The importance of alcohol in elderly's hospital admissions for fall injuries: a population case-control study

Background: Fall injuries account for a substantial part of the health burden among elderly persons, and they often affect life quality severely and impose large societal costs. Alcohol intoxication is a well-known risk factor for accidental injuries, but less is known about this association among elderly people. In this study, our aim was to assess whether risk of fall injuries among the elderly is elevated with an intoxication-oriented drinking pattern. Method: We applied a population case-control design and data from persons aged 60 years and over in Norway. Cases comprised patients with fall injuries admitted to a hospital emergency department ( n = 424), and controls were participants in general population surveys ( n = 1859). Drinking pattern was assessed from self-reports of drinking frequency and intoxication frequency. Age and gender-adjusted association between fall injury and drinking pattern was estimated in logistic regression models. Fall injuries were considered alcohol-related if blood alcohol concentration exceeded 0.01% and/or the patient reported alcohol intake within six hours prior to injury. Results: The risk of fall injuries was highly elevated among those reporting drinking to intoxication monthly or more often ( OR = 10.2, 95% CI 5.5–19.0). Among cases, the vast majority of those with alcohol-related fall injuries (64 of 68) reported drinking to intoxication. Conclusions: A drinking pattern comprising alcohol intoxication elevated the risk of fall injuries among elderly people. As alcohol use is a modifiable risk factor, the findings suggest a potential to curb the number of fall injuries and their consequences by employing effective strategies to prevent intoxication drinking among the elderly.

Risky Alcohol Drinking Pattern and Its Association with Educational Attainment and Wealth Index among Adult Men Population in Ethiopia: Further Analysis of 2016 Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey

Risky alcohol drinking is one of the major public health problems and an important health risk factor for premature death and disability worldwide. Identifying the determinants of risky alcohol drinking patterns is crucial for developing and improving intervention on drinking behavior. In Ethiopia, the role of educational attainment and affluence in reducing risky alcohol drinking patterns among men remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the association of educational status and affluence with risky alcohol drinking patterns using national representative data in Ethiopia. Secondary data analysis was conducted on 12,688 adult men using data from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic Health Survey (EDHS). The dependent variable was a risky alcohol drinking pattern which is defined as the consumption of alcohol every day in the last 12 months before the interview. Multivariable logistic regression was employed to assess the association between educational attainment, Ethiopian standard wealth index, and risky alcohol drinking pattern, after adjusting for the potential confounders. The overall magnitude of risky alcohol drinking patterns among men in Ethiopia was 4.5% (95% CI: 3.4–5.9). Of the total men who had ever taken alcohol, 9.7% of men drink almost every day in the last 12 months. The odds of having a risky alcohol drinking pattern were lower among men who completed secondary education (AOR = 0.56 (0.329–0.961)) and men who completed higher education levels (AOR = 0.35 (0.164–0.765)) as compared to men who did not attend any formal education. Adult men in the top two wealth quintiles were twice more likely to have risky alcohol drinking patterns than those in the lowest wealth quintile (AOR = 2.13 (1.254–3.605)). This study showed that from the total adult male population, nearly 5% of Ethiopian men had risky drinking patterns. Individuals with low educational status and greater affluence engaged in high-risk alcohol consumption behavior.

Dietary patterns and chronic kidney disease risk: a systematic review and updated meta-analysis of observational studies

Background A number of studies have reported the association between dietary patterns and the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD), however a consistent perspective hasn’t been established to date. Herein, we conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies to assess the association between dietary patterns and CKD. Methods MEDLINE, EBSCO and references from eligible studies were searched for relevant articles published up to 9 May 2020 that examined the association of common dietary patterns and CKD. The heterogeneity among studies was assessed by Cochran’s Q test and I2 methods. Results Seventeen eligible studies, involving 149,958 participants, were included in our systematic review and meta-analysis. The highest compared with the lowest category of healthy dietary pattern was significantly associated with a lower risk of CKD (OR=0.69; CI: 0.57, 0.84; P=0.0001). A higher risk of CKD was shown for the highest compared with the lowest categories of Western-type dietary pattern (OR=1.86; CI: 1.21, 2.86; P=0.005). There were evidence of a lower risk of CKD in the highest compared with the lowest categories of light-moderate drinking pattern (OR=0.76; CI: 0.71, 0.81; P< 0.0001) and heavy drinking pattern (OR=0.67; CI: 0.56, 0.80; P< 0.0001). Conclusions The results of this systematic review and meta-analysis show that a healthy dietary pattern and alcohol drinking were associated with lower risk of CKD, whereas a Western-type dietary pattern was associated with higher risk of CKD.

