Digital Commons Network^™

Utilising A Systematic Review-Based Approach To Create A Database Of Individual Participant Data For Meta- And Network Meta-Analyses: The Release Database Of Aphasia After Stroke, Louise R. Williams, Myzoon Ali, Kathryn Vandenberg, Linda J. Williams, Masahiro Abo, Frank Becker, Audrey Bowen, Caitlin Brandenburg, Caterina Breitenstein, Stefanie Bruehl, David A. Copland, Tamara B. Cranfill, Marie Di Pietro-Bachmann, Pamela Enderby, Joanne Fillingham, Federica Lucia Galli, Marialuisa Gandolfi, Bertrand Glize, Erin Godecke, Neil Hawkins, Katerina Hilari, Jacqueline Hinckley, Simon Horton, David Howard, Petra Jaecks, Elizabeth Jefferies, Luis M T Jesus, Maria Kambanaros, Eun K. Kang, Eman M. Khedr, Anthony P H Kong, Tarja Kukkonen, Marina Laganaro, Matthew A. Lambon Ralph, Ann C. Laska, Béatrice Leemann, Alexander P. Leff, Roxele R. Lima, Antje Lorenz, Brian Macwhinney, Rebecca S. Marshall, Flavia Mattioli, İlknur Maviş, Marcus Meinzer, Reza Nilipour, Enrique Noé, Nam-Jong Paik, Rebecca Palmer, Ilias Papathanasiou, Brigida F. Patricio, Isabel P. Martins, Cathy Price, Tatjana P. Jakovac, Elizabeth Rochon, Miranda L. Rose, Charlotte Rosso, Ilona Rubi-Fessen, Marina B. Ruiter, Claerwen Snell, Benjamin Stahl, Jerzy P. Szaflarski, Shirley A. Thomas, Mieke Van De Sandt-Koenderman, Ineke Van Der Meulen, Evy Visch-Brink, Linda Worrall, Heather H. Wright, Marian C. Brady, The Release Collaborators

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Background: Collation of aphasia research data across settings, countries and study designs using big data principles will support analyses across different language modalities, levels of impairment, and therapy interventions in this heterogeneous population. Big data approaches in aphasia research may support vital analyses, which are unachievable within individual trial datasets. However, we lack insight into the requirements for a systematically created database, the feasibility and challenges and potential utility of the type of data collated. Aim: To report the development, preparation and establishment of an internationally agreed aphasia after stroke research database of individual participant data (IPD) to facilitate planned …

A Case For Menstrual Health Disparities As A Part Of Public Health Discourse, Mykala Jackson, Sandhya Lohani, Joanne Chopak-Foss, Tilicia Mayo-Gamble

Eagles Talking About the Public’s Health

No abstract provided.

Correlates Of Risky Sexual Behaviors Among African American Females In Juvenile Detention Centers, Eghosa E. Asemota

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: In comparison to other demographics, research shows that African American female adolescents are over-represented in the United States Juvenile Justice System. Studies in this vulnerable population demonstrate higher rates of engagement in unsafe sex, and its attendant negative consequences of HIV infections, sexually transmitted diseases, and mistimed pregnancies. There is a paucity of studies that have specifically examined risky sexual behaviors amongst African American females in Juvenile Detention Centers. Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between the individual, family, peer, and societal factors, and engagement in risky sex among Black female detainees in Juvenile …

Pain That Only She Must Bear: On The Invisibility Of Women In Judicial Abortion Rhetoric, Francesca Laguardia

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The graphic and bodily facts of a legal question of rights are relevant to the courts, particularly in questions that directly implicate physical bodies and pain, such as right to die cases, or what level of search may be allowable and when. However, in the case of abortion, or more specifically the bodily ramifications of pregnancy and childbirth, this detail is conspicuously absent. This article, relying on a content analysis of over 220 legal opinions on abortion rights, documents this absence of rhetoric. Particularly in the context of other discussions of pain and physical health risks in these very same …

Factors Associated With Accidental Drug Exposure In U.S. Adults Over 65 Years Of Age, Edwin Raj

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Medication errors are a major public health issue and a leading cause of fatalities in the United States and globally. Older adults who rely on medications to address age-related health issues are at higher risk of medication errors. Accidental exposure to drugs is a major type of medication error that impacts older people more than other age groups. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine the association between patient gender, age group, and reporter type and accidental exposure to drugs in older people. The ecological model was used to guide the study. Logistic regression analysis was used …

