Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Using Public Funeral And Obituary Listings To Identify Spikes In Excess Mortality In One Appalachian County, Allen Archer, Melissa White, Megan Quinn, Randy Wykoff

Journal of Appalachian Health

Introduction: Delays (10-22 months) in availability of official state and county-level mortality data could have significant public health consequences. The COVID-19 pandemic illuminated the need for health officials to access timely death data to identify unexpected increases in mortality in their communities.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to determine if funeral home listings and/or newspaper obituaries could help identify excess mortality on the local level, prior to the availability of official death records.

Methods: To calculate excess mortality, four years (2017–2020) of data were collected from three sources: the state health department, online funeral home listings, and newspaper …

Aftermath: A Word To Appalachia Following Hurricane Helene, Emily Wilson

Journal of Appalachian Health

On September 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene caused massive and catastrophic flash flooding in the lower Appalachian Region, leveling towns and forever altering much of the landscape. This is an open letter to the people of Appalachia who were affected by the disaster that blindsided our region.

Enhancing Digital Health Equity: A Personalized Approach For Spanish-Speaking Patients, Marissa Witmer, Julianna Lenoir, Mph, Angela Gerolamo, Phd, Crnp, Pmhnp, Akshay Krishnan, David Rigas, Kristin L. Rising, Md, Mshp

Jefferson Center for Connected Care Posters

Background

Limited English Proficiency (LEP) is a barrier among Hispanic communities in accessing digital health tools including patient portals.¹

Patient portals provide patients with access to their electronic medical records. With portals, patients can schedule visits, message providers, check test results, and order medication refills, among other tasks.

Portal use has been shown to help patients better manage chronic diseases, enhance doctor-patient relationships, improve patient understanding and awareness of health status, and increase adherence to therapy.²

Despite interest in using patient portals, Spanish-speaking patients often struggle to use them due to low digital literacy.³

Provision of personalized …

Perioperative Outcomes And Risks For Patients With Prinzmetal Angina Undergoing Abdominal Surgery, George Sun, Md, Matt Owrey, Md, Kevin Min, Md

Department of Anesthesiology Posters

Background

- Prinzmetal angina is a transient, reversible form of acute coronary syndrome

• Characterized by coronary artery spasms that can lead to myocardial ischemia
• Hypothesized that this phenomenon is secondary to coronary hyperreactivity from endothelial or smooth muscle dysfunction¹

- Patients with Prinzmetal angina are at high risk during surgery

• Up to 50% of patients may experience myocardial infarction, fatal arrhythmia, or unstable angina during non-cardiac surgery²
• Limited data looking at postoperative outcomes in patients with Prinzmetal angina

- Goal: Evaluate whether individuals with Prinzmetal angina are at greater risk of mortality, myocardial infarction, and arrhythmia during abdominal surgery

Cardiorespiratory Fitness And Sleep, But Not Physical Activity, Are Associated With Functional Connectivity In Older Adults, David Wing, Bart Roelands, Julie Loebach Wetherell, Jeanne F Nichols, Romain Meeusen, Job G Godino, Joshua S Shimony, Abraham Z Snyder, Tomoyuki Nishino, Ginger E Nicol, Guy Nagels, Lisa T Eyler, Eric J Lenze

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Aging results in changes in resting state functional connectivity within key networks associated with cognition. Cardiovascular function, physical activity, sleep, and body composition may influence these age-related changes in the brain. Better understanding these associations may help clarify mechanisms related to brain aging and guide interventional strategies to reduce these changes.

METHODS: In a large (n = 398) sample of healthy community dwelling older adults that were part of a larger interventional trial, we conducted cross sectional analyses of baseline data to examine the relationships between several modifiable behaviors and resting state functional connectivity within networks associated with cognition …

The Role Of Peptides In Combatting Hiv Infection: Applications And Insights, Naiera M. Helmy, Keykavous Parang

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Peptide-based inhibitors represent a promising approach for the treatment of HIV-1, offering a range of potential advantages, including specificity, low toxicity, and the ability to target various stages of the viral lifecycle. This review outlines the current state of research on peptide-based anti-HIV therapies, highlighting key advancements and identifying future research directions. Over the past few years, there has been significant progress in developing synthetic peptide-based drugs that target various stages of the viral life cycle, including entry and replication. These approaches aim to create effective anti-HIV therapies. Additionally, peptides have proven valuable in the development of anti-HIV vaccines. In …

