Time trends of cause-specific mortality among resettlers in Germany, 1990 through 2009.

Resettlers (in German: (Spät-)Aussiedler) form one of the biggest migrant groups in Germany. It is known that migrants have different mortality patterns compared to the autochthon population. In this paper, we combined data from three resettler cohorts and examined differences in mortality from non-communicable diseases among resettlers in Germany and the German population.

The 3-Year Cost-Effectiveness of a Nurse-Based Case Management versus Usual Care for Elderly Patients with Myocardial Infarction: Results from the KORINNA Follow-Up Study.

Objectives: To assess the 3-year cost-effectiveness of a nurse-based case management intervention in elderly patients with myocardial infarction from a societal perspective.

Methods: The intervention consisted of one home visit and quarterly telephone calls in the first year, and semi-annual calls in the following 2 years. The primary effect measures were quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), on the basis of the EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D-3L) and adjusted life-years from patients' self-rated health states according to the visual analogue scale (VAS-ALs).

Association between MRI-derived hepatic fat fraction and blood pressure in participants without history of cardiovascular disease.

Objectives: We assessed whether liver fat content, as determined by MRI, correlates with blood pressure (BP), a major vascular risk factor, in individuals from the general population without history of stroke and coronary or peripheral artery disease.

Methods: Cross-sectional data from 384 participants (161 women; aged 39-73 years) of a MRI substudy of the KORA FF4 survey were used. Hepatic fat fraction (HFF) was measured in the left and right lobe of the liver using single voxel multiecho H-spectroscopy and at the level of the portal vein using a multiecho Dixon-sequence.

Physical activity levels, duration pattern and adherence to WHO recommendations in German adults.

Background: Intensity and duration of physical activity are associated with the achievement of health benefits. Our aim was to characterize physical activity behavior in terms of intensity, duration pattern, and adherence to the WHO physical activity recommendations in a population-based sample of adults from southern Germany. Further, we investigated associations between physical activity and sex, age, and body mass index (BMI), considering also common chronic diseases.

Screening of ESBL-producing Enterobacteriacae concomitant with low degree of transmission in intensive care and bone marrow transplant units.

Background: Extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-E) are spreading worldwide in both hospital and community settings. In this study, the molecular epidemiology and the transmission modalities of ESBL-E in intensive care- and bone marrow transplant were investigated.

Methods: All patients included in this study were screened for presence of ESBL-E on admission and weekly.

Presenting symptoms, pre-hospital delay time and 28-day case fatality in patients with peripheral arterial disease and acute myocardial infarction from the MONICA/KORA Myocardial Infarction Registry.

Background Previous studies have indicated that patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) who have a history of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) have different characteristics and poorer outcomes than patients without PAD. However, data on short-term mortality are conflicting and it is unclear whether patients with PAD have a different scope of AMI symptoms or differences in pre-hospital delay time (PHDT) compared with patients without PAD. The objective of this study was to determine the associations between a history of PAD and presenting AMI symptoms, PHDT and 28-day case fatality in a population-based sample of patients with AMI.

Recalibration of the ACC/AHA Risk Score in Two Population-Based German Cohorts.

Background: The 2013 ACC/AHA guidelines introduced an algorithm for risk assessment of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) within 10 years. In Germany, risk assessment with the ESC SCORE is limited to cardiovascular mortality. Applicability of the novel ACC/AHA risk score to the German population has not yet been assessed.

Heart rate at admission is a predictor of in-hospital mortality in patients with acute coronary syndromes: Results from 58 European hospitals: The European Hospital Benchmarking by Outcomes in acute coronary syndrome Processes study.

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between heart rate at admission and in-hospital mortality in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTE-ACS).

Methods: Consecutive ACS patients admitted in 2008-2010 across 58 hospitals in six participant countries of the European Hospital Benchmarking by Outcomes in ACS Processes (EURHOBOP) project (Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Portugal and Spain). Cardiogenic shock patients were excluded.

