Digital Commons Network^™

Herbal Medicines In The Treatment Of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19), Audrey C. Tolouian, Maryam Khosravian, Hedieh Ragati Haghi, Alireza Bolourian, Zahra Mojtahedi, Masoumeh Asgharpour, Amirhesam Alirezaei

Nursing Faculty Publications

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by a novel coronavirus, started in livestock within the markets of Wuhan, China and was consequently spread around the world. The virus has been rapidly spread worldwide due to the outbreak. COVID-19 is the third serious coronavirus outbreak in less than 20 years after Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003 and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2012. The novel virus has a nucleotide identity closer to that of the SARS coronavirus than that of the MERS coronavirus. Since there is still no vaccine, the main ways to improve personal immunity against this disease …

Social Support During Covid-19 Social Distancing, Josiah P. Stryd

Honors Projects

This pilot study measured emotional affect, social support, and use of digital communication technologies during the early 2020 COVID-19 stay at home order in Michigan among 65 Grand Valley State University Alumni Association members. The study used an online survey and was designed to examine the relationship between digital communication and social support during physical social distancing, and how this impacted emotional affect. Overall, the pilot study found largely unchanged reported emotional affect and social support before and during the stay at home order. A future study with larger sample size would aim to find if these results are replicated …

Descriptive Exploration Of Overdose Codes In Hospital And Emergency Department Discharge Data To Inform Development Of Drug Overdose Morbidity Surveillance Indicator Definitions In Icd-10-Cm, Leigh M. Tyndall Snow, Katelyn E. Hall, Cody Curtis, Allison L. Rosenthal, Emilia Pasalic, Sarah Nechuta, James W. Davis, Bretta Jane Jacquemin, Sherani R. Jagroep, Peter Rock, Elyse Contreras, Barbara A. Gabella, Katherine A. James

Peer Reviewed Articles

Background: In October 2015, discharge data coding in the USA shifted to the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-10-CM), necessitating new indicator definitions for drug overdose morbidity. Amid the drug overdose crisis, characterising discharge records that have ICD-10-CM drug overdose codes can inform the development of standardised drug overdose morbidity indicator definitions for epidemiological surveillance.

Methods: Eight states submitted aggregated data involving hospital and emergency department (ED) discharge records with ICD-10-CM codes starting with T36-T50, for visits occurring from October 2015 to December 2016. Frequencies were calculated for (1) the position within the diagnosis billing fields where …

Investigating Microbial And Host Factors That Modulate Severity Of Clostridioides Difficile Associated Disease, Armando Lerma

Department of Food Science and Technology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Clostridioides difficile is recognized as one of the most important pathogens in hospital and community healthcare settings. The clinical outcome of infection of toxigenic C. difficile infection (CDI) ranges from asymptomatic colonization to fulminant pseudomembranous colitis and death. In recent studies, it has been suggested that a high proportion of nosocomial CDI cases are transmitted from asymptomatic carriers which might be acting as infection reservoirs. Understanding what causes the different responses to infection could lead to the development of novel prevention and treatment strategies. Although several explanations have been proposed to explain variations in susceptibility, understanding of the exact mechanisms …

Gender And Racial Disparity For Hospital Emergency Service Usage In Usa: A Quantitative Analysis For Various Age Groups During 2010–2017., Subhendra N. Sarkar, Anthony F. Devito, Evans Lespinasse, Faisal Khosa

Publications and Research

Background: Annually emergency department (ED) services are utilized by more than 100 million Americans making ED usage trends important determinants of healthcare quality, outcomes and cost. Previous workers have demonstrated the existence of disparity in various healthcare services in USA although a comprehensive analysis has not been undertaken. Dahlgren and Whitehead rainbow model has offered insights for multiple factors of influence on an individual’s health and focuses on the relationships among these factors. The Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH; WHO initiatives) suggests that the social and environmental factors are at the root of most of the inequalities responsible …

Urgent Actions Needed To Better Ensure An Effective Federal Response, United States: Government Accountability Office (Gao)

Documents

No abstract provided.

