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2021 Research Symposium: International Conference On Cancer Health Disparities (Icchd-2021), The University Of Texas Rio Grande Valley. School Of Medicine

School of Medicine Publications

No abstract provided.

Transmission Dynamics: Data Sharing In The Covid-19 Era, Randi E Foraker, Albert M Lai, Thomas G Kannampallil, Keith F Woeltje, Anne M Trolard, Philip R O Payne

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Problem: The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic underscores the need for building and sustaining public health data infrastructure to support a rapid local, regional, national, and international response. Despite a historical context of public health crises, data sharing agreements and transactional standards do not uniformly exist between institutions which hamper a foundational infrastructure to meet data sharing and integration needs for the advancement of public health.

Approach: There is a growing need to apply population health knowledge with technological solutions to data transfer, integration, and reasoning, to improve health in a broader learning health system ecosystem. To achieve this, …

Association Of Incident Cancer To Low-Value Care And Healthcare Cost Burden Among Elderly Medicare Beneficiaries, Chibuzo Iloabuchi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In the United States (US), 25% of healthcare spending is considered wasteful because it is spent reimbursing low-value care. Low-value care is the utilization of healthcare services, medical tests, and procedures that have unclear or no clinical benefit to patients but still exposes them to risk. World-wide, low-value care imposes a significant economic burden on patients, payers, governments, and society. Cancer care among older adults > 65 years is one of the biggest drivers of healthcare expenditure in the US and accounts for nearly 40% of all spending, and low-value care among cancer patients is prevalent and contributes to the financial …

Effects Of Cultural And Lived Experiences On Health Access Of Chamorro People On Saipan, Esther Lizama Muna

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

More than half of the population of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands had not visited their primary care provider for a year in 2016. The Chamorro people are less willing to seek or access care than other ethnic groups. This qualitative study aimed to understand the Chamorro people's access and utilization of Saipan's health care services to improve their access and, ultimately, their health. The theoretical frameworks included Penchansky and Thomas's theory of access to explore the Chamorro people of Saipan's lived experiences with availability, accessibility, accommodation, affordability, and acceptability of health care services, as well as Spector's …

Exploring Barriers To Care: Provider Efforts To Improve Retention In Urban-Rural Clusters, Kenyata M. Fletcher

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractOver the years, the infection rates for HIV in the United States has changed partly due to lack of engagement and medication adherence which can lead to substantial declines in individual health. Factors that contribute to the individual’s adherence can include transportation cost, childcare, and lack of finances to name a few. These barriers can often be decreased with the help of supportive service providers and improvement in the patient-provider relationship. Currently, there is limited research that explores how to reduce patient barriers to care, specifically in rural areas. This qualitative study examines how Illinois health care providers help HIV-positive …

Criminal Thinking, Age, Psychological Well-Being, And Recidivism Among Recently Released Female Violent Offenders, Nyasia Monae Belfrom

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

High rates of incarceration among female inmates as well as high rates of recidivism characterize the U.S. justice system. Though some research has been conducted on gendered differences between prisoners, a gap existed in the application of criminal thinking theory for female offenders following their release. The purpose of this quantitative research study was to analyze the relationship between criminal thinking, age, psychological well-being, and recidivism among recently released female violent offenders in the region of Central Texas through the use of Yochelsen and Samenow’s criminal thinking theory. The sample for this study consisted of N = 98 female participants …

Suicidal Ideation Among American Indian And Alaska Natives In The United States, Lacie Lashawn Tillman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Suicidal ideation is a silent public health issue across the United States. Evidence suggests that suicidal ideation is a predictor of suicide attempt and completion. Suicide is a leading cause of death among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIs/ANs) in the United States, especially among younger people. Alcohol and illicit drug use, coupled with poor social conditions, can lead to suicidal ideations—and sometimes suicide completion. Using social cognitive theory, this quantitative cross-sectional study compared variables within the 2017, 2018, and 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health to determine the effect that alcohol and/or illicit drug use has on …

