Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Evaluation Of Chronic Liver Disease: Does Ultrasound Scoring Criteria Help?, Shaista Afzal Saeed, Imrana Masroor

Department of Radiology

Abstract

Noninvasive approaches for assessment of liver histology include routine laboratory tests and radiological evaluation. The purpose of our study was to determine the utility of a simplified scoring system based on routinely evaluated ultrasound features for the evaluation of chronic liver disease and correlate it with the histological findings. For this cross-sectional analytical study the data was collected prospectively by nonprobability purposive sampling technique. The ultrasound variables/parameters and their assigned scoring system that was a modified version adopted from published literature were evaluated. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of the liver morphological score and combined score of …

The Impact Of Body-Scaled Information On Grasping Action In Toddlers With And Without Down Syndrome, Yu-Ping Chen, Allison Mitch, Kristen Chafin, Rachel Sargent

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Background and purpose: Studies of adults and typically developing (TD) children find the number of hands and fingers used to grasp an object is influenced by the relationship between object size and hand size. Children with Down syndrome (DS) between 3 and 11 years have shown no differences in number of hands (1 or 2 hands) used to grasp different sized objects compared to TD children when the object size was body-scaled. The purpose of this study was to examine whether body-scaled information affected the number of hands and fingers used to grasp different sized objects in toddlers with and …

The Tumor Suppressor Tere1 (Ubiad1) Prenyltransferase Regulates The Elevated Cholesterol Phenotype In Castration Resistant Prostate Cancer By Controlling A Program Of Ligand Dependent Sxr Target Genes., William J. Fredericks, Jorge Sepulveda, Priti Lai, John E. Tomaszewski, Ming-Fong Lin, Terry Mcgarvey, Frank J. Rauscher, S. Bruce Malkowicz

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Castrate-Resistant Prostate Cancer (CRPC) is characterized by persistent androgen receptor-driven tumor growth in the apparent absence of systemic androgens. Current evidence suggests that CRPC cells can produce their own androgens from endogenous sterol precursors that act in an intracrine manner to stimulate tumor growth. The mechanisms by which CRPC cells become steroidogenic during tumor progression are not well defined. Herein we describe a novel link between the elevated cholesterol phenotype of CRPC and the TERE1 tumor suppressor protein, a prenyltransferase that synthesizes vitamin K-2, which is a potent endogenous ligand for the SXR nuclear hormone receptor. We show that 50% …

Characterization By Nmr Of Reactants And Products Of Hydrofluoroether Isomers, Cf3(Cf2)3och3 And (Cf3)2c(F)Cf2och3, Reacting With Isopropyl Alcohol, Howard Knachel, Vladimir Benin, William E. Moddeman, Janine C. Birkbeck, Thomas A. Kestner, Tayna L. Young

Chemistry Faculty Publications

The 3M Company product Novec™ 71IPA DL, a mixture of methoxyperfluorobutane, methoxyperfluoroisobutane and 4.5 wt.% isopropyl alcohol, has been found to be very stable at ambient temperature, producing fluoride at the rate of ~1 ppm/year. Our earlier kinetic and theoretical studies have identified the reaction mechanism. This paper identifies the ¹H and ¹⁹F NMR chemical shifts, multiplicities, and coupling constants of reactants and the major products that result from aging the mixture in sealed Pyrex NMR tubes for periods up to 1.8 years at temperatures from 26 °C to 102 °C. Chemical shifts and coupling constants of fluorine …

Inflammatory Cytokines Alter Normal Lipid Mobilization In Adipocytes, Nicholas Steven Card

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

Obesity is an increasing trend within the United States and the importance of addressing both causation and effects of obesity are becoming more important. It has been shown that environment, genetics, and social behavior factors can lead to an increased risk of obesity. Obesity has also been associated with several negative health concerns including increased risk for heart disease, cancer, poor nutrition, and diabetes, among others. Beyond identifying individual factors that may lead to obesity, and be associated with it, it is important to take into account complex obese biological systems which may have multiple factors compounding any health problems. …

