OBJECTIVE: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects 12-21% of women. Women with PCOS exhibit clustering of metabolic features. We applied rigorous statistical methods to further understand the interplay between PCOS and metabolic features including insulin resistance, obesity and androgen status. DESIGN: Retrospective cross-sectional analysis. PATIENTS: Women with PCOS attending reproducti...

OBJECTIVE: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine condition underpinned by insulin resistance and associated with increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes and adverse cardiovascular risk profile. Previous data suggest autonomic imbalance [elevated sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity and decreased heart rate variability (HRV)] as well as endothelial dysfunction in PCOS...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Monocyte-derived macrophages are critical in the development of atherosclerosis and can adopt a wide range of functional phenotypes depending on their surrounding milieu. High-density lipoproteins (HDLs) have many cardio-protective properties including potent anti-inflammatory effects. We investigated the effects of HDL on human macrophage phenotype and the mechanisms...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Angiotensin AT2 receptors are upregulated in disease states such as atherosclerosis and blockade of the AT2 receptors exacerbates plaque formation. Direct stimulation of these receptors is anti-atherogenic but the mechanisms and pathways involved remain unknown. We examined the effect of direct AT2 receptor stimulation with Compound 21 (C21) on the leukocyte adhesion ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The NO redox sibling nitroxyl (HNO) elicits soluble guanylyl cyclase (sGC)-dependent vasodilatation. HNO has high reactivity with thiols, which is attributed with HNO-enhanced left ventricular (LV) function. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the concomitant vasodilatation and inotropic actions induced by a HNO donor, Angeli's salt (sodium trioxodinitrate), were sGC-de...

OBJECTIVES: Individuals with bipolar disorder (BPD) exhibit alterations in their phospholipid levels. It is unclear whether these alterations are a secondary consequence of illness state, or if phospholipids and illness risk overlap genetically. If the latter were true, then phospholipids might provide key insights into the pathophysiology of the illness. Therefore, we rank-ordered phospholi...

AIM: Hypertension is a major clinical complication of obesity. Our previous studies show that abnormal uptake of the nitric oxide precursor L-arginine, via the cationic amino acid transporter-1 (CAT1), contributes to endothelial dysfunction in cardiovascular disease. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that abnormal L-arginine transport may be a key mediator of obesity-induced hypertension...

AIM: Oxidative stress may play an important role in the pathogenesis of hypertension. The aim of our study is to examine whether increased expression of the predominant endothelial l-arginine transporter, cationic amino acid transporter-1 (CAT1), can prevent oxidative stress-induced hypertension. METHODS: Wild-type mice (WT; n = 9) and endothelial CAT1 overexpressing (CAT+) mice (n = 6) ...

PEGylated carboxyhemoglobin bovine (SANGUINATE) is a dual action carbon monoxide releasing (CO)/oxygen (O2 ) transfer agent for the treatment of hypoxia. Its components inhibit vasoconstriction, decrease extravasation, limit reactive oxygen species production, enhance blood rheology, and deliver oxygen to the tissues. Animal models of cerebral ischemia, peripheral ischemia, and myocardial ische...

OBJECTIVE: To indicate levels of monitoring of type 2 diabetes in rural and regional Australia by examining patterns of glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and blood lipid testing. DESIGN AND SETTING: Retrospective analysis of pathology services data from twenty regional and rural towns in eastern Australia over 24 months. PARTICIPANTS: Of 13 105 individuals who had either a single HbA1c re...

OBJECTIVES: We examined the logistical challenges of conducting an outreach, secondary prevention program for adults discharged from Alice Springs Hospital following an acute presentation of cardiovascular disease. DESIGN AND SETTING: This represents a sub-study of the Central Australian Heart Protection Study (CAHPS). Clinical, logistic and demographic data were used to examine the char...

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to describe the caries experience and severity of periodontal disease in a convenience sample of Indigenous Australians living in the Northern Territory. METHODS: Data were gathered via self-reported questionnaire and dental examination by calibrated examiners. Socio-demographic characteristics were compared with data from the 2011 Australian census ...

BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) remains a condition with high morbidity and mortality. We tested a telephone support strategy to reduce major events in rural and remote Australians with HF, who have limited healthcare access. Telephone support comprised an interactive telecommunication software tool (TeleWatch) with follow-up by trained cardiac nurses. METHODS: Patients with a general practic...

OBJECTIVE: Examine the nutritional quality of food and beverages consumed across a sample of community aquatic and recreation centres in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. METHODS: Interviewer-administered surveys of randomly selected patrons attending four aquatic and recreation centres were conducted to ascertain food and beverage items consumed over two data collection periods (May-Ju...

OBJECTIVES: To investigate rates of 'any' and 'predominant' breastfeeding in hospital among Indigenous and non-Indigenous women with and without gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). METHODS: A retrospective study of singleton infants born from July 2007 to December 2010 at Cairns Hospital, Australia, following GDM pregnancy, using linked hospital and birth data (n=617 infants), with a su...

OBJECTIVE: To compare a simple measure - age of onset of obesity - to an obese-years construct (a product of duration and magnitude of obesity) as risk factors for type 2 diabetes. METHOD: Participants from the Framingham Heart Study who were not obese and did not have diabetes at baseline were included (n=4,320). The Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) was computed to compare four Cox pr...

OBJECTIVE: Given the high prevalence of chronic disease, it is of concern that access to and sustained engagement with primary healthcare services by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians is often far lower than would be expected. This study sought to explore ways in which relationships can support sustained engagement with healthcare services. METHODS: Semi-structured interv...

OBJECTIVE: Evidence of identity, particularly a birth certificate, is essential to access many rights. However, the births of many Aboriginal Australians are not registered when they are infants. We examined factors related to birth registration among Western Australian children born to Aboriginal mothers. METHODS: All births to Aboriginal mothers in the Midwives Notification System in W...

OBJECTIVE: To describe the total and domain-specific daily sitting time among a sample of Australian office-based employees. METHODS: In April 2010, paper-based surveys were provided to desk-based employees (n=801) in Victoria, Australia. Total daily and domain-specific (work, leisure-time and transport-related) sitting time (minutes/day) were assessed by validated questionnaires. Difference...

OBJECTIVE: To examine agreement between patients' self-report and general practitioners' perception of their patients' health risk status and screening history. METHODS: Patients attending an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service self-reported via survey their health risk status and screening history, while waiting to see their general practitioner (GP). Following the consultation t...