Examination Of The Efficacy Of The Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act To Reduce High School Childhood Obesity Rates System, Catrina Lashawn Morgan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The rapid rise in U.S. high school student obesity rates to 20.8% in 2018 presented significant risks to the health and well-being of American children and foreshadowed increased future healthcare costs. To address high school obesity, Congress passed the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) in 2010 that mandated the U.S. Department of Agriculture develop regulations to nutrition to improve the nutrition of school cafeteria breakfasts and lunches. The purpose of this quantitative study was to test for changes between 2009 and 2016 in high school obesity rates attributable to the HHFKA using Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System data, adjusted for …

Effects Of Trained Providers And Naloxone Distribution On Prescription Opioid Use Disorder, Samuel Sarpong

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractOpioid abuse and overdose are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality rates, as well as social and economic costs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the independent and interactive effects of state-sponsored prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) trained healthcare providers and community-based naloxone distribution program related factors in the states of Florida and Georgia for the prevention and reduction of prescription opioid use disorder, overdose, and deaths. The research theory adopted was the socio-ecological model with an emphasis on risk factors such as age. The study used secondary data from 2014 to 2018 from the Florida and Georgia …

Predictors Of Obesity Among Young Adults In The State Of Maryland, Kala Shahi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractObesity has become a global wellness concern for young adults. In the past, there were very few studies conducted on predictors of obesity among young adults, even though there have been several studies on the potential predictors of obesity on the general population. The social ecological model was used to guide this quantitative cross-sectional study to identify the possible predictors of obesity among young adults. The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System was used to analyze the potential predictors of obesity among young adults between the ages 18 – 34 years old in Montgomery County, Frederick County, and Princess Georges County, …

Understanding How Religious Practices Influence Self-Care In Black Churchgoers Diagnosed With Hypertension, Taquina C. Davis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Religion plays an essential role in managing health; however, there is limited research on religious practices among Black churchgoers diagnosed with hypertension. This research aims to understand how religious practices influence self-care in Black churchgoers diagnosed with hypertension. The sample consisted of 21 Black men and women, ages 29 to 70 years, with a clinical diagnosis of hypertension. Participants were recruited from two local, predominately Black churches in South Carolina and administered semistructured interviews to participants. A grounded theory design was used, and the data analysis consisted of constant comparison. Two core concepts were identified. One core concept identified was …

Unmet Needs Of Children With Special Health Care Needs When Transitioning To Adult Services, Kiara Monee Moseby

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Health care transition planning could help decrease health care disparities among those who identify as an individual on the autism spectrum; however, less than a quarter of the adolescent population living with autism spectrum disorder receive transition planning. Decreasing health care disparities could lead to an increase in health care quality and longevity. The purpose of this study was to analyze if there was a relationship between (a) the number of physician visits, (b) if the physician treats only children, (c) if the physician talks about the child seeing physicians who treat adults, (d) if the physician worked with the …

Social Determinants Of Health Influence On Surgical Morbidity After Colorectal Surgery, Koianka J. Ivanova Trencheva

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Decreasing surgical morbidity and improving surgical safety is a public health priority. With same-day or early hospital discharge after surgery, knowledge about social determinants of health (SDOH) impact on surgical morbidity is vital for surgical safety improvement. This study’s aim was to evaluate SDOH association with surgery-related morbidity after colorectal surgery in an adult population. This quantitative cross-sectional study used New York Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) secondary data from 2006 ⁠–2016 on 130,731 patients linked to SDOH. Dependent variables were anastomotic leak (AL), surgical site infection (SSI), Not SSI related, and overall complications (COMPL) within 30 days …

Impact Of Immediate Bedding In The Emergency Department On Length-Of-Stay And Left-Without-Being-Seen, Christine Demo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hospital systems and health care leaders struggle to provide safe and efficient care to patients seeking care in the emergency department (ED). EDs are experiencing a high influx of patients leading to ED overcrowding and causing stress on the department to manage patient flow more efficiently. The inability to manage patient flow properly limits the ability to provide safe, effective, and timely care to patients. Many solutions have been proposed to decrease overcrowding though the main focus of this study was the implementation of a more efficient patient flow strategy, known as immediate bedding. The purpose of this quantitative study …

