Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

2021

Discipline
Institution
Keyword
Publication
Publication Type
File Type

Articles 71011 - 71040 of 76873

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

Combining Meg And Fmri To Examine Dynamic Task-Related Brain Activity With High Spatio-Temporal Resolution, Sangeeta Nair Jan 2021

Combining Meg And Fmri To Examine Dynamic Task-Related Brain Activity With High Spatio-Temporal Resolution, Sangeeta Nair

All ETDs from UAB

The characterization of brain networks contributing to healthy learning and memory can inform abnormalities and treatment approaches among clinical populations. A recent shift from lesion-based to network-based approaches of studying healthy and atypical brain development highlights the need for a more comprehensive understanding across spatiotemporal domains, particularly in the case of high-level cognitive processes. Both, associative learning and working memory involve distributed and interconnected networks of specialized brain regions. Dynamic communication within- and betweensuch systems are unable to be fully resolved by individual non-invasive imaging techniques such as fMRI or MEG. While fMRI serves as an ideal tool to investigate …


Hurricanes And Heart Problems: Natural Disaster, Social Capital, And Cardiovascular Mortality, Zachary H. Mccann Jan 2021

Hurricanes And Heart Problems: Natural Disaster, Social Capital, And Cardiovascular Mortality, Zachary H. Mccann

All ETDs from UAB

Social capital refers to the social relationships and structures that provide individuals with material, financial, and emotional resources throughout their lives. Previous research has found an association between high levels of social capital and lower rates of all-cause and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. Severe disasters have been linked to higher rates of all-cause and CVD mortality. In post-disaster settings social capital may be a valuable resource for protecting against both forms of mortality. Past research shows that social capital can improve access to resources, such as food, water, and medical supplies, that reduce all-cause and CVD mortality. Using previous research …


Understanding The Role Of Biomechanics In Ovarian Cancer Biology, Alba Martinez Diaz Jan 2021

Understanding The Role Of Biomechanics In Ovarian Cancer Biology, Alba Martinez Diaz

All ETDs from UAB

Mechanical forces including compression, tension, and shear stress are increasingly implicated as instigators of tumor progression. Understanding how mechanobiology drives ovarian cancer is critical to identifying potential therapies. The effect of shear stress is beginning to be studied in ovarian cancer due to the presence of ascites in the peritoneal cavity that prompts tumor cells detachment and implantation in secondary sites. Therefore, mechanical cues are present within the peritoneal cavity. A growing ovarian tumor mass also experiences compressive and tensile forces, although their participation in tumor progression still remains unclear. Additionally, there is a specific lack of incorporation of mechanobiology …


A Role For Inf-Ɣ-Inducble Transcription Factors In Antibody Secreting Cell Differentiation, Jessica N. Peel Jan 2021

A Role For Inf-Ɣ-Inducble Transcription Factors In Antibody Secreting Cell Differentiation, Jessica N. Peel

All ETDs from UAB

Viral infections remain a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Within a viral, interferon (IFN)-ɣ-driven inflammatory microenvironment, B cells may produce antibody which is critical for rapid viral clearance and continued protection from reinfection. However, the roles of IFN-ɣ and IFN-ɣ-induced transcription factors (TFs) in driving antibody secreting cell (ASC) development from their B cell precursors are poorly understood. Herein, we identify two IFN-ɣ-inducible transcription factors (TFs), T-bet and interferon regulatory factor 1 (IRF1), that are essential for the differentiation of ASCs from IFN-g-activated B cell precursors. T-bet repressed an IFN-ɣ-inducible inflammatory gene program that was incompatible with ASC formation …


Applying Inverse Dynamics To A Biomechanical Model To Determine The Safety Of The Motogaitor, Ezzuddin Abuhussein Jan 2021

Applying Inverse Dynamics To A Biomechanical Model To Determine The Safety Of The Motogaitor, Ezzuddin Abuhussein

All ETDs from UAB

People with mobility impairments caused by conditions such as cerebral palsy (CP),stroke, and spina bifida have difficulty achieving high levels of exercise. The lack of exercise can lead to secondary conditions such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases. Gait-training devices are already commercially available; however, they are not fit for home use and are expensive. Therefore, there exists a need for an affordable gaittraining device that is compact and promotes exercise and rehabilitation in a home-setting. A motorized gait-training elliptical dubbed the “Motogaitor,” was designed by students to address the needs of people with mobility impairments. In this present study, …


