Digital Commons Network^™

Changes In Electrocardiographic And Cardiac Implantable Electronic Device Parameters Following Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement, Elizabeth Seeley, Luai Madanat, Nishaki Mehta

Posters

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is known to cause conduction abnormalities leading to the need for permanent pacemaker implantation. However, the impact of TAVR-related conduction abnormalities on cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) parameters in patients with preexisting devices is not known. We sought to investigate and describe changes in EKG and CIED parameters following TAVR in patients with preexisting CIEDs.

Physicians' Knowledge And Attitudes Of Disordered Eating Behaviors Among Patients With Diabetes, Nayiri Khatchadourian, Lowell Schmeltz, Michael Brennan, Virginia Uhley

Posters

Patients diagnosed with type 1 and type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM) are at increased risk for developing clinical disordered eating behaviors (DEBs). Although research supports this higher incidence and the impact on health outcomes, few studies have assessed physicians’ knowledge, attitudes and training to identify and treat these conditions. The American Diabetes Associations’ 2021 Standards of Care included a new section about DEB, further highlighting the importance of addressing this issue. Our goal was to assess physicians’ level of training, comfort and attitudes towards providing clinical care to patients diagnosed with DM and their experience in assessing, identifying, and treating …

Tumor Locations Impact On Cardiac Toxicity In Women That Received Partial Breast Irradiation, Sara Diltz, Muayad Almahariq, Joshua Dilworth

Posters

Accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) is an appropriate modality for select women with low-risk breast cancer. While APBI delivers radiation dose to a smaller volume of breast tissue compared to whole breast irradiation, dose to the heart and coronary vessels may be relatively high, depending on the proximity of the treatment device to these structures. The primary goal of this study is to determine if the risk of adverse cardiac events depends on tumor location in women receiving APBI.

High Dose Rate Brachytherapy Monotherapy Versus External Beam Radiotherapy With Hdr Brachytherapy Boost For Unfavorable Intermediate Prostate Cancer Patients, Doyle Lang, Benjamin Willen, Daniel J. Krauss, Sirisha R. Nandalur

Posters

Prostate cancer is the most common male malignancy by incidence in the world. Treatment differs by the patient’s risk stratification. For the treatment of unfavorable intermediate-risk prostate cancer, external beam radiotherapy with high-dose-rate brachytherapy boost was the accepted treatment but high-dose-rate brachytherapy as monotherapy has been proposed as a potentially viable treatment option. External beam radiotherapy treatment involves shooting high-energy photons or particle radiation through normal healthy tissue to hit the tumor directly. High-dose-rate brachytherapy involves inserting radioactive seeds into the tumor. Studies are needed to compare toxicity profiles and relative outcomes between the two treatment options.

Outcomes Of Locally Advanced Lung Cancer Patients Treated With 60 Gy Vs. 70 Gy, Batoul Nasser, Muyad Almahariq, Inga Grills

Posters

The standard form of treatment for locally advanced lung cancer is to prescribe the conventional dose of 60 Gy radiation therapy (RT) concurrently with chemotherapy. However, five-year overall survival is still less than 20%. These outcomes remain poor due to both distant and local regional recurrence. The literature suggests that local regional control and overall survival is strongly associated with doses of radiotherapy that are higher than 60 Gy. However, when escalating radiation dose was prescribed exceeding 70 Gy, the overall survival rates plateaued. The primary goal of this study is to determine if there is a marked difference in …

Dose To The Left Anterior Descending Artery Correlates With Cardiac Events After Irradiation For Breast Cancer, Brittany Silverman, Andrew Zureick, Vincent Grzywacz, Muayad Almahariq, Aleksander Vayntraub, Joshua Dilworth

Posters

Although global heart dose has been associated with late cardiac toxic effects in patients who received radiation therapy for breast cancer, data detailing the clinical significance of cardiac substructure dosimetry are limited. We investigated whether dose to the left anterior descending artery (LAD) correlates with adverse cardiac events.