Looking Upstream For Factors Influencing Mental Illness In A Low-Resource Setting, Adewole Adebola Adefalu

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

An investigation into the upstream determinants of mental disorders could provide insight into pathways by which these risk factors could relate to different groups of mental illness. The study was a quantitative inquiry using constructs within the Rothman’s sufficient and component cause framework to examine the pathways existing between upstream risk factors for schizophrenic and mood disorders. The study population was drawn from a convenience sample of clients accessing services at the psychiatry departments of a secondary mental health institution in North-Central Nigeria. The mean age of the participants in this study was 35.5years. The majority were males (53.4%), single …

Association Between Parental Socioeconomic Status And Childhood Obesity In The Southwest Geopolitical Zone Of Nigeria, Omatsola Aboyowa Sifo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractGlobally, childhood obesity is a major social and public health concern characterized by complications such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure. The purpose of this quantitative cross-sectional study was to examine the association between childhood obesity in children age 6–12 years and the socioeconomic status of their parents in the Southwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Social cognitive theory served as the theoretical framework for the study. Questionnaire data were collected from 384 parents/guardians of children age 6–12 years across three states in the Southwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple logistic regression at …

The Double Burden Of Intra-Household Malnutrition Among Mother–Child Dyads In South Africa, Puveshni Crozier

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Household-level double burden of malnutrition (HL-DBM) challenges traditional South African vertical malnutrition programs. Research has associated a household with an overweight/obese mother of reproductive age and her under 5-year-old child with signs of undernutrition (wasting, stunting, or thinness) with socioeconomic levels, maternal characteristics, features of the household, and child’s demographics. Grounded in the social determinants of health conceptual framework, this study aimed to investigate the determinants of HL-DBM in South Africa across the reproductive-child health continuum. Using the representative 2017 Wave 5 South African National Income Dynamics Study survey secondary data, a total sample of 314 homes met this non-experimental …

Predictors Of Glycemic Control Among Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients In Owerri, Nigeria, Jideuma Ikenna Egwim

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a significant public health concern globally and in Owerri, Nigeria. The deleterious effects of diabetes have been linked to poor glycemic control. According to the International Diabetes Federation, poor glycemic control is reflected in glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels greater than 7.0%, which are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. Studies have shown a dramatic rise in diabetic complications in Nigeria, particularly in Owerri. However, evidence is lacking on specific risk factors associated with poor glycemic control among DM patients in Owerri. With health insurance assuming a significant position in healthcare service delivery in Nigeria, addressing this …

Major Depressive Disorder And Perceived Everyday Discrimination Among The Jamaican Diaspora In The United States., Warren Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Overt racial discrimination in the United States has been supplanted by subtle forms of everyday discrimination known as microaggressions. Researchers have found perceived everyday discrimination (PED) to be associated with major depressive disorder (MDD) among African Americans but have often treated the African American subpopulation as a homogeneous group. The purpose of this cross-sectional study grounded in the theory of microaggression was to illuminate probable associations between microaggressions based on weight, age, gender, ethnicity, and race and lifetime MDD among the Jamaican diaspora in the United States. Secondary data from the Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiologic Surveys were analyzed. Statistically significant associations …

American Motherhood - A Taking, Nicole Knight

Mitchell Hamline Law Journal of Public Policy and Practice

No abstract provided.

Childhood Obesity Interventions In The Republic Of Trinidad And Tobago: A Qualitative Study Exploring Government Policies And Their Implementation By Health Practitioners, Phyllis Woolford

Dissertations

Because of the rising prevalence of childhood obesity and overweight in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, and the observation that efforts to address the problem were showing disappointing results, this study seeks to explore the experiences and views of policymakers, health practitioners, and parents of overweight and obese children, in order to inform leaders and policy makers regarding the current interventions.

