General Population Of England Research Articles

Asymptomatic Rotavirus Infections in England: Prevalence, Characteristics, and Risk Factors

Rotavirus is a major cause of infectious intestinal disease in young children; a substantial prevalence of asymptomatic infection has been reported across all age groups. In this study, the authors determined characteristics of asymptomatic rotavirus infection and potential risk factors for infection. Healthy persons were recruited at random from the general population of England during the Study of Infectious Intestinal Disease in England (1993-1996). Rotavirus infection was identified using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Multivariable logistic regression was used to compare exposures reported by participants with rotavirus infection with those of participants who tested negative. Multiple imputation was used to account for missing responses in the data set. The age-adjusted prevalence of asymptomatic rotavirus infection was 11%; prevalence was highest in children under age 18 years. Attendance at day care was a risk factor for asymptomatic rotavirus infection in children under age 5 years; living in a household with a baby that was still in diapers was a risk factor in older adults. The results suggest that asymptomatic rotavirus infection is transmitted through the same route as rotavirus infectious intestinal disease: person-to-person contact. More work is needed to understand the role of asymptomatic infections in transmission leading to rotavirus disease.

Impact of obesity and type 2 diabetes on health-related quality of life in the general population in England

Weight gain can contribute towards the development of type 2 diabetes (T2D), and some treatments for T2D can lead to weight gain. The aim of this study was to determine whether having T2D and also being obese had a greater or lesser impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) than having either of the two conditions alone. The 2003 dataset of the Health Survey for England (HSE) was analyzed using multiple regression analyses to examine the influence of obesity and T2D on HRQoL, and to determine whether there was any interaction between these two disutilities. T2D reduced HRQoL by 0.029 points, and obesity reduced HRQoL by 0.027 points. There was no significant interaction effect between T2D and obesity, suggesting that the effect of having both T2D and being obese is simply additive and results in a reduction in HRQoL of 0.056. Based on analysis of HSE 2003 data, people with either T2D or obesity experience significant reduction in HRQoL and people with both conditions have a reduction in HRQoL equal to the sum of the two independent effects. The effect of obesity on HRQoL in people with T2D should be considered when selecting a therapy.

Impact of obesity and type 2 diabetes on health-related quality of life in the general population in England

Impact of obesity and type 2 diabetes on health-related quality of life in the general population in England

Diet, smoking and cardiovascular risk in schizophrenia in high and low care supported housing

People suffering from schizophrenia have markedly increased physical morbidity and mortality. A poor diet and sedentary lifestyle make a significant contribution to this ill health. Healthcare professionals need to include assessments of diet and to promote a 'healthy living' lifestyle. To describe the dietary habits and cardiovascular risk factors of people with chronic schizophrenia living in supported accommodation and to audit the provision of cardiovascular health screening in this population. The dietary habits of 69 people with chronic schizophrenia living in community settings were assessed. Tobacco smoking, body mass indices and waist circumference were also measured. The dietary behaviour of patients living in high care settings with care staff present every day was compared with those in low care settings. Residents in both levels of care made poor dietary choices. Patients in high care were consuming more fast food than those in low care. The dietary habits of men and women in both levels of care were worse than reported by surveys of the general population in England. All patients had seen their GP in the previous year though only 3 had received diabetes screening and fewer than half had lipid profiles. People with schizophrenia do not improve their diet just by the provision of healthy food as was the case in high care settings. Secondary care services must address physical health monitoring as well as mental health if the increased mortality of patients with schizophrenia is to be addressed effectively. More effective interventions are necessary to improve and sustain a healthy diet.

Pregnancy Outcomes among Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer in the British Childhood Cancer Survivor Study