Influence Of Pretreatment Magnetic Resonance Imaging On Local Therapy Decisions For Intermediate-Risk Prostate Cancer Patients, Christian Skowronski, Andrew Shanholtzer, Brent Yelton, Muayad Almahariq, Daniel Krauss

Posters

Prostate cancer has the third highest incidence rate and is the second leading cause of cancer death for men in the United States. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides superior soft tissue delineation serving as a valuable tool for both diagnosis and treatment planning. With minimal data regarding utility on diagnosis and treatment planning for intermediate-risk prostate cancer, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network’s guidelines indicate MRI as optional in intermediate-risk prostate cancer evaluation. This project aims to elucidate whether MRI affects radiation treatment decisions for intermediate-risk prostate cancer.

The Meaning Of Pediatric Assent: A Critical Scoping Review, Natalie Liogas, Amelia Najor, Jason Wasserman, Stephanie Swanberg, Abram Brummett, Naomi Levanthal

Posters

The moral obligation to include children and adolescents in medical decisions has been long recognized. Soliciting pediatric assent is a component essential to this effort. Despite the AAP characterization of assent (AAP 1995; AAP 2016), there appears to be a lack of consensus regarding the operational and conceptual meanings of pediatric assent. This this critical scoping review provides an analysis of the varied meanings of pediatric assent in the clinical context.

Pediatric Assent In Clinical Practice: A Critical Scoping Review On The Ethical Justifications For Assent, Amelia Najor, Natalie Liogas, Jason Wasserman, Stephanie Swanberg, Abram Brummett, Naomi Laventhal, Mark C. Navin

Posters

Pediatric assent is an important ethical construct, yet there is little agreement on what precisely it means, including the ethical justifications for assent. The term is used to indicate everything from acquiescence to an analogue of informed consent itself. The primary goal of this study is to assess the range of ways that pediatric assent is specified in the clinical ethics literature, as well as what different conceptions intimate about its moral value. This systematic review will summarize the normative claims about pediatric assent in recent literature. Analysis will map divergent constructs and various moral and ethical justifications for pediatric …

Impact Of Structured Reporting Template On The Quality Of Hrct Radiology Reports For Interstitial Lung Disease, Han G. Ngo, Girish B. Nair, Sayf Al-Katib

Posters

This QI study compared the completeness of HRCT radiology reports before and after the implementation of a disease-specific structured reporting template for suspected cases of interstitial lung disease (ILD).

Evaluation Of Phenobarbital In The Treatment Of Alcohol Withdrawal In The Intensive Care Unit, Sienna J. Ringgenberg, Vishal K. Patel

Posters

Alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) is typically managed using the Clinical Institute Withdrawal Assessment (CIWA) protocol which includes benzodiazepines, supportive care, and close clinical monitoring. Alternatives to benzodiazepines such as phenobarbital provide several advantages including less frequent dosing, longer tapering off of doses, and additional glutamate inhibition. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and potential benefit to using phenobarbital in addition to CIWA protocol in the treatment of AWS at Beaumont, Royal Oak.

Evaluating The Accuracy And Quality Of The Information On Pulmonary Rehabilitation Videos Shared On Youtube Amidst The Covid-19 Pandemic, Payaum Fotovat-Ahmadi, Bilal M. Ali, Bhavinkumar Dalal

Posters

YouTube is a visual library that is growing at incredible pace, especially with the rise of COVID-19 pandemic. Pulmonary rehabilitation refers to the rehabilitation treatment of patients with chronic pulmonary diseases. YouTube has made it possible to practice remote rehabilitation, the effectiveness of which have been proven non-inferior to traditional approaches.

