Endocrine disrupting chemicals: exposure, effects on human health, mechanism of action, models for testing and strategies for prevention.

Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) are a global problem for environmental and human health. They are defined as "an exogenous chemical, or mixture of chemicals, that can interfere with any aspect of hormone action". It is estimated that there are about 1000 chemicals with endocrine-acting properties.

Are increased carotid artery pulsatility and resistance indexes early signs of vascular abnormalities in young obese males?

Purpose: To provide insight into the factors by which obesity in itself may directly lead to early arterial damage, we aimed to determine early sonographic markers of obesity-related vascular dysfunction in young obese males.

Methods: Thirty-five young obese males and 23 age-matched healthy male volunteers were recruited into the study. Common carotid artery pulsatility index and resistance index were calculated from blood flow velocities curves obtained by pulsed Doppler ultrasonography.