BackgroundHypertension is highly prevalent among patients who visit primary care clinics. Various factors and lifestyle behaviors are associated with effective blood pressure control. We aimed to identify factors and lifestyle modifications associated with blood pressure control among patients prescribed antihypertensive agents.MethodsThis survey was conducted at 15 hospital-based family practices in Korea from July 2008 to June 2010. We prospectively recruited and retrospectively assessed 1,453 patients prescribed candesartan. An initial evaluation of patients' lifestyles was performed using individual questions. Follow-up questionnaires were administered at 4, 8, and 12 weeks. We defined successful blood pressure control as blood pressure <140 mm Hg systolic and <90 mm Hg diastolic.ResultsOf the 1,453 patients, 1,139 patients with available data for initial and final blood pressures were included. In the univariate analysis of the change in performance index, weight gain (odds ratio [OR], 2.18; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.52 to 3.11; P<0.001), physical inactivity (OR, 1.195; 95% CI, 1.175 to 3.387; P=0.011), and increased salt intake (OR, 1.461; 95% CI, 1.029 to 2.075; P=0.034) were related to inadequate blood pressure control. Salt intake also showed a significant association. Multivariate ORs were calculated for age, sex, body mass index, education, income, alcohol consumption, smoking status, salt intake, comorbidity, and family history of hypertension. In the multivariate analysis, sex (OR, 3.55; 95% CI, 2.02 to 6.26; P<0.001), salt intake (OR, 0.64; 95% CI 0.43 to 0.97; P=0.034), and comorbidity (OR, 1.82; 95% CI, 1.23 to 2.69; P=0.003) were associated with successful blood pressure control.ConclusionWeight gain, physical inactivity, and high salt intake were associated with inadequate blood pressure control.

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Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) has become the most common method for measuring bone mineral density (BMD) of small animals in metabolic bone disease research, and errors should be minimized in all procedures involved in research studies in order to increase the accuracy of the study results. DXA is simpler and rapid compared to micro-computed tomography for quantitative analysis of change in trabecular bone of test subject. In human research, measuring BMD is widely used; postoperative evaluation on orthopedic surgery, evaluation of osteoporosis medication in menopause and many other areas of study. For the study, the inspector should be trained by the equipment manufacturer regarding the utilization and analysis of the equipment and regular phantom testing should be conducted to ensure the stability of the equipment, and precision tests should be conducted to analyze the positioning and data analysis. They should also be familiar with the clinical trials and conduct studies based on the approval of the Institutional Review Board. In the absolute BMD measurement of the human body, it is necessary to apply and compare the position and condition, rotation degree, region of interest, and area of the scan in the follow-up test. In the case of small animals, animal selection, measurement and equipment should be modeled to match the research. Therefore, we would like to provide information for researchers to minimize the errors, effective data management and accurate data presentation. This article reviews the process of DXA measurement for research purpose including plan for DXA examination, BMD measurement in a human body study and small animal studies.

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BackgroundPatients with parkinsonism exhibit motor symptoms, cognitive impairment, and neuropsychiatric changes, and these symptoms increase caregiver burden. Family dynamics can be influenced by the presence of comorbidities, which is especially important in diseases causing caregiver burden. We investigated the effects of spousal parkinsonism on family functioning and communication.MethodsCouples without parkinsonism, who visited hospital-based family practices, were recruited by 28 family physicians from 22 hospitals between April 2009 and June 2011; patients with parkinsonism and their spouses were recruited from a single institution. The participants completed questionnaires on demographic characteristics, lifestyle factors, family functioning (the Korean version of the Family Adaptation and Cohesion Evaluation Scale [FACES] III), and family communication (the Family Communication Scale of the FACES-IV). We compared family functioning and communication between spouses of the patients with and without parkinsonism.ResultsThe mean family adaptability and cohesion scores of the spouses of the patients with parkinsonism were 23.09±6.48 and 32.40±8.43, respectively, whereas those of the control group were 23.84±5.88 and 34.89±7.59, respectively. Family functioning and family communication were significantly different between the spouses of individuals with and without parkinsonism. After adjusting for age, sex, income, and cardiovascular disease in the logistic regression analysis, family functioning was found to significantly deteriorate in the spouses of patients with parkinsonism but not the control group. Family communication decreased significantly in spouses of patients with parkinsonism.ConclusionFamily functioning and family communication significantly deteriorated in spouses of patients with parkinsonism.