Factors Associated With Emergency Services Use by Patients With Recurrent Myocardial Infarction: From the Monitoring Trends and Determinants in Cardiovascular Disease/Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg Myocardial Infarction Registry.

Background: Although emergency medical services (EMS) use is the recommended mode of transport in case of acute coronary symptoms, many people fail to use this service.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine factors associated with EMS use in a population-based sample of German patients with recurrent acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

Methods: The sample consisted of 998 persons with a first and recurrent AMI, recruited from 1985 to 2011.

Predictors of non-invasive therapy and 28-day-case fatality in elderly compared to younger patients with acute myocardial infarction: an observational study from the MONICA/KORA Myocardial Infarction Registry.

Background: A substantial proportion of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) did not receive invasive therapy, defined as percutaneous coronary intervention and/or coronary artery bypass grafting. Aims of this study were to evaluate predictors of non-invasive therapy in elderly compared to younger AMI patients and to assess the association between invasive therapy and 28-day-case fatality.

Methods: From the German population-based registry, 3475 persons, consecutively hospitalized with an AMI between 2009 and 2012 were included.

MASP1, THBS1, GPLD1 and ApoA-IV are novel biomarkers associated with prediabetes: the KORA F4 study.

Aims/hypothesis: Individuals at a high risk of type 2 diabetes demonstrate moderate impairments in glucose metabolism years before the clinical manifestation of type 2 diabetes, a state called 'prediabetes'. In order to elucidate the pathophysiological processes leading to type 2 diabetes, we aimed to identify protein biomarkers associated with prediabetes.

Methods: In a proteomics study, we used targeted selected reaction monitoring (SRM)-MS to quantify 23 candidate proteins in the plasma of 439 randomly selected men and women aged 47-76 years from the population-based German KORA F4 study.

Regional Variability of Lifestyle Factors and Hypertension with Prediabetes and Newly Diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: The Population-Based KORA-F4 and SHIP-TREND Studies in Germany.

Objective: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) shows regional differences in Germany. The purpose of the project was to compare the prevalence of prediabetes and undiagnosed T2D in two regions in Germany, the Northeast and the South, and to evaluate their associations with regional variations in lifestyle factors and hypertension.

Methods: Data from the KORA-F4 study (South Germany, 2006-2008) and the SHIP-TREND study (Northeast Germany, 2008-2012) were used.

Treatment of Thyroid Dysfunctions Decreases the Risk of Cerebrovascular Events in Men but Not in Women: Results of the MONICA/KORA Cohort Study.

Objective: Thyroid disorders are well known to be associated with cardiovascular diseases. Some studies have shown that the negative effects of thyroid disorders are partially reversible after adequate treatment. The aim of this analysis was to assess the risk of incident ischemic cerebrovascular diseases in study participants treated for thyroid dysfunctions in a population-based cohort study.

Variables associated with disability in male and female long-term survivors from acute myocardial infarction. Results from the MONICA/KORA Myocardial Infarction Registry.

Increasing attention is paid on functional limitations and disability among people with chronic diseases. However, only few studies have explored disability in persons with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The objective of this study was to provide a description of disability and to identify determinants of disability in a population-based sample of long-term AMI survivors.

Estimating the prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) and proportions of patients with associated dementia and depression among the older adults based on secondary claims data.

Objectives: While the epidemiology of Parkinson's disease (PD) has been extensively studied, data on the prevalence of PD among the older adults in Germany are scarce, based on small samples, and limited to primary data designs. This study estimated the PD prevalence among the older adults in Germany in 2006 using secondary data.

Methods: We included 815,573 health insurance members aged ≥65 years from all regions in Germany.

Intake of Vitamin and Mineral Supplements and Longitudinal Association with HbA1c Levels in the General Non-Diabetic Population--Results from the MONICA/KORA S3/F3 Study.

Background: Lower levels of hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) are associated with a decreased risk of cardiovascular complications in diabetic and non-diabetic individuals. The aim of the study was to longitudinally investigate the association between the use of 11 vitamins and minerals (vitamins E, C, D, B1, folic acid, carotenoids, calcium, magnesium, zinc, iron, and selenium) and change in HbA1c levels over 10 years in non-diabetic individuals drawn from the general population.

