Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Comprehensive Literature Review: Assessing The Impact Of Covid-19 Policies, School Closures And Social Distancing, On The Mental Health Of School Age Children, Fatuma A. Hassan

Capstone Experience

Mental health is vital to the well-being of all individuals, especially children. COVID-19 unveiled a significant public health issue with poor mental health during the pandemic. There is limited literature about the mental health implications of COVID-19 policies for children and adolescents and preventive strategies for future pandemics. This comprehensive literature review seeks to further investigate the mental health impacts of school shutdowns and social distancing, which were nonpharmaceutical strategies, on school-aged children, 5-18 years old, and propose recommendations for public health officials to mitigate the mental health impacts for future pandemics. Additionally, the review aims to highlight the potential …

Effective Occupational Therapy Interventions To Decrease Picky Eating In Children: A Systematic Review, Savannah L. Jacobsen, Josie Cox, Alli Bos, Cherokee Ferguson, Stacey Smallfield, Molly Whitlow

Student Systematic Reviews: Occupational Therapy

PURPOSE: Picky eating is related to the lack of consumption in food variety by children when shown different foods (Wolstenholme et al., 2020). A 2015 study reported that almost half of children experience a period of picky eating at some point during early childhood, including almost 15% of children for whom picky eating does not resolve by age 6 (Cardona et al., 2015). The purpose of this systematic review is to identify interventions within the scope of occupational therapy that increase food acceptance in children under the age of seven years who demonstrate picky eating characteristics and who have no …

Post-Transplant Hepatic Graft Fibrosis In Pediatric Liver-Inclusive Transplant Recipients, Hanh D. Vo

Theses & Dissertations

Hepatic graft fibrosis is a common histologic finding following pediatric liver transplant (LT) that may affect the long-term graft outcome. Hence, it is essential to identify hepatic graft fibrosis at a stage where fibrosis is not yet clinically apparent but has the potential for progression to initiate appropriate intervention and prevent its progression. Liver biopsy is the gold standard for fibrosis staging, but it is invasive, requires general anesthesia in children, and has potential complications. Our long-term goal is to implement non-invasive tests to assess and monitor the progression of hepatic graft fibrosis in liver-inclusive transplant children. The work presented …

The Ecology Of Mental Health And The Impact Of Barriers On Mental Health Service Utilization, Alisha Aggarwal

Theses & Dissertations

Mental health has emerged as a major public health concern in recent times with several disparities and barriers related to adequate health service utilization. Different age groups experience diverse symptoms and face distinct barriers in accessing and utilizing healthcare. Policies like Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act were launched to improve insurance coverage and delivery of mental health services. However, a large gap of unmet needs exists for adequate mental health service utilization in the country. This dissertation aims to describe the financial and non-financial barriers to mental health service utilization …

Association Of New And/Or Progressive Multiple Organ Dysfunction Syndrome With Mortality And New Morbidity Among Children Encountering Septic Shock, Rachel L. Waworuntu

Capstone Experience

Despite reductions in sepsis mortality, there remains a substantial morbidity burden among children who survive sepsis. Furthermore, the majority develop multiple organ ‘group has historically been analyzed as a single cohort. Using the Life After Pediatric Sepsis Evaluation (LAPSE) investigation database, we studied the association of new and progressive multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (NPMODS) with morbidity and mortality among children with septic shock. We hypothesized that NPMODS represents a distinct phenotype based on evolving organ dysfunction. There was evidence of an association but it did not reach the 0.05 level of significance. We also hypothesized and confirmed that children with …

Screen Media Use In Pediatrics: A Qi Project To Promote Behavioral Change, Taylor Kratochvil, Michelle Wineinger Md, Danielle Saner Do, Cristina Fernandez Md

Graduate Medical Education Research Journal

Background: Children are growing up in an increasingly digital world. As mobile devices and digital screens become more accessible, greater attention is being paid to screen media use and its effect on pediatric development. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have released recommended screen time limits for children of various ages and emphasize the importance of high-quality screen media when used. In 2016, the AAP released the Family Media Plan: an online tool developed for families to create personalized strategies to manage screen media use.

