Anthropologischer Anzeiger 

About: Anthropologischer Anzeiger is an academic journal published by E. Schweizerbart. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Population & Medicine. It has an ISSN identifier of 0003-5548. Over the lifetime, 1191 publications have been published receiving 8332 citations. The journal is also known as: Journal of biological and clinical anthroplogy (Print) & Journal of biological and clinical anthroplogy (Internet).

Research on secular trends in auxology.

Abstract: Current status of research on secular trends in growth and maturation is considered from several perspectives. The need to define secular trends as positive, negative or absent is initially discussed. Positive secular trends, i.e., increases in size and earlier maturation, characterize the majority of the auxological literature. However, some populations have experienced negative secular trends or no trends. Positive secular trends and cessation of secular trends in stature and age at menarche are described for developed countries, followed by a brief discussion of secular changes in body proportions and composition. Data from developing countries illustrate all three types of secular trends. Some segments of the population show positive changes in size and age at menarche, while others show no evidence of secular change or negative secular trends. Finally, comparisons of estimated statures in earlier European populations suggest a negative secular trend, i.e., a decline in estimated stature from about the 11th to the 19th centuries, which is followed by a positive secular trend starting about the mid-19th century.

Gender and age differences in lean soft tissue mass and sarcopenia among healthy elderly.

Abstract: Sarcopenia, the age related decline in skeletal muscle mass has dramatic consequences. It leads to impaired performance, increased vulnerability, frailty and an increased risk of falls. Various extrinsic and intrinsic factors contribute to the aetiology of sarcopenia. The aims of the present study was to analyse gender differences in the prevalence of sarcopenia and document gender differences in lean soft tissue mass in healthy elderly. 139 healthy subjects ageing between 59 and 92 years (x = 71.5 +/- 7.8), 77 females and 64 males, were enrolled in the study. Body composition was measured by means of dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. Additionally appendicular muscle mass (ASM) was calculated. While no linear decrease in lean soft tissue mass was found for both sexes, the prevalence of sarcopenia increased significantly with increasing age in females as well as in males. Significant gender differences in the prevalence of sarcopenia were found for people younger than 70 years and those older than 80 years. In the youngest age group ( 80 years) the opposite was true. It can be concluded that the prevalence of sarcopenia differs between the two genders however these differences are influenced by age.

A study of correlations and estimation of stature from hand length, hand breadth and sole length.

Abstract: An attempt is made to find out possible correlations amongst hand length, hand breadth (stretched) and sole length and to derive a regression formula to estimate stature from them. The study was based on the measurement of 100 Nigerian adult male medical students of the Jos Medical School, Nigeria, between the ages of 20-30 years. The results show that there are significant correlations between the stature of an individual and hand length, hand breadth and sole length.

The impact of the weight status on subjective symptomatology of the Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: a cross-cultural comparison between Brazilian and Austrian women.

Abstract: Group differences in symptomatology and symptom perception of young women ageing between 18 and 32 years suffering from polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) were tested according to cultural background and weight status. In detail 31 Austrian women, living in Carinthia, Austria, and 102 Brazilian women, living in Sao Paulo, Brazil, were enrolled in the present study. All participants suffered from diagnosed PCOS. The prevalence of hirsutism, infertility, menstrual disturbances and overweight/obesity and their individual impact on health related quality of life were analysed. Furthermore the impact of weight status (BMI) on symptom perception was tested. It turned out, that the Brazilian sample exhibited higher prevalence of PCOS symptoms and these symptoms had a more negative impact on quality of life. The only exception was body weight. Although significantly leaner, the Austrian women showed a higher Cronin score of body weight than their Brazilian counterparts. The results of the present study may indicate that in western industrialized societies the fear of overweight is much more prevalent than in a developing country such as Brazil and thus it has more influence on the quality of life than all the other symptoms.

An association of dominant hand grip strength with some anthropometric variables in Indian collegiate population.

Abstract: The present study deals with the correlations of dominant hand grip strength and 12 anthropometric variables, namely, height, weight, BMI, upper arm length, forearm length, total arm length, hand breadth, hand length, upper arm circumference, forearm circumference, biceps skinfold and triceps skinfold in randomly selected 303 unrelated, normal, healthy students (151 males and 152 females) aged 18-25 years of Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India. The findings of the present study indicate a strong association of dominant right hand grip strength with all the anthropometric variables, except biceps skinfold in male students and with height (r = 0.200), weight (r = 0.275), BMI (p = 0.217), total arm length (p = 0.218) and upper arm circumference (r = 0.199) in female students. Statistically significant positive correlations were also found between dominant left hand grip strength and height (r = 0.275), weight (p = 0.537), BMI (p = 0.472), hand breadth (p = 0.464), upper arm circumference (r = 0.570), forearm circumference (p = 0.464) and triceps skinfold (p = 0.343) only in male students, but no such association was found between grip strength of left hand dominant female students with any of the twelve anthropometric variables. It may be concluded that hand dominance, especially of the right hand, has some close association with the anthropometric variables related to upper extremities.