"Are rich people healthier?
This study provides representative socioeconomic group-specific prevalence data on a total of 35 clinical entities for the Federal Republic of Germany. Although the self-reporting involved in large epidemiological studies of this kind is associated with a certain amount of bias, it is nonetheless clear that the frequently cited "socioeconomic gradient", i. e., a higher disease prevalence among lower socioeconomic groups, seems not to apply for numerous disease entities; for which the association seems to be in the opposite direction. This phenomenon requires explanation.
Attenuated R amplitudes were identified as an early ECG phenotype in a family with familial dilated cardiomyopathy due to the PLN-R14Del mutation. All adults harboring PLN-R14Del had attenuated R waves irrespective of echocardiographic abnormalities. The study findings suggest a mutation-related remodeling process preceding ventricular dysfunction.