Glucose Metabolism Controls Monocyte Homeostasis And Migration But Has No Impact On Atherosclerosis Development In Mice, Alexandre Gallerand, Gyu Seong Heo, Hannah Luehmann, Yongjian Liu, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Monocytes directly contribute to atherosclerosis development by their recruitment to plaques in which they differentiate into macrophages. In the present study, we ask how modulating monocyte glucose metabolism could affect their homeostasis and their impact on atherosclerosis. Here we investigate how circulating metabolites control monocyte behavior in blood, bone marrow and peripheral tissues of mice. We find that serum glucose concentrations correlate with monocyte numbers. In diet-restricted mice, monocytes fail to metabolically reprogram from glycolysis to fatty acid oxidation, leading to reduced monocyte numbers in the blood. Mechanistically, Glut1-dependent glucose metabolism helps maintain CD115 membrane expression on monocytes and their …

Norovirus Acute Gastroenteritis Amongst Us And European Travellers To Areas Of Moderate To High Risk Of Travellers’ Diarrhoea: A Prospective Cohort Study, Martin Alberer, Christine L Moe, Christoph Hatz, Kerstin Kling, Amy E Kirby, Lisa Lindsay, Hans D Nothdurft, Margarita Riera-Montes, Robert Steffen, Thomas Verstraeten, Henry M Wu, Herbert L Dupont

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is a major medical condition for travellers worldwide, particularly travellers to low- and middle-income countries. Norovirus (NoV) is the most common cause of viral AGE in older children and adults, but data on prevalence and impact amongst travellers is limited.

METHODS: Prospective, multi-site, observational cohort study conducted 2015-2017, amongst adult international travellers from the US and Europe to areas of moderate to high risk of travel-acquired AGE. Participants provided self-collected pre-travel stool samples and self-reported AGE symptoms whilst travelling. Post-travel stool samples were requested from symptomatic subjects and a sample of asymptomatic travellers within 14 days …

Policy-Relevant Differences Between Secondhand And Thirdhand Smoke: Strengthening Protections From Involuntary Exposure To Tobacco Smoke Pollutants, Georg E Matt, Lydia Greiner, Rachael A Record, Heather Wipfli, Jamie Long, Nathan G Dodder, Eunha Hoh, Nicolas Lopez Galvez, Thomas E Novotny, Penelope J E Quintana, Hugo Destaillats, Xiaochen Tang, Antoine M Snijders, Jian-Hua Mao, Bo Hang, Suzaynn Schick, Peyton Jacob, Prue Talbot, E Melinda Mahabee-Gittens, Ashley L Merianos, Thomas F Northrup, Lara Gundel, Neal L Benowitz

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Starting in the 1970s, individuals, businesses and the public have increasingly benefited from policies prohibiting smoking indoors, saving thousands of lives and billions of dollars in healthcare expenditures. Smokefree policies to protect against secondhand smoke exposure, however, do not fully protect the public from the persistent and toxic chemical residues from tobacco smoke (also known as thirdhand smoke) that linger in indoor environments for years after smoking stops. Nor do these policies address the economic costs that individuals, businesses and the public bear in their attempts to remediate this toxic residue. We discuss policy-relevant differences between secondhand smoke and thirdhand …

Excess Potassium Promotes Autophagy To Maintain The Immunosuppressive Capacity Of Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells Independent Of Arginase 1, Ramesh Thylur Puttalingaiah, Matthew J. Dean, Liqin Zheng, Phaethon Philbrook, Dorota Wyczechowska, Timothy Kayes, Luis Del Valle, Denise Danos, Maria Dulfary Sanchez-Pino

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Potassium ions (K+) are critical electrolytes that regulate multiple functions in immune cells. Recent studies have shown that the elevated concentration of extracellular potassium in the tumor interstitial fluid limits T cell effector function and suppresses the anti-tumor capacity of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). The effect of excess potassium on the biology of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), another important immune cell component of the tumor microenvironment (TME), is unknown. Here, we present data showing that increased concentrations of potassium chloride (KCl), as the source of K+ ions, facilitate autophagy by increasing the expression of the autophagosome marker LC3β. Simultaneously, excess potassium …

