This study found a high prevalence of obesity and MS in Taiwan. The definitions of MS by the modified ATP III and MS-TW criteria were better able to detect high CVD risk than the MS-IDF(C) criteria.

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There was a significant improvement of hypertension awareness, treatment, and control in the TwSHHH survey compared with the NAHSIT survey in Taiwan.

Little is known regarding the development of metabolic syndrome. This study examining gender difference in the characteristics of metabolic components aimed to estimate the development of metabolic syndrome in both genders. This nation-wide, population-based survey included 5,880 men and women aged 20-79 years in Taiwan. Metabolic syndrome was defined by the revised National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III, with adoption of the Asian criteria for abdominal obesity. The results indicate that metabolic syndrome was prevalent in 20.4% of the men and 15.3% of the women. Lipid components occurred the earliest in both genders. The appearance of the first isolated component was earlier in women than in men (mean age 43.4 vs. 45.6 years, P < 0.05). In contrast, the mean prevalent age of metabolic syndrome appeared earlier in men than in women by 4.9 years (mean age 51.3 vs. 56.2 years, P < 0.05). The differences in prevalent age from the appearance of any isolated component to metabolic syndrome were 12.8 years in women and 5.7 years in men, respectively. If men had a body mass index less than 23 kg/m(2) and exercise habits, the difference in the prevalent age from the isolated component to metabolic syndrome was 15.4 years, longer than for all women subjects. We conclude lipid components appeared the earliest. Women had the first isolated component earlier, presenting as metabolic syndrome later than men. The development of metabolic syndrome was slower in subjects without overweight characteristics and with exercise habits.

Object Myelomeningocele repair is an uncommonly performed surgical procedure. The volume of operations has been decreasing in the past 2 decades, probably as the result of public health initiatives for folate supplementation. Because of the rarity of myelomeningocele, data on patient or hospital factors that may be associated with outcome are scarce. To determine these factors, the authors investigated the trends in myelomeningocele surgical repair in the United States over a 23-year period and examined patient and hospital characteristics that were associated with outcome. Methods The Nationwide Inpatient Sample database for 1988–2010 was queried for hospital admissions for myelomeningocele repair. This database reports patient, hospital, and admission characteristics and surgical trends. The authors used univariate and multivariate logistic regression to assess associations between patient and hospital characteristics and in-hospital deaths, nonroutine discharge, long hospital stay, and shunt placement. Results There were 4034 hospitalizations for surgical repair of myelomeningocele. The annual volume decreased since 1988 but plateaued in the last 4 years of the study. The percentages of myelomeningocele patients with low income (30.8%) and Medicaid insurance (48.2%) were disproportionately lower than those for the overall live-born population (p < 0.0001). More operations per 10,000 live births were performed for Hispanic patients (3.2) than for white (2.0) or black (1.5) patients (p < 0.0001). Overall, 56.6% of patients required shunt placement during the same hospital stay as for surgical repair; 95.0% of patients were routinely discharged; and the in-hospital mortality rate was 1.4%. Nonwhite race was associated with increased in-hospital risk for death (OR 2.8, 95% CI 1.2–6.3) independent of socioeconomic or insurance status. Conclusions Overall, the annual surgical volume of myelomeningocele repairs decreased after public health initiatives were introduced but has more recently plateaued. The most disproportionately represented populations are Hispanic, low-income, and Medicaid patients. Among nonwhite patients, increased risk for in-hospital death may represent a disparity in care or a difference in disease severity.

Aim:The relationship between ABO blood group and cancer was observed in many epidemiological researches. Our aim is to study the relationship between ABO blood group and the risk of cancer in the Taiwanese population. Methods: We followed 3180 men and 3124 women with baseline ages ranging from 20 to 65 years for 27 years. Blood group information was obtained from registration on Identity Card. Cancer incidence information was confirmed by reviewing National Cancer Registry. Hazard ratios (HRs) for cancers according to ABO blood group were calculated using Cox proportional hazards models with multivariate adjustment. Results: During an average of 27 years of follow-up, the adjusted HR of total cancer was 1.66 (95% CI, 1.20-2.30) for blood group AB in men and 1.28 (95% CI, 1.03-1.59) for blood group A in women, compared to blood group O of their respective gender. A significant excess risk was found among subjects with presence of A antigen. This positive association was mainly observed in cancers from lung cancer Conclusion: These data suggest that ABO blood group is significantly associated with cancer risk. Men with blood group AB, women with blood group A, and subjects with presence of A antigen were more likely to develop cancers.

Objective: Excess postpartum weight retention (PPWR) is related to long-term weight gain. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify the risk factors for PPWR to provide guidance for preventive strategies. Methods: This cohort study surveyed 461 women who gave birth at a medical center between March 2014 and March 2016. The participants completed a questionnaire within 1 month of delivery, and their 6-month postpartum weight was tracked. Results: The results showed that the mean pre-pregnancy BMI was 21.4 ± 3.3 kg/m², and the mean gestational weight gain (GWG) was 12.8 ± 4.1 kg. The mean PPWR was 4.6 ± 3.5 kg at 1 month and 2.1 ± 3.3 kg at 6 months. Multivariate analysis revealed that GWG (adjusted OR: 1.92 (1.70-2.17)), pre-pregnancy BMI (adjusted OR: 0.85 (0.77-0.94)), and exclusive breastfeeding (adjusted OR: 0.55 (0.32-0.94)) were significantly correlated with a 1-month PPWR higher than the median value. In addition, GWG (adjusted OR: 1.30 (1.22-1.39)) and exclusive breastfeeding (adjusted OR: 0.37 (0.24-0.58)) were significantly correlated with a 6-month PPWR higher than the median value. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the key to reducing PPWR is to control GWG and engage in exclusive breastfeeding.