The Assessment Of Neuro-Mechanics Of Inspiratory Muscles During Mechanical Ventilation, Hassan Y. Abunurah Jan 2021

The Assessment Of Neuro-Mechanics Of Inspiratory Muscles During Mechanical Ventilation, Hassan Y. Abunurah

All ETDs from UAB

The decline in inspiratory muscles function for patients undergoing mechanical ventilation may further extend the duration of mechanical ventilation leading to lethal complications. Thus, the assessment of neuro-mechanics of inspiratory muscles may help us understand the pathophysiology for mechanical ventilation failure to avoid its complications. In this dissertation, we assessed the characteristics of inspiratory neuromechanics under different conditions. This dissertation is reported in three different papers. In the first paper, we sought to assess the quality of the available literate that used surface EMG of extra-diaphragmatic muscles during invasive mechanical ventilation. We demonstrated that the use of sEMG of extra-diaphragmatic …


From Classrooms To Polluted Communities: Scientific Inquiry In Birmingham, Alabama And Beyond, Sarah Jeanne Adkins-Jablonsky Jan 2021

From Classrooms To Polluted Communities: Scientific Inquiry In Birmingham, Alabama And Beyond, Sarah Jeanne Adkins-Jablonsky

All ETDs from UAB

Nearly half of all U.S. students who declare science majors in college do not graduate with science degrees within six years. Improvements in science outcomes are linked with active-learning pedagogies such as Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs). However, despite the need for education reform particularly in Alabama, active-learning interventions are severely understudied in Alabama universities. Chapter 1 describes novel CUREs at four colleges in Birmingham, AL: The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB); Jefferson State Community College (JSCC), Samford University (SU), and Birmingham Southern College (BSC). Chapter 2 shows how an agar art CURE, The Art of Microbiology, impacts student …


Joint Specificity Of Stretch-Shortening Cycle Potentiation, Marzouq Khalaf Almutairi Jan 2021

Joint Specificity Of Stretch-Shortening Cycle Potentiation, Marzouq Khalaf Almutairi

All ETDs from UAB

The stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) is a well-known phenomenon to enhance an individual’s muscular performance, and it is an area of active focus of research scientists for decades. However, it is not known whether SSC potentiation is a joint-specific event and shows a joint-specific temporal behavior. It is also unclear if constraints of joint and movement specificity of SSC potentiation can be captured via isokinetic dynamometer. Therefore, the purposes of this dissertation were to examine joint specificity of SSC potentiation via isokinetic dynamometer and kinetic-kinematic analysis of jump test performance and investigate joint-specific temporal behavior of SSC potentiation. My first study …


A Novel In Vitro Model To Study Immune Interactions In Glioblastoma, Hasan Alrefai Jan 2021

A Novel In Vitro Model To Study Immune Interactions In Glioblastoma, Hasan Alrefai

All ETDs from UAB

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and lethal primary brain tumor in adults. Despite decades of research, GBM has a median survival of approximately 14 months, necessitating the development of novel GBM therapeutics. The drug-development process has been hindered due to the lack of high-fidelity pre-clinical models. While in-vitro models of patient-derived xenografts (PDX) present an interesting approach to modeling GBM, they typically fail to incorporate the non-cancerous cells that support tumor growth and progression. Others have attempted to address this problem by using techniques such as 3D bioprinting to incorporate astrocytes and macrophages in an extracellular matrix; however, they …


External Apical Root Resorption In Asian Orthodontic Patients In Alabama, Najd Aswad Jan 2021

External Apical Root Resorption In Asian Orthodontic Patients In Alabama, Najd Aswad

All ETDs from UAB

The main goals of orthodontic treatment are to achieve a harmonious dentalocclusion and enhance the patient’s dentofacial appearance. External Apical Root Resorption (EARR) is a side effect of orthodontic treatment1. It results in the permanent loss of tooth structure from the root apex2. EARR is a multifactorial condition which includes patient related and treatment related risk factors. Patient-related factors include genetics, severity of malocclusion, tooth-root morphology, systemic factors, density of alveolar bone, root proximity to cortical bone, previous exposure to trauma, patient age and sex. Orthodontic treatment related risk factors include treatment duration, amount of force and mechanics used, direction …


