Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Relationship Between Nonword Repetition Performance And Social Behaviors In 7- To 11-Year-Old Children With Language Impairment, Bethany Lynne Hillary

Theses and Dissertations

Recent literature has suggested a link between verbal working memory and language impairment (LI) in children. There is limited research, however, about the link between verbal working memory and social behaviors in children with LI. This study was designed to explore the relationship between social behaviors (measured by the Teacher Behavior Rating Scale; Hart & Robinson, 1996) and verbal working memory abilities (measured by a 3-, 4-, and 5-syllable nonword repetition task) in children with LI. Thirty-six children (18 with LI and 18 typically developing) aged 7 to 11 years participated in the study. Children with LI were rated by …

Mental Health Impact Of Disasters, Saman Faisal

Public Health Theses

It is very important to study the mental health impact of disasters to provide adequate mental health services when there is an increased demand of mental health services and a concurrent deterioration of mental healthcare capacity after disasters. This study examined the mental health impact of 9/11 attacks among the individuals living close to the disaster area and compared them to the individuals living farther from the disaster area. New York (NY) state and Washington DC were selected as the disaster areas and Illinois (IL) was selected to study individuals living farther from the disaster area. The study also assessed …

Synthesis Of Marine Chemicals And Derivatives As Potential Anti-Cancer Drugs., Laude Bannerman-Akwei

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Two natural marine compounds, 3-bromo-4,5-dihydroxybenzaldehyde 2 and 2,3-dibromo-4,5-dihydroxybenzaldehyde 5 together with two novel derivatives, 3-bromo-5-(tert-butyl-dimethyl-silanyloxy)-4-hydroxybenzaldehyde 3 and 1-bromo-2,3-dimethoxy-5-nitrooxy-methylbenzene 9, were synthesized. Compounds 2, 3, and 5 were evaluated for their biological activity towards the inhibition of prostate cancer cell growth using staurosporine a a positive control. All three compounds have shown significant inhibition of prostate cancer cell growth. Compound 9 is yet to be evaluated.

Elucidating The Role Of The Α7 Nicotinic Receptor In The Etiology Of Schizophrenia., Michelle Johnson Chandley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The α7 subunit of the nicotinic receptor, a ligand gated ion channel with an affinity for nicotine, has long been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia due to the extremely high rate of smoking within the patient population. However, the exact role of the receptor has never fully been determined. In the following studies, various functions the receptor may assume in disease state are evaluated. There is a strong relationship between the immune system and schizophrenia, with the α7 subunit possibly serving as the link between the two. One of the following studies looks at the possibility of the receptor …

Cytotoxic Effects Of Ruthenium Compounds On Human Cancer Cell Lines., Katie Beth Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Chemotherapy is the most common cancer treatment. Traditionally, platinum-based drugs are used in chemotherapy. More recently, researchers have focused on ruthenium based compounds as a substitute for the platinum compounds. Ruthenium-based compounds appear to be less toxic to healthy cells than traditional platinum-based compounds. In this study, 7 ruthenium-based compounds were tested on HT-29 (colon) and MCF-7 (breast) human cancer cell lines with the specific aim of determining whether or not any of the ruthenium-based compounds exhibited cytotoxic properties. In addition, levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) production were tested in supernate from the cancer cells treated with various …

Characterization Of The Genes Involved In Biosynthesis And Transport Of Schizokinen, A Siderophore Produced By Rhizobium Leguminosarum Iari 917., David Jack Hammond

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Iron is the 4th most abundant metal on the earth's crust and is required by most organisms as a cofactor for many enzymes; however, at physiological pH and aerobic conditions iron forms insoluble ferric oxyhydroxide polymers. Siderophores are low molecular weight compounds that scavenge ferric ions, bind with high affinity, and transport it into the cell via multicomponent transport systems. Rhizobia are soil dwelling organisms that form symbiotic relationships with host plants and fix atmospheric nitrogen, while the bacteria receive nutrients. R. leguminosarum IARI 917 produces a siderophore characterized as 'schizokinen'. In the present study, we have characterized the binding …

Characterization Of Murine Cardiac Cholinergic Innervation And Its Remodeling In Type 1 Diabetes., Abigail Marie Mabe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Murine models have become increasingly popular to study various aspects of cardiovascular diseases due to their ease of genetic manipulation. Unfortunately, there has been little effort put into describing the distribution of autonomic nerves in the mouse heart, making it difficult to compare current findings from clinical and experimental models related to cardiovascular diseases. Furthermore, determination of the requirements for the development of this system and its maintenance in adult mice remains largely unexplored. This study represents the first detailed mapping of cholinergic neuroanatomy of the mouse heart based on immunohistochemical staining using true cholinergic markers. We found cholinergic innervation …

