Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Weighing The Risks And Benefits Of Radiation Exposure And Diagnostic X-Rays In Children, Leah Costello

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

The number of X-rays, specifically CT scans, performed on patients in the United States is increasing exponentially every year. Children are at most risk for long term damage from this increase in radiation exposure. This study explores how much risk children are being exposed to and how we can, as practitioners, make informed decisions about when or when not to order CT scans. The purpose of this paper is to provide practitioners the information needed to help patients decide if the long-term risks of cancer from medical radiation outweigh the potential benefit of diagnostic or therapeutic radiation. The review of …

Continuous Subglottic Suctioning Of Intubated Patients In The Icu, Dan Deutsch

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) is a common complication in mechanically ventilated patients. It causes substantial morbidity and mortality, as well as substantial cost to the patients and healthcare systems. One of the major risk factors identified for risk of VAP is the aspiration of secretions from the oropharynx. One intervention aimed at decreasing the incidence of secretion aspiration is an endotracheal tube (ETT) that can be hooked up to suction, providing continuous subglottic suctioning. The purpose of this paper was to explore the use of continuous subglottic suctioning and its effects on the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia. Review of literature …

Comparing Fecal Microbiota Transplant (Fmt) To Vancomycin: In Treatment Of Recurrent Clostridium Difficile Infections (Cdi), Christopher Seil

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is the main cause of antibiotic-associated pseudomembranous colitis.

• CDI has tripled over the last ten years due to the increased use of broad spectrum antibiotics. CDI has become increasingly difficult to manage with traditional therapies such as metronidazole and vancomycin due to mutations in the pathogen, resulting in resistant organisms.

• The purpose of this review was to determine if fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is more effective in treating and curing CDIs than traditional vancomycin therapy.

• The hypothesis was that FMT will have better treatment outcomes than traditional vancomycin therapy.

• The findings …

Lyme Disease Outcomes With Immediate, Short Duration Antibiotic Use Versus Delayed, Longer Duration Use, Lori A. Steinley

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Lyme disease is the fastest growing vector-borne disease in the United States, according to the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA). The guidelines for diagnosis provided by the IDSA include evidence of erythema migrans rash with validation of a positive two-tier serology testing. With no established treatment standards, decreased sensitivity of testing and inconsistency of observing the rash, practitioners following the guidelines may delay treatment of antibiotics. This delay could cause progression of severity of symptoms.

The purpose of this study is to compare implementation and duration time of antibiotics and establish the treatment protocol for best clinical outcomes for …

Acute Myocardial Infarction: Are We Overlooking Nstemi?, Kevin D. Swenson

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is one of the leading causes of death in the United States.

• The purpose of this study was to examine methods of clinical differentiation between ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-STEMI (NSTEMI) and then to compare the various treatment methods and subsequent outcomes in STEMI versus NSTEMI.

• A compilation of systematic reviews, medical journals, practice guidelines, medical texts and meta-analyses were researched for the purpose of this study.

• NSTEMI patients are older, have more comorbidities and present with more atypical symptoms than STEMI patients.

• NSTEMI patients are treated less aggressively …

The Addition Of Tiotropium In Uncontrolled Asthma, Kathryn Gray

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Many patients with asthma have poorly controlled disease despite the use of both an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) and a long acting beta agonist (LABA).

• The review explored several studies that compared the addition of tiotropium to patients with uncontrolled asthma currently using both a ICA and a LABA to determine if further symptom reduction is obtained along with reduction of exacerbations

• It was found that patients with poorly controlled asthma will benefit from the addition of tiotropium to the current medication regimen of an ICS and a LABA. Tiotropium offers providers an additional disease controlling option in …

Increased Incidence Of Asthma After Previous Infantile Rsv Bronchiolitis Infection, Ellen Adelia Doebler

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is a very common infection in children less than two years of age.

• Asthma is a common respiratory disease in childhood, which may cause frequent hospitalizations.

• The purpose of this study is to determine if infants previously diagnosed with RSV bronchiolitis have an increased incidence of asthma diagnosis compared to infants not diagnosed with RSV.

• The literature review examines correlation studies of both disease processes and explores incidence of asthma in patients previously diagnosed with Respiratory Syncytial Virus bronchiolitis.

• Individuals previously diagnosed with Respiratory Syncytial Virus bronchiolitis have a higher risk …

Hypertonic Saline Therapy In Cystic Fibrosis, Idil Mohamed

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Cystic fibrosis is an autosomal recessive genetic disorder that severely affects the lungs as well as other organs in the body. The pathophysiology of cystic fibrosis lung disease involves the production of thick and sticky mucus that accumulates leading to obstruction and inflammation of the airways. This disease is characterized by abnormal transport of sodium and chloride across an epithelium by defective genes, resulting in thick mucus secretions.

