Persistence or regression of prediabetes and coronary artery calcification among adults without diabetes.

Objective: The effect of changes in glycemic status on subclinical atherosclerosis is uncertain. We assessed the association of persistence, regression, or progression of prediabetes with coronary artery calcium score (CACS) as a measure of subclinical atherosclerosis.

Design: A cross-sectional study, comprising 126 765 adults, and longitudinal sub-study, comprising 40 622 adults (with baseline and at least 1 follow-up computed tomography scan to assess changes in CACS), were undertaken.

Skeletal muscle mass to visceral fat area ratio as a predictor of NAFLD in lean and overweight men and women with effect modification by sex.

The effect of sarcopenic visceral obesity on the risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is uncertain. We investigated (a) whether the skeletal muscle mass to visceral fat area ratio (SV ratio), as a measure of sarcopenic visceral obesity, is a risk factor for NAFLD; and (b) whether the SV ratio adds to conventional adiposity measures to improve prediction of incident NAFLD. Adults without NAFLD (n = 151,017) were followed up for a median of 3.

Fatty liver disease and changes in dense breasts in pre- and postmenopausal women: the Kangbuk Samsung Health Study.

Purpose: While increased breast density is a risk factor for breast cancer, the effect of fatty liver disease on breast density is unknown. We investigated whether fatty liver is a risk factor for changes in breast density over ~ 4 years of follow-up in pre- and postmenopausal women.

Methods: This study included 74,781 middle-aged Korean women with mammographically determined dense breasts at baseline.

Effect of Intermittent Hypoxia on Metabolic Syndrome and Insulin Resistance in the General Male Population.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is closely associated with insulin resistance (IR) and is an independent risk factor for incident type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Most studies evaluate the correlation between OSA and IR in only obese or T2DM patients. Therefore, we tried to investigate the effect of OSA on metabolic syndrome and IR in the general healthy male population.

Discordance Between Apolipoprotein B and Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol and Progression of Coronary Artery Calcification in Middle Age.

Background: A high level of apolipoprotein B (apoB) is associated with incident coronary artery disease (CAD) when low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) level is discordantly low or concordantly high. However, data on the relationship of apoB with subclinical measure of CAD are limited.

Methods and results: A total of 14,205 men (mean age 41.

Bidirectional Association between Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and Gallstone Disease: A Cohort Study.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and gallstone disease (GD) are often found to coexist but the sequential relationship of NAFLD and GD to each other remains controversial. We prospectively evaluated the bidirectional relationship of NAFLD with GD. A cohort study was performed on Korean adults who underwent a health checkup and were followed annually or biennially for a mean of 6.

Changes in sleep duration and subsequent risk of hypertension in healthy adults.

Study Objectives: It is unknown whether changes in sleep duration are associated with hypertension risk. The aim of this study was to investigate whether changes in sleep duration were associated with subsequent risk of developing hypertension in young and middle-aged women and men.

Methods: We analyzed data from 106385 participants who were free of hypertension and cardiovascular disease during the exposure period and who underwent a health checkup exam, including repeated measures of sleep duration.

Physical activity and impaired left ventricular relaxation in middle aged adults.

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between physical activity level and impaired left ventricular (LV) relaxation in a large sample of apparently healthy men and women. We conducted a cross-sectional study in 57,449 adults who underwent echocardiography as part of a comprehensive health examination between March 2011 and December 2014. Physical activity level was assessed using the Korean version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form.

Low relative muscle mass and left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in middle-aged adults.

Objectives: The association between low skeletal muscle mass and left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (LVDD), a predictor of future heart failure, is largely unexplored. We investigated the relationship between relative muscle mass and LVDD.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study in 67,106 Koreans who underwent an echocardiography as part of a comprehensive health examination between January 2012 and December 2014.

Association of Age at Menarche With Left Ventricular Diastolic Dysfunction in Middle-Aged Women.

Background: There is sparse research on whether if early menarche is related to left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction. The present study examined this relationship in Korean women.

Methods and results: In a cross-sectional study we analyzed the records of 18,910 Korean women (≥30 years) who underwent echocardiography as part of a comprehensive health examination.

Coexistence of Colorectal Adenomas and Coronary Calcification in Asymptomatic Men and Women.

Goals: Because of shared risk factors between clinically manifest cardiovascular disease and colorectal cancer, we hypothesized the coexistence of subclinical atherosclerosis measured by coronary artery calcium (CAC) and colorectal adenoma (CRA) and that these 2 processes would also share common risk factors.

Background: No study has directly compared the risk factors associated with subclinical coronary atherosclerosis and CRA.

Study: This was a cross-sectional study using multinomial logistic regression analysis of 4859 adults who participated in a health screening examination (2010 to 2011; analysis 2014 to 2015).

Sleep duration and quality in relation to chronic kidney disease and glomerular hyperfiltration in healthy men and women.

Background: It is unclear whether sleep duration and quality are associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and glomerular hyperfiltration. The aim of this study was to examine the association of sleep duration and quality with CKD and glomerular hyperfiltration in young and middle-aged adults.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of men and women who underwent a health checkup examination, including assessment of sleep duration and quality (n = 241,607).

Relationship Between γ-Glutamyltransferase Levels and Left Ventricular Diastolic Dysfunction.

Background: The goal of this study was to examine the association of serum γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) levels with left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction and LV hypertrophy.Methods and Results:A cross-sectional study of 79,459 Korean men and women who underwent an echocardiography as part of a comprehensive health examination between March 2011 and December 2014. The presence of LV diastolic dysfunction and LV hypertrophy was determined using echocardiography.