Social Support, Weight Loss Attempts And Satisfaction, Allison Drew

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which the presence of social support correlates with attempts at weight loss in the past 12 months, attempts not to gain weight in the past 12 months, and participants’ satisfaction with their weight status. Methods: We used a cross-sectional study design using data collected by the 2003-2004 and 2005-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) (CDC). For this study we included males and females, of multiple ethnicities, and a range of ages from 40 to 70 + years. Participants with missing data on height and weight were …

How One's Cultural View Of Obesity Affects Care Giving, Marietta Kramper Farris

Theses and Graduate Projects

As the United States faces the challenge of obesity it is important to understand the cultural aspects of caring for these patients. Leininger's Transcultural Nursing Theory is used as a framework for the development of an educational program for health care professionals. The obese patients receiving care should be able to count on their care givers to appreciate the biases, stigmatization and discrimination of the culture in which they live. A review of the history of cultural views of obesity and thinness is used as a starting point. An in-depth review of related research is presented to detail bias, stigmatization, …

Effect Of Metro Living On Oral Cancers In Virginia: 2001-2005, Preeti Sastry

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Forty percent of all head and neck cancers occur in the oral cavity. According to ICD-O (International classification of diseases for oncology) C00-C14 includes cancers of the lip, oral cavity and pharynx. Studies have indicated that increased population density or Metro living have increased oral cancer incidence. The objectives of this study are to look at the distribution of Oral and Oro pharyngeal Cancers in Virginia from 2001-2005 The study aims to determine if there is an association between metro living (beale code 3) and advanced Oral Cancers. This study is also being done to determine if Metro living …

Medicare Managed Care Penetration And Prevalence Of Older Adult Disability, Christine Moe

Theses and Dissertations

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between Medicare Managed Care (MMC) penetration and percentage of disability in older adults (individuals age 65 and older). Considering disability as an indicator of one or more unsuccessfully managed chronic diseases, this study investigates the assumption that managed care improves coordination of care, as well as access to preventive care. If managed care’s mandate is being met, then it should be evidenced in decreased prevalence of older adult disability. METHOD: Taking an ecological approach, this study used data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ, 2003) to compare the percentage of older adult …

Season Of Birth And Risk For Schizophrenia, Seth Roberts

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Schizophrenia is a chronic, debilitating mental disorder characterized by positive (e.g., hallucinations, delusions) and negative (e.g., catatonia, flat affect) signs and symptoms. Many studies suggest that individuals born in winter or spring months are at increased risk for schizophrenia. Study Objectives: 1) To determine whether season of birth affects risk for schizophrenia in the Irish Study of High Density Schizophrenia Families (ISHDSF). 2) To examine, by computer simulation, power to detect genetic associations with schizophrenia under a variety of conditions and using different analytic strategies. 3) To test whether specific genes are associated with schizophrenia in the Irish Case …

Do Black Msm Have More Idu And Hiv Positive Partners Compared To White Men Having Sex With Men ?, Shankar Krishnappa

Theses and Dissertations

Objectives: This study estimates the proportion of intravenous drug use (IDU) partners and HIV positive sexual partners among black and white and examine the association between repeat HIV testing and sex with high risk partners. Methods: A cross-sectional study of MSM was conducted by using pooled data from counseling, Testing, Referral services in Virginia, USA 2002-2007. Results: We obtained a sample of 19679 MSM out of which 10924(56%) and 6739(34%) were white and black MSM respectively. The proportion of IDU partners and HIV positive partners were among white MSM (5% and 11%) and black MSM (3% and 9%) respectively. Age …

Supporting Charge Nurses In Their Leadership Development: A Framework For Education, Sonja Rivers

Theses and Graduate Projects

This project examines the complex and multifaceted role of the charge nurse in the acute care setting and compares the charge nurse's role to that of a front line leader. Charge nurse competencies are identified and leadership skills and behaviors necessary for the charge nurse to function effectively in the role are explored including those related to emotional intelligence. A conceptual framework for education is developed using Botatzis' Theory of Self-Directed Learning, and Swanson's middle range theory of caring, Nursing as Informed Caring for the Well-Being of others.

Achieving Cultural Competence Through The Use Of Community Health Workers: Open Cities Health Center's Approach, Dorii Gbolo

Theses and Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project is to identify objectives necessary for incorporating a Community Health Worker (CHW) program within an urban Federally Qualified Community Clinic setting, for the purpose of enhancing the culturally specific care provided by the clinic. CHWs offer our current fragmented and complex health care system an opportunity to improve the health of underserved populations in our country. The use of CHWs dates back to the 1960's as an attempt to expand health care to the underserved residing in poor communities.