Current Effects Of U.S. Preventive Care Quality Narratives On Preventive Health Services, James Fisher

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the interest of improving patient outcomes, significant investments in operationalized quality of care within the Medicare space have promulgated a low-resolution narrative predicated on conflation of higher quality scores with improved population health. Concomitant financial incentivization of Medicare Advantage plans through aligned Star Measures places contracts as the fundamental unit of most care quality analyses, but no studies have considered how present incentivization schema have impacted physician use and associated quality scores over time for breast cancer screening (BCS), colorectal cancer screening (CCS), and annual flu vaccination (AFV) at a county level. Guided by the Evidence Based Model framework, …

Experience Of The Obese Population With Weight Bias/Stigma, Gary Mathew Brown

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Obesity management has been identified as an important issue in health promotion, and some researchers have also reported that people who are obese often do not seek health care. Yet, current research is lacking on the complexities of weight stigma from the perspective of people who are obese. The purpose of this qualitive descriptive study was to understand the perceptions of weight bias/stigma of obese individuals. Guided by Goffman’s Theory of Social Stigma and the Health Belief Model, purposive sampling was used to recruit 10 participants who had a body mass index greater than 30 and who lived in West …

Inventing Dental Continuing Education: History Of The Dental Forum -- Milwaukee, Kenneth J. Waliszewski

School of Dentistry Faculty Research and Publications

Life-long learning is an ancient concept. The young are unaware of it. A beginning practitioner, often blinded by ego, ignores its value. The seasoned veteran, haunted by challenges, wonders how it passed him by. History can and does often teach us lessons. In 1787, Benjamin Franklin stood up to address the American Constitutional Convention and urged his fellow patriots to sign the document. At the age of 81, he was the oldest person in the group. He acknowledged having opened his mind to contrarian viewpoints from his younger colleagues. Franklin spoke these words: “If you are convinced that you know …

Women Have A Lower Risk Of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease But A Higher Risk Of Progression Vs Men: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Maya Balakrishnan, Parth Patel, Sydney Dunn-Valadez, Cecilia Dao, Vinshi Khan, Hiba Ali, Laith El-Serag, Ruben Hernaez, Amy Sisson, Aaron P Thrift, Yan Liu, Hashem B El-Serag, Fasiha Kanwal

Library Staff Publications

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and its progression may differ between men and women. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the relationship between sex and NAFLD, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and advanced NAFLD fibrosis.

METHODS: Studies reporting sex-stratified NAFLD prevalence among population-based samples and either NASH or advanced fibrosis among patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD were identified from MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases through December 2017. We calculated pooled relative risk ratios comparing women vs men for each outcome.

RESULTS: Our final analysis comprised 54 studies. Samples sizes were 62,239 for the NAFLD …

Helicobacter Pylori Diagnosis And Therapy In The Era Of Antimicrobial Stewardship, David Y Graham

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The diagnosis and therapy of Helicobacter pylori infection have undergone major changes based on the use the principles of antimicrobial stewardship and increased availability of susceptibility profiling. H. pylori gastritis now recognized as an infectious disease, as such there is no placebo response allowing outcome to be assessed in relation to the theoretically obtainable cure rate of 100%. The recent recognition of H. pylori as an infectious disease has changed the focus to therapies optimized to reliably achieve high cure rates. Increasing antimicrobial resistance has also led to restriction of clarithromycin, levofloxacin, or metronidazole to susceptibility-based therapies. Covid-19 resulted in …

Cross-Cultural Adaptation And Psychometric Properties Of The Thai Version Of The Neurophysiology Of Pain Questionnaire, Pichet Pasangkayo