Criminalizing Threats Against Schools: A Divergence Of Mens Rea And Punishment Severity In Recent State Legislation, Max Kaufman

Fordham Law Review

School shootings occur on a regular basis in the United States. Fear of the next school shooting leads schools to take any potential threat of violence seriously, but responding to a threat can be extremely disruptive to a school’s operations and the community that it serves. In the last five years, nine state legislatures have attempted to deter these threats by specifically criminalizing threats of violence against schools.

Despite the proximity in time in which these states enacted school threat statutes, these laws diverge in two important ways: First, the nine statutes employ several different mens rea requirements. Second, these …

Forum Selection Provisions And The Preclusion Of Derivative Claims Under Section 14(A) Of The Securities Exchange Act: Should Federal Courts Intervene?, Noah P. Mathews

Fordham Law Review

This Note examines whether a forum selection provision in a corporation’s bylaws that requires shareholders to bring derivative claims in the Delaware Court of Chancery is enforceable when invoked by directors to dismiss derivative claims under the Securities Exchange Act (the “Exchange Act”)—claims over which federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. In Seafarers Pension Plan ex rel. Boeing Co. v. Bradway, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that enforcing this type of bylaw would violate the act’s antiwaiver provision, which voids any stipulation that allows a person to waive compliance with the act. In Lee ex …

Effects Of Maternal Disease History On Provisioning, Brooding, And Offspring Outcomes, Sakura Roberts

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Disease within a population has the ability to shape the development, evolution, and general performance of a species. Pathogen exposure to hosts can influence their physiology and behavioral patterns to further shape offspring immunity. Parental conditions experienced by offspring during early development can benefit survival and fitness (e.g. increasing provisioning rates), as well as help deter against similar diseases experienced by parents. By testing if parental behavior changes can better prepare offspring outcomes for disease exposure, such as disease severity or duration of infection, we can see the beneficial impacts it has on disease dynamics and host-pathogen processes. Incubation temperature, …

Molar Macrowear As A Proxy For Age In A Captive Sample Of Papio Hamadryas, Lauren Conrad

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study is methods-focused, centering around molar crown macrowear and its performance as a proxy for age in a sample of pedigreed, non-human primates. It analyzes the correlation between age-structured variables and molar wear among both males and females in a captive group of baboons. Here, I examined whether wear is significantly correlated with age-related variables (i.e., generations/cohorts) and whether the structure of the “age” dataset differed across wear categories. Because chronological age is unknown, I used documented pedigrees and parent-offspring relationships to group individuals into possible generations. I then used dental development charts to group individuals into cohorts based …

Self-Confidence And Hormonal Contraceptive Use, Abigail Doran

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Hormonal contraceptives are widely used to regulate menstrual cycles, alleviate certain symptoms linked to reproductive hormones, and prevent pregnancy. However, women who take hormonal contraceptives may experience significant physical and psychological side effects such as increased rates of depression and changes in self-image. The current study examined self-confidence in women before beginning hormonal contraceptives and two months after using them. These participants were compared to a control group of naturally cycling women who were also assessed twice. I hypothesized that women would experience decreased feelings of self-confidence in several domains of their lives, compared to the naturally cycling women. Results …

Computational Modeling Of The Fanconi Anemia Gene Network And Its Connection To Cancer, Alyssa Warren-Belford

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a rare genetic condition in which the cell’s DNA repair machinery is dysregulated, significantly increasing the chances of tumorigenesis. Further research is being done in order to improve patient outcomes and incidences of cancer. Our group created a computational model of the FA DNA repair gene network, which removes interstrand crosslinks found in damaged DNA and repairs it so DNA synthesis can continue. Computer simulations show the number of DNA damage indicators decreased as the pathway continued. This was expected as the FA pathway repairs DNA damage. The goal of this project was to provide further …

Exploring A Potential Bias In Detection Of Mesopredators By Cameras, Rylee Gibson

