Mortality Risk of Low BMI in Life Insurance Applicants.

Objectives: -This study seeks to quantify the mortality effect of low levels of body mass index (BMI) on life insurance applicants who, based on their laboratory profile and other information, appear to be suitable for life insurance coverage.

Background: -It has been demonstrated that low BMI is associated with higher mortality risk than normal or near-normal BMI.

Methods: -Data were collected from over 4.

Correlates and Predictors of NT-proBNP in Life Insurance Applicants.

Objectives: -To document the various laboratory and demographic/historical correlates of NT-proBNP levels in applicants for life insurance, and to explore the accuracy of a prediction model based on those variables.

Method: -NT-proBNP blood test results were obtained from 1.34 million insurance applicants between the age of 50 and 85 years, beginning in 2003.

Association of Liver Function Tests with Mortality in an Insurance Applicant Population.

Objectives: -Determine the relationship between liver function test (LFT) results (GGT, alkaline phosphatase, AST, ALT and albumin) and all-cause mortality in life insurance applicants.

Method: -By use of the Social Security Master Death File, mortality was examined in 15,272,955 insurance applicants for whom blood samples were submitted to the Clinical Reference Laboratory. There were 268,593 deaths observed in this study population, after an average follow-up time of 10.

Association of Carcinoembryonic Antigen with Mortality in an Insurance Applicant Population.

To quantify the mortality risks associated with elevated levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). Carcinoembryonic antigen is cell surface glycoprotein and has been associated with the presence of high grade or metastatic cancers of the colon as well as other malignant and non-malignant disease. Prior publications have demonstrated the utility of CEA levels in the determination of mortality risk in life insurance applicants.

Age, sex, and HIV seroprevalence among individuals from different parts of India tested for HIV infection in a nongovernmental setting.

India has a large population of HIV-infected individuals, but the amount of information available about this population is small and not commensurate with the population's size. Here, we report the age and sex for 11,925 individuals tested for HIV infection in a nongovernmental setting over a 36-month period. The samples were derived from 161 sites located in different parts of the country and the odds of HIV infection among males was 2.

Comparing age-wise reference intervals for serum creatinine concentration in a "Reality check" of the recommended cut-off.

An increase in the communication within the healthcare services, both nationally and internationally, has strengthened the need for harmonization of measurements and reference intervals in laboratory medicine. In the present report, the calculated reference interval for serum creatinine (sCr) levels of healthy normal individuals (n=1121) in different sex and age groups are compared with the established interval. The calculated reference interval for sCr level was 0.

Polymorphism in IGF-2 as a surrogate marker for predisposition towards tobacco chewing-mediated oral cancer.

Insulin and insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) are major determinants of proliferation and apoptosis, thereby playing a significant role in carcinogenesis. Epidemiological evidence associates high levels of INS and IGFs with an increased risk of cancer. Polymorphism of the genes involved in insulin-signaling pathways has been associated with a variable risk for neoplasms in different ethnic and environmental backgrounds.

Geographical distribution of hepatitis C virus genotypes in India.

HCV isolates from around the world show substantial nucleotide sequence variability throughout the viral genome. Based on the identification of these genome differences various genotypes and subtypes have been described from different geographical regions. They have been tentatively classified into six major genotypes and more than 30 subtypes, but new subtypes are continually being discovered.

X chromosomal abnormalities in Indian adolescent girls.

In girls of adolescent age, primary amenorrhea is a major problem and it is often suspected as Turner syndrome (TS), with complete or partial absence of one of the two X chromosomes. The girls who are unable to menstruate are primarily investigated by the gynecologists with the help of a physical examination, sonogram of the pelvis, endocrinologic tests, and ultimately cytogenetic analysis. Chromosomal analyses have been carried out in 280 such cases that were referred from different parts of the country.