Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Improving Clinician Care Practices Of Patients With Sickle Cell Anemia: An Integrative Review, Tracey Ann Royer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited hematological disorder that can have a debilitating impact on those affected. The disease is caused by a mutation in the gene encoding for hemoglobin that alters the formation of the red blood cell to a sickle shape, the source of the term hemoglobin S or sickle hemoglobin. The most common manifestation of this disease state is acute pain due to the effects of vaso-occlusive crisis. The burden of disease can be intense, requiring frequent and prolonged hospitalizations with disruptions in one’s quality of life. Despite the gravity of this disease state, there exist …

Web-Based Applications For Weight Loss And Management: An Integrative Review, Linda Lawton Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Obesity is associated with the leading causes of death in the United States and the world. Internationally, 39% of the world’s population was overweight or obese, in 2014, with 9% having diabetes. These causes include diabetes, stroke, certain types of cancer and heart disease. Obesity can lead to poorer mental health outcomes and cause a decrease in the quality of life. This integrative review is to determine if health and dietary smart-phone apps are effective tools to help overweight and obese people lose weight and maintain that loss.

Factors Hindering Human Papillomavirus(Hpv) Vaccination Uptake Among Children And Young Adults Between Ages Nine To Twenty-Six In America, Foluke Olufunbi Ajuwon

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This Integrative Review Project searched relevant literature and conducted research to discover factors hindering HPV vaccination among children and young adults in America and interventions to increase HPV vaccination among individuals in this group. The importance of the HPV vaccination cannot be understated; the HPV vaccine is the most effective approach for preventing infections and decreasing risk of HPV-associated conditions such as cervical, oral pharyngeal, and rectal cancer. In the United States, HPV inoculation uptake is reported to be less than 80% for the initial dosage, and less than 40% of young males and females complete all the series dosage …

A Descriptive Study On The Strike Characteristics Between A Heavy Bag, Focus Mitts, And Thai Pads, Tirzah Ruth Dacio Talampas

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare vGRFs during continuous strikes to three different modalities, a free-standing heavy bag, focus mitts, and Thai pads, and the punching velocities under these conditions. It was hypothesized for punches that punching velocity would be higher in punches thrown at a heavy bag, punching velocity would be faster in rear-hand punches, vGRFs would be higher in the lead leg compared to the rear leg of a punch at impact, and vGRFs would be higher in heavy bag punches compared to focus mitt punches. For kicks it was hypothesized that vGRFs of dominant and …

Effects Of Pre-Determined Barbell Hip Thrusting Surface Height On Motor Unit Recruitment And Activation Patterns, Abigail Renae Mccarty

Masters Theses

Several variations of the barbell hip thrust that manipulate stance width and resistance type rather than surface height to better isolate muscle groups that act as prime movers for the exercise have been previously researched. The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of hip thrusting surface heights on neuromuscular activity in the gluteus maximus (GM), vastus lateralis (VL), and biceps femoris (BF). Twelve averagely fit, resistance trained individuals were recruited for this study. Participants completed a dynamic warm-up followed by 10 repetition max (RM) testing of the barbell hip thrust. Prior to trials, root mean square (RMS) …

How Effective Is Psychotherapy In Reducing Opioid Usage Among Patients With Chronic Pain?, Charity Harold Whorley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this integrative review is to evaluate the effectiveness of psychotherapy in the management of chronic pain thorough a comprehensive review and synthesis of current literature on the topic. Chronic pain is a prevalent condition throughout America with an estimated 30% of the population affected. As such, it is a common condition encountered in primary care. At one point the mainstay of treatment was opioid therapy. Unfortunately, this along with other issues has contributed to an overprescribing of narcotics and ultimately the opioid crisis in America. Healthcare providers are in a unique position to assist in reversing this …

Pediatric Concussion Management In The School Setting: An Integrative Literature Review, Renee Mann

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Concussions in the pediatric population are a growing concern due to the impact concussions could have on the child’s health and well-being. Appropriate management of concussions in the pediatric population promotes recovery and the return of the student who has sustained a concussion to school and to normal physical activities. The purpose of this integrative review project is to evaluate the current practices, evidence-based recommendations, and guidelines to ascertain the optimum recovery times in children who have sustained a concussion within the school setting, grades K-12. An integrative review was conducted utilizing the Whitmore and Knafl framework. The four main …