Biographical Feature: William A. Hinton, M.D., Erik Munson

Clinical Lab Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Comprehensive Molecular Screening In A Cohort Of Young Men Who Have Sex With Men And Transgender Women: Effect Of Additive Rectal Specimen Source Collection And Analyte Testing, Erik Munson, Alyssa Reynoso, Morena Pass, Kathleen Buehler, Daniel Ryan, Antonia Clifford, Ethan Morgan, Brian Mustanski

Clinical Lab Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Background

This study's purposes were to characterize detection rates of several sexually transmitted infection (STI) agents and describe the effect additional specimen source and analyte screening has on STI detection within a cohort of young men who have sex with men and transgender women.

Methods

Within a 16-month interval, 1966 encounters involved dual urine and rectal swab submissions assessed by commercial transcription-mediated amplification–based assays for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae and by off-label transcription-mediated amplification–based Trichomonas vaginalis and Mycoplasma genitalium testing. Identification of STI carriers used algorithms involving Food and Drug Administration–cleared screening methods, laboratory-modified testing for extraurogenital C. trachomatis …

Management Of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome In Children Associated With Covid-19: A Survey From The International Kawasaki Disease Registry., Matthew D. Elias, Brian W. Mccrindle, Guillermo Larios, Nadine F. Choueiter, Nagib Dahdah, Ashraf S. Harahsheh, Supriya Jain, Cedric Manlhiot, Michael A. Portman, Geetha Raghuveer, Therese M. Giglia, Audrey Dionne, International Kawasaki Disease Registry

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Background: Since April 2020, there have been numerous reports of children presenting with systemic inflammation, often in critical condition, and with evidence of recent infection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This condition, since defined as the multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), is assumed to be a delayed immune response to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and there are frequently cardiac manifestations of ventricular dysfunction and/or coronary artery dilation.

Methods: We surveyed the inpatient MIS-C management approaches of the members of the International Kawasaki Disease Registry across 38 institutions and 11 countries.

Results: Among the respondents, 56% reported …

Evaluation Of The Genetic And Structural Variations Of Camel Hemoglobin, Amanat Ali

Dissertations

The single-humped Arabian camel (Camelus dromedarius) thrives in the hot arid Arabian desert. Many unique adaptations permit it to accomplish this. Camel erythrocytes or red blood cells (RBCs) have a peculiar elliptical shape and are amenable to large variations in physical conditions resulting from dehydration and rehydration cycles. The oxygen transport protein hemoglobin is found abundantly in RBCs and is also believed to behave differently in camels. While several physiological and biochemical studies have been performed on camel hemoglobin, very little is known about genetic and structural adaptions in this protein. The camel genome harbors several unique variations …

Is The Proteome Of Bronchoalveolar Lavage Extracellular Vesicles A Marker Of Advanced Lung Cancer?, Ana Sofia Carvalho, Maria Carolina Strano Moraes, Chan Hyun Na, Ivo Fierro-Monti

Open Access archive

Acellular bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) proteomics can partially separate lung cancer from non-lung cancer patients based on principal component analysis and multivariate analysis. Furthermore, the variance in the proteomics data sets is correlated mainly with lung cancer status and, to a lesser extent, smoking status and gender. Despite these advances BAL small and large extracellular vehicles (EVs) proteomes reveal aberrant protein expression in paracrine signaling mechanisms in cancer initiation and progression. We consequently present a case-control study of 24 bronchoalveolar lavage extracellular vesicle samples which were analyzed by state-of-the-art liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). We obtained evidence that BAL EVs proteome complexity …

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (H5n1) Landscape Suitability Varies By Wetland Habitats And The Degree Of Interface Between Wild Waterfowl And Poultry In India, Michael G. Walsh, Siobhan M. Mor, Shah Hossain

