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Objective: The aim of the present study was to assess the prevalence of increased arterial stiffness by different diagnostic methods and its association with cardiovascular risk in Russian population-based cohort., Design and Methods: In terms of Russian epidemiological study ESSE-RF a random selection of 452 apparently healthy Saint-Petersburg inhabitants aged 25-65 years was performed. Fasting lipids, glucose and blood pressure measurements were performed. We used 3 diagnostic methods of arterial stiffness assessment: pulse wave velocity by applanation tonometry (SphygmoCor - PWV-S) and pulse wave velocity by volumetric sphygmography (VaSera - PWV-V), and cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) by VaSera., Results: 341 (75,4%) had normal parameters of arterial stiffness assessed by all methods. Spearmen's coefficient of correlation and "kappa" coefficient for PWV-S and CAVI were 0,74 and 0,04, for PWV-S and PWV-V - 0,10 and 0,06, for CAVI and PWV-V - 0,28 and 0,03, respectively. There was a significant correlation between cardiovascular risk (defined by SCORE) and PWV-S (r = 0,38, p < 0,001) and a non-significant trend of increasing CAVI along with cardiovascular risk (r = 0,35, p = 0,14)., Conclusions: Different methods of arterial stiffness assessment showed a weak correlation with each other. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity detected by applanation tonometry is associated with high cardiovascular risk score and might be considered as better additional risk marker for cardiovascular risk stratification., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Aim: to elucidate prevalence of phenotypes of metabolically heathy obesity (MHO) among inhabitants of Saint-Petersburg using various criteria and assess dependence levels of adipokines on obesity phenotype., Material and Methods: Within a framework of epidemiologic study ESSE-RF we formed a random sample of 1600 Saint-Petersburg inhabitants stratified according to gender and age. Examination of participants included anthropometry with measurement of waist circumference CRP and estimation of body mass index (BMI), measurement of arterial pressure, determination of fasting blood glucose, insulin (with calculation of index of insulin resistance -IIR), lipid spectrum, C-reactive protein (CRP), adiponectin, leptin. In subjects with obesity (BMI more or equal 30 kg/m) we used Meigs and Wildman MHO criteria. To Wildman criteria we applied 3 variants of definition of elevated CRP and IIR: 90th percentile among subjects with BMI <25 kg/m (variant 1) or among all participants (variant 2), and (variant 3) definition from publication by E.Oliveros et al. (2014)., Results: Obesity (BMI more or equal 30 kg/m) was found in 430 participants. Numbers/rates of MHO according to the Wildman criteria were the following: variant 1 - 49/12% (among them 13/10% men and 36/14% women, =0.15); variant 2 - 85/22% (24/18% men, 61/23% women, =0.13); variant 3 - 59/15% (13/10% men, 46/18% women, =0.02). Portion of MHO according to Meigs criteria was 138/35% (among them 48/36% men, 90/35% women, =0.4). Significant differences in adipokines levels between subjects with MHO and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUHO) were revealed only among women. There was no difference in leptin level between subjects with MHO and MUHO irrespective of gender., Conclusion: Rate of MHO phenotype in a sample of inhabitants of Saint-Petersburg varied from 12 to 35% depending on criteria used. Gender differences in MHO rates were minimal and depended on selected criteria. Elevated adiponectin level among obese women could be presumably related to more favorable metabolic profile.

Background: Poor nutrition during the early stages of human development can lead to rare pathological conditions in adult life. The best-known and most severe historical cases of famine include the Dutch 'Hunger Winter,' the Finnish famine, the Chinese Great famine, and the siege of Leningrad. The siege of Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) was one of the longest in history, lasting 872 days, from September 8, 1941 to January 27, 1944. There were 670,000 registered deaths of the civil population, in which 97% died due to starvation. The aim of the present study is to create a collection of biospecimens from extensively phenotyped siege of Leningrad survivors, who underwent starvation during the early periods of their lives, and from a matched control group., Methods: A total 305 siege survivors and 51 age- and sex- matched control subjects were investigated in of an observational retroprospective cohort study in 2009-2011 at a baseline visit. After 3 years of follow-up, 252 siege survivors (182 females and 70 males; mean age 74.7 ± 2.6 years) and 45 controls (32 females and 13 males; mean age 75.5 ± 2.8 years) were examined. All siege survivors were exposed to the extreme dietary restriction and stress associated with the siege in their early childhood. All participants signed informed consent and were subject to questionnaires and physical examination, as well as various laboratory and instrumental tests. Anthropometry, blood measurement, cognitive and physiological testing, and vascular damage assessment were performed., Results: Blood specimens of the extensively phenotyped siege survivors were collected and processed (blood plasma, blood serum, and flash-frozen PBMC); serum and urine were used for laboratory tests., Conclusions: We believe that data obtained from this unique collection of biospecimens can elucidate the mechanisms of healthy aging and emphasize the importance of reproductive health, counseling, and monitoring among people with eating disorders.

Background: In developed countries there are significant gender differences in lifetime expectancy that can be explained by behavioral risk factors (RF)., Objective: The aim of our study was to estimate gender features of behavioral RF in general population of Saint-Petersburg, Russia., Methods: As a part of all-Russian epidemiology survey ESSE-RF a random sampling of 1600 Saint-Petersburg inhabitants (25-64 y.o.) stratified by age and sex was performed. All participants filled in the questionnaire. Anthropometry (weight, height, body-mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and fasting blood-tests (lipids, glucose by Abbott Architect 8000 (USA)) were performed., Results: There were examined 573 (36%) men and 1027 (64%) women. No gender differences in obesity were found according to BMI criteria--in 178 (31.2%) women and 352 (35.1%) men. Obesity was more often detected in females according to WC criteria: ATPIII--44.1 vs 30.3%; IDF 51.2 vs 66.4% (p < 0.001 for both). Linear regression analysis was performed and age was associated with BMI--1.6 kg/m2/decade, WC in women--5.2 cm/decade and WC in men--2.8 cm/decade, p < 0.001 for all anthropometric parameters. Optimal level of physical activity was equally documented in both genders--540 (61.2%) women and 286 (58.9%) men. Daily intake of sweets was lower in men--228 (39.8%) vs 539 (52.5%) in women (p < 0.001). 810 (50.6%) of trial subjects were non-smokers, 395 (24.7%) were former smokers, and 395 (24.7%) were smokers at the moment of trial. The higher number of female smokers was observed--194 (19.1%)., Conclusion: A high prevalence of obesity is observed in sample of Saint-Petersburg inhabitants--it is higher among women according to WC criteria regardless of menopause, possibly due to bigger sweets consumption. Males smoke more often and consume less fresh fruits and vegetables which is accompanied by a higher prevalence of hyperglycemia and hypertriglyceridemia.