Browsing by Author "Chu, Fang-Ying"

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Association between Gastroenterological Malignancy and Diabetes Mellitus and Anti-Diabetic Therapy: A Nationwide, Population-Based Cohort Study
(2015-05-15)
Lin, Chien-Ming
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Huang, Hui-Ling
;
Chu, Fang-Ying
;
Fan, Hueng-Chuen
;
Chen, Hung-An
Background The relationship between diabetes mellitus (DM) and cancer incidence has been evaluated in limited kinds of cancer. The effect of anti-diabetic therapy (ADT) on carcinogenesis among diabetic patients is also unclear. Materials and Methods Using population-based representative insurance claims data in Taiwan, 36,270 DM patients and 145,080 comparison subjects without DM were identified from claims from 2005 to 2010. The association between the top ten leading causes of cancer-related death in Taiwan and DM was evaluated. Whether ADT altered the risk of developing cancer was also investigated. Results Incidence of cancer at any site was significantly higher in patients with DM than in those without (p<0.001). The risk of carcinogenesis imparted by DM was greatest in gastroenterological malignancies (liver, pancreas, and colorectal cancer) as well as lung, breast and oral cancer (p<0.001). Among the oral types of ADT, metformin decreased the risk of lung and liver cancer, but had less effect on reducing the risk of colorectal cancer. alpha-glucosidase inhibitor decreased the risk of developing liver, colorectal, and breast cancer. Apart from intermediateacting insulin, rapid-acting, long-acting, and combination insulin treatment significantly reduced the overall cancer risk among all DM patients. In subgroup analysis, long-acting insulin treatment significantly decreased the risk of lung, liver, and colorectal cancer. Conclusion Our results supported the notion that pre-existing DM increases the incidence of gastroenterological cancer. ADT, especially metformin, alpha-glucosidase inhibitor, and long-acting insulin treatment, may protect patients with DM against these malignancies. It is crucial that oncologists should closely collaborate with endocrinologists to provide an optimal cancerspecific therapy and diabetic treatment to patients simultaneously with cancer and DM.
Bronchial asthma is associated with increased risk of chronic kidney disease
(2014-05-08)
Huang, Hui-Ling
;
Ho, Shinn-Ying
;
Li, Chien-Hsun
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Chu, Fang-Ying
;
Ciou, Li-Ping
Background: Bronchial asthma influences some chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension, but the impact of asthma on vital diseases such as chronic kidney disease is not yet verified. This study aims to clarify the association between bronchial asthma and the risk of developing chronic kidney disease. Methods: The National Health Research Institute provided a database of one million random subjects for the study. A random sample of 141 064 patients aged >= 18 years without a history of kidney disease was obtained from the database. Among them, there were 35 086 with bronchial asthma and 105 258 without asthma matched for sex and age for a ration of 1:3. After adjusting for confounding risk factors, a Cox proportional hazards model was used to compare the risk of developing chronic kidney disease during a three-year follow-up period. Results: Of the subjects with asthma, 2 196 (6.26%) developed chronic kidney disease compared to 4 120 (3.91%) of the control subjects. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis revealed that subjects with asthma were more likely to develop chronic kidney disease (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.56; 95% CI: 1.48-1.64; p < 0.001). After adjusting for sex, age, monthly income, urbanization level, geographic region, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and steroid use, the HR for asthma patients was 1.40 (95% CI: 1.33-1.48; p = 0.040). There was decreased HRs in steroid use (HR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.62-0.61; p < 0.001) in the development of chronic kidney disease. Expectorants, bronchodilators, anti-muscarinic agents, airway smooth muscle relaxants, and leukotriene receptor antagonists may also be beneficial in attenuating the risk of chronic kidney disease. Conclusions: Patients with bronchial asthma may have increased risk of developing chronic kidney disease. The use of steroids or non-steroidal drugs in the treatment of asthma may attenuate this risk.
Is Zolpidem Associated with Increased Risk of Fractures in the Elderly with Sleep Disorders? A Nationwide Case Cross-Over Study in Taiwan
(2015-12-30)
Tang, Yih-Jing
;
Ho, Shinn-Ying
;
Chu, Fang-Ying
;
Chen, Hung-An
;
Yin, Yun-Ju
Background We conducted a study using a case-crossover design to clarify the risk of acute effects of zolpidem and benzodiazepine on all-sites of fractures in the elderly. Design of study Case-crossover design. Methods and Materials Elderly enrollees (n = 6010) in Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database with zolpidem or benzodiazepine use were analyzed for the risk of developing fractures. Results After adjusting for medications such as antipsychotics, antidepressants, and diuretics, or comorbidities such as hypertension, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis and depression, neither zolpidem nor benzodiazepine was found to be associated with increased risk in all-sites fractures. Subjects without depression were found to have an increased risk of fractures. Diazepam is the only benzodiazepine with increased risk of fractures after adjusting for medications and comorbidities. Hip and spine were particular sites for increased fracture risk, but following adjustment for comorbidities, the associations were found to be insignificant. Conclusion Neither zolpidem nor benzodiazepine was associated with increased risk of all-site fractures in this case cross-over study after adjusting for medications or comorbidities in elderly individuals with insomnia. Clinicians should balance the benefits and risks for prescribing zolpidem or benzodiazepine in the elderly accordingly.