Digital Commons Network^™

Whole-Genome Association Analyses Of Sleep-Disordered Breathing Phenotypes In The Nhlbi Topmed Program, Man Zhang, Daniel J Gottlieb, Xiuqing Guo, Jacqueline M Lane, Jingjing Liang, Xihong Lin, Hao Mei, Sanjay R Patel, Shaun M Purcell, Richa Saxena, Neomi A Shah, Daniel S Evans, Craig L Hanis, David R Hillman, Sutapa Mukherjee, Lyle J Palmer, Katie L Stone, Gregory J Tranah, Eric A Boerwinkle, Adolfo Correa, L Adrienne Cupples, Robert C Kaplan, Deborah A Nickerson, Kari E North, Bruce M Psaty, Jerome I Rotter, Stephen S Rich, Russell P Tracy, Ramachandran S Vasan, James G Wilson, Xiaofeng Zhu, Susan Redline

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Sleep-disordered breathing is a common disorder associated with significant morbidity. The genetic architecture of sleep-disordered breathing remains poorly understood. Through the NHLBI Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) program, we performed the first whole-genome sequence analysis of sleep-disordered breathing.

METHODS: The study sample was comprised of 7988 individuals of diverse ancestry. Common-variant and pathway analyses included an additional 13,257 individuals. We examined five complementary traits describing different aspects of sleep-disordered breathing: the apnea-hypopnea index, average oxyhemoglobin desaturation per event, average and minimum oxyhemoglobin saturation across the sleep episode, and the percentage of sleep with oxyhemoglobin saturation < 90%. We adjusted for age, sex, BMI, study, and family structure using MMSKAT and EMMAX mixed linear model approaches. Additional bioinformatics analyses were performed with MetaXcan, GIGSEA, and ReMap.

RESULTS: We identified a …

Returning To The Gender Gap In College Major: How Much Can Pre- College Skills Explain?, Nathalie Beauchamps

The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal

The gender wage gap in the United States is a well-known phenomenon and researchers across many disciplines have tried to pinpoint its cause. One popular explanation is the gender gap in college major choice; however, it is still unknown why women tend to major in so-called soft sciences and men in hard sciences. This paper builds upon Speer (2017)’s work studying the gender gap in major choice as explained by test scores. Rather than utilizing OLS regressions, I employ a Kitagawa-Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition method, which also shows how unspecified discrimination works for or against women (or men) in how much their …

Operationalizing Culture: Refugees, Migration, And Mental Health In The Wake Of The Vietnam War, Helena Bui

The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal

!e end of the Vietnam War led to the migration of hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese refugees to the United States a"er political and economic upheaval. As another result, the refugees’ years of warfare, trauma, death, and injury began to manifest as unprecedented mental health issues that American physicians and researchers sought to understand. In this paper, I argue that American medical professionals— in good faith—operationalized [Vietnamese] culture to help themselves and their colleagues understand the mental health issues of Vietnamese refugees. Yet this operationalization acted as a double-edged sword. Viewing Western mental health discourse through the lens of Vietnamese …

Favorable Outcomes With Reduced Steroid Use In Juvenile Dermatomyositis, Amir B Orandi, Lampros Fotis, Jamie Lai, Hallie Morris, Andrew J White, Anthony R French, Kevin W Baszis

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: High-intensity glucocorticoid regimens are commonly used to induce and maintain remission in Juvenile Dermatomyositis but are associated with several adverse side-effects. Evidence-based treatment guidelines from North American and European pediatric rheumatology research societies both advocate induction with intravenous pulse steroids followed by high dose oral steroids (2 mg/kg/day), which are then tapered. This study reports the time to disease control with reduced glucocorticoid dosing.

METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the records at a single tertiary-care children's hospital of patients diagnosed with Juvenile Dermatomyositis between 2000 and 2014 who had a minimum of 2 years of follow-up. The primary outcome measure …

Temporal Trends Of Covid-19 Mortality And Hospitalisation Rates: An Observational Cohort Study From The Us Department Of Veterans Affairs, Miao Cai, Benjamin Bowe, Yan Xie, Ziyad Al-Aly

Open Access Publications

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the temporal trends of 30-day mortality and hospitalisation in US Veterans with COVID-19 and 30-day mortality in hospitalised veterans with COVID-19 and to decompose the contribution of changes in the underlying characteristics of affected populations to these temporal changes.

DESIGN: Observational cohort study.

SETTING: US Department of Veterans Affairs.

PARTICIPANTS: 49 238 US veterans with a positive COVID-19 test between 20 March 2020 and 19 September 2020; and 9428 US veterans hospitalised with a positive COVID-19 test during the same period.

OUTCOME MEASURES: 30-day mortality rate and hospitalisation rate.

RESULTS: Between 20 March 2020 and 19 September …

Chagas Disease In Hiv-Infected Patients: It’S Time To Consider The Diagnosis, Melissa Nolan Ph.D., Mph, Natasha S. Hochberg

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Digital Equity Is An Environmental Justice Issue, Courtney B. Cooper

Master's Projects and Capstones

Digital equity has evolved into a more critical area of focus due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the existing digital divide, or the divide that exists between those who have access to the internet and those that do not, by moving many important services and resources online to reduce the spread of the virus. This shift has created more challenges for communities who either lack or have inadequate access to the internet. Furthermore, it is likely that internet utilization will only increase as we continue to recognize its capabilities. A lack of or inadequate access …

Compounding Hazards And Intersecting Vulnerabilities: Experiences And Responses To Extreme Heat During Covid-19, Olga V. Wilhelmi, Peter D. Howe, Mary H. Hayden, Cassandra R. O'Lenick

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

Extreme heat is a major threat to human health worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its complexity and global reach, created unprecedented challenges for public health and highlighted societal vulnerability to hazardous hot weather. In this study, we used data from a three-wave nationally representative survey of 3036 American adults to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic affected extreme heat vulnerability during the summer of 2020. We used mixed effects models to examine the roles of socio-demographic characteristics and pandemic-related factors in the distribution of negative heat effects and experiences across the United States. The survey findings show that over a quarter …

Census Tract Patterns And Contextual Social Determinants Of Health Associated With Covid-19 In A Hispanic Population From South Texas: A Spatiotemporal Perspective, Esmeralda Guajardo, Maria E Fernandez, Belinda Reininger

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that various social determinants of health (SDOH) may have contributed to the disparities in COVID-19 incidence and mortality among minorities and underserved populations at the county or zip code level.

OBJECTIVE: This analysis was carried out at a granular spatial resolution of census tracts to explore the spatial patterns and contextual SDOH associated with COVID-19 incidence from a Hispanic population mostly consisting of a Mexican American population living in Cameron County, Texas on the border of the United States and Mexico. We performed age-stratified analysis to identify different contributing SDOH and quantify their effects by …

What A Novel Can Teach Us About Religion In America, Bruce Ledewitz

Newspaper Columns

Collected biweekly contributions to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star, a nonpartisan, nonprofit news site.

When You Play The Game Of Drones, You Win Or You Die: Examining The Role Of U.S. Drone Strikes In U.S. And English Language Allies Newspapers From 2008-2019, Melissa Aho

Dissertations

In the years following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the United States ramped up its usage of drones and drone strikes around the world. Spanning three United States’ presidents, drone strikes became a regular feature in the US military arsenal. While American newspaper media and citizens have been very pro-drone, global citizens view drones in a far more negative light. This study examines US military drone strikes and English-speaking allied newspapers in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom and evaluates if coverage remains positive or negative depending on the newspaper’s conservative or liberal leanings from 2008–2019. …

Human Rights Violations And Migrants' Deaths Across The United States And Mexico Border: A Policy Analysis, Mayra Arredondo-Garcia