Open Access archive

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus, subtype H5N1, constitutes one of the world’s most important health and economic concerns given the catastrophic impact of epizootics on the poultry industry, the high mortality attending spillover in humans, and its potential as a source subtype for a future pandemic. Nevertheless, we still lack an adequate understanding of HPAI H5N1 epidemiology and infection ecology. The nature of the wild waterfowl–poultry interface, and the sharing of diverse wetland habitat among these birds, currently underscore important knowledge gaps. India has emerged as a global hotspot for HPAI H5N1, while also providing critical wintering habitat for …

Performance Of Molecular And Serologic Tests For The Diagnosis Of Scrub Typhus, Kavitha Kannan, Rebecca John, Debasree Kundu, Divya Dayanand

Open Access archive

Diagnosis of scrub typhus, caused by the bacterium Orientia tsutsugamushi, is challenging because of the overlap of its non-specific symptoms with other infections coupled with the lack of sufficient data on the performance of diagnostic tests. Early diagnosis of scrub typhus is crucial to improve outcomes and this study evaluates the diagnostic performance of various tests. The present study aims at assessing the accuracy of various rapid diagnostic tests, serologic tests, and nucleic acid amplification methods on well-characterized patient samples. Adult patients with acute febrile illness and manifestations suggestive of scrub typhus confirmed by positive PCR in the blood, eschar …

Covid-19 Disparity Among Racial And Ethnic Minorities In The Us: A Cross Sectional Analysis, Raghavendra Tirupathi, Valeriia Muradova, Raj Shekhar, Sohail Abdul Salim

Open Access archive

Aim: To analyze racial disparities in Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in the United States of America and discuss possible reasons behind this inequality. Subject and methods: We obtained estimated case counts of African-American, Caucasian, Native American, Asian and Hispanic individuals with coronavirus disease (COVID-19)infection through May 5, 2020, from publicly available data on state departments of health websites. We calculated race-specific fractions as the percentage of the total population and analyzed the reasons behind this disparity. Results: The incident rates of COVID-19 were higher among African Americans and among Latinos disproportionately higher than their representation in 14 states and 9 …

The Pacifican November 2020, University Of The Pacific

All Issues - Student Newspaper, The Pacifican, Pacific Weekly

No abstract provided.

Employment Law, D. Paul Holdsworth

University of Richmond Law Review

Against the backdrop of a year that saw the COVID-19 pandemic alter the American workplace in an unprecedented way, the employment law landscape in Virginia also underwent a recent sea change. Historically considered an employer-friendly state, the General Assembly shifted away from tradition by enacting several significant pieces of employee-friendly legislation, which will surely have a long-lasting impact on Virginia employees, businesses, and Virginia’s economy at large. This Article highlights these critical developments in Virginia employment law. It does not provide an in-depth analysis of every development but highlights the most significant changes affecting employers and employees in the Commonwealth. …

Vol 1 November '20 Full Issue, Donna L. Williams

Journal of the Louisiana Public Health Association

No abstract provided.

What A Difference A Year Makes, Donna L. Williams

Journal of the Louisiana Public Health Association

No abstract provided.

Public Health In Louisiana: Looking Back And Looking Forward, Rebekah Gee, William R. Boles

Journal of the Louisiana Public Health Association

No abstract provided.

New Orleans Syringe Access Program And Implementation Of Harm Reduction Practices, Nadia Eskildsen, Allison Dejan, Marina Hernandez

Journal of the Louisiana Public Health Association

Background: The New Orleans Syringe Access Program (NOSAP) at CrescentCare strives to reduce transmission of HIV and Hepatitis C among people who inject drugs by following harm reduction principles and advocating for clients’ healthcare goals. Methods: NOSAP staff and volunteers educate clients in safer injection methods and wound care. Clients complete annual intake forms that gather data about their drug use and practices (i.e. syringe disposal, sharing needles), track clientele volume, and guide development of program activities. Results: Since 2014, there has been a 269% increase in number of people served. Furthermore, 79 NOSAP clients were integrated into CrescentCare’s health …