If one is poor, an immigrant, or just different from the norms of our society receiving …

Designing An International Friendship Model For Children, Charlotte Martins

Theses and Graduate Projects

In 2006 this writer traveled to Windhoek, Namibia to take the course Walking the Truth; Culture, Gender and HIV/AID,S in Sub-Saharan Africa. As part of that class each student was assigned to work with an organization or individual whose mission was working with HIV/AIDS patients or there families. It was from this experience that the project was born. The purpose of this project is to design a friendship model that links children of middle school age from different cultures and different nations together through letter writing.

Supporting Lactation: Beyond Nutrition, Desiree' M. Bertilrud

Theses and Graduate Projects

Breastfeeding provides nutritional, health, immunological, psychological, economical and environmental benefits. Despite the abundance of scientific evidence and public health campaigns, the United States fails to meet national goals for breast feeding rates. Numerous barriers to lactation are identified and explored. However, by far, returning to work has the greatest impact on the duration of breastfeeding. Employers and organizations who support breastfeeding are the recipients of a multitude of benefits. The purpose of this project is to identify the strategic steps to establish a lactation room in an outpatient clinic setting for employees to support maternal-child relationships, foster employee satisfaction, and …

Firearms And Children: A Public Health Issue, Janet M. Benz

Theses and Graduate Projects

This is the time for nurses as individuals and collectively as a profession to realize their obligation to society in regards to the injury and death caused by firearms. Not one population or single community is immune from gun violence in America; it is an epidemic that does not discriminate. There are monumental implications for both nurses in practice and leadership to make a difference when it comes to changing policy from a public health perspective to reduce gun violence and save lives. In this project, Margaret Newman's (1994) theory of Health as Expanding consciousness is applied to the role …

Fetal And Early Neonatal Death: Do The Determinants Vary?, Ashley Carter

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: To compare the determinants and distribution of fetal and early neonatal deaths in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Background: Much attention is devoted to reducing the infant mortality rate which was declining up until 2002. The recent rise was parsed and found to stem from an increase in deaths during the early neonatal period. Fetal deaths are not well understood and are not routinely included when evaluating infant mortality. Methods: Using data collected from 2001 to 2006 fetal death and linked infant birth and death certificates by the Virginia Department of Health, crude mortality rates and leading causes of death …

Examining Correlations With Frequency Of Walking Trips In Metropolitan Areas, Michelle J. Marcus

Public Health Theses

This research assessed correlations between funding for pedestrian facilities, presence of walkways, and daily and weekly walking trips in a sample of United States residents living in metropolitan areas. The purpose of the research was to identify factors at the policy and environmental level which are associated with a greater frequency of walking trips, and therefore may influence physical activity levels. Data from the U.S. Federal Highway Administration’s 2001 National Household Travel Survey and the Thunderhead Alliance’s 2007 Benchmarking Report: Bicycling and Walking in the U.S. were combined to provide variables for the number of daily and weekly walking trips, …

The Ability Of Children With Language Impairment To Understand Emotion Conveyed By Prosody In A Narrative Passage, Chelsea Celeste Voorhees

Theses and Dissertations

Several recent studies indicate that children with Language Impairment (LI) have difficulty recognizing and inferring meaning from emotional prosody. The present study is a replication investigating the ability of children with LI to recognize emotion conveyed by prosody in an orally presented narrative passage. Twenty-two children with LI and twenty-two age matched peers ranging from age 7;0 to 10;11 (M= 9.11, SD= 2.54) were selected to participate. Participants listened to recordings of a seven sentence passage read by actors to express happiness, anger, sadness, and fear. The children's task was to identify which emotion the speaker portrayed. Scores obtained from …

Psychometrically Equivalent Thai Monosyllabic Word Recognition Materials Spoken By Male And Female Talkers, Chela Williams

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to develop, digitally record, evaluate, and psychometrically equate a set of Thai monosyllabic word lists to use in the measurement of word recognition ability. A native male and female talker from Thailand, who were judged to have a standard Thai dialect, participated as talkers in digitally recording familiar Thai monosyllabic words. Twenty native Thai participants were used as subjects to determine the percentage of correct word recognition for each word at 10 intensity levels ranging from --5 to 40 dB HL in 5 dB increments. The 200 words with the highest raw scores were …

Examining The Association Between Parental Smoking And Adolescent Age Of Smoking Initiation In Africa, Jessica Lauren Howell

Public Health Theses

Tobacco use is responsible for millions of preventable illnesses and deaths throughout the world. Nevertheless, multitudes of people begin smoking every day, most before reaching the age of 18. Previous research suggests that parental smoking status is a significant predictor of adolescent smoking. Furthermore, parental smoking status may also be associated with a younger age of smoking initiation, which increases a person’s risk of nicotine dependence, cancer, and death. This study examines the association between parental smoking and adolescent age of smoking initiation in 14 African countries. Data for this study was obtained from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey from …

The Relationship Among Emotion Understanding, Language, And Social Behavior In Children With Language Impairment, Lara Lynn Goldie

