Digital Commons Network^™

Mechanism-Informed Transition From Pediatric To Adult Care In Sickle Cell Disease: A Case Study, Jane S Hankins, Tarun Aurora, Rachel Matsumoto, Sara Malone, Ana A Baumann

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Healthcare transition (HCT) refers to the shift from a child-centered to an adult-centered model of care, a process that, when well-functioning, can reduce disengagement and improve satisfaction with care. The Six Core Elements (6CE) framework structures HCT services; however, its implementation process remains understudied, limiting its broader applicability. Learning how to effectively implement the 6CE strategies can enhance their application in real clinical contexts. This case study describes the successful implementation of a 6CE-informed transition program for adolescents and young adults with sickle cell disease (SCD), a genetic condition associated with reduced life expectancy. We also propose a mechanism-informed …

Gastrointestinal Symptoms After Sport-Related Concussion In Irish Athletes, Emma Finnegan, Ed Daly, Katherine Hunzinger, Lisa Ryan

Department of Exercise Science Faculty Papers

Background/Objectives: Sport-related concussion (SRC) elicits multi-systemic symptoms, including nausea, fatigue, and cognitive changes. Gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are not well captured in current concussion assessments and may be under-recognised in clinical follow-up. GI disturbances may influence intake tolerance and day-to-day fuelling during post-SRC recovery. This study investigated the prevalence and severity of self-reported GI symptoms in Irish athletes after their most recent SRC, examined sex-based patterns, and evaluated the rationale for integrating GI symptom checks into standard concussion tools (e.g., SCAT6) and post-injury monitoring. Methods: An online survey was completed by recreational, competitive, and elite athletes who retrospectively self-reported concussion history, …

The Mediterranean Diet As A Protective Factor Against Tobacco-Induced Lung Cancer: Insights From The Italian Population, Morgan V. Roundy

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Lung cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer among men and the third among women in Italy, representing a major public health concern. This ecological, cross-sectional study examined and analyzed regional patterns of smoking prevalence, Mediterranean diet adherence, and age-adjusted lung cancer incidence across Italy, stratified by sex, using publicly available regional and macro-regional data and accounting for age structure and air quality. Smoking prevalence and lung cancer incidence were higher among males than females nationwide, although regional lung cancer patterns did not consistently mirror smoking prevalence, particularly among females. High adherence to the Mediterranean diet was low across …

Breaking Into Hiv-1'S Epigenetic Vault: Cure Strategies To Eliminate The Viral Reservoir, Joanna Jones, Chelsea Gunderson, Brian Wigdahl, Michael Nonnemacher

Kimmel Cancer Center Faculty Papers

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) is a retrovirus that integrates into the host cell's DNA as a provirus. Transcription from the provirus is regulated in large part by cellular proteins and epigenetic factors. These may be repressive or permissive to productive infection. The host factors that regulate this balance are therefore attractive targets for HIV-1 therapeutics. Indeed, proviral chromatin is the focus of two of the current HIV-1 cure strategies. "Shock and Kill" uses latency reversal agents to open the provirus's chromatin, promoting high levels of gene expression that induce the killing of infected cells. "Block and Lock" uses …

Cost-Effectiveness Of Blood-Based Fibrosis Screening In High-Risk Metabolic Liver Diseases With Emerging Therapies, Wanyi Chen, Stephanie T. Chang, Ramsey C. Cheung, Donald B. Chalfin, Kinpritma Sangha, Szu-Yu Zoe Kao, Artem T. Boltyenkov

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) remains a global public health threat. With emerging effective pharmacologic therapies, early identification of significant fibrosis in primary care is critical. We evaluated the cost-effectiveness of blood-based noninvasive tests incorporating real-world diagnostic performance in the contemporary MASLD treatment era.

