Digital Commons Network^™

Commonwealth Times 2017-11-06

Commonwealth Times, 1969-

No abstract provided.

Commonwealth Times 2017-10-23

Commonwealth Times, 1969-

No abstract provided.

Commonwealth Times 2017-02-13

Commonwealth Times, 1969-

No abstract provided.

Service-Learning Community Partner Impact Assessment Report, Jennifer Jettner, Lynn Pelco, Katie Elliott

Division of Community Engagement Resources

In the summer of 2017, VCU’s Office of Service-Learning conducted an evaluation of the impact of service-learning on community partner organizations. This assessment aimed to collect actionable feedback from partners and to inform improvements to service-learning courses at VCU that successfully address partners’ concerns. An external researcher conducted phone interviews with a representative sample of 22 community partners. Partners were asked how a specific service-learning course impacted their organization in three areas: organizational capacity, economically, and socially. Partners were also asked about faculty interactions and the likelihood of recommending the service-learning course to other organizations like their own. This report …

Splenic Trauma: Wses Classification And Guidelines For Adult And Pediatric Patients, Federico Coccolini, Giulia Montori, Fausto Catena, Yoram Kluger, Walter Biffl, Ernest E. Moore, Viktor Reva, Camilla Bing, Miklosh Bala, Paola Fugazzola, Hany Bahouth, Ingo Marzi, George Velmahos, Rao Ivatury, Kjetil Soreide, Tal Horer, Richard Ten Broek, Bruno M. Pereira, Gustavo P. Fraga, Kenji Inaba, Joseph Kashuk, Neil Parry, Peter T. Masiakos, Konstantinos S. Mylonas, Andrew Kirkpatrick, Fikri Abu-Zidan, Carlos Augusto Gomes, Simone Vasilij Benatti, Noel Naidoo, Francesco Salvetti, Stefano Maccatrozzo, Vanni Agnoletti, Emiliano Gamberini, Leonardo Solaini, Antonio Costanzo, Andrea Celotti, Matteo Tomasoni, Vladimir Khokha, Catherine Arvieux, Lena Napolitano, Lauri Handolin, Michele Pisano Pisano, Stefano Magnone, David A. Spain, Marc De Moya, Kimberly A. Davis, Nicola De Angelis, Ari Leppaniemi, Paula Ferrada, Rifat Latifi, David Costa Navarro, Yashuiro Otomo, Raul Coimbra, Ronald V. Maier, Frederick Moore, Sandro Rizoli, Boris Sakakushev, Joseph M. Galante, Osvaldo Chiara, Stefania Cimbanassi, Alain Chichom Mefire, Dieter Weber, Marco Ceresoli, Andrew B. Peitzman, Liban Wehlie, Massimo Sartelli, Salomone Di Saverio, Luca Ansaloni

Surgery Publications

Spleen injuries are among the most frequent trauma-related injuries. At present, they are classified according to the anatomy of the injury. The optimal treatment strategy, however, should keep into consideration the hemodynamic status, the anatomic derangement, and the associated injuries. The management of splenic trauma patients aims to restore the homeostasis and the normal physiopathology especially considering the modern tools for bleeding management. Thus, the management of splenic trauma should be ultimately multidisciplinary and based on the physiology of the patient, the anatomy of the injury, and the associated lesions. Lastly, as the management of adults and children must be …

Elimination Of Pain Improves Specificity Of Clinical Diagnostic Criteria For Adult Chronic Rhinosinusitis, Scott D. Hirsch, Evan R. Reiter, Laurence J. Dinardo, Wen Wan, Theodore A. Schuman

Otolaryngology Publications

Objective

Determine whether the elimination of pain improves accuracy of clinical diagnostic criteria for adult chronic rhinosinusitis.

Study Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Methods

History, symptoms, nasal endoscopy, and computed tomography (CT) results were analyzed for 1,186 adults referred to an academic otolaryngology clinic with presumptive diagnosis of chronic rhinosinusitis. Clinical diagnosis was rendered using the 1997 Rhinosinusitis Taskforce (RSTF) Guidelines and a modified version eliminating facial pain, ear pain, dental pain, and headache.