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the influence of emotion understanding, language, and working memory on reticence and prosocial behavior in children with language impairment (LI). The Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language (CASL; Carrow-Woolfolk, 1999) and The Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT; Bracken & McCallum, 2003) were administered to 39 children with LI and 39 typical age-matched peers. A nonword repetition task and two tasks measuring emotion understanding were also administered. Each of the participant's classroom teachers completed The Teacher Behavioral Rating Scale (TBRS; Hart & Robinson, 1996). Structural equation modeling was used to estimate models of the data using a maximum likelihood …

Programa De Mejoramiento De Los Servicios De Asistencia Técnica Agropecuaria Mediante Contratación Con La Universidad De La Salle, Jesús Armando Orjuela Orjuela, Blanca Johana Parra Celis

Medicina Veterinaria

El proyecto “Programa de Mejoramiento de los Servicios de Asistencia Técnica Agropecuaria mediante contratación con la Universidad de la Salle” tiene como finalidad implementar programas de mejoramiento a partir del diseño y aplicación de pre-encuestas y encuestas que nos permitan identificar las debilidades del sector agrícola y pecuario para priorizar las nesecidades y de esta manera poder elaborar el Plan General de Asistencia Profesional Agropecuaria introduciendo en el tecnologías de la información (software), sistemas de planificación, transferencia e introducción de tecnologías, biotecnologías, trazabilidad, gestión del conocimiento y empresarización. En el diseño del presente proyecto se propondrá la introducción e implementación …

The Association Between The Rate Of Child Fatalities In Tennessee And Selected Neighborhood Demographic And Housing Characteristics, Elizabeth Brown

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if an association exists between housing characteristics and demographic characteristics of Tennessee neighborhoods (census tracts) and the rate of child fatalities (violent, accidental, and natural) in the neighborhoods reporting child fatalities for the years 1996-2003. The child fatalities, for the eight years, reported to each Tennessee Judicial District Child Fatality Review Team required by the Tennessee Department of Health’s Maternal and Child Health Division were selected for use in the study. Data was selected from the Bureau of the Census’ 2000 United States Census to obtain the housing characteristics and demographic characteristics …

Comparison Of Fecal Escherichia Coli From Dogs And Their Owners, Katherine Anne Stenske

Doctoral Dissertations

Contact between human beings and dogs may allow sharing of antimicrobial resistant and virulent bacteria. Objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of cross-species sharing of fecal E. coli based on pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) profile similarity, to compare antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and virulence factor patterns between dog-owner pairs, and to analyze the epidemiology of cross-species sharing using a questionnaire.

A cross-sectional study comparing fecal E. coli isolates from dogs and their owners was conducted. A questionnaire and fecal sample was collected from 61 dogowner pairs and 30 controls. Three E. coli colonies were isolated from each …

Terrorism Incident Response Education For Public-Safety Personnel In North Carolina And Tennessee: An Evaluation By Emergency Managers, John Eric Powell

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the appropriateness and sufficiency of an existing course jointly created by the United States Department of Justice, the National Fire Academy, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency entitled Emergency Response to Terrorism: Basic Concepts. The survey groups chosen for this evaluation included the 194 emergency managers for the two states of North Carolina and Tennessee.

The return rate for the descriptive survey study was 53.6 percent (n=104). This return rate was accomplished via two mailings and telephone interviews.

Overall, the respondents felt that the five main course topics (Understanding and Recognizing …

Development Of A Standardized Nursing Curriculum For The Alabama Community College System: A Critical Case Study, Alice G. Raymond

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this case study was to describe how the Alabama Community College System (ACCS) standardized their nursing curriculum. A single research question was the focus of the study: “How did the ACCS develop its standardized nursing curriculum?” The sub questions were, “who were the key players in the process?”, “Who had the positions of power and dominance, and who did not?”, “Who were included and who were excluded in the process?”, “What were the reasons for inclusion and exclusion?”, and “What were the contextual elements that influenced the development of the curriculum?”

Data from multiple sources were gathered. …

Role Of The Lpa2 Receptor In Protecting Against Apoptosis, Shuyu E

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is a naturally occurring lipid mediator. It exists abundantly in biological fluids such as serum, saliva, follicular fluid, seminal fluid and malignant effusions and induces a vast array of biological responses affecting cell growth, survival, differentiation, migration and morphology. We recently identified lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) as a potent antiapoptotic agent for the intestinal epithelium. Based on computational modeling octadecenyl thiophosphate (OTP) was synthesized: a novel rationally designed, metabolically stabilized LPA mimic. OTP was more efficacious than LPA in reducing g-irradiation-, camptothecin-, or TNF-a/cycloheximide-induced apoptosis and caspase 3, 8 and 9 activity in the IEC-6 cell line. The …