Coronary heart disease risk factors among tri-ethnic students at Florida International University

The present study identified and compared Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) risk factors quantified as “CHD risk point standards” (CHDRPS) among tri-ethnic (White non-Hispanic [WNH], Hispanic [H], and Black non-Hispanic [BNH]) college students. All 300 tri-ethnic subjects completed the Cardiovascular Risk Assessment Instruments and had blood pressure readings recorded on three occasions. The Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) was used to measure body composition. Students' knowledge of CHD risk factors was also measured. In addition, a 15 ml fasting blood sample was collected from 180 subjects and blood lipids and Homocysteine (tHcy) levels were measured. Data were analyzed by gender and ethnicity using one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) with Bonferroni's pairwise mean comparison procedure, Pearson correlation, and Chi-square test with follow-up Bonferroni's Chi-square tests. ^ The mean score of CHDRPS for all subjects was 19.15 ± 6.79. Assigned to the CHD risk category, college students were below-average risk of developing CHD. Males scored significantly (p < 0.013) higher for CHD risk than females, and BNHs scored significantly (p < 0.033) higher than WNHs. High consumption of dietary fat saturated fat and cholesterol resulted in a high CHDRPS among H males and females and WNH females. High alcohol consumption resulted in a high CHDRPS among all subjects. Mean tHcy ± SD of all subjects was 6.33 ± 3. 15 μmol/L. Males had significantly (p < 0.001) higher tHcy than females. Black non-Hispanic females and H females had significantly (p < 0.003) lower tHcy than WNH females. Positive associations were found between tHcy levels and CHDRPS among females (p < 0.001), Hs (p < 0.001), H males (p < 0.049), H females (p < 0.009), and BNH females (p < 0.005). Significant positive correlations were found between BMI levels and CHDRPS in males (p < 0.001), females (p < 0.001), WNHs (p < 0.008), Hs (p < 0.001), WNH males (p < 0.024), H males (p < 0.004) and H females (p < 0.001). The mean knowledge of CHD questions of all subjects was 71.70 ± 7.92 out of 100. The mean knowledge of CHD was significantly higher for WNH males (p < 0.039) than BNH males. A significant inverse correlation (r = 0.392, p < 0.032) was found between the CHD knowledge and CHDRPS in WNH females. The researcher's findings indicate strong gender and ethnic differences in CHD risk factors among the college-age population. ^

Segmental body composition determination through a bioelectrical very large scale integration (VLSI) system

The purpose of this investigation was to develop new techniques to generate segmental assessments of body composition based on Segmental Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (SBIA). An equally important consideration was the design, simulation, development, and the software and hardware integration of the SBIA system. This integration was carried out with a Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) microcontroller that analyzed the measurements obtained from segments of the body, and provided full body and segmental Fat Free Mass (FFM) and Fat Mass (FM) percentages. Also, the issues related to the estimate of the body's composition in persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) were addressed and investigated. This investigation demonstrated that the SBIA methodology provided accurate segmental body composition measurements. Disabled individuals are expected to benefit from these SBIA evaluations, as they are non-invasive methods, suitable for paralyzed individuals. The SBIA VLSI system may replace bulky, non flexible electronic modules attached to human bodies. ^