A 3-year longitudinal study on body composition changes in the elderly: role of physical exercise.

Background: Cross-sectional data have shown that sarcopenia and fat accumulation are associated with aging and can be limited by structured physical training. However, it is often difficult to maintain a long-term compliance to training programs. It is not clear whether leisure-time physical activity is effective in preventing sarcopenia and fat accumulation.

Quantitative ultrasound parameters as well as bone mineral density are better predictors of trochanteric than cervical hip fractures in elderly women. Results from the EPIDOS study.

Rationale: Hip fractures can be separated into cervical and trochanteric fractures. Trochanteric fractures have been associated with up to twice the short-term mortality of cervical fractures in the elderly. There is also evidence suggesting that the mechanisms are different.

Longitudinal follow-up of body composition in hematopoietic stem cell transplant patients.

Patients with hematological malignancies are well nourished prior to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). HSCT and associated complications can affect body composition. The study evaluated cross-sectionally the prevalence and longitudinally the changes in lean body mass index (LBMI) in HSCT patients.

Skeletal site selectivity in the effects of calcium supplementation on areal bone mineral density gain: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in prepubertal boys.

Background: Calcium supplementation during childhood and adolescence is considered an early means of preventing osteoporosis in adults. Prepuberty is an opportune time for detecting the benefits of calcium in girls.

Objective: The objective was to assess whether calcium supplementation increases bone mass gain in prepubertal boys in a skeletal site-specific manner.

Comparison of fat-free mass and body fat in Swiss and American adults.

Objective: No current studies have compared North American with European body composition parameters, i.e., fat-free mass (FFM), body fat (BF), and percentage of BF (%BF) in large populations.

Mapping binding residues in the Plasmodium vivax domain that binds Duffy antigen during red cell invasion.

Summary Plasmodium vivax depends on interaction with the Duffy antigen/receptor for chemokines (DARC) for invasion of human erythrocytes. The 140 kDa P. vivax Duffy-binding protein (PvDBP) mediates interaction with DARC.

RAGE modulates peripheral nerve regeneration via recruitment of both inflammatory and axonal outgrowth pathways.

Axotomy of peripheral nerve stimulates events in multiple cell types that initiate a limited inflammatory response to axonal degeneration and simultaneous outgrowth of neurites into the distal segments after injury. We found that pharmacological blockade of RAGE impaired peripheral nerve regeneration in mice subjected to RAGE blockade and acute crush of the sciatic nerve. As our studies revealed that RAGE was expressed in axons and in infiltrating mononuclear phagocytes upon injury, we tested the role of RAGE in these distinct cell types on nerve regeneration.

Appropriateness of internal digital phantoms for monitoring the stability of the UBIS 5000 quantitative ultrasound device in clinical trials.

In bone status assessment, proper quality assurance/quality control is crucial since changes due to disease or therapeutic treatment are very small, in the order of 2-5%. Unlike for dual X-ray absorptiometry, quality control procedures have not been extensively developed and validated for quantitative ultrasound technology, limiting its use in longitudinal monitoring. While the challenge of developing an ideal anthropometric phantom is still open, some manufacturers use the concept of the internal digital phantom mimicking human characteristics to check the stability of their device.

Interaction between calcium intake and menarcheal age on bone mass gain: an eight-year follow-up study from prepuberty to postmenarche.

Both late menarcheal age and low calcium intake (Ca intake) during growth are risk factors for osteoporosis, probably by impairing peak bone mass. We investigated whether lasting gain in areal bone mineral density (aBMD) in response to increased Ca intake varies according to menarcheal age and, conversely, whether Ca intake could influence menarcheal age. In an initial study, 144 prepubertal girls were randomized in a double-blind controlled trial to receive either a Ca supplement (Ca-suppl.

Good clinical practice and audits for dual X-ray absorptiometry and X-ray imaging laboratories and quality assurance centers involved in clinical drug trials, private practice, and research.

Good Clinical Practice (GCP) guidelines, with an emphasis on quality and validation of processes and data, must be applied to the use of imaging in clinical drug development. All participants, including the sponsor, principal investigator, site staff, quality assurance centers, and contract research organizations, must be cognizant of the need for application of these principles to their activities related to the imaging programs. This article discusses the various aspects of GCP as they need to be applied to the use of dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for bone densitometry and X-rays for vertebral fracture assessment in clinical trials for osteoporosis, as well as research and private practice settings.

Special report on the official positions of the International Society for Clinical Densitometry.

The International Society for Clinical Densitometry (ISCD) periodically holds Position Development Conferences (PDCs) for the purpose of establishing standards and guidelines for indications, acquisition, and interpretation of bone density tests. Topics are selected for consideration by the ISCD Scientific Advisory Committee, reviewed by scientific working groups, and presented to an international panel of experts. Topic categories addressed to date include indications for bone density testing, selection of reference databases for T-scores and Z-scores, clinical applications for central and peripheral bone densitometry, serial bone density testing, instrument precision assessment, phantom scanning and calibration testing, requirements for a bone density report, nomenclature, and diagnosis of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, premenopausal women, men, and children.

Does follow-up duration influence the ultrasound and DXA prediction of hip fracture? The EPIDOS prospective study.

