International journal of epidemiology
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Ethnic health inequalities are substantial. One explanation relates to socioeconomic differences between groups. However, socioeconomic variables need to be comparable across ethnic groups as measures of socioeconomic position (SEP) and indicators of health outcomes. ⋯ Across groups, SEP measures were inconsistently associated with CVD hospitalization or death, with effect size and direction of effect after adjustment varying across ethnic groups. We recommend that researchers systematically explore the effect of their choice of SEP indicators, using standard multivariate methods where appropriate, to demonstrate their cross-ethnic group validity as potential confounding variables for the specific groups and outcomes of interest.
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High maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) is associated with increased risk of offspring attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, the role of unmeasured familial confounding for this association remains unclear. ⋯ The results suggested that the association between maternal pre-pregnancy overweight/obesity and offspring ADHD could be ascribed to unmeasured familial confounding.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Genetically predicted testosterone and cardiovascular risk factors in men: a Mendelian randomization analysis in the Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study.
Observationally lower testosterone is associated with an unhealthier cardiovascular (CVD) risk profile, but this association is open to confounding and reverse causality. The authors examined the association of testosterone with well-established cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors (blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)cholesterol and fasting glucose) and the Framingham score using a Mendelian randomization analysis with a separate-sample instrumental variable estimator. ⋯ Our findings did not corroborate observed protective effects of testosterone on cardiovascular risk factors or risk of ischaemic heart disease among men, but raises the possibility that higher testosterone may be associated with an unhealthier lipid profile.
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This study uses data from the World Health Organization's Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (SAGE) to examine patterns of hypertension prevalence, awareness, treatment and control for people aged 50 years and over in China, Ghana, India, Mexico, the Russian Federation and South Africa. ⋯ The high rates of hypertension in low- and middle-income countries are striking. Levels of treatment and control are inadequate despite half those sampled being aware of their condition. Since cardiovascular disease is by far the largest cause of years of life lost in these settings, these findings emphasize the need for new approaches towards control of this major risk factor.