Low-risk Males Research Articles

Comparison of Bone Quality Among Winter Endurance Athletes with and Without Risk Factors for Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs): A Cross-Sectional Study.

Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs) is a syndrome describing the relationship between prolonged and/or severe low energy availability and negative health and performance outcomes. The high energy expenditures incurred during training and competition put endurance athletes at risk of REDs. The objective of this study was to investigate differences in bone quality in winter endurance athletes classified as either low-risk versus at-risk for REDs. Forty-four participants were recruited (M = 18; F = 26). Bone quality was assessed at the distal radius and tibia using high resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT), and at the hip and spine using dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Finite element analysis was used to estimate bone strength. Participants were grouped using modified criteria from the REDs Clinical Assessment Tool Version 1. Fourteen participants (M = 3; F = 11), were classified as at-risk of REDs (≥ 3 risk factors). Measured with HR-pQCT, cortical bone area (radius) and bone strength (radius and tibia) were 6.8%, 13.1% and 10.3% lower (p = 0.025, p = 0.033, p = 0.027) respectively, in at-risk compared with low-risk participants. Using DXA, femoral neck areal bone density was 9.4% lower in at-risk compared with low-risk participants (p = 0.005). At-risk male participants had 21.9% lower femoral neck areal bone density (via DXA) than low-risk males (p = 0.020) with no significant differences in females. Overall, 33.3% of athletes were at-risk for REDs and had lower bone quality than those at low-risk.

Scenario of HIV infection in Pakistan

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, which was previously lethal, has evolved into a chronic disease that may be treated and well-managed. HIV levels in the bloodstream may become undetectable with antiretroviral therapy (ART). All those providing care for people living with HIV should be aware of the risk factors, transmission, diagnosis, and treatment, acute HIV infection, possible opportunistic infections, and malignancies. Preexposure and postexposure prophylaxis regimens allow for preventive treatment. Home healthcare specialists can help people follow their drug schedules, assess the effectiveness of their treatments, and identify HIV problems and ART side effects. The ability to support, inform, and counsel people living with HIV and their families is most crucial [1].
 Approximately 38.9 million people worldwide were living with HIV, 25.4 million had access to antiretroviral therapy (ART), 1.7 million had just recently contracted the virus, and 690,000 had passed away from AIDS-related illnesses, according to a Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS 2020 report. Although Pakistan's national HIV/AIDS control program was established in 1987, the number of new HIV/AIDS cases has been rising quickly ever since. In Pakistan, 160,000 people were living with HIV/AIDS as of 2018, yet only 10% of them were receiving ART. 3 Increasing people with HIV/AIDS' access to ART has a number of positive effects, including delaying the advancement of the disease, extending life expectancy, and enhancing people's quality of life and mental health [2].
 "More than 1,000 new HIV cases are reported each month from all four provinces, including the capitol city Islamabad, Azad Kashmir, and Gilgit Baltistan. This demonstrates unequivocally that homosexuals, persons who inject drugs, male, female, and transgender sex workers, and other critical demographics are now spreading HIV to the broader community. During the final 10 months of 2022, 9,773 people in Pakistan had HIV tests that were positive, casting significant doubt on HIV preventive and control initiatives and amply demonstrating the spread of HIV from important populations to the general public. New HIV infections account for a sizable portion of low-risk males, females, and clients of critical communities, showing an increase in HIV transmission to bridging populations [3].
 The increased rate of HIV in Pakistan pose a risk to a healthy population, blood recipients etc. Therefore, surrounding communities should also be checked for HIV. The government should direct public education campaigns in coordination with NGOs. To prevent any future epidemics, barbers and unlicensed health professionals in remote regions should receive training.

Adolescent social functioning in offspring at high risk for schizophrenia spectrum disorders in the Finnish Adoptive Family Study of Schizophrenia

BackgroundChildren and adolescents with a genetic risk for schizophrenia are often found to have poorer social functioning compared to their controls. However, less is known about high-risk offspring who have not been reared by a biological parent with schizophrenia. The purpose of this study was to examine deficits in social functioning in adolescence as a possible factor related to genetic vulnerability to schizophrenia spectrum disorders, and also to examine possible gender differences in these associations. MethodThe present sample consisted of 88 genetic high-risk (HR) adoptees whose biological mothers were diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders and 83 genetic low-risk (LR) adoptees with biological mothers with non-schizophrenia spectrum disorders or no psychiatric disorders. Adoptees’ social functioning at ages 16–20 was assessed using the UCLA Social Attainment Survey. ResultsCompared to LR adoptees, HR adoptees displayed statistically significant deficits in their peer relationships, involvement in activities and overall social functioning during adolescence. HR males were distinguished from LR males by their significantly poorer overall social functioning. Compared to HR females, HR males showed significant deficits in their romantic relationships. Of marginal significance was that HR females displayed more social functioning deficits relative to LR females, mainly in the areas of peer relationships, involvement in activities and overall social functioning. ConclusionsThese results from the adoption and high-risk study design suggest that deficits in social functioning in adolescence may be related to genetic vulnerability to schizophrenia spectrum disorders and that some of these deficits may be gender-specific.

