University of Manitoba

About: University of Manitoba is a education organization based out in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Health care. The organization has 31888 authors who have published 66592 publications receiving 2095493 citations.

Relation of body weight to development of ischemic heart disease in a cohort of young north American men after a 26 year observation period: The manitoba study

Abstract: The role of overweight as a risk factor for ischemic heart disease remains controversial. Therefore, in the Manitoba Study of a cohort of 3,983 men with a mean age at entry of 30.8 years, initial measurements of body weight, represented by body mass index (weight/height 2 ), were compared with the 26 year incidence of ischemic heart disease. After adjustment for the effects of age and blood pressure in univariate and multivariate analysis, body mass index was a significant predictor of the 390 cases of ischemic heart disease. To elucidate this relation further, the cohort was further analyzed after categorization by age at entry, time of occurrence of disease after entry and manifestation of ischemic heart disease. The association with weight was most apparent in men less than 40 years of age and was not evident until 16 years of follow-up. A high body mass index was significantly associated with development of myocardial infarction, sudden death and coronary insufficiency or suspected myocardial infarction; the relation was strongest with sudden death. Among men who had a myocardial infarction, body mass index was more strongly associated with sudden death and was the best predictor of myocardial infarction occurring after 20 years of observation. Thus, after adjustment for the effect of age and blood pressure, overweight is a definite risk factor but primarily in younger men, after long periods of observation and for certain manifestations of ischemic heart disease.

Hypoxia induces autophagic cell death in apoptosis-competent cells through a mechanism involving BNIP3

Abstract: Hypoxia (lack of oxygen) is a physiological stress often associated with solid tumors. Hypoxia correlates with poor prognosis since hypoxic regions within tumors are considered apoptosis-resistant. Autophagy (cellular “self digestion”) has been associated with hypoxia during cardiac ischemia and metabolic stress as a survival mechanism. However, although autophagy is best characterized as a survival response, it can also function as a mechanism of programmed cell death. Our results show that autophagic cell death is induced by hypoxia in cancer cells with intact apoptotic machinery. We have analyzed two glioma cell lines (U87, U373), two breast cancer cell lines (MDA-MB-231, ZR75) and one embryonic cell line (HEK293) for cell death response in hypoxia (

Drug‐Associated Hospital Admissions in Older Medical Patients

Abstract: A survey of drug-related admissions of patients aged 50 years and older was conducted at the Health Sciences Centre, Winnipeg to determine the interrelationship of risk factors, and isolate the effect of age. All nonelective medical admissions were prospectively assessed to determine the role of drug therapy as a contributory factor. Of the 863 eligible admissions, 162 exhibited at least one drug-related adverse patient event (DRAPE) at the time of hospitalization. This accounted for 19% of the admissions (23% of 718 admissions that involved prescription drugs). Although adverse drug reactions were responsible for many DRAPEs (48%), intentional noncompliance (27%), treatment failure (19%), alcohol (14%), and medication error (10%) were also frequent contributing causes. Drugs commonly implicated in DRAPEs were systemic steroids, digoxin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents, alpha-methyldopa, calcium channel blockers, beta-blockers, theophylline, furosemide, sympathomimetics, thiazides, and benzodiazepines. The risk of a DRAPE was related to the number of diseases prior to admission (r = 0.81; P less than .026) and the number of drugs used (r = 0.77; P less than .001). Age was not correlated with the risk of a DRAPE. Females had significantly more adverse drug reactions, although sex was not a predictor for overall DRAPE risk.

Efficacy of esomeprazole for treatment of poorly controlled asthma.

Abstract: Background—Gastroesophageal reflux (GER) is common in asthma patients but often has mild or no symptoms. It is not known whether treatment of GER with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) in poorly-controlled asthmatics without GER symptoms can substantially improve asthma control. Methods—402 asthmatics with inadequate asthma control despite inhaled corticosteroids and absent or minimal GER symptoms were randomly assigned to either esomeprazole 40mg b.i.d. or matching placebo in a parallel-group double-masked clinical trial. Participants were followed for 24 weeks with daily asthma diaries, every 4-week spirometry, and asthma symptom questionnaires. Participants were classified with respect to GER status with ambulatory pH probe monitoring. The primary outcome was the rate of episodes of poor asthma control (EPACs) based on asthma diaries. Results—Episodes of poor asthma control occurred with similar frequency in the placebo and esomeprazole treatment groups (2.3 vs 2.5 events/person-year, respectively, P=0.66). There was no treatment effect with respect to components of the EPACs, or secondary outcomes including pulmonary function, airways reactivity, asthma control, symptom scores, nocturnal awakenings, or quality of life. GER documented by pH probe studies in 40% of participants with absent or minimal symptoms did not identify a subgroup benefitting from PPI treatment. Conclusion—Despite a high prevalence of asymptomatic GER in patients with poorly controlled asthma, treatment with proton pump inhibitors does not improve control. Silent GER is not a likely cause of poorly controlled asthma.