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Background: Pain neurophysiology knowledge is hypothesized to influence pain beliefs and physical performance in individuals with chronic low back pain (LBP). Valid and reliable measures of such knowledge is important to evaluate the pain treatment on this domain as well as to understand its role in both physical and psychological functions of individuals with chronic pain. This study aimed to culturally adapt the revised Neurophysiology of Pain Questionnaire into Thai (T-rNPQ), using the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy (FACIT) methodology, and to evaluate its reliability and validity. Two hundred sixty-three individuals with chronic LBP completed the T-rNPQ and seven …

Analysis Of Influenza A Genomes And Bacterial Microbiota In Upper Respiratory Tracts Of Influenza Patients, Somruthai Rattanaburi

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Seasonal influenza is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses that infect the upper respiratory tract (URT) of humans and represent a major burden for public health. Furthermore, the URT is colonized by a diverse microbial community which is a key factor protective from pathogens and may directly or indirectly affect viral infection. Therefore, the first aim of this study focuses on influenza A genome characterization and mutation analysis based on NGS technology. The phylogenetic analysis based on the deduced amino acid sequences revealed that the recommended vaccine (A/H1N1) strain might be less effective, whereas the recommended vaccine (A/H3N2) …

If Not Otitis Externa...Then What?, Elizabeth A. Flasch, Sadia Ansari, Timothy Martin

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Ear pain is one of the most common presentations in urgent care, especially among pediatric patients. Further, acute otitis media (AOM) is the most common condition for which antibacterial agents are prescribed for children in the United States. Clinician visits make up 634 per 100 children during 2005-2006. It is imperative that clinicians differentiate AOM from new onset of otorrhea not due to acute otitis externa (AOE), the most common diagnoses made by clinicians with regional variations based on age and geography.1

The majority of AOE-related visits occur during the summer months (June through August); visits occur most commonly in …

Development Of Novel Point-Of-Care-Testing For Oxalate Detection In Urine Based On Oxalate-Binding Ligands, Naruerat Joybumrung

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Kidney stone disease is the third most common urinary tract disease worldwide that is more prevalent in the tropics. In Thailand, the highest stone prevalence up to 17% is reported in the Northeast. The disease is highly recurrent with a recurrence rate of about 50% within 5-10 years. The most common type of kidney stones is calcium oxalate (CaOx), and an increased urinary oxalate excretion is an important risk factor. Most of kidney stone patients have a hyperoxaluria condition (urinary oxalate >40 mg/day or >0.46 mmol/day). Therefore, urinary oxalate measurement has been widely used for estimating the risk of CaOx …

A Comparative Study Of Gut Microbiota In The Healthy Elderly And The Elderly With Colorectal Cancer, Nutta Iadsee

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Colorectal cancer is one of the third most common cancer worldwide. Dysbiosis of the human gut microbiota has been linked to sporadic colorectal cancer (CRC). This study aimed to compare the gut microbiota profile of a total of 80 Thai volunteers, who were above 50 years old, among 25 CRC patients, 33 adenoma patients, and 22 healthy controls (HC). The 16S rRNA sequencing was utilized to characterize the gut microbiome in both mucosal tissue and stool samples. Moreover, absolute quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay was conducted to quantify six CRC-associated bacteria including Fusobacterium nucleatum (FN), Parvimonas micra (PM), colibactin positive strains …

Study Of G6pd Deficiency With Clinical And Hematological Correlation In Newborn Infants, Thanaporn Pimpakan

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

G6PD deficiency is the most common enzymatic aberration, affecting more than a million people worldwide. If severe cases at birth are not diagnosed and treated promptly, they can develop into cerebral jaundice and hyperbilirubinemia. Hyperbilirubinemia is caused by an imbalance between increased bilirubin production and ineffective excretion of bilirubin. This can result in the neurotoxicity of bilirubin, kernicterus, and fatal mental retardation. Besides, It has been speculated that the presence of a high number of reticulocytes in newborns interferes with the diagnosis of G6PD deficiency since reticulocytes contain higher amounts of G6PD enzyme than mature erythrocytes. Therefore, the purposes of …