Method

A qualitative research case study methodology is the research design used, which, with my research questions, I considered would best uncover knowledge and provide perspectives that would provide an increased understanding of the issues arising from the …

Adverse Childhood Events And Protective Health Behaviors Among Adults With Diabetes Or Diabetes With Comorbid Heart Disease, Ciara Michelle Rukse

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Diabetes is a prevalent and costly chronic condition that can lead to other comorbid conditions such as heart disease. Disease management is essential but can be stressful and complicated, especially for individuals who have developed maladaptive behaviors in response to exposure to adverse childhood events (ACEs), which are chronic stressors that impact physiological and psychological development. There is limited research on the potential relationship between childhood adversity and engagement in protective health behaviors among U.S. populations with diabetes or diabetes with comorbid heart disease. The ACEs pyramid was the theoretical framework of this quantitative cross-sectional study concerning morbidity and early …

Risk Factors Associated With Type 2 Diabetes Among Adults In Alabama, Peter Okeke

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the 21stcentury Diabetes mellitus is recognized as one of the most important public

health challenges that carry a substantial individual and community burden.

It is necessary to do a detailed search regarding DM2 from adolescence till adulthood is in

Alabama which should aim to provide recent information. T2D is influenced by a many

factors including demographics including age, sex, income level, educational, BMI,

physical activities, etc. Identification of the associated risk factors is very important to

inform decision making by concerned bodies and T2D management. The study aimed to

examine the risk factors associated with T2D in adults aged …

Bodily Autonomy And Anti-Vaccine Discourse During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Haley Sherman

Capstone Showcase

This paper explores the relationship between anti-vaccine discourse and ideas about bodily autonomy. I analyze the cyclical nature of vaccine hesitancy and show that it can lead to misinformation and harmful narratives. This paper uses theories of bodily autonomy that identify a concept called moral obligation. This concept, as explored by Alberto Giubilini, is a utilitarian approach in which citizens have a responsibility to their governments to get vaccinated so that, in turn, their governments can fulfill their obligation of protecting other individuals’ health (Giubilini 2020, 54). A discourse analysis of four key players in the anti-vax movement shows that …

Understanding The Environmental Implications Of The Microbiome Of Canals In Bangkok, Thailand, Emma Tao

Scripps Senior Theses

The canals of Bangkok, Thailand hold significant economic and social value, yet the increasing urbanization of the city has resulted in increased water pollution. Agricultural runoff and urban waste contribute to the degradation of the water quality, which has impaired its safe usage by the people of the city. This study focused on analyzing the microbiome of the water in the canals in correlation with the surrounding environment, both in and out of the water. Ten sites along the Bangkok canals were analyzed. DNA was isolated for the sequencing of the 16s rRNA gene to determine the microbial diversity of …

The Cost-Effectiveness And Feminization Of The Human Papillomavirus Vaccine, Audrey Jammes

Scripps Senior Theses

Approved in 2006, the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine provided a medical breakthrough in combating cancer by inoculating first female and then male adolescents in 2010. In 2016, a new HPV vaccine was approved for all adolescents. However, it is the most expensive vaccine created in the United States and its female centered prescription led to debates regarding the vaccine’s necessity and risks. For the STS portion of this paper, analysis of the language in the vaccine’s prescriptions from 2006, 2010, and 2016 demonstrates two implicit assumptions regarding female health built into the vaccine’s rollout. Comparison of the two assumptions to …

Mapping The Milk: Integrating Donor Human Milk Into Infant Nutrition Systems, Delaney Hartmann

Scripps Senior Theses

A human milk diet is an important part of the health and survival of all infants. A human milk diet is especially crucial for the most vulnerable preterm infants as it promotes a healthy gut and protects from Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC). However, many preterm infants are unable to consume their mother’s own milk due to breastfeeding challenges resulting from early delivery. Therefore, nutritional supplementation is often necessary for preterm infants and donor human milk (DHM) is highly superior to baby formula. DHM in the United States is processed at the 29 not-for-profit Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA) …

Beyond The Covid-19 Pandemic: The Importance Of Social Determinants Of Health In Educating Healthcare Leaders, Tashuna Albritton, Miguel Muñoz-Laboy, Umadevi Yokeeswaran, Marlene Camacho-Rivera

Publications and Research

As scholars of color and educators in the health professions, we are compelled to advocate for the inclusion of the study of health disparities and social determinants of health (SDOH) throughout higher education to understand, analyze, and effectively respond to healthcare access disparities, including COVID-19 disparities, in Black and Latinx communities across the United States. In addition to our identities and lived experiences, healthcare access disparities and their root causes are woven throughout the courses that we teach in the departments of social medicine, social work, and social and behavioral sciences.