Effectiveness Of A University Employee Assistance Program Using The Workplace Outcome Suite And Client Satisfaction Survey, Josephine Jackson Banks Jan 2021

Effectiveness Of A University Employee Assistance Program Using The Workplace Outcome Suite And Client Satisfaction Survey, Josephine Jackson Banks

All ETDs from UAB

Background: Gallup (2013) reported that 30% of the U.S. workforce was not engaged in their work which means they were not reaching their full potential or productivity level. For organizations, lost productivity due to absenteeism or less than ideal performance at work impacts company performance and bottom line. Employee assistance programs are a resource to help increase employee health, productivity, and satisfaction through counseling interventions. Methods: Data were collected by a large urban university EAP over a 20-month period. The analysis was limited to EAP clients over the age of 18. A total of 866 subjects participated in this study, …


Socioeconomic Status In Adolescence And Dna Methylation In Young Adulthood, Malcolm Barker-Kamps Jan 2021

Socioeconomic Status In Adolescence And Dna Methylation In Young Adulthood, Malcolm Barker-Kamps

All ETDs from UAB

Children from low socioeconomic status (SES) families are at a greater risk of negative health outcomes in adulthood, in part from chronic stress. The chronic stress of these experiences may become biologically embedded through DNA methylation in stress-related genes. However, the effects of specific SES dimensions during childhood or adolescence on later epigenetic profiles in adulthood are not well understood. The present study examined the roles of two objective SES dimensions and two subjective SES dimensions experienced in early adolescence in DNA methylation in young adulthood. The analyses focused on two genes, NR3C1 and SLC6A4, because their methylation has been …


Structural Changes To Desmosomal Architecture During Assembly And Maturation, Reena R. Beggs Jan 2021

Structural Changes To Desmosomal Architecture During Assembly And Maturation, Reena R. Beggs

All ETDs from UAB

Desmosomes are macromolecular junctions important in adhesion and resisting mechanical stress in epithelial and cardiac tissue. Desmosomes have a complex architecture with transmembrane cadherins, desmogleins and desmocollins, constituting the adhesive interface and plaque proteins, including plakoglobin and desmoplakin, binding the cadherin tails and integrating with intermediate filaments. Dysregulation of desmosomes occurs in many disease states, such as cardiomyopathies, skin diseases, and various cancers. While mature desmosomes' structure is generally understood, less is known about desmosome architecture during assembly and recycling. Desmosomes are dynamic, biochemically intractable, and diffraction-limited, making them challenging to study. To overcome these obstacles, I applied the super-resolution …


Caregiving And Depressive Symptomatology: Multi-National Testing Of Role Strain Theory, Jessica Valles Jan 2021

Caregiving And Depressive Symptomatology: Multi-National Testing Of Role Strain Theory, Jessica Valles

All ETDs from UAB

While several studies have shown that caregiving duties are correlated with poor mental health outcomes, little is known about this association and how it varies by the type of care provided, as well as the other types of social roles that the caregiver occupies. Furthermore, the nature of these associations amongst caregivers who have been diagnosed with a chronic condition themselves is also unclear. Role Strain theory offers a foundation by which we can begin to understand the level of burden that results from occupying multiple social roles including that of caregiving. Using dating from the WHO Study on Global …


Cultivating Experiences Of Latina Teachers In The Deep South Through Latinx Young Adult Literature: Cuentos, Consejos, Y Testimonios, Vanessa E. Vega Jan 2021

Cultivating Experiences Of Latina Teachers In The Deep South Through Latinx Young Adult Literature: Cuentos, Consejos, Y Testimonios, Vanessa E. Vega

All ETDs from UAB

This narrative ethnographic research study focused on the personal and schooling stories and counter-stories of three Latina teachers living and teaching in the Deep South. Using three contemporary young adult literature texts written by Latina authors, this three-month short term narrative ethnographic study sought to explore the lived experiences of three Latina teachers in the Deep South by way of testimonios (Espino, Munoz, and Kiyama, 2010) imbued with muxerista portraiture (Flores, 2017). The theoretical frameworks of LatCrit in education (Solorzano & Yosso, 2001) and Chicana/Latina Feminism guided every aspect of this study, which occurred during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Both …


