In this task, you are given a passage which has a question and the context. You have to generate an answer to the question based on the information present in the context.

[Q]: Context: Although the echolucent plaque in carotid stenosis is associated with future ischemic stroke, the predictive value of echogenicity in small and medium size carotid plaques on vascular events has not been thoroughly examined. Thus, we prospectively tested the hypothesis that plaque echogenicity of carotid atheroma can predict the future total cardiovascular events in patients with vascular risk factors.', 'Ultrasound assessment of carotid intima-media complex thickness (IMT) and plaque echogenicity using integrated backscatter (IBS) analysis was performed in 596 patients aged 40 or more, with any history of vascular events or with at least 1 risk factor, who were enrolled between 2001 and 2006 in the Osaka Follow-up Study for Carotid Atherosclerosis, part 2 (OSACA2). We followed the incidence of total cardiovascular events including cerebrovascular events, coronary heart disease (CHD), and peripheral artery disease (PAD) for 6.4 years. We divided the patients into two groups according to the IBS index above (echorich plaques) and under (echolucent plaque) the median value, and calculated the hazard ratios (HR) of the echolucent group compared with the echogenic group in the risk of cardiovascular events.', 'Among 596 patients, carotid stenosis was found only in 87 patients. During the follow-up period, we observed 121 cardiovascular events including 63 cerebrovascular events, 45 CHD cases, and 13 PAD cases. The patients with incident cardiovascular events had larger plaque thickness and lower IBS index than those without incident vascular events. The relative risk of vascular events for echolucent versus echorich plaques was 1.45 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.99-2.13, p = 0.058) after adjustment for risk factors and plaque thickness. In patients with plaque size above the median value (>2.1 mm), the relative risk of vascular events for echolucent plaques was 1.72 (95% CI 1.06-2.85, p = 0.029), but this association was not observed in patients with plaque size <2.0 mm.\Question: Does echogenicity of medium-to-large carotid plaques predict future vascular events?
[A]: The association between echogenicity of carotid plaque and incident vascular events is dependent on the plaque size. Echolucent medium-to-large plaques, but not small plaques, are associated with the risk of future total cardiovascular events. This finding suggests that measurement of echolucency in medium-to-large carotid plaques may improve selection of patients at high risk for total vascular events.


[Q]: Context: This study examined the relationship between plasma cholesterol and circulating triiodothyronine and oestradiol in 561 adolescent girls aged 11-17 with eating disorders.', 'Plasma total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, serum triodothyronine and oestradiol were measured at assessment, and historical weight data were obtained from growth charts provided by the school health services. Cholesterol levels were related to weight change, menstrual status and serum hormones.', 'Plasma total cholesterol levels of >5.0 mmol/L were found in 38% of the 77 girls who were premenarcheal, 32% of the 199 with secondary amenorrhoea and 17% of those who were still menstruating. These cholesterol levels were inversely related to serum oestradiol and triiodothyronine concentrations, but not weight change, in amenorrhoic girls and were positively related to body mass index and inversely related to weight loss and serum triiodothyronine in girls who were still menstruating.\Question: Is plasma cholesterol related to menstrual status in adolescent girls with eating disorders and weight loss?
[A]: Increased plasma total cholesterol was related to amenorrhoea in adolescent girls with eating disorders and weight loss. Oestrogens appeared to mediate the effect of starvation on cholesterol, most effectively in premenarcheal girls. Re-establishing menstruation is an important goal in the treatment of eating disorders, to avoid dyslipidaemia and the risk of future cardiovascular disease.


[Q]: Context: Studying axonal loss in the retina is a promising biomarker for multiple sclerosis (MS). Our aim was to compare optical coherence tomography (OCT) and Heidelberg retinal tomography (HRT) techniques to measure the thickness of the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) in patients with MS, and to explore the relationship between changes in the RNFL thickness with physical and cognitive disability. We studied 52 patients with MS and 18 proportionally matched controls by performing neurological examination, neuropsychological evaluation using the Brief Repetitive Battery-Neuropsychology and RNFL thickness measurement using OCT and HRT.', 'We found that both OCT and HRT could define a reduction in the thickness of the RNFL in patients with MS compared with controls, although both measurements were weakly correlated, suggesting that they might measure different aspects of the tissue changes in MS. The degree of RNFL atrophy was correlated with cognitive disability, mainly with the symbol digit modality test (r=0.754, P<0.001). Moreover, temporal quadrant RNFL atrophy measured with OCT was associated with physical disability.\Question: Is retinal nerve fiber layer atrophy associated with physical and cognitive disability in multiple sclerosis?
[A]:
In summary, both OCT and HRT are able to detect thinning of the RNFL, but OCT seems to be the most sensitive technique to identify changes associated with MS evolution.