Waist Gain Is Associated with a Higher Incidence of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Korean Adults: A Cohort Study.

Background: We examined the relationship between changes in waist circumference (WC) and the incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Methods: A cohort study of 37,130 men and women were followed-up annually or biennially. Differences in WC between baseline and subsequent measurements were categorized in quartiles: first (WC loss), second (no change in WC as the reference), third and highest quartiles (WC gain).

Metabolically Healthy Obesity and the Development of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.

Objectives: The risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) among obese individuals without obesity-related metabolic abnormalities, a condition referred to as metabolically healthy obese (MHO), is largely unexplored. Therefore, we examined the association between body mass index (BMI) categories and the development of NAFLD in a large cohort of metabolically healthy men and women.

Methods: A cohort study was conducted in 77,425 men and women free of NAFLD and metabolic abnormalities at baseline, who were followed-up annually or biennially for an average of 4.

Relationship Between Low Relative Muscle Mass and Coronary Artery Calcification in Healthy Adults.

Objective: Sarcopenia or low muscle mass is related to cardiovascular risk factors; however, the association between low muscle mass and subclinical atherosclerosis has been largely unexplored. We investigated whether muscle mass is related to coronary artery calcification (CAC) in a large sample of middle-aged asymptomatic adults.

Approach And Results: We performed a cross-sectional study of 31 108 asymptomatic adults without cancer, diabetes mellitus, or known cardiovascular disease who underwent a health checkup examination including cardiac tomography estimation of CAC scores between 2012 and 2013.

Relationship of sitting time and physical activity with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Background & Aims: The goal of this study was to examine the association of sitting time and physical activity level with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in Korean men and women and to explore whether any observed associations were mediated by adiposity.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed on 139,056 Koreans, who underwent a health examination between March 2011 and December 2013. Physical activity level and sitting time were assessed using the validated Korean version of the international Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form.

Sleep Duration, Sleep Quality, and Markers of Subclinical Arterial Disease in Healthy Men and Women.

Objective: Short and long sleep duration are associated with increased risk of clinical cardiovascular events, but the association between sleep duration and subclinical cardiovascular disease is not well established. We examined the association between sleep duration and sleep quality with coronary artery calcification (CAC) and with brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (PWV) in a large sample of young and middle-aged asymptomatic adults.

Approach And Results: We conducted a cross-sectional study of adult men and women who underwent a health checkup examination, including assessment of sleep duration and quality and coupled with either CAC (n=29 203) or brachial-ankle PWV (n=18 106).

Metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and mammographic density in pre- and postmenopausal women.

Little is known about the association of metabolic syndrome (MetS) or insulin resistance (IR) with mammographic density, a strong risk factor for breast cancer. The goal of this study was to evaluate these associations in pre- and postmenopausal women. A cross-sectional study was performed in 73,974 adult women who underwent a comprehensive health screening examination that included a mammogram between 2011 and 2013 (mean age 42.

Relation of Dietary Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load to Coronary Artery Calcium in Asymptomatic Korean Adults.

The relation between glycemic index, glycemic load, and subclinical coronary atherosclerosis is unknown. The aim of the study was to evaluate the associations between energy-adjusted glycemic index, glycemic load, and coronary artery calcium (CAC). This study was cross-sectional analysis of 28,429 asymptomatic Korean men and women (mean age 41.

Menopausal stages and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in middle-aged women.

Objectives: There is no established evidence regarding the influence of the menopausal transition period on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The goal of this study was to examine the association between menopausal stages and the prevalence of NAFLD in middle-aged Korean women.

Methods: This study was a cross-sectional analysis of 1559 women aged 44-56 years, who underwent a comprehensive health screening examination in the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Total Healthcare Centers during 2012 and 2013.

Menopausal stages and serum lipid and lipoprotein abnormalities in middle-aged women.

Objectives: Whether menopausal stage is associated with abnormalities in serum lipid and lipoprotein profiles remains unclear; studies have been conducted mostly in Western populations. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of lipid and lipoprotein abnormalities by recently updated menopausal stages in middle-aged women.

Study Design: This study was cross-sectional analysis of 1553 women aged 44-56 years, who underwent a comprehensive health screening examination in the Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Total Healthcare Centers, Korea, during 2012-2013.

Intraocular pressure and coronary artery calcification in asymptomatic men and women.

Objective: We evaluated the relationship between intraocular pressure (IOP) and the risk of coronary artery calcification as a predictable marker of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a large study of asymptomatic men and women.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed in 10 732 asymptomatic men and women without diagnosed CVD or glaucoma. Coronary artery calcium (CAC) was measured by cardiac CT.

Age at menarche and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Background & Aims: The goal of this study was to examine the association between age at menarche and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in Korean women and to explore whether any observed associations were mediated by adult adiposity.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed for 95,183 Korean women, aged 30 or older, who underwent a regular health screening examination between March 2011 and April 2013. Information regarding age at menarche was collected using standardized, self-administered questionnaires.

Impact of body mass index, metabolic health and weight change on incident diabetes in a Korean population.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine an impact of body mass index (BMI) and weight change on the risk of diabetes according to metabolic health status.

Methods: Cohort study of 34,999 Korean men and women 30-59 years of age free of diabetes at baseline were followed-up annually or biennially for an average of 5.1 years.