An Investigation Of Strain And Support Needs Of Caregivers Of Older Adults With Delirium And Allied Health Promotion Interventions, Jasmine Vickers Jan 2021

An Investigation Of Strain And Support Needs Of Caregivers Of Older Adults With Delirium And Allied Health Promotion Interventions, Jasmine Vickers

All ETDs from UAB

Delirium, or the sudden onset of confusion, is common, highly distressing, debilitating, and deadly among hospitalized older adults and is associated with adverse outcomes for their family caregivers. As people are living longer with more complex conditions, more people will face the task of caregiving for older adults with delirium. Family caregivers can make meaningful contributions to delirium care, but high distress, insufficient knowledge, and lack of skills often seen in caregivers can lead to maladaptation and negative health outcomes. A few studies have focused on distress in caregivers from witnessing delirium episodes; however more research is needed to understand …


Effects Of Chemical Dispersant (Corexit® Ec9500a) On Gill Structure And Function, And The Associated Crustacean Hyperglycemic Hormone Mediated Stress Response In The Blue Crab (Callinectus Sapidus), Amanda Christine Weiner Jan 2021

Effects Of Chemical Dispersant (Corexit® Ec9500a) On Gill Structure And Function, And The Associated Crustacean Hyperglycemic Hormone Mediated Stress Response In The Blue Crab (Callinectus Sapidus), Amanda Christine Weiner

All ETDs from UAB

Chemical dispersants are fast becoming the most widely used tool in the remediation of spilled oil. The sheer magnitude of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill necessitated the use of multiple forms of remediation at scales never attempted. As a result, there is a critical need to understand how the spill and ensuing cleanup efforts impacted the surrounding ecosystem and its inhabitants. The goal of this research is to better understand the impact of the chemical dispersant (Corexit®EC9500A) on a key ecological and economic species, the blue crab (Callinectes sapidus), in the Gulf of Mexico. The first part of my dissertation …


Beyond Apoptosis: Insight Into The Complex Intracellular Networks That Govern Cell Fate, Hayley Neal Widden Jan 2021

Beyond Apoptosis: Insight Into The Complex Intracellular Networks That Govern Cell Fate, Hayley Neal Widden

All ETDs from UAB

The determination of cell fate is a dynamic process regulated by hundreds of proteins that converge into complex cell signaling pathways. Upon irreparable intracellular stress, a cell undergoes programmed cell death, a process known as intrinsic apoptosis. Apoptosis is regulated by the Bcl-2 family, a class of proteins that act either as pro-survival or pro-death signaling molecules. Due to the oncogenic upregulation of pro- survival Bcl-2 family proteins across human cancer cell types, a novel class of small molecule inhibitors called ‘BH3-mimetics’ have emerged as promising anti-cancer therapeutics currently under clinical investigation. Here, we highlight the crosstalk between anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 …


Importance Of The Zebrafish Model For Understanding Nutrition, Michael Britt Williams Jan 2021

Importance Of The Zebrafish Model For Understanding Nutrition, Michael Britt Williams

All ETDs from UAB

The common zebrafish Danio rerio is a useful model for human health. Effective utilization of this model required development of husbandry and reproductive protocols as well as genomic sequencing and creation of relevant molecular techniques. However, the dietary needs of the species remain woefully under investigated. At this time no chemically-defined open source diets are available to the zebrafish research community. Consequently, those labs utilizing the zebrafish model rely on commercial diets that may not provide adequate nutrition and lack consistency needed for rigorous and reproducible research. The first focus of these studies was to examine the current state of …


Miniaturization Of The Network Analyzer As An Interface Circuit For Wearable Resonance-Based Sensors, Fan Wu Jan 2021

Miniaturization Of The Network Analyzer As An Interface Circuit For Wearable Resonance-Based Sensors, Fan Wu

All ETDs from UAB

Readout interface circuits are the essential part of all sensor units. Miniaturing such circuits is a challenging design issue for the future of the Internet of Things, wearable and implantable biomedical devices, sensors for harsh environments, etc. For developing wireless telemetry sensors, Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) is a powerful measurement instrument that can measure scattering parameters (S-Parameters) of single and dual-port networks, as well as Y- and Z-parameters. However, VNAs are expensive and bulky and cannot be carried around, and therefore, they can’t be used as a sensor interface. This thesis aims to design, develop, and implement a miniaturized data …


