Juniper Publishers Journal of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Therapy

JUNIPER PUBLISHERS - OPEN ACCESS JOURNAL OF CARDIOLOGY & CARDIOVASCULAR THERAPY Keywords Keywords: Stroke; Coronary artery disease; Paraplegia; Tetraplegia Opinion Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating, life-changing condition causing paralysis and sensory impairment as well as autonomic dysfunction. In addition, evidence documents a state of chronic inflammation in individuals with SCI [ 1 - 4 ]. Importantly, chronic inflammation is a significant cardiovascular disease risk factor. Furthermore, paralysis can lead to a relatively sedentary life style and a consequent reduction in physical work capacity [ 58 ]. Other consequences of inactivity are a higher body weight, a higher percentage of body fat [ 9 , 10 ], skeletal muscle dysfunction [ 11 - 14 ] and a lower forced vital capacity [ 15 - 17 ]. Autonomic dysfunction involves an abnormal and unstable regulation of the of the heart and vasculature [ 18 ]. ...

JUNIPER PUBLISHERS - OPEN ACCESS JOURNAL OF CARDIOLOGY & CARDIOVASCULAR THERAPY   Introduction Among US adults aged 18 years or older, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) rose by more than 35% from 1988-1994 to 2007-2012, increasing from 25.3% to 34.2% [ 1 ]. Overweight and obesity - major component of MetS are reaching record-high levels. From 2000 to 2013, the global prevalence of overweight and obesity increased by one-quarter among adults and by nearly half among children; by 2013, more than 2 billion people were overweight, and of these, more than 674 million were obese [ 2 ]. In 2010, overweight and obesity were estimated to cause 3.4 million deaths worldwide [ 3 ], a number that is likely to increase in line with rising overweight and obesity rates; the annual health care costs attributable to obesity and overweight are more than $600 billion [ 4 ]. People with the MetS are at increased risk of a cardiovascular disease, such as coronary heart disease o...