Individual and Neighborhood Factors Associated With Sexual Behavior Classes in an Urban Longitudinal Sample.

This study aimed to increase understanding of the clustering of sexual behaviors in an urban sample of emerging adults, and the individual and neighborhood factors associated with sexual behavior patterns to provide insight into reducing the disproportionate burden of poor sexual outcomes among urban African Americans. We draw on 2 cohorts of urban, predominantly African American youth first assessed at age 6 years and follow-up to emerging adulthood (mean age, 20 years; n = 1618). Latent class analyses by gender identified co-occurrence of sexual behavior. We found 3 classes for both males and females: high-risk (13% of males, 15% of females), low-risk (54% of males, 56% of females) and no-risk (33% of males, 29% of females). Membership in the high-risk class was associated with school dropout, a substance use disorder diagnosis, having a criminal arrest, pregnancy, and sexually transmitted diseases for both males and females. High-risk females also had higher rates of depression. Low-risk males and females also had elevated risk of pregnancy and parenthood. Neighborhood factors distinguished the high- and no-risk classes for males and females, including the neighborhood environment scale, which assessed poverty, safety, drug activity, and crime/violence in the neighborhood. Neighborhood religiosity was inversely associated with membership in the high-risk class compared with the no-risk class for females only. Neighborhood racism distinguished those in the high-risk class compared with the no-risk class for males. Future work should take into account the clustering of sexual risk behaviors. Specific neighborhood factors could be addressed to reduce sexual health disparities.

Differentiating the Effects of Familial Risk for Alcohol Dependence and Prenatal Exposure to Alcohol on Offspring Brain Morphology.

Offspring with a family history of alcohol dependence (AD) have been shown to have altered structural and functional integrity of corticolimbic brain structures. Similarly, prenatal exposure to alcohol is associated with a variety of structural and functional brain changes. The goal of this study was to differentiate the brain gray matter volumetric differences associated with familial risk and prenatal exposure to alcohol among offspring while controlling for lifetime personal exposures to alcohol and drugs. A total of 52 high-risk (HR) offspring from maternal multiplex families with a high proportion of AD were studied along with 55 low-risk (LR) offspring. Voxel-based morphometric analysis was performed using statistical parametric mapping (SPM8) software using 3T structural images from these offspring to identify gray matter volume differences associated with familial risk and prenatal exposure. Significant familial risk group differences were seen with HR males showing reduced volume of the left inferior temporal, left fusiform, and left and right insula regions relative to LR males, controlling for prenatal exposure to alcohol drugs and cigarettes. HR females showed a reduction in the right fusiform but also showed a reduction in volume in portions of the cerebellum (left crus I and left lobe 8). Prenatal alcohol exposure effects, assessed within the familial HR group, was associated with reduced right middle cingulum and left middle temporal volume. Even low exposure resulting from mothers drinking in amounts less than the median of those who drank (53 drinks or less over the course of the pregnancy) showed a reduction in volume in the right anterior cingulum and in the left cerebellum (lobes 4 and 5). Familial risk for AD and prenatal exposure to alcohol and other drugs show independent effects on brain morphology.

Enhanced Social Attention in Female Infant Siblings at Risk for Autism

Sexual dimorphism in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is a well-recognized but poorly understood phenomenon. Females are four times less likely to be diagnosed with ASD than males and, when diagnosed, are more likely to exhibit comorbid anxiety symptoms. One of the key phenotypic features of ASD is atypical attention to socially relevant stimuli. Eye-tracking studies indicate atypical patterns of spontaneous social orienting during the prodromal and early syndromic stages of ASD. However, there have been no studies evaluating sex differences in early social orienting and their potential contribution to later outcomes. We examined sex differences in social orienting in 6-, 9-, and 12-month-old infants at high genetic risk for ASD (n= 101) and in low-risk controls (n= 61), focusing on neurobehavioral measures of function across a spectrum of autism risk. Results suggest that, between 6 and 12 months of age, a period highly consequential for the development of nonverbal social engagement competencies, high-risk females show enhanced attention to social targets, including faces, compared to both high-risk males and low-risk males and females. Greater attention to social targets in high-risk infants was associated with less severe social impairments at 2 years. The results suggest an alternative expression of autism risk in females, which manifests in infancyas increased attention toward socially relevant stimuli. This increased attention may serve as a femaleprotective factor against ASD by providing increased access to social experiences in early development.