Biological Pathways And Processes Underlying The Cardiac Regenerative Response Post-Injury In Small And Large Mammals, Eric Yang Zhang Jan 2021

Biological Pathways And Processes Underlying The Cardiac Regenerative Response Post-Injury In Small And Large Mammals, Eric Yang Zhang

All ETDs from UAB

Mammalian cardiomyocytes exit the cell-cycle shortly after birth. Consequently, the adult heart is unable to properly compensate for cardiac muscle lost to injury. As such, heart failure has remained the leading cause of death in the developed world for more than three decades. In this work, we illustrate our findings in using novel in-vivo animal models to examine two regenerative phenomena observed following myocardial injury:i.) neonate cardiomyocyte proliferation in large mammals ii.) the ‘paracrine effect’ as mediated by mesenchymal stromal cells In i.) we use a large animal model of myocardial injury during the early postnatal develop-mental stage to establish …


Fqhcs, Health Center Controlled Network Affiliation And Performance, Armika Jessica Berkley Jan 2021

Fqhcs, Health Center Controlled Network Affiliation And Performance, Armika Jessica Berkley

All ETDs from UAB

Since the mid-1960s, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) have been funded by the U.S. federal government to provide access to preventative and primary care for medically underserved communities. The federal government’s involvement in the funding of FQHCs was a response to extreme poverty, economic instability, and civil unrest related to the Civil Rights movement. Adoption of value-based care delivery practices to improve clinical and financial performances among FQHCs has been slow. This slow adoption has been attributable to cost, lack of expertise, and support. Since August 1994, the Department of Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the funding source for …


Midpalatal Suture Maturation Stage Evaluation In Young Adults, Anna Maria Betlej Jan 2021

Midpalatal Suture Maturation Stage Evaluation In Young Adults, Anna Maria Betlej

All ETDs from UAB

Rapid palatal expansion (RPE) is a gold standard treatment for posterior unilateral and bilateral crossbites or limited buccal overjet in patients with constricted maxilla. Midpalatal suture fusion is a limitation for obtaining the skeletal results and avoiding dental side effects. It is generally believed that midpalatal suture interlock increases significantly after the pubertal growth spurt. However, in the literature there are reported cases of successful midpalatal suture split in older adults. Individual cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) assessment of midpalatal suture maturation was proposed by Angelieri et al. Since RPE treatment approach is commonly used it is important to understand the …


Facilitating The Transfer Of Cognitive Training To Real-World Functioning: The Transfer Package For Post-Stroke Cognitive Impairment, Jason Alexander Blake Jan 2021

Facilitating The Transfer Of Cognitive Training To Real-World Functioning: The Transfer Package For Post-Stroke Cognitive Impairment, Jason Alexander Blake

All ETDs from UAB

Multiple cognitive training approaches for cognitive impairment following acquired brain injury have been found to improve cognitive functioning in the laboratory setting. However, current studies suffer from a lack of focus on the transfer of improved cognitive functioning from the laboratory setting to a patient’s everyday life. This case series addresses this lack of treatment transfer using a collection of behavioral techniques known as the Transfer Package. The Transfer Package works alongside clinical and in-laboratory training of functional cognitive impairments to improve an individual’s real-world functioning and independence after injury. This cognitive training case series utilizes this Transfer Package in …


Beliefs And Intentions Of Anesthesia Physicians Toward Providing Culturally Competent Care To Transgender Patients, Erin Elizabeth Blanchard Jan 2021

Beliefs And Intentions Of Anesthesia Physicians Toward Providing Culturally Competent Care To Transgender Patients, Erin Elizabeth Blanchard

All ETDs from UAB

Purpose: Transgender patients face healthcare discrimination, resulting in a delay or avoidance in seeking care and increased negative health outcomes. The presence of cultural competence in patient-provider interactions has been shown to increase trust and satisfaction, resulting in better health outcomes. However, physicians receive little to no training on how to interact with transgender patients in a culturally competent manner. Anesthesia physicians often have no prior relationship with their patients and have very limited time for patient interaction before delivering care. This is why it is essential that anesthesia physicians possess the knowledge and skills to treat all types of …