Spotted Owls And Forest Fire: Comment, Gavin M. Jones, R. J. Gutiérrez, William M. Block, Peter C. Carlson, Emily J. Comfort, Samuel A. Cushman, Raymond J. Davis, Stephanie A. Eyes, Alan B. Franklin, Joseph L. Ganey, Shaula Hedwall, John J. Keane, Rodd Kelsey, Damon B, Lesmeister, Malcolm P. North, Susan L. Roberts, Jeremy T. Rockweit, Jamie S. Sanderlin, Sarah C. Sawyer, Ben Solvesky, Douglas J. Tempel, Ho Yi Wan, A. Leroy Westerling, Gary C. White, M. Zachariah Peery

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Western North American forest ecosystems are experiencing rapid changes in disturbance regimes because of climate change and land use legacies (Littell et al. 2018). In many of these forests, the accumulation of surface and ladder fuels from a century of fire suppression, coupled with a warming and drying climate, has led to increases in the number of large fires (Westerling 2016) and the proportion of areas burning at higher severity (Safford and Stevens 2017, Singleton et al. 2018). While the annual area burned by fire is still below historical levels (Taylor et al. 2016), some forest types in the west …

Plga-Coated Drug-Loaded Nanotubes Anodically Grown On Nitinol, F. Davoodian, E. Salahinejad, E. Sharifi, Z. Barabadi, Lobat Tayebi

School of Dentistry Faculty Research and Publications

This study evaluates the use of nanotubes (NTs) as a matrix for local drug delivery modified by a biodegradable polymeric coating on medical-grade nitinol (NiTi alloy) surfaces. For this purpose, NiTi was anodized within parameters that promote the formation of NTs, ultrasonicated, annealed and impregnated with vancomycin hydrochloride. To improve bioperformance, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) was also deposited on the drug-loaded NTs. The samples were characterized in terms of structure, wettability, drug delivery, corrosion and cytocompatibility. Scanning electron microscopy and water contact angle measurements signify the formation of open-top homogeneous NTs of 600– 700 nm in length and ~30 nm in …

Eating Habits And Lifestyle During Covid-19 Lockdown In The United Arab Emirates: A Cross-Sectional Study, Leila Cheikh Ismail, Tareq M. Osaili, Maysm N. Mohamad, Amina Al Marzouqi, Amjad H. Jarrar, Dima O.Abu Jamous, Emmanuella Magriplis, Habiba I. Ali, Haleama Al Sabbah, Hayder Hasan, Latifa M.R. Almarzooqi, Lily Stojanovska, Mona Hashim, Reyad R.Shaker Obaid, Sheima T. Saleh, Ayesha S.Al Dhaheri

All Works

© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. The coronavirus disease is still spreading in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with subsequent lockdowns and social distancing measures being enforced by the government. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of the lockdown on eating habits and lifestyle behaviors among residents of the UAE. A cross-sectional study among adults in the UAE was conducted using an online questionnaire between April and May 2020. A total of 1012 subjects participated in the study. During the pandemic, 31% reported weight gain and 72.2% had less than eight cups of …

Dissecting Drivers Of Basal Immunity And Acute Responses To Viral Infection, Aisha Nadia Hegab Souquette

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Heterogeneity in the human immune system can lead to limited vaccine efficacy, poor response to therapeutics, increased susceptibility to immune mediated diseases, and differential outcome to infection. Studies to date have suggested a role for biological, environmental, and genetic factors in immune variation; however, they are often focused on a specific subset of the population (e.g. ancestral group, age range) which can exclude phenotypes unique to a diverse population and bias results. To address this gap, we have utilized samples from healthy or influenza virus infected subjects from 8 distinct populations in 5 countries to conduct an integrative analysis of …

Model-Based Dose-Exposure-Response Assessment For Lead And Backup Spectinamide In A Mouse Model Of Tuberculosis, Santosh Janardan Wagh

