Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Multivariate Analysis For The Quantification Of Transdermal Volatile Organic Compounds In Humans By Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell System, Ahmed Hasnain Jalal

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this research, a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) sensor was investigated for specific detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) for point-of-care (POC) diagnosis of the physiological conditions of humans. A PEMFC is an electrochemical transducer that converts chemical energy into electrical energy. A Redox reaction takes place at its electrodes whereas the volatile biomolecules (e.g. ethanol) are oxidized at the anode and ambient oxygen is reduced at the cathode. The compounds which were the focus of this investigation were ethanol (C₂H₅OH) and isoflurane (C₃H₂ClF₅O), but theoretically, the sensor …

Addressing Alcohol And Marijuana Use Disparities Among Latino Adolescents, Jessica Weissman

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the early 1990s, a series of seminal research studies were published on substance use disorders among Latino adolescent males in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Expanding upon these studies, the aims of the present dissertation project were to (1) Determine whether the following adolescents’ and parents’ characteristics/cultural values are associated with current (past 30 days) or lifetime (ever) alcohol or marijuana use among Latino adolescents: sex, age, country of birth, GPA, family’s socio-economic status, living with both parents, mother’s highest level of education, father’s highest level of education, Familism Support, Familism Obligations, Familism Referents, Respect, Religion, …

Lifestyle And Biological Risk Factors For Liver Fibrosis In The Miami Adult Studies On Hiv (Mash) Cohort: An Hiv Infected And Hiv/Hcv Co-Infected Population, Tiffanie S. Stewart

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Liver disease is now a leading cause of non-AIDS related morbidity and mortality in people living with HIV (PLWH). The present study investigated the interplay between adverse lifestyle factors that are prevalent in PLWH, biological mediators of liver pathogenesis, and a non-invasive measure of liver fibrosis (FIB-4 index) in HIV mono- and HIV/HCV co-infected individuals.

The results of this investigation in the Miami Adult Studies of HIV (MASH) cohort show that the odds of liver fibrosis progression significantly increased over two years for HIV mono-infected participants who drank alcohol hazardously (OR 3.038, P=0.048), and had BMI ≥ 28kg/m^{2 …}

The Influence Of Neurocognitive Impairment, Alcohol And Other Drug (Aod) Use, And Psychosocial Factors On Antiretroviral Treatment Adherence, Service Utilization And Viral Load Among Hiv-Seropositive Adults, Jennifer Attonito

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Among people living with HIV (PLWH), adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) can be affected by problems of neurocognitive (NC) impairment, stress, alcohol and other drug (AOD) abuse, and other barriers. The aims of this research were to: (1) examine factors associated with NC impairment, (2) explore relationships between psychosocial variables with ART adherence and viral load (VL), and (3) evaluate the efficacy of an evidence-based intervention in improving ART adherence, increasing service utilization, and decreasing VL.

The first study (n=370) was cross sectional and used structural equation modeling to test whether AOD use, years living with HIV, and time from …