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Previous studies of predominantly Western populations have reported inconsistent associations between age at menarche and risk of diabetes. We examined this relationship among Chinese women, who generally experience menarche at a later age than Western women. In 2004-2008, China Kadoorie Biobank recruited 302, 632 women aged 30-79 years from 10 areas across China, and recorded 5, 391 incident cases of diabetes during 7 years of follow-up among 270, 345 women without baseline diabetes, cardiovascular disease or cancer. Cox regression models yielded adjusted hazard ratios for incident diabetes associated with age at menarche. Overall, the mean age at menarche was 15.4 years, and decreased across successive generations. Age at menarche was linearly and inversely associated with incident diabetes, with adjusted hazard ratio of 0.96 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.94, 0.97) per year delay. Hazard ratios were greater in younger generations (for women born in the 1960s-1970s, hazard ratio (HR) = 0.93, 95% CI: 0.90, 0.97; for women born in the 1950s, HR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.93, 0.98; and for women born in the 1920s-1940s, HR = 0.97, 95% CI: 0.95, 0.99). Further adjustment for adulthood body mass index significantly attenuated the association (HR = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.97, 1.00), especially among those born before 1950 (HR = 1.00, 95%CI: 0.97, 1.02). Much of the inverse association between age at menarche and incident diabetes was mediated through increased adiposity associated with early menarche, especially in older generations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To determine the bacterial microorganisms in the conjunctival sac of clinically normal dogs and dogs with ulcerative keratitis in Beijing, China. The effect of breed, sex and age of dogs and season on the presence or absence of bacteria in the conjunctival sac of clinically normal dogs was evaluated. Sample population This investigation included 240 healthy dogs, 27 dogs with unilateral corneal ulcer and one dog with bilateral corneal ulcer. Procedure The 480 samples from healthy dogs and the 29 samples from dogs with ulcerative keratitis were incubated in an aerobic and 5% CO2 environment at 37 °C for 48 h. Logistic regression analysis was performed. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.01. Results Of 480 normal eyes, Staphylococcus spp. were the most frequently isolated organisms (40.29%). Neisseria spp. (11.47%) were the next most frequently isolated organisms, followed by Corynebacterium spp. (9.4%). Of 29 eyes with ulcerative keratitis, Staphylococcus spp. were also the most frequently isolated bacteria (47.06%). Streptococcus spp. (12.94%) and Pseudomonas spp. (8.24%) were the second and third, respectively. Season ( P = 0.002) was a significant factor influencing presence or absence of bacterial microorganisms in the conjunctival sac of normal dogs in Beijing, China, while the effects of breed ( P = 0.095), sex ( P = 0.588) and age ( P = 0.866) of dogs were insignificant. Conclusion Staphylococcus spp. were the most frequently isolated organisms, and S. intermedius predominated in the conjunctival sac of clinically normal dogs and dogs with ulcerative keratitis in Beijing, China. The likelihood of detecting bacteria depends on the season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]