While the potential of quantitative ultrasound (QUS) in the management of osteoporosis has been accepted, its interaction with follow-up time has never been investigated. The aim of our study is to prospectively evaluate the influence of follow-up time on the prediction of hip fracture by ultrasound parameters in the elderly as compared to bone mineral density (BMD) and to establish a long-term fracture prediction model. In the multicenter prospective study EPIDOS, 5898 Caucasian healthy women, aged 75 and over, had femoral dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and heel ultrasound measurements at baseline.

Risk factors for hip fracture in women with high BMD: EPIDOS study.

Hip fractures are common among older women. At the present time, major efforts are being made to identify women with low bone mineral density (BMD). However, more than half of hip fractures occur in women who would not classically be considered osteoporotic by BMD.

Antiproliferative and phenotype-transforming antitumor agents derived from cysteine.

Selective destruction of malignant tumor cells without damaging normal cells is an important goal for cancer chemotherapy in the 21st century. Differentiating agents that transform cancer cells to either a nonproliferating or normal phenotype could potentially be tissue-specific and avoid side effects of current drugs. However, most compounds that are presently known to differentiate cancer cells are histone deacetylase inhibitors that are of low potency or suffer from low bioavailability, rapid metabolism, reversible differentiation, and nonselectivity for cancer cells over normal cells.

[Physical exercise and bone development in chronically ill children].

Children with chronic diseases are at increased risk of sub-optimal bone mineral acquisition and osteoporosis, especially those who have a growth and pubertal delay, reduced physical activity, inadequate nutrition, malabsorption or take medications which may influence bone development. Weight-bearing physical activity has a beneficial effect on bone development of healthy children but little is known in children with chronic diseases. Preliminary results of our cross-sectional study in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) suggest that hip bone mineral density is positively related with physical fitness and muscle strength and is reduced at the more affected side.

[Practical proposals for the use of quantitative bone ultrasound in the management of osteoporosis].

As an emerging alternative to DXA, there is a growing interest in the use of quantitative ultrasound (QUS) measurements for the non invasive assessment of fracture risk in the management of osteoporosis. While the potential of QUS in the management of osteoporosis have been highly recognized by the scientific community and granted by the majority of the international bone disease organizations, it becomes important to develop strategies how to use ultrasound clinically. Our paper is highlighting Swiss operational clinical propositions for 2 QUS devices sold in Switzerland, on how to use the QUS in the management of osteoporosis.

Should age influence the choice of quantitative bone assessment technique in elderly women? The EPIDOS study.

In a prospective cohort of 7,598 women aged 75 and over, we analyzed the effect of age on the ability of femoral neck bone mineral density (BMD) and of ultrasound (BUA and SOS) of the calcaneus to predict hip fracture. Unadjusted regression analysis showed that the risk of hip fracture was increased 1.7 times for one standard deviation increase in age (3.

Prevalence of low fat-free mass index and high and very high body fat mass index following lung transplantation.

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of low fat-free mass index (FFMI) and high and very high body fat mass index (BFMI) after lung transplantation (LTR). A total of 37 LTR patients were assessed prior to and at 1 month, 1 year and 2 years for FFM and compared to 37 matched volunteers (VOL). FFM was calculated by the Geneva equation and normalized for height (kg/m(2)).

Fat-free mass change to weight change ratio during refeeding following lung transplantation.

Malnutrition occurs frequently prior to lung transplantation (LTR), but patients gain weight after LTR. The study aimed to determine the ratio changes of fat-free mass (deltaFFM): changes of body weight (deltaBW) during refeeding. A total of 37 LTR patients were measured for weight and FFM and body fat by bioimpedance analysis at 1 month post-LTR, then annually for 3 years.

Validation of a bioelectrical impedance analysis equation to predict appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASMM).

Rationale: Appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASMM) is useful in the evaluation of nutritional status because it reflects the body muscle protein mass. The purpose of this study was to validate, against dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), a BIA equation to predict ASMM to be used in volunteers and patients.

Method: Healthy men (n = 246 men, BMI 25.

Hip fracture discrimination study: QUS of the radius and the calcaneum.

As an emerging alternative to current radiation-based bone densitometry techniques, there is a growing interest in the use of quantitative ultrasound (QUS) measurements for the noninvasive assessment of fracture risk in the management of osteoporosis. However, there are also a multiplicity of technologically different QUS devices available on the market and, so far, no study has compared heel and radius QUS device for the discrimination of subjects with hip fractures. Our study evaluated the ability of three QUS devices (one calcaneal gel-coupled system, one calcaneal water-coupled system, and one radius system) to discriminate osteoporotic from controls subjects, using the same population.

Device-specific weighted T-score for two quantitative ultrasounds: operational propositions for the management of osteoporosis for 65 years and older women in Switzerland.

The World Health Organization (WHO) criteria for the diagnosis of osteoporosis are mainly applicable for dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) measurements at the spine and hip levels. There is a growing demand for cheaper devices, free of ionizing radiation such as promising quantitative ultrasound (QUS). In common with many other countries, QUS measurements are increasingly used in Switzerland without adequate clinical guidelines.

Four year nutritional follow up after living related small bowel transplantation between monozygotic twins.

While small bowel transplantation (SBTX) may allow parenteral nutrition independence in the case of short bowel syndrome, its effects on body composition and growth are unclear. For the first time, a paediatric living related SBTX was performed between monozygotic twins. This case report describes their four year nutritional follow up.