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Biomedical subjects

V Collins

Publications and source records attributed to V Collins.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Group comparisons of blood pressure and indices of obesity and salt intake in Pacific populations.

Group comparisons of blood pressure and indices of obesity and salt intake from epidemiological studies conducted in the Pacific early in the 1980s are presented. The comparisons were of a rural-urban type, and showed a trend for a lower prevalence of hypertension and for lower mean blood pressures in adults from rural areas, compared with urban populations. Rural residents were also slimmer and appeared to have a lower salt intake than did urban dwellers. These findings give possible support to the role of adiposity and salt intake in the genesis of essential hypertension.

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PubMed1984

Impaired glucose tolerance in Kiribati.

Subjects with impaired glucose tolerance have been shown to have a higher risk for subsequent diabetes and increased susceptibility to atherosclerosis. Data obtained from a cross-sectional medical survey in Kiribati in 1981 have been studied for evidence as to whether impaired glucose tolerance is a truly separate category of glucose intolerance. Subjects in the impaired glucose tolerance category were compared to both normal and diabetic subjects with respect to the mean values of certain variables including plasma glucose, body mass index, plasma cholesterol, plasma triglycerides, and systolic blood pressure. Differences between impaired glucose tolerant and normal subjects, and between impaired glucose tolerant and diabetic subjects were assessed. The most important differences between groups occurred with respect to plasma glucose concentration, body mass index, and plasma lipids. The results of this study provide further support for the validity of the impaired glucose tolerance category.

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PubMed1984

Ethnic differences in susceptibility to non-insulin-dependent diabetes. A comparative study of two urbanized Micronesian populations.

Two urbanized Micronesian populations were recently studied by population-based diabetes surveys. These were Nauruans living on the island of Nauru, and Gilbertese resident on the islet of Betio, in the Republic of Kiribati (1982 and 1981, respectively). Nauruans are known to suffer from a very high prevalence of non-insulin-dependent (type II) diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). In the present study, the effects of suspected environmental risk factors for diabetes were controlled for, in an attempt to elucidate any residual difference in the prevalence of diabetes between the two groups, which might be of genetic origin. As almost all Nauruans lead a physically inactive lifestyle, only inactive subjects in either population were selected for study. The total study sample consisted of 2306 subjects. After further controlling for the effects of age and obesity, the odds of diabetes for Nauruans, as compared with Gilbertese, were threefold. The multiple logistic regression model showed ethnicity (i.e., being Nauruan) to be the strongest of the predictor variables examined in both sexes. In a random subsample of approximately one-third of the total subjects (N = 694), stratified with respect to age and sex, daily intake of total energy and of three dietary components was assessed. The dietary variables were carbohydrate, fat, and dietary fiber. Fat intake was found to be a weak, but significant predictor of diabetes in females after controlling for age, although dietary fat was not predictive of diabetes after also controlling for ethnicity, or for body mass. None of the other dietary variables had any predictive power in either sex.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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PubMed1984

Glucose tolerance in a highland population in Papua New Guinea.

A diabetes survey was conducted in the highlands of Papua New Guinea in June 1983. Two villages in the Asaro Valley, Eastern Highlands Province, were selected for study. The subjects were of Melanesian ancestry, and were free of Austronesian genetic admixture. The response rate was 95% and 308 subjects were examined. As defined by current WHO criteria, there was a total absence of non-insulin-dependent diabetes (NIDDM) in these communities. The prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) was 2%. These estimates of glucose intolerance are the lowest yet to be reported from the Pacific, using currently accepted diagnostic criteria and standardized survey methods. The 2-hr plasma glucose and insulin concentrations were positively correlated in both sexes. Of the two villages studied, one had undergone a greater degree of acculturation than the other. Both the total distribution and the mean value of 2-hr plasma glucose concentration were lower in the more traditional village, and these findings could not be explained by differences in age or obesity between the two communities. Mean 2-hr plasma insulin concentration did not differ significantly between the two villages, and was very low in both. The results of this study support the theory that Melanesians free of Austronesian genetic admixture are relatively, though not absolutely resistant to the deleterious influence of acculturation upon glucose tolerance seen in other Pacific populations. However, the notion that in this population cultural change has been insufficient, or of too recent onset for a deterioration in glucose tolerance to be manifest cannot be excluded.

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PubMed1983

Plasma glucose distributions in two pacific populations: the bimodality phenomenon.

The frequency distribution of plasma glucose concentrations in certain populations show two distinct sub-groups, viz. the non-diabetic group and a hyperglycaemic group. The two groups show up as a double peak (bimodality) in the best-fit frequency distributions of log plasma glucose, and the separation or cut-off point where the two curves intersect, gives an indication of the plasma glucose level at which diabetes could be diagnosed. Venous plasma glucose concentrations two hours after a 75 gm oral glucose load were determined in the Micronesian population of Nauru and the urban Polynesian population of Western Samoa, in subjects aged 20 years and over. Both communities exhibit bimodal frequency distributions of plasma glucose in the upper age groups in both sexes. In the younger age groups the frequency distribution of plasma glucose typically follows the usual unimodal Gaussian curve. However, the high prevalence Nauruans show the bimodal form in all groups except the youngest males. The data show that among these two communities, as with the Pimas, the frequency distribution of plasma glucose concentrations can be used to separate the population into normal and hyperglycaemic groups.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Use of community genetic screening to prevent HFE-associated hereditary haemochromatosis.

HFE-associated hereditary haemochromatosis is a recessive, iron-overload disorder that affects about one in 200 north Europeans and that can be easily prevented. However, genetic screening for this disease is controversial, and so we assessed whether such screening was suitable for communities. Cheek-brush screening for the Cys282Tyr HFE mutation was offered to individuals in the workplace. Outcomes were assessed by questionnaires before and after testing. 11,307 individuals were screened. We recorded no increase in anxiety in individuals who were homozygous for the Cys282Tyr mutation or non-homozygous. Self-reported tiredness before testing was significantly higher in homozygous participants than in non-homozygous participants (chi2 test, p=0.029). Of the 47 homozygous individuals identified, 46 have taken steps to treat or prevent iron accumulation. Population genetic screening for HFE-associated hereditary haemochromatosis can be practicable and acceptable.

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