Dental disease risk in children with autism:  a meta-analysis

Background: The increasing incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) threatens the Middle Eastern population. Several epidemiological studies have assessed CVD and its risk factors in terms of the primary prevention of CVD in the Middle East. Therefore, summarizing the information from these studies is essential. Aim: We conducted a systematic review to assess the prevalence of CVD and its major risk factors among Middle Eastern adults based on the literature published between January 1, 2012 and December 31, 2018 and carried out a meta-analysis. Methods: We searched electronic databases such as PubMed/Medline, ScienceDirect, Embase and Google Scholar to identify literature published from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2018. All the original articles that investigated the prevalence of CVD and reported at least one of the following factors were included: hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidaemia, smoking and family history of CVD. To summarize CVD prevalence, we performed a random-effects meta-analysis. Results: A total of 41 potentially relevant articles were included, and 32 were included in the meta-analysis (n=191,979). The overall prevalence of CVD was 10.1% (95% confidence interval (CI): 7.1-14.3%, p<0.001) in the Middle East. A high prevalence of CVD risk factors, such as dyslipidaemia (43.3%; 95% CI: 21.5-68%), hypertension (26.2%; 95% CI: 19.6-34%) and diabetes (16%; 95% CI: 9.9-24.8%), was observed. The prevalence rates of other risk factors, such as smoking (12.4%; 95% CI: 7.7-19.4%) and family history of CVD (18.7%; 95% CI: 15.4-22.5%), were also high. Conclusion: The prevalence of CVD is high (10.1%) in the Middle East. The burden of dyslipidaemia (43.3%) in this region is twice as high as that of hypertension (26.2%) and diabetes mellitus (16%). Multifaceted interventions are urgently needed for the primary prevention of CVD in this region.

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Is Visual Pedagogy Effective in Improving Cooperation towards Oral Hygiene and Dental Care in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18020789 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 789

Author(s):

Araxi Balian ◽

Silvia Cirio ◽

Claudia Salerno ◽

Thomas Gerhard Wolf ◽

Guglielmo Campus ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Dental Care ◽

Oral Hygiene ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Scientific Evidence ◽

Case Series ◽

Children With Autism ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Conclusive Evidence ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Visual Pedagogy

Visual pedagogy has emerged as a new approach in improving dental care in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). This paper aimed to evaluate and assess the scientific evidence on the use of visual pedagogy in improving oral hygiene skills and cooperation during dental care in children with ASDs. The review protocol was registered on the PROSPERO Register (CRD42020183030). Prospective clinical studies, randomized trials, interruptive case series, before and after comparison studies, and cross-sectional studies following the PRISMA guideline were searched in PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Google Scholar using ad hoc prepared search strings. The search identified 379 papers, of which 342 were excluded after title and abstract evaluation, and 37 full-text papers were analyzed. An additional four papers were added after consulting reference lists. Eighteen papers were disregarded; 23 were finally included, and their potential bias was assessed using ROB-2 and ROBINS-I tools. The wide heterogenicity of the studies included does not allow for conclusive evidence on the effectiveness of visual pedagogy in oral hygiene skills and dental care. Nevertheless, a significant and unilateral tendency of the overall outcomes was found, suggesting that visual pedagogy supports ASD children in improving both oral hygiene skills and cooperation during dental care.

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Association between genetic variants in ZNF365 and inflammatory bowel disease risk in Caucasians: a meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis

Expert Review of Clinical Immunology ◽

10.1080/1744666x.2021.1939012 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Peng-bo Wu ◽

Yu Zhang ◽

Gang Nie ◽

Xu Huang ◽

Yuan-jie Yu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Inflammatory Bowel Disease ◽

Bowel Disease ◽

Genetic Variants ◽

Sequential Analysis ◽

Disease Risk ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Trial Sequential Analysis ◽

Inflammatory Bowel

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Trace elements in children with autism spectrum disorder: a meta-analysis based on case-control studies

Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology ◽

10.1016/j.jtemb.2021.126782 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 126782

Author(s):

Jun Zhang ◽

Xi Li ◽

Liming Shen ◽

Naseer Ullah Khan ◽

Xiao Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Trace Elements ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Children With Autism ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Case Control ◽

Spectrum Disorder ◽

Case Control Studies

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Abstract P375: Vascular Age Versus Calendar Age as Surrogate for Atherosclerotic Burden and Cardiovascular Disease Risk

Circulation ◽

10.1161/circ.127.suppl_12.ap375 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 127 (suppl_12) ◽

Author(s):

Sanne A Peters ◽

Karlijn A Groenewegen ◽

Hester M den Ruijter ◽

Michiel L Bots

Keyword(s):

Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Cardiovascular Risk ◽

Disease Risk ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Cardiovascular Disease Risk ◽

Intima Media Thickness ◽

Chronological Age ◽

Specific Reference ◽

Communication Tool ◽

Vascular Age

Background Vascular age is the chronological age of an individual adjusted by their level of atherosclerosis. Vascular age can be used as understandable communication tool towards patients. It has been proposed that carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) could be used to estimate the vascular age in individuals. The issue on how to best estimate vascular age remains an unanswered question and was evaluated in this study. Methods Data were used from the USE-IMT study collaboration, a global individual patient data meta-analysis including 14 population-based cohorts contributing data for 45 828 individuals. We used two methods to define vascular age. First, vascular age was the age at which a participant’s CIMT value would be at the 50th percentile of the age-and sex specific reference values of the healthy USE-IMT subpopulation (VA50). Second, vascular age was the age at which the estimated cardiovascular risk equals the risk of the observed CIMT value (VArisk). Results Mean (+/- standard deviation [SD]) chronological age, VA50, and VArisk were 58 (9), 63 (19), and 59 (7) years, respectively. VArisk was 0.24 yrs higher in women and 1.5 yrs higher in men than chronological age whereas VA50 was 4.4 yrs higher in women and 5.8 yrs higher in men than chronological age. After adjustment for traditional cardiovascular risk factors, a SD increase in VA50 and VArisk was associated with a 15% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.12; 1.19) and 22% (95% CI: 1.17; 1.28) higher risk of cardiovascular disease. For comparison, a SD increase in mean common CIMT increased the risk of cardiovascular disease with 15% (95% CI: 1.12; 1.19). Conclusion We presented two distinct measures a vascular age: VA50, and VArisk. VA50 is a straightforward translation of CIMT and is a measure of the age at which the average person would be expected to have a certain CIMT. In contrast, VArisk incorporates information about expected cardiovascular risk and is the chronological age of a person that conveys the same risk as the CIMT. VA50 and VArisk might provide a convenient transformation of CIMT to a scale that is more easily understood by patients and clinicians.

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