Promoting Health Literacy To Aging Christians To Combat The Scourge Of Euthanasia Through The Church, Willie Mae Corley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The many dilemmas that occur in the medical care of chronically ill seniors raise the question of whether senior populations have become the new black. The research seeks to provide an evidence-based review of limited health literacy among elderly African American Christians regarding diagnoses and medical treatments, which has resulted in unethical Christian practices becoming a norm. The researcher adapted the health literacy framework of Paasche Orlow and Wolf’s view of three distinct causes that influence health literacy: the access and utilization of health care, the patient-provider relationship, and self-care. The problem is that Victory Church members may not understand …

Mitigating The Risk Of Opioid Overdose And Death Of The Veteran: An Integrative Review, Cheryl Anne Landry

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Pain is a complicated phenomenon; it is an individual’s subjective experience and is often characterized by its duration. Chronic pain lasts longer than 90 days and can continue after the injury or illness that caused it has healed or gone away; chronic pain was identified as a national public health problem in a 2017 study by the National Academy of Medicine. Not only is chronic pain a national problem, but there is an opioid epidemic in the United States that is perpetuated by prescription pain medications. The opioid epidemic continues to consume veterans daily, but not much is said about …

Transcatheter Mitral Valve Replacement And Repair Technology, Joel Thomas

Senior Honors Theses

The mitral valve is a two-cusp valve that is located between the left atrium and left ventricle of the heart. As blood flows from the lungs and enters the atrium, it must pass through this valve in one direction to enter the ventricle and be pumped out to the systemic circuit.

Mitral valve disease occurs when normal mitral valve function is impaired. Many different repair and replacement options exist. These options are contingent upon age and risk factors for patients. This paper focuses on the four main transcatheter mitral valve replacement devices that have limited human trials. It concludes that …

The Importance Of Providing Multimodal Analgesia: A Literature Review Of Nonpharmacologic Pain Treatments, Miriam Swartzentruber

Senior Honors Theses

Pain is a central aspect of the human experience. While painful stimuli can be beneficial in alerting the brain to the fact that there is something wrong, left untreated, pain can cause devastating long-term effects on the individual, both physically and mentally. Pain has traditionally been either undertreated or managed solely using pharmacologic methods, with less thought given to the importance of supplementing therapy with nonpharmacologic interventions. By incorporating nonpharmacologic methods of pain management into nursing care, patients can be provided with holistic treatment that improves patient outcomes, decreases healthcare costs, avoids future complications, and improves overall quality of life.

The Relationship Of Divine Forgiveness, Victim Forgiveness, And Physical Health Mediated By Stress, Lemuel Josiah C. Ragasajo

Senior Honors Theses

Though there is increasing evidence to support a relationship between forgiveness and physical health, certain subcategories of forgiveness, namely victim and divine forgiveness, are relatively understudied. This study seeks to add to the body of forgiveness literature by examining how divine and victim forgiveness relate to one’s physical health, and whether that relationship is mediated by stress. Furthermore, a literature review is included to detail how stress, a potential mediating variable between forgiveness and physical health, affects physical health. The results of the study reveal that victim forgiveness positively predicts physical health, but is not mediated by stress. In contrast, …

Extreme Weather And Its Impacts On Human Civilizations: An In-Depth Investigation Of Causes And Effects, Jason Zabel

Senior Honors Theses

Extreme weather has impacted humanity since creation and is an important topic that deserves examination. In this thesis, the main event that is presented and analyzed is the extreme haze that clouded much of China’s skies in 2013. Further, the impacts this major event had on people, including changes in population movement, death/injury rate, and changes in atmospheric chemistry due to the high concentration of particulates are discussed. Subsequent examples that will be explored include Hurricane Katrina and the eruption of Mt. St. Helens. The main contention of this thesis is that the effects extreme weather has on human civilization …

The Health Insurance Portability And Accountability Act And Its Impact On Privacy And Confidentiality In Healthcare, Allyssa Stadler

Senior Honors Theses

The world of healthcare and technology has continued to grow and expand into the future while HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), the foundational patient privacy law in the United States of America, is attempting to keep up with this new world. This thesis reviews HIPAA and other health-related laws necessary to understanding patient privacy. It analyzes peer-reviewed studies on patient confidentiality and HIPAA to elicit the patient’s and provider’s opinion on HIPAA and patient confidentiality. Lastly, the current challenges of patient confidentiality and HIPAA are discussed, and potential solutions are suggested to improve these issues.

