Wf. Page et Am. Ostfeld, MALNUTRITION AND SUBSEQUENT ISCHEMIC-HEART-DISEASE IN FORMER PRISONERS OF WAR OF WORLD-WAR-II AND THE KOREAN CONFLICT, Journal of clinical epidemiology, 47(12), 1994, pp. 1437-1441
Citations number
29
Categorie Soggetti
Public, Environmental & Occupation Heath","Medicine, General & Internal
The harsh treatment of former prisoners of war (POWs) of World War II
and the Korean conflict resulted in severe malnutrition. Although rare
ly linked to specific long-term medical problems, a specific marker of
malnutrition, self-reported lower limb edema (presumably due to a vit
amin B deficiency) was associated with a three-fold increase in subseq
uent death attributed to ischemic heart disease (IHD) during the follo
w-up period from 1967 through 1975. Although there is at present no me
dical basis for linking edema, which is perhaps a marker for some unme
asured risk factor, to subsequent IHD, this finding may nonetheless ha
ve medical implications for the group of former POWs and other populat
ions with severe dietary deficiency. It also suggests there may be a n
eed to reexamine currently held theories on malnutrition and subsequen
t chronic disease.