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Ultrasonographic measurements of the intima-media thickness (IMT) of common carotid arteries (CCA) were taken in 50 patients with familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) and 57 patients with non-familial hypercholesterolemia (NFH). The lipid profile, body mass index (BMI) and waist-hip ratio (WHR) of each patient were recorded. In FH patients, the IMT was significantly higher in overweight and elevated WHR subgroups compared to the normal with significant correlations between BMI and WHR to the IMT. In NFH patients, the IMT was significantly higher in the elevated WHR compared to the normal subgroup but the correlations between either BMI or WHR to IMT were insignificant. These suggest that the environmentally modified anthropometric indices may have an effect on atherosclerosis in genetically determined hypercholesterolaemia in FH patients.

A simple water iodizing system, which incorporates the Venturi principle in combination with the controlled release mechanism of a silicone-sodium iodide elastomer, for the iodization of rural piped-water supply in the control of endemic iodine deficiency has been developed and its effectiveness evaluated in three Iban longhouse villages in the iodine-deficient district of Lubok Antu, Sarawak. Urines were collected for iodine assays from women aged 15-40 years before and at 6 and 12 months after the connection of the iodinating device; goiter assessment was performed on the women at the start and end of the 1-year study. Water samples were collected for iodine assays at 2-weekly intervals. In all three villages, significant and sustained increases in median urinary iodine excretions, reaching levels recommended for an iodine-sufficient population, were observed; goitre prevalences were reduced in all the villages (by 22.6% to 35.8%). The iodine levels in the water ranged from 34 micrograms/l to 212 micrograms/L. In the control village, median urinary iodine excretions remained essentially unchanged but a small increase in goiter prevalence was observed. The iodized water was well received by the villagers and no adverse effects of water iodization were observed. The system functioned unattended throughout the one year period. The cost of providing supplemental iodine via the iodizing device is approximately 60 cents (U.S.) per family per year which is affordable by either the Government or the villagers. It is concluded that the iodizing system offers a new cost-effective strategy for the control of endemic iodine deficiency in Sarawak and may have applications in other areas with similar water sources.

The urinary iodine excretions of women (15-40 y) and young children (< or = 6 y) from two longhouse villages in the iodine-deficient district of Lubok Antu, Sarawak, were compared. One longhouse (Mengkak) was provided with freshly produced iodized salt every two months (one kg per family) while the other (Menjiling) was provided with iodized water via fortification of the village piped-water supply. Spot urines were collected for iodine determination at baseline and at 6 and 12 months after the start of the study. Salt and water samples were collected at monthly intervals. Goiter assessment was performed on the women at the start and end of the one-year study. The mean iodine concentrations in the salt samples from Mengkak and Menjiling were, respectively, 47.1 +/- 9.7 mg/kg (n = 60) and 0.8 +/- 3.4 mg/kg (n = 60) while the mean iodine concentration in the water samples from Menjiling was 138.6 +/- 43.2 micrograms/L (n = 24); iodine could not be detected in the water samples from Mengkak. There were significant and sustained increases in median urinary iodine excretions of both women and young children in Menjiling; in Mengkak, however, significant and sustained increases in median urinary iodine excretions were observed only in women while the median urinary iodine excretions of children remained essentially unchanged throughout the study period. Goiter prevalences in the women were reduced in both longhouses. The above observations reveal the inadequacy of iodized salt as a vehicle for iodine delivery to young rural Sarawakian children and indicate the need for other means of delivering supplemental iodine to this age group in areas where salt iodization is the only strategy for IDD control. In contrast, iodization of village water supply by itself is adequate in delivering iodine uniformly to the whole community.

In a survey of 974 villagers (408 males, 566 females; ages = 11-82 years) of the Ai (n = 496; 212 males, 284 females) and Lemanak (n = 478; 196 males, 282 females) rivers in the district of Lubuk Antu in Sarawak's Sri Aman Division during July 1993, goiter was found in 31.8% of the subjects. The goiter prevalence was higher in the more interior Ai river area than in the Lemanak river area (36.9% vs 26.5%). In females aged 15 years and above, the goiter prevalence was 75.4% and 49.1%, respectively, in the Ai and Lemanak river areas. The difference in goiter prevalence between the two areas was related to the degree of iodine deficiency in the two areas. The median urinary iodine excretion in the Ai river villagers was 22.1 micrograms/l compared to 72.9 micrograms/l in the Lemanak river villagers (p < 0.0001). Goitrous subjects tended to have lower urinary iodine concentration than non-goitrous subjects. In the males, smoking of tobacco was associated with a two-fold increase in goiter frequency. Despite on-going distribution of iodized salt by the medical and health services in the State, only 23% of the 135 salt samples obtained from the households in the areas contained detectable iodine.