No abstract

Visceral abdominal fat was related to delayed triglyceride clearance after a fat load, which may contribute to coronary heart disease (CHD) risk and progression of vascular disease in men with paraplegia.

No abstract

Background/objective: Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in chronic spinal cord injury (SCI). A 3-month course of oral vitamin D 3 to 'normalize' serum vitamin D levels was investigated. Design: Prospective drug-intervention study. Setting: VA Medical Center; private rehabilitation facility. Methods: Seven individuals with chronic SCI and vitamin D deficiency completed 3 months of oral vitamin D 3 (i.e. cholecalciferol) supplementation. At screening, baseline, and months 1 and 3, blood was collected for serum calcium, 25 hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH), and N-telopeptide (NTx); 24-hour urine for calcium, creatinine, and NTx was performed. Oral vitamin D 3 (2000 IU daily) and elemental calcium (1.3 g daily) were prescribed for 90 days. The results are expressed as mean ± standard deviation (SD). Analysis of variance with a Fisher's post-hoc analysis was performed to test for differences between study visits. Subjects were classified as deficient (<20 ng/ml), relatively deficient (20-30 ng/ml), or not deficient (>30 ng/ml) in 25(OH)D. Results: Serum 25(OH)D levels were greater at months 1 and 3 than at baseline (26 ± 6 and 48 ± 17 vs. 14 ± 2 ng/ml; P = 0.005). Six of seven subjects were no longer deficient [25(OH)D >30 ng/ml] by month 3. Serum iPTH levels were significantly decreased at month 1 and month 3; serum NTx levels were significantly lower at month 3 than at baseline. Serum and urinary calcium levels remained within the normal range. Conclusion: A daily prescription of 2000 IU of oral vitamin D 3 for 3 months safely raised serum 25(OH)D levels into the normal range in persons with chronic SCI on calcium supplementation.

No abstract

Objective: To determine visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volume (VAT vol ) by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in spinal cord injured (SCI) and able-bodied (AB) participants and to explore the relationships between VAT vol and routine anthropometric measures. Methods: Sixty-three subjects with SCI and 126 healthy male AB controls were stratified as low risk [LR: waist circumference (WC) < 102 cm] and moderate to high risk (MHR: WC 102 cm) for identification of risk for cardiometabolic disease: AB-LR, SCI-LR, AB-MHR, and SCI-MHR. Anthropometrics and standard body composition measurements by DXA with analysis to derive VAT vol were performed. Results:Comparison of the four subgroups demonstrated the highest subcutaneous adipose tissue volume (SAT vol ) in the AB-MHR group (P < 0.01), and the highest VAT vol in the SCI-MHR group (P < 0.01). Furthermore, when compared to the AB group, participants with SCI had a 27% increase in VAT vol for every centimeter increase in WC and a 20% increase in VAT vol for every unit increase in BMI. Conclusions: Because cutoff values for the routine surrogate measures of adiposity underestimate visceral adiposity in persons with SCI, the risk of adverse metabolic consequences would also be underestimated, which necessitates adjustment of the these cutoff values or, preferably, to perform its direct measurement.

Findings demonstrate that the BIS-derived impedance quotients for ECVRe and ICVRi may be used as surrogate markers to track changes in leg LTM in persons with SCI.

BackgroundPersons with spinal cord injury (SCI) often have low levels of physical activity, which predispose to increased adiposity and decreased high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) concentrations, and, generally, normal low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentrations. In spite of the mixed lipoprotein profile, the SCI population has been reported to have an elevated risk of cardiovascular-related morbidity and mortality. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy may permit a more precise quantification of lipoprotein particle (P) species, enabling a more accurate inference of risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the SCI population.MethodsFasting blood samples were obtained on 83 persons with chronic SCI and 62 able-bodied (AB) subjects. Fasting plasma insulin (FPI), triglycerides (TG), and P number and size of VLDL (very low density lipoprotein), LDL, and HDL subclasses were determined. AB and SCI subjects were stratified based on HDL-C (i.e., Low <40 and Normal ≥40 mg/dl): AB-Normal (n = 48), AB-Low (n = 14), SCI-Normal (n = 49), and SCI-Low (n = 34). Factorial analyses of variance were performed to identify group differences in lipoprotein measurements. Pearson correlations were performed between the number of P by lipoprotein subclass, size, FPI, and TG.ResultsThe SCI-Normal group was not significantly different from the AB-Normal group for body composition, FPI, TG or LP-IR and had negligible differences in the lipoprotein P profile, except for fewer number and smaller size of HDL-P. The SCI-Low group had a similar lipoprotein profile to that of the AB-Low group, but with a lipid P composition associated with a heightened atherogenic risk and greater tendency toward insulin resistance by the Lipoprotein-Insulin Resistance (LP-IR) score. In the SCI-Low group, the decreased number and reduced size of lipoprotein P were more prevalent and may be associated with increased waist circumference (i.e., abdominal adiposity), relatively elevated TG values (compared to the other subgroups), and an underlying subclinical state of insulin resistance.ConclusionsProlonged sitting and restricted physical activity in individuals with SCI had the most profound effect on the HDL-C and its lipoprotein P subclasses, but not on LDL-C, however its P subclasses were also unfavorably affected but not to the same degree. The quantification of lipoprotein P characteristics may be a potent tool for the determination of risk for CVD in persons with SCI.