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

For this thesis project, the research question will be the following: “How do United States immigration policies contribute to the rising death and deportations of migrants across the United States and Mexico border?” Immigration policies is a widely debated political topic and often used as a but public debate often neglects to thoroughly consider the effects on the everyday lives of immigrants and their communities. It is essential to further research into immigration policies, their impacts on migrant communities and the implications for human rights. This research is intended to extend the understanding how the militarization of the border has …

Empowered Stakeholders: Female University Students’ Leadership During The Covid-19-Triggered On-Campus Evictions In Canada And The United States, Haorui Wu, Marla Perez-Lugo, Cecilio Ortiz Garcia, Frances Gonzalez Crespo, Adriana Castillo

Public Affairs and Security Studies Faculty Publications

The study of disaster-specific leadership of female university students has been largely neglected, especially during on-campus emergency eviction and evacuation. Based on the COVID-19-triggered, on-campus evictions across Canada and the United States, this cross-national partnership examined the out-of-province/state and international female university students’ leadership during the entire eviction process. Through in-depth interviews, this study revealed the female university students’ leadership behaviors during three stages: (1) pre-eviction: their self-preparedness formed an emotional foundation to support others; (2) peri-eviction: their attitude and leadership behavior enabled them to facilitate (psychologically and physically) their peers’ eviction process; and (3) post-eviction: they continued to support …

Nurses' Pandemic Lives: A Mixed-Methods Study Of Experiences During Covid-19., Kathleen Gray, Paulette Dorney, Lori Hoffman, Albert Crawford

College of Nursing Faculty Papers & Presentations

BACKGROUND: The US healthcare settings and staff have been stretched to capacity by the COVID-19 pandemic. While COVID-19 continues to threaten global healthcare delivery systems and populations, its impact on nursing has been profound.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to document nurses' immediate reactions, major stressors, effective measures to reduce stress, coping strategies, and motivators as they provided care during COVID-19.

DESIGN: Mixed-methods, cross sectional design. Participants responded to objective and open-ended questions on the COVID-19 Nurses' Survey.

PARTICIPANTS: The survey, was sent to nurses employed in health care settings during the pandemic; 110 nurses participated.

RESULTS: Immediate reactions of respondents …

Zero Sympathy: Unaccompanied Minors' Rights In The Us Immigration System, Mahrukh Ali

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This note analyzes the US Government's approach to unaccompanied minors and the webs they must navigate when they are apprehended by the US immigration system. More importantly, this note calls for reformative approaches to children's rights through acknowledging the differences between adults and children while simultaneously taking their vulnerability and autonomy into account. After explaining the migrant crisis along with its implications and examining the underlying reasons fostering this movement, this note discusses the legal options available for unaccompanied minors. It draws on the shortcomings of the immigration system as the system labels unaccompanied minors as dependent children, but also …

How The World's Largest Economies Regulate Data Privacy: Drawbacks, Benefits, & Proposed Solutions, Alexander J. Pantos

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

National data privacy regimes are quickly gaining traction and ubiquity around the globe. Moving forward, countries will face a range of difficult decisions surrounding how best to engage internationally in cross border data flow, particularly in the context of personal information (PI).

This article takes a bird's-eye view of the current state of data privacy regimes in the world's four highest GDP regions. In part, this article hopes to provide a succinct analysis of these data privacy regimes, with a focus on the balance they strike between granting individuals rights in their data and placing responsibilities on businesses that deal …

Torn Between Institutionalisation & Judicialisation: The Demise Of The Eu-Us Privacy Shield, Elaine Fahey, Fabien Terpan

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

In July 2016, the EU-US (European Union-United States) Privacy Shield came into force, replacing the EU-US Safe Harbour, to address the concerns around data collection and privacy that arose in the case of Schrems v. European Data Commissioner (C-362/14). The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in its ruling known as Schrems I took a position in defence of privacy in the context of Edward Snowden's revelations on the National Security Agency's (NSA) surveillance programs. This context had already spurred the development of several instruments and enforcement regimes, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), adopted in …

Musculoskeletal Injuries In Us Air Force Security Forces, January 2009 To December 2018, David Gimeno Ruiz De Porras

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVE: to determine the incidence, types, and risk factors of musculoskeletal injuries in a military security forces population.