Familial risk for alcohol dependence and developmental changes in BMI: the moderating influence of addiction and obesity genes.

Familial loading for alcohol dependence (AD) and variation in genes reported to be associated with AD or BMI were tested in a longitudinal study. Growth curve analyses of BMI data collected at approximately yearly intervals and obesity status (BMI > 30) were examined. High-risk males were found to have higher BMI than low-risk males, beginning at age 15 years (2.0 kg/m(2) difference; p = 0.046), persisting through age 19 years (3.3 kg/m(2) difference; p = 0.005). CHRM2 genotypic variance predicted longitudinal BMI and obesity status. Interactions with risk status and sex were also observed for DRD2 and FTO gene variation. Variation at loci implicated in addiction may be influential in determining susceptibility to increased BMI in childhood and adolescence.

Sex Dimorphism in the Relation between Early Adiposity and Cardiometabolic Risk in Adolescents

Birth weight and childhood adiposity are associated with subsequent cardiovascular risk. We investigated the associations between metabolic clusters in young adults with body fat distribution from early childhood, focusing on sex differences. A total of 1053 17 yr olds from an Australian birth cohort had measures of anthropometry, blood pressure, and fasting insulin, glucose, and lipids. Two-step cluster analysis identified 17 yr olds at high metabolic risk. The two risk groups were compared by sex with regard to birth weight and serial anthropometry, including skinfold thickness from nine time-points. The "high-risk" metabolic cluster at age 17 yr included 16% of males and 19% of females. Compared to the "low-risk" group, the high-risk cluster participants had greater waist circumference, triglycerides, insulin, and systolic blood pressure and lower high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (all P <0.0001). There was a significant birth weight by sex interaction upon the metabolic cluster outcome (P = 0.011). Compared to their low-risk counterparts, females in the high-risk cluster at 17 yr were heavier from birth (odds ratio, 1.8; 95% confidence interval, 1.0, 3.2) (P = 0.034), with consistently higher body mass index and skinfold thickness thereafter. In contrast, there was no statistical difference in birth weight between high- and low-risk males (odds ratio, 0.62; 95% confidence interval, 0.38, 1.02). These data show sexual dimorphism in effects of early life body mass index and fat distribution upon cardiometabolic risk factors. Females in a contemporary population are particularly prone to increased risk when born heavier. This has implications for targeted prevention of obesity and metabolic diseases with increasing maternal obesity and gestational diabetes.

Views of hypertension among young African Americans who vary in their risk of developing hypertension.

To describe beliefs about hypertension and health education of young African American adults varying in their hypertension risk status. Fifty-eight African American young adults (17-20 years) were selected based on low and high risk criteria for hypertension assessed in earlier investigations of hemodynamic responses to stress. The sample included 15 high risk males, 13 low risk males, 14 high risk females, and 16 low risk females who were interviewed indepth about their hypertension beliefs and health education experiences. Variable-based matrices identified participants with similar responses. Overall, participants had a limited understanding of hypertension. For example, they linked the condition to eating a diet high in pork and fat and having a positive family history of hypertension with little acknowledgement of weight, smoking, race and sex as key contributors to hypertension onset. Distinctions were found between risk categories and along sex lines. Most high risk participants believed stress could cause hypertension. High risk females believed that they were at risk for developing hypertension but lacked prevention strategies. High risk males were generally uninformed about risk or prevention. More low risk females believed in prevention compared to few low risk males. Participants reported little formal health education about hypertension and recommended that hypertension education be improved through more effective and relevant approaches in high school health education classes. These findings support the need for comprehensive and revitalized hypertension prevention programs for young African Americans. Participant views varied with hypertension risk status and gender suggesting that targeted educational efforts should reflect these differences.