Identification Of Genes Required For Differentiation Of Quiescent And Nonquiescent Cells In Stationary Phase Cultures Of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Elaine E. Manzanilla

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

Cellular differentiation is an important process for the development and maintenance of an organism. Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast) has been successful as a tool for important discoveries relating to eukaryotic cellular processes. Stationary phase yeast cultures have been found to differentiate into two major cell types with distinct phenotypes. This genome-wide study using pooled samples of the yeast homozygous deletion set has identified over 400 genes which are important for differentiation of stationary phase yeast. These genes are predominantly involved in mitochondrial function thereby supporting our hypothesis that mitochondrial function is integral to the differentiation process. In addition, further experimentation focused …

Association Of Vitamin D Deficiency With Prediabetes Among Elderly New Mexicans, Srilatha Sankarappan

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

In New Mexico, the mortality rate due to diabetes is 1.5 times higher than the nation. Diabetes causes a huge healthcare burden. In 2012, the national cost due to diabetes was $245 billion. Prior studies have established a positive correlation between vitamin D deficiency and diabetes; whether the same relationship holds for prediabetes is not well studied. Our purpose of the study was to find whether there was an association between vitamin D deficiency and prediabetes. We also wanted to find out if the association was stronger among Hispanics than non-Hispanic whites (NHW). Our rationale was to delay the progression …

Next-Generation Sequencing For Biomedical Applications, Mingyan Xu

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

Based on the development of current status of Next-Generation Sequencing technologies (NGS), I developed several technologies to improve NGS technologies and exampled to apply the NGS technology to biomedical sciences. In the first chapter, I overviewed most of the NGS technologies, described the characteristics of the technologies, and compared the pits and falls, as well as the applications. Based on the current development status, I developed Dual-Primer emulsion PCR (DPePCR) to simplify the library preparation and elongate the read length, and the details were illustrated in the chapter 2. To minimize the sequencing feature/template and improve sequencing throughput, I developed …

Effect Of Mobile Phone Short Message Service On Adherence Rates To Antihypertensives At The Family Medicine Clinic, Barbara Karau

Master of Medicine in Internal Medicine

Background: Systemic arterial hypertension is the main modifiable risk factor for development of cardiovascular disease, which is the number one cause of death in high income countries and is increasingly becoming a cause of concern in Sub-Saharan Africa (1). Awareness, management and overall control of hypertension in Sub-Saharan Africa is poor (2,3). Poor control stems from various causes; one being patient non-adherence with medication, a factor amenable to modification. The use of mobile health for behavioural change from low resource settings is gaining widespread use in management of communicable diseases (4,6). Mobile phone has the potential to significantly influence patients …

Strategies For Anti-Fibrotic Therapies., Joel Rosenbloom, Fabian A. Mendoza, Md, Sergio A. Jimenez

Jefferson Institute of Molecular Medicine Papers and Presentations

The fibrotic diseases encompass a wide spectrum of entities including such multisystemic diseases as systemic sclerosis, nephrogenic systemic fibrosis and sclerodermatous graft versus host disease, as well as organ-specific disorders such as pulmonary, liver, and kidney fibrosis. Collectively, given the wide variety of affected organs, the chronic nature of the fibrotic processes, and the large number of individuals suffering their devastating effects, these diseases pose one of the most serious health problems in current medicine and a serious economic burden to society. Despite these considerations there is currently no accepted effective treatment. However, remarkable progress has been achieved in the …

Pharmacy Law Brief: Exclusion Of Practitioners From Federally Funded Health Programs, Joseph L. Fink Iii

Pharmacy Practice and Science Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

I'M A Patient, Not A Problem: An Exploration Into The Roles Assigned In The Doctor-Patient Relationship, Monica C. Stewart

Honors Theses and Capstones

No abstract provided.