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Mesopredators, such as the raccoon (Procyon locor), Virginia opossum (Didpelphis virginiana), and striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis) play crucial ecological roles as predators, prey, and disease vectors across much of the United States. Because of their importance and the way that populations of these mesopredators can dramatically increase due to human-subsidized resources, it is imperative that studies attempting to quantify mesopredator community composition are accurate and unbiased. However, it has recently been suggested that not all mammals trigger motion-activated wildlife game cameras at the same rate and for some species detection probability may be biased. My goals for this thesis were …

Minimal Carbon Requirements For Potential Colonizers Of Other Planets, Benjamin Tan

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The NASA Office of Planetary Protection regulates the safe scientific exploration of other planets. Specifically, the office enacts rules to discourage interplanetary mission practices that would lead to the contamination of Earth-originating microbial life on other planets. Interplanetary contamination jeopardizes the potential to obtain reliable scientific evidence for extraterrestrial life. In coordination with this office, the biosignatures of potential colonizers of other celestials bodies are studied. Several organisms of Earth qualify as potential colonizers of other planets.

This experiment focused on the environment of Mars in particular. Two organisms were tested: Desulfovibrio arcticus and Desulfotalea psychrophila. Both are psychrotolerant or …

Identifying Nocturnal Pollinator Diversity In Apple Orchards In Northwest Arkansas, Emily Brown

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Insects have an essential role in nature, largely in part to pollination. These animals allow for many plants to reproduce and are directly involved in many of the earth’s fruit and vegetable supply. Bees, along with many other diurnal pollinators have gained the attention of the public, which has sparked debates and change to protect them. Many nocturnal species have previously been disregarded due to the assumption that diurnal pollinators provide the only significant pollinations, although recent studies show otherwise. For example, a recent study in apples suggests that nocturnal insects increase fruit production and flower cluster pollination at comparable …

Involvement Of Chromosome Remodeling Complexes On Chromosome Segregation, Adelle Warford

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Errors in chromosome segregation during cell replication are detrimental to the health of living cells. These errors cause aneuploidy: daughter cells with an incorrect number of chromosomes, as well as polyploidy: the complete duplication of a genome. In humans, these segregation errors are responsible for many harmful diseases and disorders. Using the model organism S. cerevisiae, a double mutant was created by removing two key chromosome remodeling complexes, SWR1 and INO80, both known to independently cause aneuploidy, decreased fitness, and damages the sensitivity of a cell's DNA (Andalis et al. 2004). By creating a double mutant strain, genetic cell …

A Survey Of Medical Student Experiences During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Stephanie Gappy, Girish Nair, Dwayne Baxa

Posters

During the COVID-19 pandemic, medical students switched from an in-person to virtual curriculum. This shift placed stress on medical schools to find alternatives to train students. Students relied on recorded lectures, emails, and video-conferencing to stay up-to-date with schoolwork. Understanding student experiences during the pandemic will help prepare students and administrators for repeat lockdown events. The goal of this study is to understand the experiences of medical students during the pandemic.

Laboratory Evaluation Of An Enzyme Immunoassay To Detect Coccidioides Galactomannan Antigens In Serum Samples, Anneliese Ahrens

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Introduction: Coccidioidomycosis (cocci) is an infection caused by fungal pathogens in soil of dry and arid regions in the Southwestern states of the United States. The disease can present itself anywhere in the body, but usually is found in the lungs. The symptoms are very similar to the symptoms of a bacterial or viral respiratory infection, which is one of the reasons it is commonly misdiagnosed or left untreated. The CDC reports cases to have increased 143% from 2014 to 2019, with a mortality rate of 200 deaths per year, however this is likely underreported because of the inadequacies of …

A Retrospective Study On The Incidence Of Ckd Diagnosis Post Covid-19 Infection With Variations In Glycemic Control, Eduardo Leon, Jithin John, Nick Ludka, Ramin Homayouni