Effectiveness Of A Social Health Security Program In Improving Financial Risk Protection Against The Health Expenditures Of The Insured Populations In Four Districts Of Nepal: A Mixed Method Study, Gaj Bahadur Gurung

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Background: Most low and low-middle income (LMICs) countries adopting National Health Insurance (NHI) programs to achieve Universal Health Coverage are struggling to implement the program and thus have failed to achieve the expected outputs. The Nepal NHI program initiated in 2016 has experienced numerous implementation challenges, due to inadequate inputs and throughput, resulting in negative output such adverse selection, poor health service delivery, low enrollment of the poor household and low annual non-renewals of the NHI membership. However, there is a lack of research that focuses on these problems. So, this study has two objectives. Firstly, delved into the NHI …

Prevalence Of Canine Atopic Dermatitis And Distribution Of Causative Allergens In Bangkok, Sopon Sornsanit

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Canine atopic dermatitis (CAD) is a pruritic allergic skin disease caused by an overreaction to environmental allergens. The diagnosis of CAD is made on the basis of the patient's history, physical examination, and exclusion of other pruritic skin diseases. Allergen-specific IgE serology (ASIS) is one of the most frequently recommended tests in veterinary dermatology for identifying causative allergens. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of CAD and the types of allergens that cause it in atopic dogs using ASIS in the Bangkok metropolitan area. The study was divided into two sections. Between 2015 and 2019, 383 …

Tragedy Of The Energy Commons: How Government Regulation Can Help Mitigate The Environmental And Public Health Consequences Of Cryptocurrency Mining, Jeff Thomson

Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental, & Innovation Law

The use of cryptocurrencies in daily life has continued to rise over the last decade and shows no signs of slowing down. Although cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, provide numerous tangible benefits to society, the process of mining these cryptocurrencies is extremely energy intensive. Accordingly, a tragedy of the energy commons has resulted whereby the monetary incentive to mine cryptocurrencies has distorted our collective ability to care for our shared energy resources. The current system allows for industrious individuals to set up cryptocurrency mines in regions that have access to plentiful and cheap energy sources, utilize this energy to power their …

Cotrimoxazole Prophylaxis Increases Resistance Gene Prevalence And Α-Diversity But Decreases Β-Diversity In The Gut Microbiome Of Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Exposed, Uninfected Infants, Alaric W D'Souza, Eshia Moodley-Govender, Bertram Berla, Tejas Kelkar, Bin Wang, Xiaoqing Sun, Brodie Daniels, Anna Coutsoudis, Indi Trehan, Gautam Dantas

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Prophylactic cotrimoxazole treatment is recommended in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-exposed, uninfected (HEU) infants, but the effects of this treatment on developing HEU infant gut microbiotas and resistomes are largely undefined.

METHODS: We analyzed whole-metagenome sequencing data from 163 longitudinally collected stool samples from 63 HEU infants randomized to receive (n = 34; CTX-T) or to not receive (n = 29; CTX-N) prophylactic cotrimoxazole treatment. We generated taxonomic, functional pathway, and resistance gene profiles for each sample and compared microbiome signatures between the CTX-T and CTX-N infants.

RESULTS: Metagenomic analysis did not reveal significant differences in taxonomic or functional pathway …

Does Social Protection Affect Infant Welfare?, Felix Wisnu Handoyo

Jurnal Ekonomi Kesehatan Indonesia

This research aims to assess the impact of conditional cash transfer (PKH) program on infant welfare. The poor people usually treated their babies inadequately due to of lack of resources. Government intervention by social protection program is expected to contribute to increase infant welfare. Infant welfare determines their quality of future life, and to some extent will determine the quality of human resources in a country. This research uses two micro data set which are Indonesia family life survey (IFLS) 4 and 5. The method is using econometrics with difference-in-differences (DiD) model to measure impact of the CCT program. Then, …