The Theory Of Maternal Administration Of Meclizine: An Achondroplasic Review And The Proposed Treatment Of Foramen Magnum Stenosis Within A Murine Model, Ava Perez Erickson

Senior Honors Theses

Arising from mostly de novo mutations, achondroplasia (ACH) is one of the most common, non-lethal forms of chondrodysplasia. The short stature indicative of ACH stems from a gain of function mutation within the complex FGFR3 signaling pathway—mutations mitigating the too-rapid ossification of cartilage to bone. Meclizine, an FDA-approved drug long prescribed for motion sickness, halts such a conversion and allows the reconstitution of chondrodysplasia cell lines in attempts at following a normal growth pattern. Evinced by various cell line rescues as well as increased long bone growth, it can be hypothesized that maternally administered meclizine can rescue the ACH phenotype …

Characteristics Of Successful Nurse Mentors And Potential Effects On The Retention And Job Satisfaction Of New Graduate Nurses: An Integrative Review, Toni Cheryl Thompson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Mentoring is a process that has become embedded into new graduate nurses’ transition to professional practice since the 1980s. The Institute of Medicine’s The Future of Nursing identifies mentoring as a mechanism to increase patient safety and satisfaction. Effective mentoring has been categorized as one of the important components of transforming nurses into leaders, improving retention, and increasing job satisfaction. By recognizing the characteristics of successful mentors, organizations can increase the consistency and success of their mentoring programs. The purpose of this integrative review was to examine successful mentor characteristics and identify the effect of mentors on new graduate nurses’ …

Effects Of Different Recovery Methods On Hangboard Performance In Rock Climbers: A Pilot Study, Daniel Tyler Ehrich

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine whether static stretching, dynamic shakes, or repeated contractions would promote the greatest retention in performance in hangboard training within a given period of time. Five volunteer intermediate climbers from the Liberty University rock climbing team were instructed to suspend themselves from a 20mm ledge on a hangboard until voluntary failure while time was recorded. After failure, subjects performed one of three different recovery methods and a control in randomized order for two minutes in alternating fifteen-second intervals. Upon finishing recovery, subjects would hang from the same ledge and have their time recorded …

Tight Trip Vs. Loose Grip On Russian Kettlebell Swing Work Capacity, Austin Deshner, Abigail Mccarty, Jerrell C. Campbell, Andrew Fields, Will W. Peveler

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a tight grip(TG) and a loose grip(LG) on work capacity while performing Russian kettlebell swings(KBS). It was hypothesized that LG would result in an ability to perform more work. Thirty fit adults (16 male; 14 female) were tested. Two (TG and LG) separate counterbalanced trials for each subject were collected, counting the number of repetitions completed until volitional exhaustion. RPE for forearms and overall exhaustion were collected post-trial. SPSS was used to run a paired samples t-test. There was a significant difference between the two grips (p = 0.013)(TG …

Examining The Role Of Self-Compassion In Resilience Among African American Women: A Qualitative Perspective, Vivian W. France

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study aimed to fill an important gap in the literature by exploring the role of self-compassion in resilience among African American women. This study was an investigation of some of the challenges African American women face in their lived experiences that impact their self-compassion and to provide an understanding of the role self-compassion plays in their pursuit of higher education. A qualitative design with a phenomenological approach and thematic analysis for gathering and extrapolating primary themes and subthemes from the participant data sets was used. Semistructured interviews were conducted with five African American women ages 27–58 years who had …

Analyzing The Investment Potential To Increase Prenatal Care Utilization As A Tactic To Decrease Preterm Birth Costs In Tennessee, Michael S. Wiggins

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Preterm birth contributes significantly to health care costs in the United States (Frey & Klebanoff, 2016). Certain components of prenatal care reduce preterm birth incidence (Newnham et al., 2014). Tennessee’s preterm birth rate ranks 35th among the 50 United States (National Center for Health Statistics, 2019). This study analyzed the investment potential to reduce preterm birth cost through increasing prenatal care utilization in Tennessee. Based on 2018 data, the study identified a significant relationship between prenatal care utilization and preterm birth incidence in Tennessee. The study also identified a significant opportunity to increase prenatal care utilization in Tennessee when compared …

Enhancing Outpatient Participation In Advance Care Planning Via Nurse-Led Intervention: An Integrative Review, Daniel Patrick Arthur

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Advance care planning allows for medical care at the end-of-life that is congruent with a patient’s wishes, values, and beliefs. Even with well-known organizations such as the Institute of Medicine recommending advance care planning completion and legislative encouragement such as the Patient Self-Determination Act of 1990, only approximately one-third of American adults have completed any form of advance directive. Barriers to participation include lack of time, lack of knowledge, and misconceptions on the part of healthcare providers and patients. As an integral part of the care team having significant patient contact in most healthcare settings, nurses are in an ideal …