We used data from the first large-scale overwhelmingly population-based study (a) to quantify the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes in survivors of childhood cancer in relation to cancer type and treatment and (b) to assess live birth rates relative to the general population. A questionnaire, including questions inquiring about pregnancy outcomes, was completed by 10,483 survivors. A total of 7,300 pregnancies were reported. Odds ratios (OR) for live birth, miscarriage, termination, stillbirth, premature birth, and low birth weight were calculated for different types of childhood cancer and by whether initial treatment involved chemotherapy and abdominal or brain irradiation. For females, the observed number of live births was compared with that expected based on the general population of England and Wales. Female survivors exposed to abdominal irradiation had a significantly increased OR of delivering preterm [OR, 3.2; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 2.1-4.7] and producing offspring with a low birth weight (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.1-3.2). An increased OR of miscarriage was also associated with abdominal radiotherapy (OR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.0-1.9). The number of live births observed from all female survivors was two thirds of that expected (O/E, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.62-0.66) and lowest among survivors treated with brain (O/E, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.48-0.56) and abdominal radiotherapy (O/E, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.50-0.61). Female survivors of childhood cancer treated with abdominal radiotherapy are at 3-fold increased risk of delivering preterm, 2-fold increased risk of low birth weight, and a small increased risk of miscarriage. Overall, female survivors produce considerably fewer offspring than expected, particularly those treated with abdominal or brain radiotherapy.

Cataract surgery and mortality

We read with interest the paper by Blundell et al ,1 which compared mortality among people who had undergone cataract surgery in Bristol in 2000–2001 with the mortality in the...

No socioeconomic inequalities in colorectal cancer survival within a randomised clinical trial.

There is strong evidence that colorectal cancer survival differs between socioeconomic groups. We analysed data on 2481 patients diagnosed during 1989–1997 and recruited to a randomised controlled clinical trial (AXIS, ISRCTN32414363) of chemotherapy and radiotherapy for colorectal cancer. Crude and relative survival at 1 and 5 years was estimated in five categories of socioeconomic deprivation. Multiple imputation was used to account for missing data on tumour stage. A multivariable fractional polynomial model was fitted to estimate the excess hazard of death in each deprivation category, adjusting for the confounding effects of age, stage, cancer site (colon, rectum) and sex, using generalised linear models. Relative survival in the trial patients was higher than in the general population of England and Wales. The socioeconomic gradient in survival was much smaller than that seen for colorectal cancer patients in the general population, both at 1 year −3.2% (95% CI −7.3 to 1.0%, P=0.14) and at 5 years −1.7% (95% CI −8.3 to 4.9%, P=0.61). Given equal treatment, colorectal cancer survival in England and Wales does not appear to depend on socioeconomic status, suggesting that the socioeconomic gradient in survival in the general population could well be due to health-care system factors.

The cost‐effectiveness of screening and treatment for hepatitis C in prisons in England and Wales: a cost‐utility analysis

Prisoners have a high prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection compared with the general population in England and Wales and in many locations throughout the world. This is because of large numbers of injecting drug users that engage in behaviours likely to transmit HCV being present within prison populations. It is, therefore, suggested that prison may be an appropriate location for HCV screening and treatment to be administered. Using cost-utility analysis, this study considers the costs and benefits of administering a single round of screening on reception into prison to all individuals followed by possible later screening in the community and comparing this to individuals who may only be tested and treated in the community at a later date. The cost/QALY of one round of prison testing and treatment was found to be 54,852 pounds sterling, although probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed extensive uncertainty about this estimate. One-way sensitivity analysis revealed the importance of the parameters describing the progression of chronic HCV and the discount rates. While the results presented here at baseline would suggest that screening and treatment for HCV in prisons is not cost-effective, these results are subject to much uncertainty. The importance of the rates describing the progression of chronic HCV on the cost-effectiveness of this intervention has been demonstrated and this suggests that future work should be undertaken to gain further insight into the rates that individuals progress to the later stages of chronic HCV infection.

Growth hormone (GH) replacement in hypopituitary adults with GH deficiency evaluated by a utility-weighted quality of life index: a precursor to cost-utility analysis.