Hepatic Artery Pseudoaneurysm Mimicking Mirizzi Syndrome, Zahid Anwar, Raza Sayani, Darakshan Kanwal, Mohammed Ali, Mohammed Anwar Saeed

Department of Radiology

Acute cholecystitis leading to development of a pseudoaneurysm of the hepatic artery is a very rare complication; however, a pseudoaneurysm resulting in gallbladder neck compression with dilatation of intrahepatic duct giving a Mirizzi syndrome like presentation is virtually unreported to the best of our knowledge. We report a case of a 60 years male patient who presented in emergency department with right hypochondrial pain and mild jaundice. Initial diagnosis of hepatic artery pseudoaneurysm causing compression of neck of gallbladder and common bile duct was made on ultrasound examination. This was resulting in gross distention of gallbladder and mild dilatation of …

Telepsychiatry In Correctional Facilities: Using Technology To Improve Access And Decrease Costs Of Mental Health Care In Underserved Populations, Stacie Anne Deslich, Timothy Thistlethwaite, Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

Objective: It is unclear if telepsychiatry, a subset of telemedicine, increases access to mental health care for inmates in correctional facilities or decreases costs for clinicians or facility administrators. The purpose of this investigation was to determine how utilization of telepsychiatry affected access to care and costs of providing mental health care in correctional facilities.

Methods: A literature review complemented by a semistructured interview with a telepsychiatry practitioner. Five electronic databases, the National Bureau of Justice, and the American Psychiatric Association Web sites were searched for this research, and 49 sources were referenced. The literature review examined implementation of telepsychiatry …

Telepsychiatry In The 21st Century: Transforming Healthcare With Technology, Stacie Deslich, Bruce Stec, Shane Tomblin, Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

This article describes the benefits and constraints of telemedicine, focusing primarily on the field of psychiatry in the United States with the current system of healthcare. Telepsychiatry is believed to provide better access and higher-quality care to patients who need psychiatric care and cost savings to providers of such care. Telemedicine has been successfully integrated into psychiatric facilities reaching rural areas, prisons, and urban facilities. It has increased the volume of patients that physicians can reach and diagnose, as well as allowing them to treat patients with limitations in mobility. While telepsychiatry has been shown to be beneficial, this technology …

Adoption Of The Icd-10 Standard In The United States: The Time Is Now, Alberto Coustasse, David P. Paul Iii

Management Faculty Research

The United States is facing a revolution in the health care system soon when the present coding system (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision) will be replaced with what has for some years been the international standard: International Statistical Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10). The ICD-10 system will provide a tremendous opportunity for better capturing information in the increasingly complex delivery of health care. Although the transition to ICD-10 will undoubtedly result in substantial short-term costs, the long-term benefits make the transition imperative.

Oncolog, Volume 58, Number 07, July 2013, Zach Bohannan, Sunni Hosemann

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues) Archives

• Treating Diabetes in Cancer Patients: Type 2 diabetes is a serious health concern for any patient-but when the patient also has cancer, diabetes may interfere with potentially life-saving cancer treatment
• INBRIEF: MET Protein May Serve as a Biomaker for a Treatment-Resistant Colorectal Cancer Subtype
• Compass: Penile Cancer- Although curable, localized or regional squamous cell carcinoma of the penis present treatment dilemmas
• HOUSE CALL: Stand Up for Your Health- Prolonged sitting may increase your risk for cancer and other disease

Violence Among Young Adults Receiving Housing Assistance: Vouchers, Race, And Transitions Into Adulthood, Tamara Leech

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Scholarly literature has been very attentive to violence among adolescents whose families receive vouchers. Yet, it provides little information about violence among the more than 400,000 very young adults who head households that receive vouchers. This article explores this relationship, paying particular attention to life course considerations and racial context. Data on 18–22-year-olds, numbering 208, who received housing assistance and participated in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 in 2002 indicate that normative theoretical models may not accurately capture the relationship between the transition to adulthood and violence within this group. Results also suggest that among those who experience …

