BACKGROUND: The lipidome is rapidly garnering interest in the field of psychiatry. Recent studies have implicated lipidomic changes across numerous psychiatric disorders. In particular, there is growing evidence that the concentrations of several classes of lipids are altered in those diagnosed with MDD. However, for lipidomic abnormalities to be considered potential treatment targets for MD...

The street network underpins the walkability of local neighborhoods. We examined whether two street network measures (intersection density and street integration from space syntax) were independently associated with walking for transport (WT); and, to what extent the relationship of street integration with WT may be explained by the presence of destinations. In 2003-2004, adults living in Adela...

OBJECTIVE: Through a causal framework, we aim to assess the association between weight change and daytime sleepiness, and the role of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) in this relationship. METHODS: From the Sleep Heart Health Study, we selected individuals who were: (1) 40-64 years old, with (2) body mass index (BMI) ≥18.5 kg/m2, (3) no history of stroke, treatment for OSA, and tracheostom...

The study's purpose was to examine age, gender, and education as potential moderators of the associations of perceived neighborhood environment variables with accelerometer-based moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Data were from 7273 adults from 16 sites (11 countries) that were part of a coordinated multi-country cross-sectional study. Age moderated the associations of perceived cr...

The relationships of Walk Score, a publicly-accessible walkability assessment tool, with walking for transport to and from home were examined among a large representative sample of Australian adults aged 18-64 years (N=16,944). Residents in highly and somewhat walkable areas were twice and 1.4 times more likely to accumulate 30min of walking per day compared to those in very car-dependent neigh...

Public open spaces such as parks and green spaces are key built environment elements within neighbourhoods for encouraging a variety of physical activity behaviours. Over the past decade, there has been a burgeoning number of active living research studies examining the influence of public open space on physical activity. However, the evidence shows mixed associations between different aspects ...

We investigated disparities in rates of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in the 199 Statistical Local Areas (SLAs) in New South Wales, Australia. Using routinely collected and linked hospital and mortality data from 2002 to 2007, we developed multilevel Poisson regression models to estimate the relative rates of first AMI events in the study period ...

Chronic immune activation persists despite antiretroviral therapy (ART) in HIV+ individuals and underpins an increased risk of age-related co-morbidities. We assessed the Frailty Index in older HIV+ Australian men on ART. Immunometabolic markers on monocytes and T cells were analyzed using flow cytometry, plasma innate immune activation markers by ELISA, and lipidomic profiling by mass spectrom...

BACKGROUND: Hyperglycaemia occurs frequently in critically ill patients without diabetes. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate whether this 'stress hyperglycaemia' identifies survivors of critical illness at increased risk of subsequently developing diabetes. METHODS: We searched the MEDLINE and Embase databases from their inception to February 2016. We included...

BACKGROUND: Osteoarthritis has a high prevalence in people with high bone mineral density (BMD). Nevertheless, whether high systemic BMD predates early structural features of knee osteoarthritis is unclear. This study examined the association between systemic BMD and knee cartilage defect progression and cartilage volume loss in middle-aged people without clinical knee disease. METHODS: ...

BACKGROUND: Determining the association between body composition and low back pain (LBP) will improve our understanding of the mechanisms by which obesity affects LBP, and inform novel approaches to managing LBP. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between body composition and LBP intensity and disability. METHODS: A total of 5058 participants (44% men) of the Australi...

BACKGROUND: Although atrial function has prognostic significance in many cardiovascular conditions, changes during exercise have not previously been assessed. The aim of this study was to evaluate left atrial (LA) and right atrial (RA) volume and function during incremental exercise, both in normal individuals, healthy athletes, and in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertens...

The study purpose was to examine the strength, direction and shape of the associations of environmental perceptions with recreational walking and leisure-time moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, using pooled data from four study sites (Baltimore [USA], Seattle [USA], Adelaide [Australia] and Ghent [Belgium]). Moreover, site- and gender-specificity of the associations were examined. In total...

BACKGROUND: Differential plasma concentrations of circulating lipid species are associated with pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes (T2D). Whether the wide inter-individual variability in the plasma lipidome contributes to the genetic basis of T2D is unknown. Here, we investigated the potential overlap in the genetic basis of the plasma lipidome and T2D-related traits. RESULTS: We used plasm...

BACKGROUND: Immunometabolism plays a central role in many cardiometabolic diseases. However, a robust map of immune-related gene networks in circulating human cells, their interactions with metabolites, and their genetic control is still lacking. Here, we integrate blood transcriptomic, metabolomic, and genomic profiles from two population-based cohorts (total N = 2168), including a subset o...

BACKGROUND: In Australia, rural and remote communities have high rates of diabetes-related death and hospitalisation. General practitioners (GPs) play a major role in diabetes detection and management. Education of GPs could optimise diabetes management and improve patient outcomes at a population level. The study aimed to describe the uptake of a continuing medical education intervention fo...

BACKGROUND: Vertebral endplate (Modic) abnormalities are important structural lesions in the spine, but their association with body composition and fat distribution have not been examined. Moreover, no study has examined whether Modic change are related to other structural features of low back pain, such as reduced intervertebral disc height. METHODS: Seventy-two community-based individu...

BACKGROUND: Cross-sectional evidence suggests TV viewing, but not objectively-measured sedentary time or bouts of sedentary time, is consistently associated with body mass index (BMI) in adolescents. However, it is unclear whether dietary intake is a potential mediator of these relationships. The aim of this study was to explore the cross-sectional and prospective mediating effects of dietar...

BACKGROUND: Recruitment of participants into long-term community-based lifestyle intervention trials, particularly adults with a chronic disease, is often slow and challenging. Currently there is limited data on successful recruitment strategies suitable for older adults with type 2 diabetes into community-based exercise and nutrition programs, and no information on cost estimates associated...

BACKGROUND: Degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine is common, with severe disease increasing the risk for chronic low back pain. This cross-sectional study examined whether disc degeneration is representative of a 'whole-organ' pathology, by examining its association with bone (vertebral endplate) and soft tissue (paraspinal muscle fat) abnormalities. METHODS: Seventy-two communit...