Methods: Baseline data were available from 4447 subjects included in the population-based "Monitoring of Trends and Determinants in Cardiovascular Diseases" (MONICA) Augsburg S3 survey (1994/95).

The effectiveness of German disease management programs (DMPs) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and coronary heart disease: results from an observational longitudinal study.

Background: Although the population-based German disease management programs (DMPs) for diabetes mellitus (DM) and coronary heart disease (CHD) are among the biggest worldwide, evidence on the effectiveness of these programs is still inconclusive or missing, particularly for high risk patients with comorbidities. The objective of this study was therefore to analyze the impact of DMPs on process and outcome parameters in patients with both, type 2 DM and CHD.

Methods: Analyses are based on two postal surveys of patients from the KORA myocardial infarction registry (southern Germany) with type 2 DM and on two postal validation studies with patients' general physicians (2006, n = 312 and 2011, n = 212).

Feasibility of a three-step magnetic resonance imaging approach for the assessment of hepatic steatosis in an asymptomatic study population.

Objectives: To determine the feasibility of a multi-step magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) approach for comprehensive assessment of hepatic steatosis defined as liver fat content of ≥5 % in an asymptomatic population.

Methods: The study was approved by the institutional review board and written informed consent of all participants was obtained. Participants of a population-based study cohort underwent a three-step 3-T MRI-based assessment of liver fat.

Acute myocardial infarction in the elderly: Treatment strategies and 28-day-case fatality from the MONICA/KORA myocardial infarction registry.

Objectives: Aim of this observational study was to analyze today's real-life treatment strategies in elderly patients with an acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and to assess the association between 28-day-case fatality and invasive strategy (percutaneous coronary intervention/coronary artery bypass grafting).

Background: Elderly patients increasingly constitute a large proportion of the AMI population.

Methods: The present study is an analysis of all patients aged 75-84 years, who were enrolled in the German population-based MONICA/KORA MI registry between 2009 and 2012 and who were defined as nonfatal at least 24 hours surviving AMI cases according to MONICA definition.

Poor structural social support is associated with an increased risk of Type 2 diabetes mellitus: findings from the MONICA/KORA Augsburg cohort study.

Aims: Several psychosocial factors have been shown to increase the risk of Type 2 diabetes mellitus. This study investigated the association between structural social support and incidence of Type 2 diabetes mellitus in men and women.

Methods: Data were derived from three population-based MONICA/KORA surveys conducted in 1984-1995 in the Augsburg region (southern Germany) and followed up by 2009.

Are daylight saving time transitions associated with changes in myocardial infarction incidence? Results from the German MONICA/KORA Myocardial Infarction Registry.

Background: Some studies suggest that transitions to and from daylight saving time (DST) have an influence on acute myocardial infarction (AMI) incidence. However, the available publications have a number of limitations e.g.

Blood Pressure Control Has Improved in People with and without Type 2 Diabetes but Remains Suboptimal: A Longitudinal Study Based on the German DIAB-CORE Consortium.

Background: Hypertension is a very common comorbidity and major risk factor for cardiovascular complications, especially in people with Type 2 Diabetes (T2D). Nevertheless, studies in the past have shown that blood pressure is often insufficiently controlled in medical practice. For the DIAB-CARE study, we used longitudinal data based on the German DIAB-CORE Consortium to assess whether health care regarding hypertension has improved during the last decade in our participants.

Associations between short-term exposure to particulate matter and ultrafine particles and myocardial infarction in Augsburg, Germany.

Background: Short-term exposure to increased particulate matter (PM) concentration has been reported to trigger myocardial infarction (MI). However, the association with ultrafine particles remains unclear.

Objectives: We aimed to assess the effects of short-term air pollution and especially ultrafine particles on registry-based MI events and coronary deaths in the area of Augsburg, Germany.