METHODS: Demographic and diagnostic data were retrieved on enlisted US Air Force security forces personnel who served on active duty between January 2009 and December 2018. Incidence rates and ratios were calculated using Poisson regression.

RESULTS: During 251,787 person-years of exposure, 62,489 personnel served on active duty. Of these, 40,771 (65.2%) were diagnosed with at least one musculoskeletal injury. The majority (60.1%) of the 164,078 unique musculoskeletal injuries were inflammation and pain secondary to overuse. After adjusting for other factors, women had …

Overcoming The Limitations Of 'Accident' As A Manner Of Death For Drug Overdose Mortality: Case For A Death Certificate Checkbox, Ian R H Rockett, Eric D. Caine, Hilary S. Connery, Kurt B. Nolte

Pathology Research and Scholarship

Collectively, the epidemic increases in the United States of opioid-related deaths and suicides during the first two decades of the 21st century have exposed shortcomings in current forensic and epidemiological approaches for determining and codifying manner of death-a vital function fulfilled by medical examiners, coroners and nosologists-the foundation for the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), an incident-based surveillance system providing individual-level information on decedent characteristics, manner, cause and circumstances of suicide, homicide and other violent injury deaths. Drug intoxication deaths are generally classified as 'accidents' or unintentional, a fundamental mischaracterisation; most arose from repetitive self-harm behaviours related to substance …

Hydration, Eating Attitudes And Behaviors In Age And Weight-Restricted Youth American Football Players, Susan W. Yeargin, Toni Torres-Mcgehee, Dawn Emerson, Jessica Koller, John Dickinson

Faculty Publications

There is a paucity of research examining hydration and nutrition behaviors in youth American football players. A potentially unique risk factor are league restrictions based on weight (WR) or age (AR). The purpose of this study was to examine hydration status between WR and AR leagues. The secondary purpose was to describe eating patterns in players. An observational cohort design with 63 youth football players (10 ± 1 yrs, 148.2 ± 9.4 cm, 44.9 ± 15.3 kg) was utilized. Independent variables were league (AR ( = 36); WR ( = 27)) and activity type (practice (PX = 8); game (GM …

Lesson Plan, World Geography, 9th Grade, David Quiroz

Symposium Summer 2021

TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills): 113.43 c 1) History. The student understands how geography and processes of spatial exchange (diffusion) influenced events in the past and helped to shape the present. The student is expected to: (A) analyze significant physical features and environmental conditions that have influenced the past and migration patterns and have shaped the distribution of culture groups today; (2) History. The student understands how people, places, and environments have changed over time and the effects of these changes. The student is expected to: (A) describe the human and physical characteristics of the same regions at different …

Lesson Plan, World Geography, 9th Grade, Ernesto Martínez

Symposium Summer 2021

TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills): WG.5(A) analyze how the character of a place is related to its political economic, social and cultural elements WG.14 (C) analyze the human and physical factors that influence control of territories and resources, conflict/war and international relations of sovereign nations such as the United States

Lesson objective(s): 1. TLW will describe the formation of the South Texas Border during the period of the Mexican American War 2. TLW identify the details of the Battle of Palo Alto that led to the formation of the South Texas border region 3. TLW explain the significance of …

Lesson Plan, Ap Human Geography, 9th Grade, Jennifer Torres Olmeda

Symposium Summer 2021

TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills): History 1A - Analyze significant physical features and environmental conditions that have influenced the past and migration patterns and have shaped the distribution of cultural groups today. History 2A - describe the human and physical characteristics of the same regions at different periods of time to analyze relationships between past events and current conditions. Geography 6B - explain the processes that have caused changes in settlement patterns, including urbanization, transportation, access to and availability of resources, and economic activities.