Results

Four hundred seventy-nine subjects (40%) met inclusion criteria. Among subjects positive by RSTF guidelines, 45% lacked objective evidence of sinonasal inflammation by CT, 48% by endoscopy, …

Digital Histology 2.0: An Open Educational Resource, John W. Bigbee

Health Sciences Education Symposium

The teaching of histology is increasingly relying on digital resources in lieu of traditional microscope laboratories. For nearly 20 years, health science education at VCU has depended on a Digital Histology curricular resource on CD-ROM, previously licensed by Wiley Publishing. Now facing issues related to accessibility and technological constraints, this resource is being re-designed as a web-based, mobile-friendly, interactive, open educational resource for VCU health science students and all learners across the world.

For the past two decades, there has been a steady decline in the use of microscopes in histology instruction (1,2). As a replacement, a number of digital …

Interprofessional Education At Vcu: Training Healthcare Students To Be Collaborative Practitioners, Kelly Lockeman

Health Sciences Education Symposium

Over the past five years, VCU has developed a comprehensive interprofessional education (IPE) curriculum with almost 2000 students from both the medical campus and the Monroe Park campus engaged in IPE activities annually. 90 faculty members are facilitating these learners in classrooms, clinical settings, and community practice sites. This presentation will describe the conceptual framework for VCU’s IPE curriculum, give an overview of the courses and activities, discuss evaluation methods and selected results, and present the challenges and opportunities for the future of IPE at VCU.

Innovation In Didactic Teaching For Predoctoral Dental Education, Jaisri R. Thoppay

Health Sciences Education Symposium

An innovative model to facilitate predoctoral dental student learning was designed and implemented during the academic year 2016/2017. This model was envisioned as a forum to improve the gaps in the current educational method of the dental education large classroom lecture format. This new method involved multimodal learning tools in accommodating the various learner styles among dental students. The new format consisted of an on-line pre-recorded audiovisual power point presentation, followed by a corresponding graded quiz, culminating a week later into an interactive case discussion in the classroom. This new format, resulted in higher average of the overall grade fro …

Oral Health And Aging, Edward F. Ansello

Director's Editorials from Age in Action

The sooner we recognize the importance of oral health to our well-being as older adults, the better we age. We need to consider our dentist as part of our health care team. For those of us in health professions, we should work together more to incorporate oral health into primary care.

Proteomic Approach For Extracting Cytoplasmic Proteins From Streptococcus Sanguinis Using Mass Spectrometry, Fadi Elrami, Kristina Nelson, Ping Xu

Philips Institute for Oral Health Research Publications

Streptococcus sanguinis is a commensal and early colonizer of oral cavity as well as an opportunistic pathogen of infectious endocarditis. Extracting the soluble proteome of this bacterium provides deep insights about the physiological dynamic changes under different growth and stress conditions, thus defining “proteomic signatures” as targets for therapeutic intervention. In this protocol, we describe an experimentally verified approach to extract maximal cytoplasmic proteins from Streptococcus sanguinis SK36 strain. A combination of procedures was adopted that broke the thick cell wall barrier and minimized denaturation of the intracellular proteome, using optimized buffers and a sonication step. Extracted proteome was quantitated …

Substrate Stiffness Controls Osteoblastic And Chondrocytic Differentiation Of Mesenchymal Stem Cells Without Exogenous Stimuli, Rene Olivares-Navarrete, Erin M. Lee, Kathryn Smith, Sharon L. Hyzy, Maryam Doroudi, Joseph K. Williams, Ken Gall, Barbara D. Boyan, Zvi Schwartz

Biomedical Engineering Publications

Stem cell fate has been linked to the mechanical properties of their underlying substrate, affecting mechanoreceptors and ultimately leading to downstream biological response. Studies have used polymers to mimic the stiffness of extracellular matrix as well as of individual tissues and shown mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) could be directed along specific lineages. In this study, we examined the role of stiffness in MSC differentiation to two closely related cell phenotypes: osteoblast and chondrocyte. We prepared four methyl acrylate/methyl methacrylate (MA/MMA) polymer surfaces with elastic moduli ranging from 0.1 MPa to 310 MPa by altering monomer concentration. MSCs were cultured in …

Tetr Family Regulator Brpt Modulates Biofilm Formation In Streptococcus Sanguinis, Jinlin Liu, Victoria N. Stone, Xiuchun Ge, Madison Tang, Fadi Elrami, Ping Xu

Microbiology and Immunology Publications

Biofilms are a key component in bacterial communities providing protection and contributing to infectious diseases. However, mechanisms involved in S. sanguinis biofilm formation have not been clearly elucidated. Here, we report the identification of a novel S. sanguinis TetR repressor, brpT (Biofilm Regulatory Protein TetR), involved in biofilm formation. Deletion of brpT resulted in a significant increase in biofilm formation. Interestingly, the mutant accumulated more water soluble and water insoluble glucans in its biofilm compared to the wild-type and the complemented mutant. The brpT mutation led to an altered biofilm morphology and structure exhibiting a rougher appearance, uneven …

Virginia Dental Journal (Vol. 94, No. 3, 2017)

Virginia Dental Journal

No abstract provided.