Magi1 Inhibits Interferon Signaling To Promote Influenza A Infection, Yin Wang, Jun-Ichi Abe, Khanh M Chau, Yongxing Wang, Hang Thi Vu, Loka Reddy Velatooru, Fahad Gulraiz, Masaki Imanishi, Venkata S K Samanthapudi, Minh T H Nguyen, Kyung Ae Ko, Ling-Ling Lee, Tamlyn N Thomas, Elizabeth A Olmsted-Davis, Sivareddy Kotla, Keigi Fujiwara, John P Cooke, Di Zhao, Scott E Evans, Nhat-Tu Le

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

We have shown that membrane-associated guanylate kinase with inverted domain structure-1 (MAGI1), a scaffold protein with six PSD95/DiscLarge/ZO-1 (PDZ) domains, is involved in the regulation of endothelial cell (EC) activation and atherogenesis in mice. In addition to causing acute respiratory disease, influenza A virus (IAV) infection plays an important role in atherogenesis and triggers acute coronary syndromes and fatal myocardial infarction. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the function and regulation of MAGI1 in IAV-induced EC activation. Whereas, EC infection by IAV increases MAGI1 expression, MAGI1 depletion suppresses IAV infection, suggesting that the induction of MAGI1 may …

Humidity Reduces Rapid And Distant Airborne Dispersal Of Viable Viral Particles In Classroom Settings, Antun Skanata, Fabrizio Spagnolo, Molly Metz, Davida S. Smyth, John J. Dennehy

Publications and Research

The transmission of airborne pathogens is considered to be the main route through which a number of known and emerging respiratory diseases infect their hosts. While physical distancing and mask wearing may help mitigate short-range transmission, the extent of long-range transmission in closed spaces where a pathogen remains suspended in the air remains unknown. We have developed a method to detect viable virus particles by using an aerosolized bacteriophage Phi6 in combination with its host Pseudomonas phaseolicola, which when seeded on agar plates acts as a virus detector that can be placed at a range of distances away from an …

Tracking Cryptic Sars-Cov-2 Lineages Detected In Nyc Wastewater, Davida S. Smyth, Monica Trujillo, Devon A. Gregory, Kristen Cheung, Anna Gao, Maddie Graham, Yue Guan, Caitlyn Guldenpfennig, Irene Hoxie, Sherin Kannoly, Nanami Kubota, Terri D. Lyddon, Michelle Markman, Clayton Rushford, Kaung Myat San, Geena Sompanya, Fabrizio Spagnolo, Reinier Suarez, Emma Teixeiro, Mark Daniels, Marc C. Johnson, John J. Dennehy

Publications and Research

Tracking SARS-CoV-2 genetic diversity is strongly indicated because diversifying selection may lead to the emergence of novel variants resistant to naturally acquired or vaccine-induced immunity. To monitor New York City (NYC) for the presence of novel variants, we deep sequence most of the receptor binding domain coding sequence of the S protein of SARS-CoV-2 isolated from the New York City wastewater. Here we report detecting increasing frequencies of novel cryptic SARS-CoV-2 lineages not recognized in GISAID’s EpiCoV database. These lineages contain mutations that had been rarely observed in clinical samples, including Q493K, Q498Y, E484A, and T572N and share many mutations …

Integrating Fema And Scouts For Local Community Hazard Preparedness, Megan Vocatura

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

My goal is to support the development of a comprehensive, evidence-based, plan to connect four counties in eastern Massachusetts with local Scouting resources to enhance preparedness efforts. The counties of Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, and Suffolk comprise the geographic footprint of the Sprit of Adventure Scout Council (SoA). SoA’s newly established partnership with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) needs recommendations on where to stage preparedness and response efforts. My role will be to build a repository of evidence of current and anticipated hazards, vulnerabilities, and risks for the region and specific communities. This part of the project will consist of …

Anthropological Responses To Covid-19 In The Philippines, Gideon Lasco

Development Studies Faculty Publications

This article reflects on the roles anthropologists have played in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, and identifies the challenges – from the methodological to the political – they faced in fulfilling these roles. Drawing on the author's personal and professional experiences in the country, as well as on interviews with other anthropologists, this article identifies three major roles for anthropologists: conducting ethnographic research; bearing witness to the pandemic through first-person accounts; and engaging various publics. All these activities have contributed to a greater recognition of the role of the social sciences in health crises, even as anthropologists …