METHODS: We developed a decision-analytic model for MASLD natural history and treatment to compare 6 noninvasive test strategies using Fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) and/or enhanced liver fibrosis (ELF) tests at varying cutoffs. Patients identified with significant fibrosis were referred for hepatology staging (biopsy and/or imaging-based), and eligible individuals were considered for Resmetirom ($47,400/y; mean …

Computed Tomography-Guided Percutaneous Core Needle Biopsy Of Lung Lesions: Factors Influencing Diagnostic Yield And Complications, Raza Sayani, Jayakrishnan B, Rashid Al Sukaiti, Zahida Niaz, Muhammad Sharjeel Usmani, Mustafa Talib Yousif Al Ani, Hasan Al-Sayegh, Subhash Chand Kheruka

Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic yield and complications associated with computed tomography (CT)-guided transthoracic core-needle biopsy (CNB) of lung lesions and to identify factors influencing biopsy outcomes. Methods: This retrospective study included patients who underwent CT-guided CNB of lung lesions at Sultan Qaboos Comprehensive Cancer Care & Research Centre, University Medical City, Muscat, Oman, from November 2021 to December 2024. Patients were categorised as either having undiagnosed lung masses/nodules or suspected pulmonary metastases from known malignancies. Biopsies were performed using an 18-gauge coaxial needle, following standard protocols. Diagnostic yield, sample adequacy for molecular analysis and complications were …

Understanding Tradeoffs In Clinical Text Extraction: Prompting, Retrieval-Augmented Generation, And Supervised Learning On Electronic Health Records, Tanya Yadav, Aditya Tekale, Jeff Chong, Mohammad Masum

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Clinical discharge summaries contain rich patient information but remain difficult to convert into structured representations for downstream analysis. Recent advances in large language models (LLMs) have introduced new approaches for clinical text extraction, yet their relative strengths compared with supervised methods remain unclear. This study presents a controlled evaluation of three dominant strategies for structured clinical information extraction from electronic health records: prompting-based extraction using LLMs, retrieval-augmented generation for terminology canonicalization, and supervised fine-tuning of domain-specific transformer models. Using discharge summaries from the MIMIC-IV dataset, we compare zero-shot, few-shot, and verification-based prompting across closed-source and open-source LLMs, evaluate retrieval-augmented canonicalization …

Doc 2026-13 Proposal For Pre-Licensure Bachelor Of Science In Nursing (Bsn-Nurs), University Of Dayton. School Of Education And Health Sciences

Senate Documents

The University of Dayton  Nursing Program prepares students to practice as Baccalaureate generalist  nurses through a rigorous and transformative liberal arts and sciences curriculum  in concert with nursing courses that are in alignment with the American  Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Essentials. Upon completion,  students earn a Bachelor's of Science in Nursing (BSN), are eligible to take the  NCLEX (RN licensure exam), and are prepared to transition to practice as a  licensed registered nurse.

Doc 2026-14 Suspension Of Health And Wellness Major And Deactivation Of Concentrations In Community Health And Health And Fitness, University Of Dayton. School Of Education And Health Sciences

Senate Documents

The program has had low enrollment over the past three years. Curriculum in this pathway serves as electives or core requirements for the Health Science Major. By suspending the program faculty resources can be diverted to support the demand and growth in the health science major and nursing.

Doc 2026-11 Aerospace Engineering Co-Major Proposal, University Of Dayton. School Of Engineering

Senate Documents

On the undergraduate side, the University of Dayton has historically offered bachelor's degrees in core, foundational engineering fields, such as chemical, civil, mechanical, and electrical engineering. Students can gain additional technical expertise through obtaining a minor or concentration in a number of specializations, but both the minors and concentrations offer limited coursework and are restricted to what students can fit into their major degree curriculum. Many students have expressed the desire for a more rigorous option, but do not have the time in their schedules for a dual major.

Therefore, when UD simultaneously reduced the number of credits for their …

Characterization Of Hyperoxia-Induced Lung Injury In Adult Female Rats, Abraham G. Taye

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) is a life-threatening lung disease that results from direct or indirect insults to the lung, leading to air-blood barrier damage, pulmonary edema, hypoxemia, and multi-organ failure. Hyperoxia, or exposure to high fractions of oxygen, is used as a life-saving therapy to improve blood oxygenation in patients with ARDS. However, it can also worsen lung injury by inducing excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), primarily from mitochondria, and by contributing to the progression of ARDS. Rat exposure to hyperoxia is a well-established animal model of clinical ARDS that replicates key clinical features. Clinical and preclinical …

Multiliteracies In The 21st-Century Classroom: Lessons From The Global South, Juan Carlos Montoya

Purdue Writing Lab/Purdue OWL Graduate Student Presentations

This presentation explores what lessons faculty engagement with critical multiliteracies, digital media, and AI leave writing centers. It highlights opportunities for writing tutors education and professional development based on faculty experience and suggestions fostering multiliteracies among students.

