Aims/hypothesis To test fasting glucose association at four loci recently identified or verified by genome-wide association (GWA) studies of European populations, we performed a replication study in two Asian populations.Methods We genotyped five common variants previously reported in Europeans: rs1799884 (GCK), rs780094 (GCKR), rs560887 (G6PC2-ABCB11) and both rs1387153 and rs10830963 (MTNR1B) in the general Japanese (n=4,813) and Sri Lankan (n=2,319) populations. To identify novel Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article

Introduction and objectives There are no cardiovascular (CV) risk prediction models for Sri Lankans. Different risk prediction models not validated for Sri Lankans are being used to predict CV risk of Sri Lankans. We validated the WHO/ISH (SEAR-B) risk prediction charts prospectively in a population-based cohort of Sri Lankans. Method We selected 40–64 year-old participants from the Ragama Medical Officer of Health (MOH) area in 2007 by stratified random sampling and followed them up for 10 years. Ten-year risk predictions of a fatal/non-fatal cardiovascular event (CVE) in 2007 were calculated using WHO/ISH (SEAR-B) charts with and without cholesterol. The CVEs that occurred from 2007–2017 were ascertained. Risk predictions in 2007 were validated against observed CVEs in 2017. Results Of 2517 participants, the mean age was 53.7 year (SD: 6.7) and 1132 (45%) were males. Using WHO/ISH chart with cholesterol, the percentages of subjects with a 10-year CV risk <10%, 10–19%, 20%-29%, 30–39%, ≥40% were 80.7%, 9.9%, 3.8%, 2.5% and 3.1%, respectively. 142 non-fatal and 73 fatal CVEs were observed during follow-up. Among the cohort, 9.4% were predicted of having a CV risk ≥20% and 8.6% CVEs were observed in the risk category. CVEs were within the predictions of WHO/ISH charts with and without cholesterol in both high (≥20%) and low(<20%) risk males, but only in low(<20%) risk females. The predictions of WHO/ISH charts, with-and without-cholesterol were in agreement in 81% of subjects (ĸ = 0.429; p<0.001). Conclusions WHO/ISH (SEAR B) risk prediction charts with-and without-cholesterol may be used in Sri Lanka. Risk charts are more predictive in males than in females and for lower-risk categories. The predictions when stratifying into 2 categories, low risk (<20%) and high risk (≥20%), are more appropriate in clinical practice.

Nearly 80% of students in higher education worldwide experience psychological stress during their university life due to various stressors. Stress among students can be viewed as the body’s reaction, both neurologically and physiologically, to adapt to new conditions. Stress can lead to poor academic performance and underachievement among students. The present study assessed the levels of perceived stress, general self-efficacy, and their association with socio-demographic factors among a selected group of undergraduates at a higher educational institute. A descriptive cross-sectional study was performed using stratified random sampling among 393 undergraduates. The data were collected through the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES) and a questionnaire to determine the socio-demographic factors. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 23. The mean age of the sample (n=393) was 22.36±2.33 years. The results showed a mean perceived stress score of 20.72±4.96, indicating moderate perceived stress. The majority of the participants (79.4%) had moderate perceived stress, followed by high stress (12.7%) and low stress (7.4%). There was no significant difference between the stress levels of male and female students. No significant association was observed between perceived stress and socio-demographic factors assessed (age, gender, civil status, residence status, financial status, the program of study, employment prospects) using the chi-squared test. Spearman correlation showed a statistically significant negative correlation between perceived stress levels and general self-efficacy (p<0.001, r = -0.293). Intervention strategies to reduce perceived stress and to improve general self-efficacy should be implemented among the undergraduates. Further studies are needed to understand the factors contributing to stress and their interrelations among undergraduate students. Keywords: Perceived stress, General self-efficacy, Higher education