ObjectivesTo examine quality of life (QoL) measured by a utility-weighted index in GH-deficient adults on GH replacement and analyse the impact of demographic and clinical characteristics on changes in utilities during treatment.DesignUtilities for items in the QoL-Assessment of Growth Hormone Deficiency in Adults (QoL-AGHDAutility) were estimated based on data obtained from the general population in England and Wales (E&W). These estimates were used to calculate QoL changes in GH-treated patients and compare these with normative population values.PatientsA total of 894 KIMS patients (53% women) from E&W were followed for 1 to 6 years.MeasurementsQoL-AGHDAutility at baseline and at the last reported visit, total QoL-AGHDAutility gain and QoL-AGHDAutility gain per year of follow-up.ResultsQoL-AGHDAutility in patients before GH treatment differed from the expected population values [0·67 (SD 0·174) vs. 0·85 (SD 0·038), P < 0·0001], constituting a mean deficit of –0·19 (SD 0·168). There was a difference in the mean QoL-AGHDAutility deficit for men [–0·16 (SD 0·170)] and women [–0·21 (SD 0·162)] (P < 0·001). The main improvement occurred during the first year of treatment [reduction of a deficit to –0·07 (SD 0·163) (P < 0·001) in the total cohort]; however, patients’ utilities remained lower than those recorded for the general population during subsequent follow-up (P < 0·001). Despite an observed impact of age, primary aetiology, disease onset and comorbidities on QoL-AGHDAutility, all patients showed a similar beneficial response to treatment.ConclusionsQoL-AGHDAutility efficiently monitors treatment effects in patients with GHD. The study confirmed the QoL-AGHDAutility deficit before treatment and a similar QoL-AGHDAutility gain observed after commencement of GH replacement in all patients.

Prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among ethnic groups: Results from the Health Surveys for England

Objective To identify independent risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes for each minority ethnic group and the general population in England and explore the independent association of ethnicity and CVD and diabetes. Participants Nationally representative samples of 2362 Black Caribbean, 2467 Indian, 2204 Pakistanis, 1985 Bangladeshis, 1385 Chinese, 2398 Irish, and 30,744 adults from the general population living in private households. Results CVD was relatively more common among: Indian and Chinese men with high waist–hip ratio; Indian, Bangladeshi and Irish with diabetes; Black Caribbean, Indian and Pakistani with hypertension; Bangladeshi and Pakistani ex-smokers and Indian ex-smokers and current-smokers; Pakistani that were moderate-drinkers and Indian heavy drinkers; Black Carribean Indian, Pakistani and Irish physically inactive; Pakistani in manual social class; and Bangladeshi in low income. Black Caribbean, Bangladeshi and Chinese participants and Indian and Pakistani women had significantly lower odds ratios of having CVD, compared with the general population. The odds of having diabetes were significantly higher for Black Caribbean, Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi, Chinese (men only) than participants from the general population. Conclusions CVD prevention through control of risk factors, especially diabetes and hypertension, should not only address the general population, but also target people from these groups.

Myocardial Infarction Mortality Risk After Treatment for Hodgkin Disease: A Collaborative British Cohort Study

Myocardial infarction is a major cause of excess long-term mortality in survivors of Hodgkin disease, but limited information exists on the effects of specific chemotherapy regimens used to treat these patients on their risk of death from myocardial infarction. We followed a cohort of 7033 Hodgkin disease patients who were treated in Britain from November 1, 1967, through September 30, 2000, and compared their risk of myocardial infarction mortality with that in the general population of England and Wales. All statistical tests were two-sided. A total of 166 deaths from myocardial infarction occurred in the cohort, statistically significantly more than expected (standardized mortality ratio [SMR] = 2.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.1 to 2.9), with an absolute excess risk of 125.8 per 100,000 person-years. Standardized mortality ratios decreased sharply with older age at first treatment, but absolute excess risks of death from myocardial infarction increased with older age up to age 65 years at first treatment. The statistically significantly increased risk of myocardial infarction mortality persisted through to 25 years after first treatment. Risks were increased statistically significantly and independently for patients who had been treated with supradiaphragmatic radiotherapy, anthracyclines, or vincristine. Risk was particularly high for patients treated with the doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine regimen (SMR = 9.5, 95% CI = 3.5 to 20.6). Risk at 20 or more years after first treatment was particularly great for patients who had received supradiaphragmatic radiotherapy and vincristine without anthracyclines (SMR = 14.8, 95% CI = 4.8 to 34.5). The risk of death from myocardial infarction after treatment for Hodgkin disease remains high for at least 25 years. The increased risks are related to supradiaphragmatic radiotherapy but may also be related to anthracycline and vincristine treatment.