Minding The Gap: Exploring The Hidden Curriculum Of Your Writing Center, Erin Del Busto

Purdue Writing Lab/Purdue OWL Graduate Student Presentations

In this interactive workshop, tutors and writing center directors will be invited to reimagine how they scaffold individual sessions. By engaging in hands-on activities, group discussions, and take-home materials, attendees will walk away from this workshop with greater clarity about how to utilize the “hidden curriculum” present in all sessions: how it shapes the tutor’s understanding of their role, the writer, and what it means for a session to be successful.

Rethinking Ubuntu Philosophy In Nigeria's Environmental Law: A Pathway To Sustainable Plastic Pollution Regulation, Ndubuisi Augustine Nwafor

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Sea Changes In Sue-And-Settle Policy: The Tides Of Transparency And Expediency, Evan B. Fitzgerald

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Boots On The Ground, Toxins In The Water: A Look Into The Present State Of Camp Lejeune Water Contamination, Kaitlyn N. Helt

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Checkmate Or Stalemate: The Epa, California, And The Future Of Waivers Under The Clean Air Act, William B. Gale

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Inheriting The Mess: How Cercla Successor Liability Shapes The Landscape For Asset Purchase Deals, Liam N. Hudson

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Glavin Ivy V. Wellpath

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Western District of Pennsylvania

Staff Education To Optimize Pain Management In Home Health Care, Marie Natacha Francis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This DNP project is a nurse-led quality improvement initiative that responds to the age-old issue of ineffective pain management in the home healthcare setting. The issue is the absence of standardization in staff education regarding pain assessment and intervention, leading to unfavorable patient outcomes and a reduced quality of life. The purpose of the project is to assess the efficacy of educational interventions delivered by nurses to enhance staff knowledge, confidence, and consistency in the management of pain procedures. The project question is: How effective are nurse-led educational interventions in improving staff knowledge and practices in pain assessment and management, …

Staff Education To Improve Nurses’ De-Escalation Skills In Substance Abuse Treatment Settings, Joy Atufunwa

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nearly 50% of patients in substance abuse treatment settings exhibit aggressive behaviors, placing staff and other patients at risk. In the absence of structured de-escalation training, clinicians frequently rely on physical restraints or pharmacologic interventions, which contribute to staff burnout, injury, and ethical concerns. The project implemented an evidence-based staff education program to improve nurses’ knowledge, confidence, and competence in managing aggression using nonviolent de-escalation strategies. The project question guiding this initiative was: Can education improve nurses’ de-escalation skills in a substance abuse treatment setting? Using an evidence-based practice (EBP) approach and the PICO framework, the project evaluated the impact …

Quality Of Prenatal Care, Provider Preference, And Preeclampsia Among African American Women In Georgia, Lyteasha Bass

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African American women experience disproportionately high rates of preeclampsia in the United States; however, the contributions of prenatal care provider type, health care access, and quality of care to this disparity were insufficiently defined. Guided by the quality health outcomes model, this quantitative case-control study used primary data to examine associations between these factors and the occurrence of preeclampsia among African American women age 18–40 who had given birth within the previous 5 years in Georgia. Descriptive statistics and binary and multinomial logistic regression analyses were conducted. Prenatal care quality was measured using the Quality of Prenatal Care Questionnaire (QPCQ), …

Emotional And Psychological Well-Being In Early Postmenopausal Women: A Phenomenological Study, Marjorie F. Leon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore how early postmenopausal women experience and navigate emotional and psychological well-being during the postmenopausal transition. Although menopause has been widely examined as a biological process, women’s lived emotional and psychosocial experiences during the early postmenopausal period remain underexplored in psychological research. Conceptually informed by Engel’s biopsychosocial model, this study examined how biological, psychological, and social factors intersect in shaping resilience, identity, and coping during this transitional life stage. Thirteen women within 5 years of menopause onset participated in semi structured interviews. Data were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s six-phase reflexive …