Self-Efficacy And Sexual And Reproductive Health In Women With Cystic Fibrosis: A Mixed Methods Study, Janet L. Brown Jan 2021

Self-Efficacy And Sexual And Reproductive Health In Women With Cystic Fibrosis: A Mixed Methods Study, Janet L. Brown

All ETDs from UAB

SELF-EFFICACY AND SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IN WOMEN WITH CYSTIC FIBROSIS: A MIXED METHODS STUDY JANET BROWN DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN NURSING ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is the most common life-limiting genetic disorder among Caucasians. There are approximately 30,000 individuals with CF in the United States and over 70,000 worldwide, with approximately 1,000 new cases diagnosed globally each year. In other chronic diseases, a positive relationship between self-efficacy and behavior has been identified. Self-efficacy may be a factor related to behaviors, including underutilization of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) care services for women with CF.METHODS: Self-efficacy and utilization of …


Evaluating The Effects Of Silver Diamine Fluoride On Microbiome Analysis Of Carious Lesions, Karol Fernanda Bryant Jan 2021

Evaluating The Effects Of Silver Diamine Fluoride On Microbiome Analysis Of Carious Lesions, Karol Fernanda Bryant

All ETDs from UAB

ABSTRACT Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in the oral bacterial flora before and after application of 38% Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF, manufacturer and city/state) to carious lesions. Methods: Fifteen children with at least one cavitated carious tooth and one healthy tooth were enrolled and following examination, a carious tooth was selected to receive SDF treatment. Prior to SDF treatment, two supragingival plaque samples were obtained (using sterile cotton swabs, then storage in transport fluid and frozen at -80oC until DNA extraction) at the first appointment, one carious tooth, another from a non-carious tooth. At the …


Social Inclusion Among People With Mobility Limitations In The Global South, Shane Burns Jan 2021

Social Inclusion Among People With Mobility Limitations In The Global South, Shane Burns

All ETDs from UAB

An estimated 15% of the world’s population have a disability—roughly 80% of whom live in the Global South. People with disabilities experience profound social disparities that affect their quality of life and social inclusion. Due to the array of cultural perspectives and institutional capacities around the globe, provision of disability rights can come with its challenges. In many cultural contexts, people have moral beliefs about disability that result in shame. More medicalized beliefs toward disability are often the result of medical infrastructure that offers goods and services. Using a framework that arrays these moral and medical dimensions, I theorized that …


The Relationship Between Anosgnosia For Hemiplegia After Stroke And Fall Events In The Acute Inpatient Stroke Rehabilitation Population, Elizabeth Mosley Byrd Jan 2021

The Relationship Between Anosgnosia For Hemiplegia After Stroke And Fall Events In The Acute Inpatient Stroke Rehabilitation Population, Elizabeth Mosley Byrd

All ETDs from UAB

Background/Significance: Inpatient falls on acute stroke rehabilitation units remains a significant issue that negatively affects healthcare costs and causes physical and psychological injury. Prevelance of falls in the stroke rehabilitation population may be due to the presence of anosognosia for hemiplegia (AHP), which is as an unawareness of physical disability. Though the link between AHP and falls has been suggested in the literature, a formal investigation has not been conducted to address the relationship between the variables. Purpose: To explore the association between the presence of anosognosia for hemiplegia after stroke and patient fall events while admitted to an acute …


Adolescent Perspectives And Comfort Levels Communicating With Systems Of Care Following Concussion, Sarah Terry Cable Jan 2021

Adolescent Perspectives And Comfort Levels Communicating With Systems Of Care Following Concussion, Sarah Terry Cable

All ETDs from UAB

Objective: To examine 1) adolescent communication comfort levels, 2) barriers to com-munication with systems of care (e.g., family, medical, school, athletic, friends), and 3) associations between communication comfort and demographic, injury characteristics, medical history, emotional well-being, and recovery outcomes following a concussion.Methods: Participants were 73 adolescents (mean age = 14 years old, 61.6% male, 67.1% White) recruited from sports medicine clinics. Communication comfort level ratings with individuals in each system of care were assessed with possible responses including: not at all, a little, somewhat, and very. To evaluate barriers to communication, participants provided reasons for comfort ratings less than very. …