The association of body mass index with Barrett's oesophagus: author's reply

Sirs, We appreciate the correspondence by Dr Caygill et al. We recently conducted a systematic review on the association between obesity and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) including its potential complications.1 There were no studies, satisfying our inclusion and exclusion criteria that assessed the association between obesity and Barrett's oesophagus. Excluded due to the absence of an appropriate control group, the study by Caygill et al.2 that reported a boby mass index > 30 in 24% of patients in their non-population-based case series of 102 patients with Barrett's oesophagus, when compared an obesity prevalence of 13% in the general population of England. Excluded also due to small number of cases, a case–control study by Chak et al.3 reported no apparent increase in risk of obesity in 35 patients with Barrett's oesophagus compared with a control group of patients with GERD. In hindsight, it would have been prudent for us to either directly refer to the systematic review or indicate the presence of these two publications and their limitations.

Psychotic symptoms in the general population of England

Psychotic symptoms in the general population of England

Psychotic symptoms in the general population of England

There is considerable evidence that incidence of schizophrenia and other psychoses varies across ethnic groups in the UK, with particularly high rates for people of African-Caribbean origin. The aims of this shady were to estimate in a community-based sample of people from ethnic minorities: 1) the prevalence of psychotic symptoms; and 2) risk factors for reporting psychotic symptoms. Face-to-face interviews were carried out with a probabilistic sample of 4281 adults from six ethnic groups living in the UK. Psychotic symptoms were measured using the psychosis screening questionnaire (PSQ). There was a twofold higher rate of reporting psychotic symptoms on the PSQ in Black Caribbean people compared with Whites. Adjustment for demographic factors had little effect on this association. Prevalence rates of psychotic symptoms were higher in people from ethnic minorities, but were not consistent with the much higher first contact rates for psychotic disorder reported previously, particularly in Black Caribbeans.

Non-coronary heart disease mortality and risk of fatal cancer in patients with treated heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia: a prospective registry study

Background: The prognosis from coronary heart disease (CHD) for patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia has improved substantially since the introduction of HMG Co-A reductase inhibitors (statins), but the effect of lipid-lowering drug therapy combined with dietary and life style advice on non-coronary mortality and the risk of fatal cancer is unclear. Methods: The cohort of 2871 patients was recruited from 21 outpatient lipid clinics in the UK from 1980 to 1998 and was followed for 22,992 person-years. The standardised mortality ratio (SMR) was calculated from the ratio of the number of deaths observed to the number expected in the general population of England and Wales. Results: There were 169 deaths, including 102 (60.4%) from CHD, and 32 (18.9%) from cancer. The SMR for CHD was 2.5-fold higher than in the general population (95% CI 2.1, 3.1), but the all-cause SMR was not increased (1.1, 95% CI 0.9, 1.3) and non-coronary mortality was significantly lower in men (0.5, 95% CI 0.3, 0.7) and women (0.6, 95% CI 0.4, 0.9). The SMR for all cancers was significantly reduced (0.6, 95% CI 0.4, 0.8) with an 80% reduction in fatal cancers of the respiratory and intra-thoracic organs and a non-significant reduction in fatal cancers of the genitourinary and digestive organs. Conclusions: Although the study cannot exclude the possibility that statins have anti-cancer activity, the results strongly suggest that giving advice to consume a healthy diet, increase physical activity and stop smoking is associated with a substantial reduction in mortality from cancer.

Seroprevalence of antibody to varicella zoster virus in England and Wales in children and young adults

This is the first large-scale study to investigate the seroprevalence of varicella zoster (VZV) in the general population of England and Wales. The study focused on those aged 1-20 years, that age group in whom most infections occur. Prevalence rose rapidly with age, with 53% of children showing evidence of prior infection by the age of 5 years and most young adults having experienced infection. In addition to using a fixed cut-off recommended by the manufacturer, a mixture modelling technique was also used to define the proportion of the population seropositive in each age group. This was shown to be a more accurate approach to categorizing data from an epidemiological perspective.

Cutaneous malignant melanoma in association with mycosis fungoides

We retrospectively analyzed the first 461 cases entered into our cutaneous lymphoma database and found 285 cases of mycosis fungoides. We also identified 6 cases of malignant melanoma, all of which were found in patients with mycosis fungoides. The crude rate of melanoma in the general population in England, United Kingdom, in 1998 was 8.8/100000 in men and 11.4/100000 in women. The incidence of melanoma found in our cohort of patients with mycosis fungoides was far higher, and in 4 of the 6 patients cannot be explained on the basis of prior therapy. The reason for this association is unclear, but this report emphasizes the risk of second malignancies for patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma and melanoma.