Posters

The COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized that the virus can cause multi-organ complications, especially in patients with pre-existing conditions such as type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), who are at higher risk for poor outcomes. Some patients may also develop T2DM post-infection due to the virus's effects on insulin secretion and blood glucose regulation. Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is a useful tool for assessing blood glucose levels over time, diagnosing diabetes and monitoring disease management. Elevated levels of HbA1c have been linked to diabetic nephropathy (DN) and chronic kidney disease (CKD), both of which are potential complications of COVID-19 infection. This study aims to …

Postpartum Depression In Jamaica: Exploring The Lived Experiences., Shakeyrah Elmore

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of Jamaican women with postpartum depression (PPD). It is estimated globally, postpartum depression impacts 10-20% of women. In Jamaica, rates exceed global averages, with 26-60% of women experiencing PPD. Untreated maternal depression poses a significant physical, social, and economic threat to Jamaican women, children, and society as a whole. This study affirms that maternal mental health and postpartum depression are global public health concerns. There are limited studies that have examined PPD in Jamaican women, especially qualitatively. This research study utilized a qualitative descriptive approach to examine PPD experiences …

Community And Network Responses For Assisting Mobile Vulnerable Populations, Teresa C. Kulig, Allison V. Schlosser, Morgan A. Vanslyke, Laura E. Alexander, Cristián Doña-Reveco

Latino/Latin American Studies Reports

The COVID-19 crisis highlighted the increasing vulnerability of individuals, households, and communities. It has almost certainly been even more devastating for those who rely on community networks and organizations for aid but are less able to access aid networks in conditions of reduced mobility. This is the case for “mobile vulnerable populations,” among which include persons experiencing homelessness, victims of human trafficking,immigrants, refugees, and Latinos/as. This report summarizes our research with local Omaha service providers about what they need to serve mobile vulnerable populations in the community, how the pandemic has affected their ability to do so, and whether there …

Unions As Gendered Institutions: The Effects Of Union Membership And Occupational Gender Composition On Parental Leave Access, Meghan Cormier-O'Leary

Master's Theses and Capstones

In the absence of a national universal paid parental leave policy, access to parental leave is stratified in the United States. While several states have implemented paid family leave policies, workers typically rely on their employers to provide such a benefit. Previous qualitative research demonstrates that the share of women in labor unions may influence the provision offamily-friendly benefits. I utilize two nationally-representative datasets—the 2017-18 American Time Use Survey and the 2013-2017 American Community Survey—to analyze the relationship between union membership, occupational gender composition, and their interaction on access to paid and unpaid parental leave. Using weighted logistic regressions, I …

Dynamic Analysis Of Floating Offshore Wind Turbines Under Extreme Operational Conditions, Ailish Bozzo

Master's Theses and Capstones

Non-renewable energy sources such as fossil fuels have been the primary source of power generation around the world for decades. With these non-renewable energy sources rapidly depleting, the focus has switched to renewable, more environmentally friendly sources of energy, including wind energy. According to the Offshore Wind Market Report 2022, the U.S. has approximately 42 MW of offshore wind energy in operation, with 932 MW under construction and 18,581 MW in the permitting phase (Musial et al., 2022). Much of this potential comes from floating offshore wind turbines (FOWT) in waters greater than 60m of depth, where the winds are …

Using Imagery Collected By An Unmanned Aerial System To Monitor Cyanobacteria In New Hampshire, Usa, Lakes, Christine Bunyon

Master's Theses and Capstones

With the increasing occurrence and growing public health concern that cyanobacteria blooms pose, it is crucial that we continue to explore ways to improve our ability to accurately, efficiently, and safely monitor water quality in impacted lakes. Also known as blue-green algae, cyanobacteria are naturally occurring in many waters globally. Cyanobacteria harmful algal blooms (CHABs) release various toxins which can cause skin irritations and dog fatalities while the effects of long-term exposure to the neurotoxins for humans has stirred additional studies. Although possibly harmful if CHABs are present, monitoring this biological component is nonetheless an integral factor when studying freshwater …