No abstract

Objectives To examine whether marine-derived n-3 fatty acids (FAs) are associated with less atherosclerosis in Japanese than Whites in the United States. Background Marine-derived n-3 FAs at low levels are cardioprotective through their anti-arrhythmic effect. Methods A population-based cross-sectional study in 281 Japanese, 306 White, and 281 Japanese American men aged 40–49 was conducted to assess intima-media thickness of the carotid artery (IMT), coronary artery calcification (CAC), and serum FAs. Results Japanese in Japan had the lowest levels of atherosclerosis whereas Whites and Japanese Americans had similar levels. Japanese in Japan had twofold higher levels of marine-derived n-3 FAs than Whites and Japanese Americans. Japanese in Japan had significant and non-significant inverse associations of marine-derived n-3 FAs with IMT and CAC prevalence, respectively. The significant inverse association with IMT remained after adjusting for traditional cardiovascular risk factors. Neither Whites nor Japanese Americans had such associations. Significant differences between Japanese in Japan and Whites in multivariable-adjusted IMT (mean difference 39 μm (95% confidence interval (CI), 21 to 57), p<0.001) and CAC prevalence (mean difference 10.7% (95% CI, 2.9 to 18.4), p=0.007) became non-significant after further adjusting for marine-derived n-3 FAs (22 μm (95% CI, −1 to 46), p=0.065 and 5.0 % (95% CI, −5.3 to 15.4), p=0.341, respectively). Conclusions Very high levels of marine-derived n-3 FAs have anti-atherogenic properties independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors and may contribute to lower burden of atherosclerosis in Japanese in Japan, which is unlikely due to genetic factors.

Recognition of characteristic CT appearances and the variations associated with each cause may help in the accurate interpretation of CT in the diagnosis of mesenteric ischemia.

Coronary heart disease incidence and mortality remain very low in Japan despite major dietary changes and increases in risk factors that should have resulted in a substantial increase in coronary heart disease rates (Japanese paradox). Primary genetic effects are unlikely, given the substantial increase in coronary heart disease in Japanese migrating to the United States. For men aged 40-49 years, levels of total cholesterol and blood pressure have been similar in Japan and the United States throughout their lifetimes. The authors tested the hypothesis that levels of subclinical atherosclerosis, coronary artery calcification, and intima-media thickness of the carotid artery in men aged 40-49 years are similar in Japan and the United States. They conducted a population-based study of 493 randomly selected men: 250 in Kusatsu City, Shiga, Japan, and 243 White men in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in 2002-2005. Compared with the Whites, the Japanese had a less favorable profile regarding many risk factors. The prevalence ratio for the presence of a coronary calcium score of > or =10 for the Japanese compared with the Whites was 0.52 (95% confidence interval: 0.35, 0.76). Mean intima-media thickness was significantly lower in the Japanese (0.616 mm (standard error, 0.005) vs. 0.672 (standard error, 0.005) mm, p < 0.01). Both associations remained significant after adjusting for risk factors. The findings warrant further investigations.

Visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is an independent risk factor for metabolic and cardiovascular disorders. There has been no study that demonstrated different abdominal fat distribution between Asian and Caucasian men. As the Japanese are less obese but more susceptible to metabolic disorders than Caucasians, they may have larger VAT than Caucasians at similar levels of obesity. We compared the abdominal fat distribution of the Japanese (n ¼ 239) and Caucasian-American (n ¼ 177) men aged 40-49 years in groups stratified by waist circumference in a population-based sample. We obtained computed tomography images and determined areas of VAT and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT). We calculated VAT to SAT ratio (VSR). The Japanese men had a larger VAT and VSR in each stratum, despite substantially less obesity overall. In multiethnic studies, difference in abdominal fat distribution should be considered in exploring factors related to obesity. International Journal of Obesity (2006) In these studies, VAT was compared after adjusting for other factors such as age and obesity. There has been no report directly comparing VAT between the Japanese and Caucasian men in a population-based sample. Therefore, we compared the abdominal fat distribution of the Japanese and Caucasian-American men aged 40-49 years in groups stratified by waist circumference in a population-based sample. We recruited 240 American men aged 40-49 years (Caucasians: 82%), randomly selected from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, US, and 240 Japanese men aged 40-49 years, randomly selected from Kusatsu, Shiga, Japan. We confined our analyses to Caucasian and Japanese men, because African men have been compared with Caucasians elsewhere, 6 and we had only one man who categorized himself as neither Caucasian nor African-American. In order to compare the abdominal adipose tissue (AAT) distribution at similar levels of waist circumference, participants with extremely large or small waist circumference (beyond the levels of mean 72 (s.d.)) were excluded from the present analysis. After excluding 44 non-Caucasian-Americans and 20 outliers in waist circumference, 416 (239 Japanese and 177 Caucasian) men were examined. Waist circumference