Health Workers On The Political Frontlines, Gideon Lasco

Development Studies Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

An Examination Of Three Transitional Events In The Substance Misuse Trajectories Of Women With Criminal Legal System Involvement, Martha Tillson

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

Research has consistently demonstrated that criminal legal system (CLS)-involved women are distinct from men in initiation and course of drug use, with important differences on biological, environmental, and sociocultural levels. Thus, the unique pathways and transitions into and out of drug use for women with CLS involvement are critical to consider from a research perspective, but also from a need to develop and support evidence-based, women-centered services in correctional contexts. This dissertation project uses a three-paper format to investigate three aims: (1) to understand CLS-involved women’s initiations to injection drug use and their experiences providing injection initiation assistance (IIA) to …

The Impact Of Food Justice Advocates In Creating And Influencing Public Policy, Michael Joseph Chadukiewicz

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

This case study explored the impact that food justice advocates had on creating and implementing public policy to provide access to adequate, healthy, and culturally appropriate food for the residents of New Haven, Connecticut. The problem the case study explored is in 2020 food insecurity affected 22% of the residents of New Haven, more than twice the national average. This qualitative case study used grounded theory to analyze the experiences of 31 food justice advocates that were members of a coalition of researchers, food service providers, non-profit agencies, grassroot organizations, and residents tasked with improving the city’s emergency food system. …

Circling The Drain: The Extinction Crisis And The Future Of Humanity, Rodolfo Dirzo, Gerardo Ceballos, Paul R. Ehrlich

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Library Materials

Humanity has triggered the sixth mass extinction episode since the beginning of the Phanerozoic. The complexity of this extinction crisis is centered on the intersection of two complex adaptive systems: human culture and ecosystem functioning, although the significance of this intersection is not properly appreciated. Human beings are part of biodiversity and elements in a global ecosystem. Civilization, and perhaps even the fate of our species, is utterly dependent on that ecosystem’s proper functioning, which society is increasingly degrading. The crisis seems rooted in three factors. First, relatively few people globally are aware of its existence. Second, most people who …

Malaria Resilience In South America: Epidemiology, Vector Biology, And Immunology Insights From The Amazonian International Center Of Excellence In Malaria Research Network In Peru And Brazil, Kathrine Torres, Marcelo U. Ferreira, Marcia C. Castro, Ananias A. Escalante, Jan E. Conn, Elizabeth Villasis, Maisa Da Silva Araujo, Gregorio Almeida, Priscila T. Rodrigues, Rodrigo M. Corder, Anderson R.J. Fernandes, Priscila R. Calil, Winni A. Ladeia, Stefano S. Garcia-Castillo, Joaquin Gomez, Lis Ribeiro Do Valle Antonelli, Ricardo T. Gazzinelli, Douglas T. Golenbock, Alejandro Llanos-Cuentas, Dionicia Gamboa, Joseph M. Vinetz

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Library Materials

The 1990s saw the rapid reemergence of malaria in Amazonia, where it remains an important public health priority in South America. The Amazonian International Center of Excellence in Malaria Research (ICEMR) was designed to take a multidisciplinary approach toward identifying novel malaria control and elimination strategies. Based on geographically and epidemiologically distinct sites in the Northeastern Peruvian and Western Brazilian Amazon regions, synergistic projects integrate malaria epidemiology, vector biology, and immunology. The Amazonian ICEMR’s overarching goal is to understand how human behavior and other sociodemographic features of human reservoirs of transmission— predominantly asymptomatically parasitemic people—interact with the major Amazonian malaria …

Using Community-Based Screening To Quantify The Relationship Between Hiv And Hypertension In A Rural South African Community, Jessica Ainooson

Public Health Theses

Background: Over the past three decades, the prevalence of hypertension has increased in sub-Saharan Africa, paralleling the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between HIV status and elevated blood pressure in a rural South African community. Methods: A secondary analysis was conducted from a community-based screening program providing TB/HIV/blood pressure/glucose screening in the rural sub-district of Msinga, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa from 2011 - 2017. Descriptive analyses were used to characterize the frequency of measured and self-reported hypertension, HIV status, and sociodemographic variables. Multivariable logistic regressions were used to estimate the relationship between HIV status …