Interpersonal functioning in adolescent offspring of parents with bipolar disorder

Background Poor interpersonal functioning may represent a putative prodromal feature of major affective disorder. However, no studies have examined the naturalistic patterns of social behaviours among the offspring of parents with a major affective disorder. The present study assessed daily social interactions among 25 offspring of parents with bipolar disorder and 23 control participants in late adolescence and young adulthood. Methods Using event-contingent recording procedures, interpersonal behaviours and perceptions were assessed along four scales (quarrelsomeness, agreeableness, dominance, and submissiveness) and were measured during specific social interactions over 14 days. Results Multilevel modeling analyses revealed no group differences on any of the four scales, but gender by group interactions were was observed. High-risk males reported higher mean levels of quarrelsome behaviour and lower mean levels of agreeable behaviour than high-risk females, whereas low-risk males and females reported comparable levels of affiliative behaviours. High-risk participants reported more externalizing, but not internalizing, problems on the Achenbach Youth Self-Report Form than low-risk participants. Limitations Although event-contingent recording reduces the self-report bias associated with self-report questionnaires, participants may have been biased in the selection of interactions they chose to record. Conclusions Overall, the offspring of parents with BD, relative to controls, report no deficits in social functioning in the natural environment. However, high-risk youth displayed elevated externalizing problems and gender-specific patterns of social functioning that may precede the development of major affective disorder.

The Finnmark Intervention Study: do community-based intervention programmes threaten self-rated health and well-being? Experiences from Båtsfjord, a fishing village in North Norway

Examine negative side-effects on self-rated health and well-being of a community-based intervention in a fishing community in the Norwegian Arctic. A cohort study with quasi-experimental design with one intervention community and three control communities from the same area. There was a baseline screening (1987), three years intervention (1988-1991) and a rescreening (1993). Of the invited (aged 20-62 years in 1987), 668 (64%) males and 656 (72%) females met at both screenings. The main outcome variables were self-rated health, mental health variables, and preoccupation with health. Those answering the relevant questions at both screenings were analysed. High-risk and low-risk males were analysed separately. There were too few females in the high-risk group to do separate analyses. The main findings among the low-risk group were: Males in Batsfjord did not differ from males in the control communities. Among females, there was a reduction in the proportion depressed of 20.4% points in Batsfjord and 9.6% in the control communities (p adjusted=0.060). There was also a decrease in the proportion lonely of 19.2% points and 5.8% respectively (p adjusted=0.005). In the male high-risk group there was a decrease in the proportion lonely by 14.7% points in Batsfjord and an increase by 5.9% in the control communities (p adjusted=0.004). We have not found that an intervention programme using local empowerment, mass strategies, and intervention on high-risk cases has serious negative side effects on self-rated health, well-being or preoccupation with health.

Male mating behavior and ejaculate expenditure under sperm competition risk in the eastern mosquitofish

Theory predicts that males should tailor the size of their ejaculates according to temporal changes in the risk of sperm competition. Specifically, males are predicted to allocate more sperm to each mating event with increasing risk (i.e., the probability that the sperm from two males will compete for fertilization). We tested this hypothesis by using the eastern mosquitofish, a freshwater species of fish exhibiting a coercive mating system and internal fertilization. We manipulated the perception of sperm competition risk by adjusting the sex ratio under which males were maintained over 8 days. Males were housed either with three females and one male (simulating high sperm competition risk) or with four females (low risk). After the treatment, we presented each test male individually to an unfamiliar male-deprived female for 30 minutes and observed his mating behavior. We then artificially stripped the test males of sperm and recovered the ejaculates from the females. Our results revealed that males in the high-risk group performed higher levels of mating activity and sperm expenditure (i.e., used up more of their sperm reserves) than did low-risk males. A control experiment, in which test males were treated but did not participate in the mating trials, revealed no significant difference in the number of sperm stripped from high- and low-risk males, indicating that sperm production was not affected by the treatment. We did not detect a difference in the number of sperm retrieved from females among the groups, raising the possibility that some sperm are lost during mating activity, either through ejaculation with incomplete or interrupted penetration, or via female ejection. Copyright 2003.

International Variations in Youth Drug Use: The Effect of Individual Behaviours, Peer and Family Influences, and Geographical Location

This international study investigates factors underlying international variations in rates of youth drug use among representative samples of 15-year-olds in five cities (Bremen, n = 871; Dublin, n = 983; Groningen, n = 487; Newcastle upon Tyne, n = 880; Rome, n = 666). It reveals a higher level of drug use in English-speaking compared to continental populations. Drug use was associated with peer, family and individual factors. Logistic regression showed that family structure and sport were associated with lower rates and delinquent behaviour with higher rates of drug use in all cities and among males and females. Among males, city of residence also independently predicted drug use. The effect of traditional families and studiousness in reducing drug use was most evident for male drug use in low-use cities: higher rates of use in English-speaking cities appear partially due to the drug use of low-risk males.