Adapting Peer Review Of Electronic Search Strategies For Single-Concept Hedges: Introducing Press-H, Jenn Ann Monnin, Lynn Kysh

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Employing A Hysteresis Approach To Analyze Shifts In Tree Physiological Thresholds In Response To Drought, Mauro Brum, Annie Deslauriers, Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur, Tanner Frost, David Moore, Caroline Rodrigues Da Silva, Daniel B. Metcalfe, Heidi Asbjornsen

Faculty Publications

Drought‐induced tree mortality underscores the need for improved physiological models to predict tree responses to water stress. We employed a hysteresis modelling approach analyzing diel water absorption and desorption cycles to understand drought‐induced shifts in physiological thresholds. We applied this approach to sap flow (Js), stem diameter fluctuation (SDF), stem volumetric water content fluctuation (SVWCF), and vapour pressure deficit (VPD), datasets from two throughfall reduction experiments in contrasting ecosystems: a cloud forest (Peru) and a temperate forest (USA). Using a generalised transcendental equation, we quantified five diurnal hysteresis loops (Js:VPD, Js:SDF, Js:SVWCF, SDF:VPD, SVWCF:VPD) and derived hysteresis parameters (centroids, area, …

A Survey-Based Exploratory Study Of Factors Influencing Women's Intentions To Utilise Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis In The Eastern Cape Province, South Africa: Sociodemographic Characteristics, Hiv Risk Behaviours And Transactional Sex, Rosemary Kalenga, Gary Sharp, Anne M. Teitelman, Monde Makiwane, Larry D. Icard, John B. Jemmott

College of Nursing Faculty Papers & Presentations

BACKGROUND: South Africa has the third-highest adult prevalence rate globally, with women comprising 64% of cases. Despite the accessibility of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), its adoption among women, particularly young women, remains alarmingly low.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this initial investigation is to explore factors influencing the intentions of South African women to use PrEP, focusing on sociodemographic factors, HIV sexual risk behaviours and involvement in transactional sex.

DESIGN: The research utilised an exploratory design employing surveys.

METHODS: Surveys were conducted in 2015 with 64 women aged 19-49 residing in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The data were analysed …

A Joint Optimization-Based Novel Attack For Genomic Beacon Reconstruction, Kousar Saleem, Si̇nem Sav

Turkish Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences

Genomic data sharing has become an essential component of biomedical research, enabling large-scale collaborations and accelerating discoveries in human genetics. To balance the need for accessibility with privacy concerns, several controlled-access mechanisms have been proposed, including genomic beacons. Genomic beacons answer simple presence/absence queries about specific genetic variants. However, prior work has demonstrated that beacons remain vulnerable to genome reconstruction attacks, where an adversary can recover large portions of participants’ genomes using summary statistics. Building on insights from prior reconstruction attacks, we introduce an approach that unifies SNP correlation and allele frequency alignment objectives within a single-stage joint optimization framework. …

Cannabis Stigma And Symptom Management Considerations In Cancer Survivors: A Mixed-Methods Exploration Of Patient Perspectives, Sera Levy, Salimah Meghani, Brooke Worster, Colleen Kilanowski, Danielle Smith, Amy A. Case, Rebecca L. Ashare

Department of Medical Oncology Faculty Papers

PURPOSE: This study aims to assess for indications of stigma and attitudes toward cannabis among cancer survivors (CS) who use or consider the use of cannabis.

METHODS: This study employed a convergent, parallel mixed methods design utilizing focus group and questionnaire data to assess the presence of stigma among a sample of CS (n = 23) who use (n = 10) and do not use (n = 13) cannabis to manage symptoms. CS were recruited from a multi-site observational study in the Northeast U.S. region that assesses cannabis use among oncology patients.

RESULTS: A total of 23 CS participated in …

Re: Approval Letter For The Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit - Draft Final 2022 Insufficiently Reclaimed Sites Sampling: Bres No. 96 – Washoe Dump Site Evaluation Summary Report, Molly Roby

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Draft Final Phase I Pre-Design Investigation Evaluation Report Blacktail Creek Riparian Actions Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit Of The Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site Silver Bow County, Montana, Hydrogeologic, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.