Peroral iron supplementation can be provided to piglets through a milk cup system with results comparable to parenteral iron administration

The objective of this study was to investigate if iron can be allocated to piglets through sow milk replacer fed in a milk cup system with efficacies comparable to intramuscular (IM) administration of 200 mg gleptoferron. Two hundred and ninety-four piglets from 21 litters were allocated to three different iron treatments (n = 98). The treatments were 1) Control (CON) provided no supplemental iron, 2) Injected iron (II) provided 200 mg gleptoferron IM on day 3 postpartum, and 3) Milk iron (MI) provided sow milk replacer “DanMilk Supreme” added 1 % “Piglet Boozt” ad libitum from day 0 until 21 days postpartum. All piglets had access to dry feed from day 6. Initial and final body weight was registered and hemoglobin (Hb) levels were analyzed on day 0, 3, 7, 10, 17, and 21 after farrowing. In order to correlate drinking pattern with Hb level and growth, video cameras were installed, and drinking pattern was recorded on day 18 postpartum. A blood sample was drawn from piglets from three litters per treatment on day 21 for a complete hematology profile. The results showed that iron treatment had an effect on Hb levels (P &lt; 0.001) that were different between all groups from day 10, resulting in a mean Hb level of 76.2 g/L (CON), 120.9 g/L (II), and 105.4 g/L (MI) on day 21. The mean Hb level for both MI and II was above the anemia threshold of 90 g/L and the Hb level of the II group was above 110 g/L and the piglets thus defined as normal. Treatment had a significant effect on Hb, hematocrit (hct), mean corposcular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), red blood cell distribution width (RDW), lymphocytes (%), neutrophils (bill/L) (P &lt; 0.05), neutrophils (%) (P &lt; 0.01), with CON being significantly different from MI and II that were similar or tended to differ. Total visits at the cup was not correlated to Hb level (r = 0.08) and growth was not affected by treatment (P = 0.99). It is concluded that iron can be supplemented to piglets through a milk cup system with efficacies comparable to parenteral administration of 200 mg gleptoferron.

Pattern of alcohol use and drinking antecedents in alcohol dependent patients with and without co-morbid depression: a comparative study

Background: Few studies have compared the pattern of alcohol use in Alcohol dependence syndrome (ADS) patients with and without co-morbid depression. Assessing the pattern may throw light into prevention of relapses more effectively in alcohol dependent patients with co-morbid depression. This study was undertaken to assess the difference in pattern of drinking of alcohol in patients with alcohol dependence with and without co-morbid depression.Methods: A descriptive comparative study was designed to compare the difference in pattern of alcohol use in alcohol dependent patients with co-morbid depression and without co-morbid depression. Severity of dependence on alcohol was assessed using Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Drinking pattern was assessed using Timeline Follow back Calender and Drinking Pattern Questionnaire. The data were statistically analysed.Results: Total 96 alcohol dependent patients (24 had co-morbid depression and 72 without co-morbid depression) were included in the study. There were no significant differences in alcohol use in both the groups in terms of AUDIT scores, amount of drinking, abstinence days or binge drinking. More frequent drinking was observed in circumstances related to emotional, physiological, financial and children related situations in patients with co-morbid depression (p<0.05).Conclusions: Drinking circumstances like emotional, physiological, financial and children related situations require more attention while assessing, treating and aiming at relapse of prevention in ADS patients with co-morbid depression.