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Despite decades of research, tuberculosis remains the oldest pathogen-based disease that is the leading cause of death from a single infectious agent. Among many anti-tubercular therapies under investigation, the semisynthetic compounds spectinamides are a promising novel class of anti-tuberculosis agents. One such lead candidate, spectinamide 1810, and backup spectinamide 1599 have demonstrated excellent efficacy, safety, and drug-like properties in various in vitro and in vivo assessments. The dose-ranging and dose fractionation studies were designed to characterize the dose-exposure-response relationship for lead and backup spectinamide in a mouse model of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. In this current study, we used 26 and …

The Spread Of Medical Information Through Social Media Platforms, Emma Durham

Honors College Theses

Social media has exploded in the past decade making it hard to find a teenager or adult without a smartphone or tablet in their possession at all times. Social media makes it easy for people to access information and friends at the click of a button. Information is easier to spread today than it ever has been; however, with this widespread social media usage comes a rapid spread of information with little fact checking. The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a surge of medical information being posted online, and not all of it has been completely accurate. The purpose of …

Effects Of The Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic On Routine Pediatric Immunization Coverage Rates At The Main University Hospital In Saudi Arabia, Abdulkarim A. Alrabiaah, Ahmed H. Alshaer, Hadeel A. Aljammaz, Khalid M. Almoosa, Nawaf F. Alshuraym, Mohamad-Hani A. Temsah, Fahad M. Alsohime, Sara S. Alsubaie, Elham E. Bukhari, Ali M. Somily, Fahad A. Alzamil

Saudi Medical Journal

Objectives: To investigate whether the coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic has had any effects on pediatric vaccination rates at the main university hospital in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A retrospective study conducted at King Saud University Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia using electronic health records. The vaccination statuses of all children who were scheduled for vaccinations at birth and at 2, 4, 6, 9, and 12 months during March, April and May between 2017 and 2020 were included in the study with total sample of 15,870 children, and comparisons between the cohorts were performed. Results: All vaccination visits during April and May 2020 …

Attenuation Of Interferon Responses In The Obese Host And Ramifications For Influenza Virus Evolution, Rebekah Reed Honce

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

The most insidious pandemic of modern life does not arise from an infectious agent but rather from malnutrition. With its global incidence tripling over the past three decades, obesity is a major public health concern. Obesity’s rising prevalence has also illuminated its impact on communicable diseases. Following the 2009 H1N1 influenza A virus pandemic, obesity was identified as a risk factor for increased disease severity and mortality in infected individuals. Obesity causes a chronic state of meta-inflammation with systemic implications for immunity, including delayed antiviral responses to influenza virus infection, poor recovery, and impaired immunological memory. However, the majority of …

The Emergence Of New Trends In Clinical Laboratory Diagnosis, Mohammed A. Alaidarous

Saudi Medical Journal

Diagnostic processes typically rely on traditional and laborious methods, that are prone to human error, resulting in frequent misdiagnosis of diseases. Computational approaches are being increasingly used for more precise diagnosis of the clinical pathology, diagnosis of genetic and microbial diseases, and analysis of clinical chemistry data. These approaches are progressively used for improving the reliability of testing, resulting in reduced diagnostic errors. Artificial intelligence (AI)-based computational approaches mostly rely on training sets obtained from patient data stored in clinical databases. However, the use of AI is associated with several ethical issues, including patient privacy and data ownership. The capacity …

Remotely Monitored Inactivity Due To Covid-19 Lockdowns: Potential Hazard For Heart Failure Patients, Ahmed Al Fagih, Mariam Al Onazi, Saleh Al Basiri, Fahmi Al-Kaf, Khalid Dagriri, Yahya Al Hebaishi, Sondos Samargandy, Lamia Al Shengeiti

Saudi Medical Journal

Objectives: To study the impact of curfews during the COVID-19 pandemic, on the physical activity in patients of heart failure implanted withcardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs). Methods: This was a retrospective single-center study of heart failure patients inserted with remote monitoring (RM)-capable CIED. We analyzed the transmitted data of physical activity and fluid volume status of all patients, before, and during the lockdown periods between February and April 2020. The clinical status of the patients was also evaluated. Results: Device data from 429 patients implanted with CIED capable of RM were initially evaluated. Patients with an implantable loop recorder, Brugada …