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome And Insulin Resistance: An Evaluation Of Treatment Modalities And Complication Prevention, Sarah Mann

Senior Honors Theses

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is a reproductive and endocrine disorder in women of childbearing age. This disorder includes multiple clinical manifestations, namely insulin resistance (IR) and infertility related to hormonal imbalances and anovulation. Despite being a common condition, its etiology and treatment modalities remain poorly defined. Without proper understanding and management of the condition, women may suffer numerous complications besides infertility such as diabetes mellitus type II (DMII), endometrial cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Therefore, further research is critical. This integrative review will create a comprehensive understanding of PCOS' pathophysiology, potential complications, treatment methods, and nursing considerations to promote the health …

The Benefits Of Dogs For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Emma Raugh

Senior Honors Theses

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a condition that primarily affects neurological development, causing decreased social aptness, diminished executive function, and abnormal sensory processing, among many other characteristic symptoms. Additional problems that often accompany ASD include anxiety disorders, depression, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Canine assisted animal therapy is one non-pharmacologic therapy option that has been researched for children with ASD to improve their social, psychological, mental, and other difficulties. Studies thus far have shown positive results in children with ASD who have dogs as pets or access to therapy dogs, including improved social functioning, decreased anxiety, overall improved behavior, …

The Effect Of A Screening Protocol On Opioid Use: An Integrative Review, Stephen D. Wright Jr

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The opioid crisis is a pervasive and social problem in the United States. Since 2001 several hundred thousand people have died from the misuse of prescription and illicit opioids. On average nearly 130 Americans perish every day due to opioid abuse while millions annually struggle with morbidity derived from opioid abuse disorders. This crisis causes tremendous physical and emotional suffering and death and is likely the most profound public health crisis our nation has faced. In 2015 alone, 52,000 people died of drug overdoses, with over 30,000 of those dying from opioid drugs. If left unchecked, the epidemic will continue …

Diet Significantly Influences The Immunopathology And Severity Of Kidney Injury In Male C57bl/6j Mice In A Model Dependent Manner, John E. Brus, Daniel L. Quan, Kristin J. Wiley, Brittney Browning, Hannah Ter Haar, Riley Lutz, Jeffrey F. Houghton, Joseph Gigliotti

College of Osteopathic Medicine Undergraduate Publications

Diet is a leading causative risk factor for morbidity and mortality worldwide, yet it is rarely considered in the design of preclinical animal studies. Several of the nutritional inadequacies reported in Americans have been shown to be detrimental to kidney health; however, the mechanisms responsible are unclear and have been largely attributed to the development of diabetes or hypertension. Here, we set out to determine whether diet influences the susceptibility to kidney injury in male C57Bl/6 mice. Mice were fed a standard chow diet, a commercially available “Western” diet (WD), or a novel Americanized diet (AD) for 12 weeks prior …

Treatments For Autism Spectrum Disorder: Literature Review, Jill Donaldson

Senior Honors Theses

This paper is a literature review of some of the popular treatments for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It begins with an overview of ASD, the common symptoms, and comorbidities. It includes a review of pharmacological treatments, behavioral treatments, and dietary treatments. Some treatment options in each of those categories are explained and reviewed. The paper also presents the comparison of various treatments to determine which is the most effective. The paper then concludes with what the most effective treatments are and how combined treatments are used.

The Effects Of Glute Strengthening And Hip Mobility On Patellar Tendinopathy – A Case Study, Jessica Stephenson

Senior Honors Theses

Patellar Tendinopathy is a chronic condition that effects a large number of the athletic population. There have been many treatments used for this condition, yet few of them are acceptable for an athlete placing a large amount of stress on the lower extremities. This case study examines the effects of glute strengthening and increasing hip mobility on a track and field athlete suffering from Patellar Tendinopathy. Many measures including health-related questionnaires, pain-rating scales, and performance were evaluated to determine the outcome of the treatment. After a two-week treatment time, the athlete exhibited lower pain during rest and performance, better quality …

Isolation, Effects And Characterization Of A Peripheral Tissue Injury Extract Causing Endothelial Cell Dysfunction, Ileus And A Precipitous Death, Joshua Bird, Anthony Bauer

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Basic

Medically Unnecessary Female Genital Alteration: Implications For Health Care Workers, Lora Mullen, Rachel Joseph

Liberty University Research Week

Graduate

LUO Remote

Textual or Investigative

A Review Of The Socio-Ecological Determinants Of Maternal Mortality Among African American Women, Lili Morgan, Michelle Salinas, Katherine Riley, Michala Geraty, Baraka Muvuka

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Textual or Investigative