Heterogeneous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein K Supports Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Replication By Regulating Cell Survival And Cellular Gene Expression, Phat X. Dinh, Anshuman Das, Rodrigo Franco, Asit K. Pattnaik

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

The heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein K (hnRNP K) is a member of the family of hnRNPs and was recently shown in a genome-wide small interfering RNA (siRNA) screen to support vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) growth. To decipher the role of hnRNP K in VSV infection, we conducted studies which suggest that the protein is required for VSV spreading. Virus binding to cells, entry, and nucleocapsid uncoating steps were not adversely affected in the absence of hnRNP K, whereas viral genome transcription and replication were reduced slightly. These results indicate that hnRNP K is likely involved in virus assembly and/or release from …

Hand Pressure And Force: Adapted Knives Compared To A Straight Knife, Melissa S. Hudecz, Lillian A. Schaefer, Katherine A. Simon

Hand and Upper Extremity

This study analyzed the pressure and force required to cut an object with a standard kitchen knife and two adaptive knives. Occupational therapists recommend adaptive utensils such as kitchen knives. The appropriate tool or adaptive device reduces joint force and pressure and helps keep joints properly aligned to reduce pain during daily activities for individuals with arthritis. This research seeks to add to the body of knowledge to support the use of adapted equipment. Methods: Thirty-three participants were included in this study. Data were collected using a hand sensor and software made by Novel Pliance-X. This tool was found to …

Service Provider Promising Practice: New England Business Associates (Massachusetts) - Everyone Is Job-Ready, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

New England Business Associates (NEBA), a community rehabilitation provider in Springfield, Massachusetts, provides individualized employment services to local youth and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This organization sets itself apart from other employment providers in many ways, from its appearance, to the attitudes of its staff, to the manner in which it provides services.

Service Provider Promising Practice: Kfi In Maine - Making Mission-Driven Choices About Funding And Service Innovation, Thinkwork! At The Institute For Community Inclusion At Umass Boston

ThinkWork! Publications

Katahdin Friends, Inc. (KFI), headquartered in the small rural community of Millinocket, Maine, has been a service provider in this community and surrounding regions for the last 54 years. After providing segregated services for its first 20 years, KFI became an early adopter of supported employment. In the 1980s, staff members started attending conferences to learn about better, cheaper ways to serve their customers. They were profoundly influenced by the integration approach to community and employment support espoused by other innovative service providers across the country

Aboriginal And Non-Aboriginal Students Learn About Natural Health Products From Different Information Sources, Sarah O. Alkholy, Samiah N. Alqahtani, Audrey Cochrane, Maria Pontes Ferreira, Fidji Gendron

Nutrition and Food Science Faculty Research Publications

Natural health products (NHPs) include naturally derived botanical and nonbotanical products. Past research indicates a high prevalence of NHPs use amongst adults in the United States and Canada but does not clearly characterize NHPs use amongst students, ethnic variations of such use, or how users learn about NHPs. We hypothesize that there is a difference between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students in how they learn about NHPs. To investigate this question, we conducted a cross-sectional study at First Nations University of Canada and the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, during the fall of 2011. Aboriginal (n=214) and non-Aboriginal (n=749) students participated …

Exploring Epigenetic Regulation Of Fear Memory And Biomarkers Associated With Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Stephanie A. Maddox, Glenn E. Schafe, Kerry J. Ressler

Publications and Research

This review examines recent work on epigenetic mechanisms underlying animal models of fear learning as well as its translational implications in disorders of fear regulation, such as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Specifically, we will examine work outlining roles of differential histone acetylation and DNA-methylation associated with consolidation, reconsolidation, and extinction in Pavlovian fear paradigms. We then focus on the numerous studies examining the epigenetic modifications of the Brain-derived neurotrophin factor (BDNF) pathway and the extension of these findings from animal models to recent work in human clinical populations. We will also review recently published data on FKBP5 regulation of …