Lesson objective(s): 1. TLW connect industrialization in the RGV with the prevalence of Latino culture …

Longitudinal Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (Prep) Acceptability, Initiation And Adherence Among Criminal Justice-Involved Adults In The Usa: The Southern Prep Cohort Study (Specs) Protocol, Katherine Lemasters, Carrie B. Oser, Mariah Cowell, Katie Mollan, Kathryn Nowotny, Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein

Sociology Faculty Publications

INTRODUCTION: HIV prevalence among criminal justice (CJ)-involved adults is five times higher than the general population. Following incarceration, CJ-involved individuals experience multilevel barriers to HIV prevention. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a widely available, daily medication efficacious in preventing HIV. Little is known about PrEP knowledge, acceptability, initiation and sustained use among CJ-involved persons or about how these outcomes vary by multilevel factors. The Southern Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Study (SPECS) will investigate barriers and facilitators for PrEP initiation and sustained use among CJ-involved adults, building a foundation for PrEP interventions for this underserved population.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS: SPECS uses a mixed-methods sequential …

Capturing Quarantine: Student Pandemic Experience Journal, Casey Groulx

Public History Journals

Journal entries submitted by the Public History 2021 summer session class at Columbia College Chicago reflecting on aspects of the global pandemic from the student perspective commenting on their personal pandemic timeline and the other is an essay about what each student learned so far from the pandemic.

Capturing Quarantine:Student Pandemic Experience Journal, Ann Fernandez

Public History Journals

Journal entries submitted by the Public History 2021 summer session class at Columbia College Chicago reflecting on aspects of the global pandemic from the student perspective.

Capturing Quarantine: Student Pandemic Experience Journal, Bri Johnson

Public History Journals

Journal entries submitted by the Public History 2021 summer session class at Columbia College Chicago reflecting on aspects of the global pandemic from the student perspective commenting on their personal pandemic timeline and the other is an essay about what each student learned so far from the pandemic.

Capturing Quarantine: Student Pandemic Experience Journal, Sofiya Vozyakova

Public History Journals

Journal entries submitted by the Public History 2021 summer session class at Columbia College Chicago reflecting on aspects of the global pandemic from the student perspective commenting on their personal pandemic timeline and the other is an essay about what each student learned so far from the pandemic.

An Analysis Of 7th Grade Us History Students And The Desire To Participate In Academic Dishonesty In A Forced Hybrid Learning Model, Alexander Jelacic

Education Masters Papers

The purpose of this action research was to analyze ninety students in a 7^th grade US History students and the desire to participate in Academic Dishonesty in a forced hybrid learning model. Data was collected over a period of five weeks using pre and post intervention surveys, an exit slip for self-assessment, and unit assessment scores. Then seeing how reading a script with positive words created by students and adding a proctor can affect the results. Results show a positive correlation between reading a script and proctoring with student self-reporting, morality, and efficacy, however, it did not have correlation …

The New (Version 9) American Joint Committee On Cancer Tumor, Node, Metastasis Staging For Cervical Cancer, Alexander B Olawaiye, Thomas P Baker, M Kay Washington, David G Mutch

2020-Current year OA Pubs

The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) tumor, node, metastasis (TNM) staging for all cancer sites has been periodically updated as a published manual for many years. The last update, the eighth edition AJCC Cancer Staging Manual went into use on January 1, 2018. The AJCC has since restructured and updated its processes, and all AJCC staging-related data are now housed on its new application programming interface. Consequently, the next AJCC TNM staging update, AJCC version 9 TNM staging, will be published electronically and will be released chapter by chapter. The first chapter of version 9 AJCC TNM staging is …