Comparison of the risk of fatal coronary heart disease in treated xanthomatous and non-xanthomatous heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia: a prospective registry study

Background: A clinical diagnosis of familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) is often made in the absence of tendon xanthomata (TX), which are not usually present before the fourth decade of life. The prognosis of treated non-xanthomatous (TX−) FH is uncertain and the objective of this study was to compare mortality from coronary heart disease (CHD) in patients with treated TX+ (definite) and TX− (possible) heterozygous FH. Methods: A diagnosis of definite or possible FH was based on raised cholesterol levels (>7.5 mmol/l) and a family history of premature CHD or hypercholesterolaemia. Patients were recruited from 21 outpatient lipid clinics in the UK from 1980 to 1998. The cohort of 1569 patients with TX+ FH were followed for 12 754 person years and the cohort of 1302 patients with TX− FH for 10 238 person years. The standardised mortality ratio (SMR) was calculated from the ratio of the number of deaths observed to the number expected in the general population of England and Wales (SMR=100 for reference population). Findings and discussion: CHD accounted for 64 (63%) of the 102 deaths in the TX+ cohort and 38 (57%) of the 67 deaths in the TX− cohort with the SMR for a fatal coronary event being, respectively, 294 (95% confidence interval 228, 380, P<0.00001) and 205 (95% CI 145, 282, P=0.0001). The similarly elevated CHD mortality risk suggests that, in adulthood, both groups of patients should be treated equally aggressively with HMG Co A reductase inhibitors (statins).

Sibling familial risk ratio of meningococcal disease in UK Caucasians

To quantify the host genetic component of meningococcal disease (MD) susceptibility, the sibling risk ratio (lambdaS) was calculated as the ratio of observed MD cases among 845 siblings of 443 UK Caucasian cases to that expected, calculated from age-calendar year specific rates for England and Wales. Twenty-seven siblings contracted MD compared with an expected 0.89, generating a lambdaS value of 30.3. Overestimation of lambdaS due to Neisseria meningitidis exposure was minimized by excluding siblings with MD onset within set time points of the index case. Irrespective of whether siblings contracted MD more than 1, 3, 6, 9 or 12 months after the index case, the lambdaS varied slightly (lambdaS range: 8.2-11.9), suggesting that host genetic factors may contribute approximately one third of the total lambdaS. Social class distribution did not differ between MD cases and the general population of England and Wales. This study is the first to calculate lambdaS for MD and establishes that susceptibility to MD has a significant host genetic component.

Risk of fatal stroke in patients with treated familial hypercholesterolemia: a prospective registry study.

Although it is recognized that in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, large extracranial carotid vessels are affected by atherosclerosis, the risk of fatal stroke after treatment with cholesterol-lowering therapy remains uncertain. The goal of this study was to determine the risk of fatal stroke in patients with treated familial hypercholesterolemia. A cohort of 1405 men and 1466 women with definite or possible heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia was recruited from 21 outpatient lipid clinics in the United Kingdom. Patients were followed up prospectively from 1980 to 1998 for 22 992 person-years for a median duration of 7.9 years (interquartile range, 4.9 to 12.0 years). The mortality rate was calculated, and the standardized mortality ratio for men and women 20 to 79 years of age was derived from the ratio of the observed deaths to the number expected in the general population of England and Wales (standardized mortality ratio=100 for the standard population). A total of 169 deaths occurred; 9 (5.3%) were a result of stroke. The mortality rate from stroke was 0.39 per 1000 person-years (95% confidence interval, 0.18 to 0.74), and the standardized mortality ratio for fatal stroke was nonsignificantly lower than in the general population (79; 95% CI, 36 to 150). The results suggest that patients with treated familial hypercholesterolemia are not at increased risk of fatal stroke. However, the possibility cannot be excluded that untreated individuals are at increased risk, which would be consistent with the evidence that familial hypercholesterolemia is a panvascular disease.