Virginia Dental Journal (Vol. 94, No. 1, 2017)

Virginia Dental Journal

No abstract provided.

Virginia Commonwealth University Commencement Program [2017], Virginia Commonwealth University

VCU Commencement Programs

No abstract provided.

Virginia Commonwealth University Undergraduate Bulletin [2017], Virginia Commonwealth University

VCU Bulletins

Undergraduate bulletin for Virginia Commonwealth University for the academic year 2017-2018. It includes information on academic regulations, degree requirements, course offerings, faculty, academic calendar, and tuition and expenses for undergraduate programs.

Nitrosative Stress Sensing In Porphyromonas Gingivalis: Structure And Function Of The Heme Binding Transcriptional Regulator Hcpr, Benjamin R. Belvin

Theses and Dissertations

Porphyromonas gingivalis, a Gram negative anaerobe implicated in the progression of periodontal disease, is capable of surviving and causing infection despite high levels of reactive nitrogen species found in the oral cavity due to its efficient nitrosative stress response. HcpR is an important sensor-regulator that plays a vital step in the initiation of the nitrosative stress response in many Gram negative anaerobic bacteria. We employ a combination of X-ray crystallography, SAXS, resonance Raman spectroscopy, UV-Vis spectroscopy, and molecular biology techniques to better understand this key regulator. Knockout of the hcpR gene in W83 P. gingivalis results in the inability of …

Prevalence And Clinical Characteristics Of Teeth Extracted With A Diagnosis Of Cracked Tooth: A Retrospective Study, Riley B. Sturgill

Theses and Dissertations

The body of knowledge that exists regarding cracked teeth is limited. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of cracks among extracted teeth. This retrospective longitudinal cohort study included patients of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Dentistry that underwent extraction procedures over a 6 year period. The sample consisted of 20,408 patients and 40,870 teeth. Statistical analysis software was used to identify diagnoses of a crack, fracture, or split tooth prior to extraction of the tooth by analyzing the Electronic Health Record (EHR) (axiUm™, Version 6.03.03.1035, Exan Corporation, Vancouver, BC, Canada). There were 3,228 teeth …

Weighted Quantile Sum Regression For Analyzing Correlated Predictors Acting Through A Mediation Pathway On A Biological Outcome, Bhanu M. Evani

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Weighted Quantile Sum Regression for Analyzing Correlated Predictors Acting Through a Mediation Pathway on a Biological Outcome

By

Bhanu M. Evani, Ph.D.

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2017.

Major Director: Robert A. Perera, Asst. Professor, Department of Biostatistics

This work examines mediated effects of a set of correlated predictors using the recently developed Weighted Quantile Sum (WQS) regression method. Traditionally, mediation analysis has been conducted using the multiple regression method, first proposed by Baron and Kenny (1986), which has since …

Collaborative Instruction For Information Retrieval And Appraisal Skills In Evidence-Based Practice Models For Dental Hygiene Students., Irene M. Lubker, Joan M. Pellegrini

VCU Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Objectives:

1. Collaborate with VCU Dental Hygiene Program faculty to develop and evaluate a model of evidence-based practice (EBP) for students in didactic and clinical settings.

2. Describe how a course was modified to emphasize evidence-based practice.

3. Analyze course evaluations and student scholarly output.

Methods/Materials:

Dental educators strive to develop graduates who practice evidence-based practice and whose clinical decisions are based on current scientific research. A medical librarian was invited to assist in integrating EBP into the dentistry curriculum in 2012. To gain a better understanding of EBP in dental settings, the librarian and dental hygiene faculty attended the …

A Comprehensive Summary Of Services And Resources Provided By Librarians In Support Of Coda Accredited Predoctoral (Dds/Dmd) Dental Education Programs In The United States And Canada, Irene M. Lubker, Elizabeth Stellrecht, Richard Mcgowan, Nena Schvaneveldt, Susan Arnold, Elisa Cortez, Rebecca Davis, Michael Kronenfield, Nicole Theis-Mahon

VCU Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Objective

The objective of this study is to provide a summary of library services and resources that support dental education and research. This summary will demonstrate trends in dental librarianship as well as services and resources that can be adopted to serve the needs of dental related education programs. To date, there has not been a comprehensive summary of these services.

