Introduction
Osawa and his colleagues (2009) wrote an article titled ‘Diabetes and hypertension markedly increased the risk of ischemic stroke associated with high serum resistin concentration in a general Japanese population: The Hisayama Study.’ It was published on November 18, 2009, in the issue of Cardiovascular Diabetology. In this article, the authors were studying the relationship between the concentration of serum resistin and heart disease. They also investigated its association with ischemic stroke. The authors concluded that individuals, who have high concentrations of resistin and suffer from a condition such as hypertension or diabetes, are most likely to suffer an ischemic stroke. Therefore, a high level of serum resistin is one of the factors that cause ischemic stroke.
Summary
Several authors have studied the effects of the concentrations of resistin in the human body. Many have suggested that it may facilitate the occurrence of cardiovascular disease (Osawa, 2009). This is due to the fact that resistin is associated with the occurrence of atherosclerosis. This is usually associated with the issues of the heart. The authors of this article wanted to investigate this matter as it occurs among the Japanese people. Therefore, they narrowed it down to the Hisayama town. They further narrowed it down to individuals aged at least 40 years old. A certain criterion was used to eliminate those who were not viable for the study. These include the persons who had already taken breakfast. Those who did not have enough sera stored were also eliminated.
Several health assessment procedures and rationales were conducted. One of the assessments included the measurement of serum resistin concentrations. For this purpose, blood samples were obtained during the early morning hours. This was between 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. This was to ensure that the individuals had fasted for at least 12 hours. The blood samples were stored at a specific temperature. One of the assessment tools used included the human ELISA kit. For analysis, the SAS software package version 8.2 was used. Risk factors were assessed in relation to both sexes and various ages.
The results showed that individuals who had cardiovascular disease had higher levels of serum resistin. This was the case for all ages studied and both sexes. When the various types of cardiovascular diseases were studied, those with ischemic stroke were said to have higher concentrations of resistin. The various subtypes of ischemic stroke were also assessed. In this case, the individuals who had higher levels of resistin were those with atherothrombotic infractions. Those with the lacunar type also showed similar trends in terms of concentration levels.
Another health assessment that the authors conducted was the determination of the association of the levels of serum with the occurrence of ischemic stroke when it was coupled with a particular disorder. The disorders studied in this case were hypertension and diabetes. The results suggested that the risks increased in the subjects with diabetes. The diabetic individuals with high levels of resistin were also at greater risk. The same case applied to the hypertensive subjects.
Evaluation
There are several strong points and weak points of the article. First, the study was important in that it was set to answer some of the questions that were not readily available previously. Very few had studied the association between the concentration of resistin and ischemic stroke. Most of the related studies done previously only investigated other effects of serum resistin concentration other than ischemic stroke. Therefore, this study filled the gaps that existed.
Some results of this article contradict some previous findings that suggest that there is no relationship between the resistin in circulation and ischemic stroke. This means that its reliability may be questionable. This also means that further research is required in order to ascertain the actual effects of resistin and its association with ischemic stroke.
The study site was narrowed down to a single suburban town, Hisayama. This sampling technique might be somewhat biased because the authors intended to perform a study that would reflect the situation in the general Japanese population. This area is a suburban area, meaning that the individuals living in the area had similar lifestyles and this might affect the results from the study.
The health assessment tools used were reliable. For example, the ELISA kit provided results similar to those obtained previously using the LINCO kit. This means that the tools used were accurate and reliable. The use of the SAS software package was effective since this tool was generally accepted as a reliable and accurate tool in the analysis of data.
This article interested me because it provided important information concerning ischemic stroke. I was able to learn that resistin concentrations in the human body had significant effects on the individual. High levels of the same are associated with risks of ischemic stroke. This understanding is important for individuals who are looking to prevent the occurrence of ischemic stroke. This article was also unique in that only a few researchers have studied the subject, especially when ischemic stroke and resistin levels are concerned. This provided answers that were previously unanswered.
The health assessment strategy was explained clearly. Each procedure was explained in detail and compared to those performed by other authors in previous studies. This means that the information is reliable and accurate. The procedures and tools used were those that are generally accepted by other researchers. The methods used in arriving at the sample size were also clearly explained until a suitable sample was arrived at. The health assessment strategy used in the article was beneficial since it provided me with diverse knowledge on health practices. I would adopt it in my practice because of its reliability and accuracy.
However, more research articles should be written about this area of health assessment. More research is required since this area has not been exploited fully. The specific effect of resistin on ischemic stroke should be investigated. Research is also required to determine the proper ways to prevent risks of ischemic stroke in the event that the individual has diabetes or hypertension. This information in this article is important for all individuals in the community. However, adults and those with diabetes and hypertension should pay more attention to this matter since they are the ones at risk.
Conclusion
Osawa and his colleagues examined the relationship between resistin concentrations in the body and ischemic stroke. They also examined how a combination of a high concentration of resistin and a particular condition affected the occurrence of ischemic stroke. The results suggested that those individuals with cardiovascular disease had a high concentration of resistin in the blood. Those with ischemic stroke had the highest levels and this was the case for particular subtypes of the disorder. The authors also concluded that those individuals with hypertension or diabetes were at greater risks of ischemic stroke.
Reference
Osawa, H., Doi, Y., Makino, H., Ninomiya, T., Yonemoto, K., Kawamura, R., Hata, J., Tanizaki, Y., Lida, M., & Kiyohara, Y. (2009). Diabetes and hypertension markedly increased the risk of ischemic stroke associated with high serum resistin concentration in general Japanese population: The Hisayama Study. Cardiovascular Diabetology, 8(60), 1-8.