Objective: While a useful tool, the AAP’s Family Media …

The Wellbeing Partners’ Use Of The School Health Index To Identify Needs In Omaha Public Schools: A Process Evaluation, Sophia A. Quintero

Capstone Experience

The School Health Index tool from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention has been a useful tool to identify needs and areas of improvement for schools. This tool is most effective when used in collaboration with school staff and assistance from an outside facilitator. The purpose of this evaluation was to determine the administration efficiency of the School Health Index in select schools throughout the Omaha Public School (OPS) district by The Wellbeing Partners. A process evaluation was conducted to: 1) assess the relationship between the schools’ wellness champions at five Omaha Public School (OPS) elementary schools and The …

Neighborhood Variability In Obesity In Children In Omaha, Nebraska, Ann Essay

Capstone Experience

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of childhood obesity is a serious public health concern in the United States. Although several individual-level factors have been found to be associated with obesity in children, neighborhood environmental and social factors likely play an important role. The main goal of this study was to describe the prevalence of child obesity in Omaha, Nebraska by various demographic subgroups, determine if obesity prevalence varies by neighborhood operationalized as zip code, and examine the association between neighborhood-level child obesity prevalence and neighborhood-level socioeconomic status. It was hypothesized that child obesity prevalence varies by demographic subgroup and by zip code …

Survey Of Indoor Air Quality In Residences Of Wic Participants In Lincoln, Nebraska, Eun Hee Kwon

Capstone Experience

Since 1992, Women, Infants, and Children at the Lincoln Lancaster County Health Department has provided supplemental food benefits, nutrition information, breastfeeding support, immunization referrals, and dental services to support low-income families and their children. However, statewide, the retention rate has been dropping since 2009, and if this continues, it can result in adverse health outcomes. As part of the Service Learning activities, this study aims to evaluate current services on clients’ experiences and improve their satisfaction by conducting the WIC participant-centered services survey. This cost-effective intervention program has been working successfully, however it does not provide the information of environmental …

Bedtime Fading With Response Cost For Treatment Of Sleep Disturbances In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sela Ann Sanberg

Theses & Dissertations

As many as 82% of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) experience numerous chronic sleep-related problems and at a much higher frequency and severity than their typically developing peers. Behavioral treatments are considered best practice and first-line treatment to address sleep problems. These treatments tend to address one specific sleep-related behavior at a time. Bedtime Fading with Response Cost (BFRC) is a promising intervention that targets a multitude of sleep problems concurrently and has yet to be replicated by more than one investigative team in the home setting with children on the autism spectrum. This study evaluated the effectiveness of …

Safety And Efficacy Of Abt-089 In Pediatric Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Results From Two Randomized Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trials., Timothy E. Wilens, Laura M. Gault, Ann Childress, Christopher J. Kratochvil, Lindsey Bensman, Coleen M. Hall, Evelyn Olson, Weining Z. Robieson, Tushar S. Garimella, Walid M. Abi-Saab, George Apostol, Mario D. Saltarelli

Journal Articles: Psychiatry

OBJECTIVE: To assess the safety and efficacy of ABT-089, a novel α(4)β(2) neuronal nicotinic receptor partial agonist, vs. placebo in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

METHOD: Two multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group studies of children 6 through 12 years of age were conducted. Study 1 (n = 274) assessed six treatment groups over 8 weeks: 4 once-daily (QD) ABT-089 doses (0.085-0.700 mg/kg), QD atomoxetine, and placebo. Study 2 (n = 119) assessed three treatment groups over 6 weeks: 2 QD ABT-089 doses (0.7 mg/kg, 1.4 mg/kg) and placebo. The primary efficacy variable was the investigator-administered Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale-IV: Home …