Methods

An environmental scan was carried out to take inventory of services that dental librarians (1) provide. The study population consisted of librarians who work in dental libraries or college / university libraries that serve dental programs. The librarians …

Virginia Dental Journal (Vol. 94, No. 2, 2017)

Virginia Dental Journal

No abstract provided.

Virginia Dental Journal (Vol. 94, No. 4, 2017)

Virginia Dental Journal

No abstract provided.

A Biorelevant In Vitro Model To Characterize In Vivo Release Of Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2 (Rhbmp-2), Deblina Biswas

Theses and Dissertations

Biorelevant in vitro release/dissolution tests are designed to predict the in vivo behavior of a drug and are crucial in understanding its in vivo performance. Currently, there is no standardized compendial in vitro release testing methods or regulatory guidance’s for release/dissolution testing of implants due to their complex physiological locations.Furthermore, existing compendial methods do not capture the local release profile of ‘novel’ parenterals in physiological low fluid volume surrounding areas.

Long acting and in situ forming implants with orthobiologic proteins and peptides have increased over the past few decades due to a better understanding of genetic engineering. One of these …

Silver Diamine Fluoride And Oral Health-Related Quality Of Life, Nazafarin Javdan

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to study the association between Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) and Oral Health-Related Quality of Life as assessed by “The Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale” questionnaire. Methods: Parents of healthy children (ASA I and II) ages 1-5 with early childhood caries with reversible pulpitis who had application of SDF filled out a questionnaire at baseline and again after one month. The questionnaire was designed to evaluate the child’s behavior, physical abilities, pain, temperament, and how well the child gets along with others. Results: Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used to …

Provider Appearance: A Survey Of Guardian And Patient Preference, Joshua Westphal

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: To understand guardian and child preferences for the appearance of their pediatric dentist. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study using survey methodology with patients and parents that attended the VCU Pediatric Dental clinic.

Methods: A total sample of 100 guardians and 97 pediatric patient participants completed the computer-based questionnaire. Four subjects were asked to pose for photographs wearing various combinations of attire (professional, casual, white coat, scrubs).

Results: Among guardians, 56% reported preferring a provider in scrubs, with white coat the second most preferred attire (39%) for their children. For pediatric patients, scrubs were still most often selected, …

Role Of The Pediatric Dental Provider In Human Papillomavirus (Hpv) Education, Meredith L. Dugoni

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: This study investigates knowledge about HPV and examines if pediatric dental providers should include HPV education for guardians of patients 10-18 years.

Methods: Legal guardians of 10-18 year-old patients of the Virginia Commonwealth University Pediatric Dental Clinic were enrolled in this prospective cohort study. Participants completed a baseline survey, were provided HPV education, completed an initial follow-up survey, and then completed a 6-month follow-up survey.

Results: A total of 54 participants completed the baseline and initial follow-up surveys and 17 completed the 6-month follow-up survey. The average number of correct responses was 3.4 of 6 knowledge questions, which significantly …

Evaluation Of Volumetric Change Of Periapical Lesions After Apicoectomy As A Measure Of Postsurgical Healing Utilizing Cone Beam Computed Tomography, Eshwar Arasu

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether volumetric changes in persistent periapical lesions can be detected in follow-ups six months to five years after apicoectomy using cone-beam computed tomography. Patients with a previous treatment history of apicoectomy and for whom a pre-surgical CBCT scan was taken between November 2010 and December 2015 were invited to participate in the study. A post-surgical CBCT image of the treated tooth was obtained at the recall visit. Volumetric and linear measurements of periapical lesions on initial and postoperative CBCT images were performed using DiThreshGUI software and two calibrated examiners—a board-certified endodontist and …

Modulating The Innate Immune Response To Electrospun Scaffolds And Polymer Degradative Byproducts, Daniel Abebayehu

Theses and Dissertations

Implanted biomaterials often induce inflammation that frequently leads to the foreign body response, fibrosis, and the failure of the implant. Thus, it is important to evaluate how cells interact with materials to promote a more regenerative response. It is critical to determine how to modulate the response of tissue resident innate immune cells, as they are among the first cells to interact with implanted materials. Among tissue resident innate immune cells are mast cells, which are inflammatory sentinels that degranulate and orchestrate the fate of other cell populations, such as monocytes/macrophages and lymphocytes. Mast cells have also been reported to …