Developmental delay in P300 production in children at high risk for developing alcohol-related disorders

Background: Reduction of P300 amplitude in children and adolescents at high risk for developing alcoholism has frequently been reported. It has been hypothesized that this reduction represents a developmental delay in reaching age-appropriate levels in P300 amplitude. Using latent growth analysis of longitudinal data obtained at yearly intervals, this study seeks to define normal growth, and determine if the pattern seen in high-risk children differs from that obtained in normal low-risk controls. Methods: A total of 156 children from either high or low-risk families have been assessed multiple times (two-thirds more than 4 times) using both a clinical assessment (K-SADS) and ERP evaluation performed on the same day. A total of 635 separate assessments were available for modeling. Results: Quadratic growth curves revealed a slower rate of change in P300 amplitude in high-risk than low-risk males. High-risk girls showed reduced visual P300 amplitude only when the presence of a K-SADS diagnosis was considered. No differences were seen for P300 latency. Conclusions: This study confirms the hypothesis that when reduction of P300 amplitude is seen in males at high risk for developing alcoholism, it is due to a developmental delay.

Auditory event-related potentials in children at high risk for alcoholism.

To determine if P300 and other event-related potentials (ERP) could serve as markers for risk of developing alcoholism, two groups of children (8-18 years old) were tested. The high-risk (HR) group consisted of 51 children with an average of 4.1 first- and second-degree relatives who were alcoholic. The low-risk group (LR) consisted of 42 children who had no first- or second-degree relatives who were alcoholic or met criteria for DSM-III Axis I psychopathology. Auditory stimuli varying in conditional probability were presented during a silent counting task, and during a choice reaction task. P300 amplitude was smaller in high-risk than low-risk children. When grouped according to gender and developmental status (8-12 and 13-18 year olds), P300 showed the greatest reduction for the older high-risk males compared to low-risk males. In addition, a previous finding was replicated: the prolonged centro-frontal negativity (232-352 msec), which decreased with age in low-risk children, showed significantly less reduction for high-risk children. Risk status was not related to either amplitudes of the N100 and P200 components of the ERP, or to latencies of any components. Decreases in P300 amplitude and delayed reduction of anterior negativity appear related to developmental processes in high-risk children.

Sires influence fetal death in pigtailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina).

Computerized colony records were used to identify dams and sires whose reproductive histories while breeding in harem groups indicated high or low risk for producing fetal deaths. The monkeys were then singly caged and bred within and between risk conditions during 24- to 72-hour matings. Although the low- and high-risk sires did not differ in ability to achieve conceptions, the results revealed that reproductive history predicted subsequent fetal death rates, and sires made a substantial contribution. Overall, high-risk sires had a 4.86 times higher relative risk of producing fetal death than low-risk sires. Compared with this figure, high-risk dams had only a 2.64 times higher risk for fetal death than low-risk dams. The male effect was most evident in comparisons of between- and within-risk matings. Females with excellent reproductive histories experienced a threefold increase in fetal deaths when mated with high-risk males, whereas females with poor reproductive histories experienced almost a 50% reduction in fetal deaths when mated with low-risk males. The results show that male factors beyond fertility need to be considered when examining the causes of reproductive failure in captive primates.

Motor impairment and antisocial behavior in adolescent males at high risk for schizophrenia

A familial link between schizophrenia and antisocial behavior has been established (e.g., Silverton, 1985). This study examined this relationship in a Danish cohort. The subjects were 36 high-risk males (offspring of a schizophrenic parent) and 36 low-risk males (offspring of parents without psychopathology). This high-risk subjects exhibited more antisocial behavior than the low-risk subjects. We tested the hypothesis of a correlation between neurointegrative deficits, as defined by motor impairment, and antisocial behavior, rated at ages 10-13, in subjects at genetic risk for schizophrenia. Path analyses were conducted from motor impairment at 1 year and motor impairment at 10-13 years to antisocial behavior separately for high-risk and low-risk subjects. Adolescent motor impairment was a significant predictor of antisocial behavior for high-risk subjects. Motor impairment at 1 year was also associated with antisocial behavior for these subjects, although the association was partly due to the indirect effects of motor impairment at 1 year on motor impairment at 10-13 years, which, in turn, was associated with changes in antisocial behavior. As predicted, none of the path coefficients nor the effect coefficient was significant for low-risk subjects.