Digest Of The Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine (Summer 2013), Philadelphia College Of Osteopathic Medicine

Digest

The Summer issue of the Digest of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine includes the following articles:

• Message from the President
• PCOM Updates
• Commencement 2013
• Development News
• Back in the (Founders') Day: Faculty Pioneers, 1899 to World War I
• Teach Me So I May Remember—Alumni: On Faculty Mentors and Awakeners
• My Father’s Precious Legacy: A Reflection On the Influence of Nicholas S. Nicholas, DO, upon His Sons, his Family, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and the Osteopathic Profession
• Love and Change: A Health Crisis Compels a Longtime Physician to Reevaluate his Approach to Teaching and Practicing Preventative Patient Care
• Philosophical …

Recumbent Syncope Mimicking Nocturnal Seizures, Maria Siddiqi, S. Nizam Ahmed

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

A fifty seven year old man presented to the emergency at the University hospital with a 3 month history of episodes of arousals from sleep with groaning and deviation of head to his right side. These were followed by a period of “confusion” that lasted for a “couple of minutes”. He had a witnessed “convulsion” in the hospital during this last visit and was loaded with one gram of phenytoin. A computed tomography (CT) scan of the head three months ago was reported as normal. Neurology was consulted for further investigations and long-term management

An Unusual Presentation Of Neurononopathic Gauchers Disease., Prem Chand, Shahnaz Ibrahim, Bushra Habib, Farida Jan

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

A six years old male child presented with tremor, ataxia, speech apraxia, supranuclear gaze palsy and hepatosplenomegaly. There was no history of seizures and psycho-cognitive abnormalities. The clinical and bone marrow findings were consistent with Gaucher's disease type 3.

KEY WORDS: Gauchers disease, Enzyme replacement therapy, Gene therapy, Bone marrow transplant.

Dementia In Pakistan: National Guidelines For Clinicians, Arsalan Ahmad, Khurram Owais, Maimoona Siddiqui, Kayser Mamun, Faiza Rao, Abdul Wahab Yousufzai

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Dementia refers to a range of disorders characterized by declining memory, multiple cognitive deficits and eventual mortality due to progressive and irreversible brain damage¹. Disease entities comprising dementia characteristically affect mainly the geriatric population. Together, they constitute a major component of global disease burden in general and geriatric disease burden in particular². In 2005, it was estimated that 24.3 million people in the world were living with dementia; 4.6 million cases have been added each year ever since³. Overall, dementia contributes 11.3% of years of life lived with disability, making it a major contributor …

Dementia – The Next Impending Epidemic Knocking On Our Door – Are We Ready?, Ismail A. Khatri, Mohammad Wasay

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Late-onset dementias are life-shortening diseases of largely unknown cause. Predictions of the number of persons living with dementia by 2050 have spawned alarming headlines forecasting a “tsunami” of dementia cases that will overwhelm families and health care systems and impose unbearable economic burdens [Whalley].

Varied Presentation Of Celiac Disease In Pakistani Adults, Zaigham Abbas, Sajjad Raza, Javed Yakoob, Shahab Abid, Saeed Hamid, Hasnain Shah, Wasim Jafri

Section of Gastroenterology

he objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate presentation of celiac disease in adults. It included 77 patients, 41 (53.2%) males with median age 26 years and median body mass index of 18 (16 â�� 22) kg/m2. Typical presentation with gastrointestinal symptoms was seen in 76.6%. Atypical presentation with extra intestinal complaints in 7.8% and silent presentation in 15.6%. Major symptoms were diarrhea in 64.9%, weight loss 36.4%, abdominal pain 35.1%, vomiting 32.5%, pallor 24.7%, and weakness 13%. Iron deficiency was documented in 20.8%, B12 deficiency in 9.1%, folic acid deficiency in 6.5% and vitamin D deficiency in 10.4%. …