Nebulized hypertonic saline (3% NaCl) improves mucociliary clearance through rehydration of the airway surface liquid of the lungs. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of nebulized hypertonic saline …

Celiac Disease: Advances In Diagnostic Testing?, Alicia A. Hanson

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Celiac disease (CD) is a gluten-sensitivity enteropathy that occurs in genetically susceptible individuals upon ingestion of gluten and resolves when gluten is withdrawn from one’s diet.

• Serological markers play a major role in the diagnosis of celiac disease, however a small intestinal biopsy is currently the gold standard in symptomatic individuals.

• The purpose of this study was to determine if serological testing alone is sufficient to confirm the diagnosis of CD and therefore eliminate the need for a biopsy.

• The review of literature explored studies that compared small intestinal biopsy with different serological testing in males …

Alternative Treatment With Red Yeast Rice To Reduce Hyperlipidemia, Lisa Froemke

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• First line treatment of cardiovascular disease is lifestyle modification followed by the pharmacologic intervention of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors or statins

• Statins are commonly associated with intolerable side effects such as myalgia leading to medication non-compliance

• RYR preparations claim to inhibit cholesterol synthesis without causing myalgia

• RYR preparations have naturally occurring monacolins such as monacolin K which is chemically identical to lovastatin

• RYR is not regulated by the FDA leading to questionable manufacturing practices producing varying ingredient composition

• The purpose of this study is to investigate the role RYR in hyperlipidemia treatment compared to statins …

New Age Anticoagulants: A Safer And More Effective Alternative To Warfarin?, Benjamin Johnson

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Atrial fibrillation is the most common sustained heart rhythm in the United States with estimated prevalence rates of 8.8/100 (Wolf, Abbott, & Kannel, 1991). The largest risk for patients with atrial fibrillation is that of ischemic stroke from embolization of an atrial clot, thus the long standing treatment for this arrhythmia is aggressive anticoagulation. For decades this has been accomplished with the use of warfarin, however, the increased risk of hemorrhage combined with the inconvenience of weekly blood testing has prompted the development of potentially safer and more effective alternatives. A systematic review of the literature identified studies that examined …

Effectiveness Of Treatments For Low Back Pain, Angela K. Salveson

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Low back pain with or without radiculopathy symptoms is increasingly becoming a common complaint for patients. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the most effective treatment for patients experiencing low back pain with or without radiculopathy symptoms with the goal of pain reduction/elimination and positive long term results. The review of literature explores studies that discuss treatment options of surgical intervention or conventional treatment such as physical therapy. This information supplies health care providers with the tools to educate patients on treatment options and possible outcomes in hopes to offer the best treatment for the individual. Results show …

Palivizumab Administration Decreases Recurrent Wheeze, Shelly Daniels

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Children who have been infected with Respiratory Syncytial Virus have a higher incidence of wheeze-associated clinic visits and hospitalizations compared to children without previous RSV exposure. The purpose of this study is to determine if palivizumab, an immunoglobulin injection used to prevent RSV infections, can decrease the incidence of recurrent wheezing in children. The review of literature will follow male and female children from infancy to age 13 who were treated with palivizumab and compare these children to patients with similar demographics that were not treated with palivizumab to determine if there is any difference in incidence of wheezing. The …

Treatment Of Acute Bronchitis In Children With Pelargonium Sidoides, Amber Houge

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Bronchitis is one of the most common acute infections affecting pediatric patients. Most cases are caused by viral infections, do not respond to antibiotic therapy, and can take up to 14 days to resolve with supportive therapy. The purpose of this study is to determine if the use of Pelargonium Sidoides (Umcka™, EPs 7630) extract will decrease the duration and severity of symptoms from acute bronchitis in the pediatric population. Pelargonium Sidoides abstract is an extract of an African Geranium that has been used in traditional medicine for centuries. The review of the literature will evaluate multiple randomized controlled trials …

Comparing The Long Term Use Of H2 Antagonists (H2ras) And Proton Pump Inhibitors (Ppis) And The Incidence Of Colitis, Reiner Kremer

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Commonly used medications for GERD may affect the colonic mucosa

• H2 antagonists (H2RAs) ranitidine, cimetidine famotidine reduce acid secretion by 60 to 70%.

• Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) omeprazole, pantoprazole, lansoprazole, esomeprazole and rabeprazole reduce acid secretion by inhibiting the H+ (proton) secreting pump, reducing hydrochloric acid by 80 to 95%.

• Diarrhea is one of the most commonly reported adverse events.

• H2RAs and PPIs have the physiological and functional potential to interfere with gastrointestinal physiology by altering intestinal pH.

• Microcytic colitis causing chronic diarrhea and colonic inflammation is a significant complication risk after the > 4-8 …