Biomedical subjects

R G Bowden

Publications and source records attributed to R G Bowden.

2 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Assessing risk using different cholesterol-screening methods.

The purpose of this study was to compare total capillary, total venous, risk ratio, high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein measures of cholesterol to determine whether total capillary cholesterol is a valid measure to use in cholesterol screening. An announcement and a registration form were distributed with employee paychecks announcing a cholesterol-screening programme. Capillary and venous samples were collected from screening participants (n=285). Results indicated false negatives in total capillary cholesterol in 17.21-34.4% of cases compared with other methods of cholesterol measurement. Due to the high number of misclassifications, health educators should not use total capillary cholesterol as a predictor of risk for heart disease, nor as a measure for referral during cholesterol screenings.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

High-cost analysis. A closer look at the case for work-site health promotion.

Studies linking medical costs to behavioral risk and risk-lowering often use means for comparisons, although claims data are highly skewed. The result overestimates and obscures the case for work-site health promotion. In this study, high-cost analysis is illustrated in a sample of university employees. Five risk factors were examined: cholesterol, blood pressure, cardiovascular fitness, body fat, and smoking status. Screened employees who released their claims (n = 367) were examined against a random sample of employees (n = 587). Linear regression was used to determine the risk of having high claims costs within four gender-specific age groups. A formula was then applied to determine that more than 43% of the cost of medical claims was associated with elevated risk. High-cost analysis accounts for the skewness in claims data and presents a clear case for work-site health promotion.

Adult↗