Introduction: The aims of this study were to examine cross-sectional, and longitudinal association of different measures of obesity and physical fitness with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in adolescents with Down syndrome. Methods: Longitudinal analysis included 90 adolescents with Down syndrome. Obesity and physical fitness were…

Identification of cardiometabolic risk (CMR) in U.S. younger population by assessing muscular strength via handgrip (HG) dynamometry may aid in prevention efforts. Currently, no nationally representative HG cut-points are available for identifying increased CMR in U.S. adolescents or young adults. In this study, we propose normalized grip strength…

Background: Cardiometabolic risk factors are related to the early onset of chronic health conditions. Purpose: To identify factors associated with perceptions about the severity of three interrelated cardiometabolic risks (i.e., high blood pressure, obesity, and cardiovascular disease) among U.S. college students. Methods: Data were analyzed from…

Objective: To examine rural-urban differences in college students' cardiovascular risk perceptions. Participants: College students in rural (n = 61) and urban (n = 57) Kentucky counties were recruited from November 2012 to May 2014. Methods: This was a secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study examining rural-urban differences in…

Background: Risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) and association with abdominal obesity have not been extensively studied in genetic syndromes associated with intellectual disability. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in individuals aged 20-43 years with Williams syndrome (WS; n = 21), Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS; n =…

Poor physical health is common in people with Severe Mental Illness (SMI). Two-thirds of deaths in SMI could be avoided if patients are offered prompt physical health screening for known risk factors. We aimed to identify SMI patients registered at a General Practice and audit their care in relation to physical health monitoring. We included adult…

We performed this study to better understand communities' health priorities and willingness to participate in research in order to reduce health disparities. To include communities whose members often experience health disparities and may lack opportunities to participate in research, student interns from multiple disciplines administered the…

Background: Depression, anxiety, diabetes and cardiovascular risk factors are frequent health problems among older people with intellectual disability (ID). These conditions may be bidirectionally related. Depression and anxiety may have biological effects causing glucose intolerance, fat accumulation and also lifestyle changes causing metabolic…

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the comprehensive data set of health of college students regarding cardiovascular risk factors, specifically body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (BP), fasting lipid profile, and glucose and to compare results to similar studies. Results were also used to educate individual students regarding their…

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine factors associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk among emerging adults in college aged 18-25 years. CVD risks that develop during this period often persist into adulthood making it an ideal time to target CVD prevention. The specific aims of this dissertation were to 1) explore perceptions…

Hostility may be related to risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD), such as blood pressure. However, the process by which hostility affects blood pressure is not fully understood. The current study sought to evaluate abdominal obesity (waist-to-hip ratio [WHR]) as a potential mediator and modifier of the relationship between cynical…

An emerging, cost-effective method to examine prevalent and future health risks of persons with disabilities is electronic health record (EHR) analysis. As an example, a case-control EHR analysis of adults with autism spectrum disorder receiving primary care through the Cleveland Clinic from 2005 to 2008 identified 108 adults with autism spectrum…

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine (a) whether distance from home to school is a determinant of active commuting to school (ACS), (b) the relationship between distance from home to heavily used facilities (school, green spaces, and sports facilities) and the weight status and cardiometabolic risk categories, and (c) whether ACS has a…

Children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease risk factors such as obesity and reduced cardio-respiratory fitness. However, there is limited data using laboratory measures for assessing the risk of cardiovascular disease associated with DCD. The purpose of this study was to examine…

Obesity increases the risk of many health conditions, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancers, high blood pressure, lipid disorders, stroke and more. While obesity affects more than one third of all adult Americans, people with disabilities are more likely to be overweight or obese and often have fewer tools for controlling weight at…