially exposed to mixtures containing EGE, there was no increased risk of spontaneous abortion, but there was a nonsignificant increased risk of subfertility (odds ratio in the high exposure group = 1.7; 95% Cl 0.7–4.3).
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/707
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008804
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/7182015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Ethnic Differences in Immune Responses to Hepatitis B Vaccine
Hsu, Li-Ching
Lin, Sheue-Rong
Hsu, Hsu-Mei
Chao, Wan-Hwa
Hsieh, Jung-Tian
Wang, Ming-Ching
Lu, Chih-Feng
Chang, Yao-Hsiung
Ho, Mei-Shang
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
A national vaccination program against hepatitis B virus (HBV) to immunize every newborn was initiated in Taiwan in 1986. A serologic survey of 1,812 fully vaccinated children residing in four aboriginal villages and four adjacent nonaboriginal Han Chinese rural villages was conducted in 1993. Children in three of the four aboriginal villages had significantly lower titers of antibody against hepatitis B surface antigen (anti-HBs) than did children in the nonaboriginal villages. Evaluation of cold chain operation for vaccine storage and transport suggested that cold chain failure was not responsible for the fact that children residing in the more remote aboriginal villages had lower mean trters of anti-HBs. However, children whose parents were both aborigines had lower anti-HBs mean titer than did children whose parents were both ethnic Han Chinese. Children of mixed parental origins had intermediate mean titer of anti-HBs. Serologic responses to Japanese encephalitis virus and diphtheria vaccines did not show such correlation with ethnic groups, indicating that the determinant for HBV hyporesponsiveness among the aboriginal children is distinct from that of other childhood vaccines. It was therefore concluded that host factors pertaining to ethnic origin might be responsible for the hyporesponsiveness to HBV vaccine in the aboriginal populations. This finding, if substantiated with further prospective studies, might provide possible means for more targeted trials to improve vaccine response and to reduce vaccine failure among these well-defined ethnic groups.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/718
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008805
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/7252015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Reliability of Self-reported Human Immunodeficiency Virus Risk Behaviors in a Residential Drug Treatment Population
De Irala, Jokin
Bigelow, Carol
McCusker, Jane
Hindin, Rita
Zheng, Li
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
This study examined test-retest reliabilities of setf-reported human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) sexual and dnjg injection behaviors among 246 prior drug users admitted to either of two residential drug treatment programs in Westborough, Massachusetts, and Providence, Rhode Island, between June 1990 and September 1992. Participants, selected by their date of admission, were administered admission and reliability questionnaires pertaining to HIV risk behaviors, the latter at approximately 2 weeks after admission. Estimated reliabilities (kappa coefficients) of the sexual behaviors ranged from 0.72 to 0.91; those for the drug injection variables ranged from 0.63 to 0.98. These results were consistent across groups defined by sex and injection of drugs. The consistently good reliabilities are significant to the design of independent studies of drug treatment populations utilizing self-report measures of sexual and drug behaviors.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/725
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008806
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/7332015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
Trends in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Seroprevalence among Injection Drug Users Entering Drug Treatment Centers, United States, 1988-1993
Prevots, D. Rebecca
Allen, David M.
Lehman, J. Stan
Green, Timothy A.
Petersen, Lyle R.
Gwinn, Marta
ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
National unlinked sentinel surveillance data were used to describe trends in prevalent human immunodeficiency virus infection among injection drug users entering drug treatment programs in the United States from 1988 through 1993. During this 6-year period, unlinked testing was performed on 70,882 specimens from injection drug users at 60 sentinel sites. The annual change in seroprevalence was estimated for each site by odds ratios obtained from logistic regression models fit within site-specific age and race/ethnicity subgroups. Overall trends for age and race/ethnicity subgroups across sites were described by summary odds ratios calculated using the inverse variance method. A decrease was observed among younger (age less than 30 years) whites both in areas with high (10% or higher) and low (less than 10%) prevalence, although this decrease was significant only in high-prevalence areas (odds ratio = 0.90, 95% confidence interval 0.81−0.99). Seroprevalence also decreased among older whites in high-prevalence areas, although this decrease was not significant (odds ratio = 0.95, 95% confidence interval 0.89−1.00). Seroprevalence remained stable among all other age and race/ethnicity subgroups. Stable seroprevalence among the dynamic population of injection drug users entering treatment suggests continued transmission among these individuals in both high- and low-prevalence areas of the United States.
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/733
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008807
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/7432015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
RE: "ADULT LEUKEMIA RISK AND PERSONAL APPLIANCE USE: A PRELIMINARY STUDY"
Sussman, Stanley S.
Kheifets, Leeka I.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/743
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008808
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/744-a2015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
THE AUTHORS REPLY
Lovely, Richard H.
Buschbom, Raymond L.
Slavich, Antoinette L.
Anderson, Larry E.
Hansen, Norman H.
Wilson, Bary W.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
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http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/744-a
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008810
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press
oai:open-archive.highwire.org:amjepid:143/7/7442015-05-11HighWireOUPamjepid:143:7
RE: "ADULT LEUKEMIA RISK AND PERSONAL APPLIANCE USE: A PRELIMINARY STUDY"
O'Dowd, Kenneth J.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Oxford University Press
1996-04-01 00:00:00.0
TEXT
text/html
http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/143/7/744
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008809
en
Copyright (C) 1996, Oxford University Press