Low-Frequency Stimulation Of Corpus Callosum Suppresses Epileptiform Activity In The Cortex Through Γ-Aminobutyric Acid Type B Receptor And Slow Afterhyperpolarization-Mediated Reduction In Tissue Excitability, Nrupen Pakalapati, Chia Chu Chiang, Dominique M. Durand

Faculty Scholarship

Objective: Deep brain stimulation, particularly low-frequency stimulation (LFS) targeting fiber tracts, has emerged as a potential therapy for drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) and for generalized epilepsy, both of which pose significant treatment challenges. LFS diffusely suppresses seizures in the cortex when applied to fiber tracts like the corpus callosum (CC). Nevertheless, the specific processes responsible for suppressing epileptic activity in the cortex induced by LFS remain unclear. This study investigates the mechanisms underlying the antiepileptic effect in the cortex of LFS of the CC in coronal rodent brain slices. Methods: An in vitro 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) seizure model of cortical seizures was …

The Giab Genomic Stratifications Resource For Human Reference Genomes, Nathan Dwarshuis, Divya Kalra, Jennifer Mcdaniel, Philippe Sanio, Pilar Alvarez Jerez, Bharati Jadhav, Wenyu Eddy Huang, Rajarshi Mondal, Ben Busby, Nathan D Olson, Fritz J Sedlazeck, Justin Wagner, Sina Majidian, Justin M Zook

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Despite the growing variety of sequencing and variant-calling tools, no workflow performs equally well across the entire human genome. Understanding context-dependent performance is critical for enabling researchers, clinicians, and developers to make informed tradeoffs when selecting sequencing hardware and software. Here we describe a set of “stratifications,” which are BED files that define distinct contexts throughout the genome. We define these for GRCh37/38 as well as the new T2T-CHM13 reference, adding many new hard-to-sequence regions which are critical for understanding performance as the field progresses. Specifically, we highlight the increase in hard-to-map and GC-rich stratifications in CHM13 relative to the …

Development Of Polyvinyl Alcohol Hydrogels For Controlled Glucose Release In Biomedical Applications, Rosa María Quispe-Siccha, Osvaldo I. Medina-Sandoval, Abraham Estrada-Tinoco, Jorge A. Pedroza-Pérez, Adolfo Martínez-Tovar, Irma Olarte-Carrillo, Rafael Cerón-Maldonado, Arturo Reding-Bernal, Juan Lopez Alvarenga

School of Medicine Publications

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogels have a wide range of applications in the pharmaceutical and biomedicine fields due to their exceptional biophysical properties. The study focuses on preparing and characterizing capsule-shaped PVA hydrogels to enhance their biocompatibility and porosity for controlled glucose release and cell proliferation. The hydrogels were prepared using different concentrations (Cs) and molecular weights (MWs) of PVA, with two different lengths, A (10 mm) and B (20 mm), to control glucose release over 60 min. The preparation process involved PVA gel preparation and PVA hydrogel formation. A total of 500 µL of glucose was injected into all dehydrated …

Creating A Caring Culture, Julie Harrison-Swartz

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

Caring is a word that is synonymous with nursing. Nurses are equipped to engage in all aspects of patient care and be present. Caring and presence are also imperative in nursing education. While caring is instrumental to patient healing and outcomes, it is equally important in demonstrating care through nursing education. While convenient it is often difficult to express caring in the remote environment. This paper will describe a brief history of nursing, concept of caring, and nursing education.

Raising Awareness About Type 2 Diabetes In Adolescents Through Theatre: A Quasi-Experimental Pretest-Posttest Study, Margaret Curry

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

Education for preventing type 2 diabetes in adolescents should be a high priority among school officials and healthcare providers. The purpose of this research study was to educate adolescents on type 2 diabetes and to increase awareness about this disease. The Health Promotion Model developed by Nola Pender was used as the theoretical framework for this study. A quasi-experimental before-after design was used. The seventh and eighth-grade students enrolled in physical education classes at a local school were recruited. Of the 57 students recruited, 47 completed the study. A diabetes education program geared towards kindergarten through eighth grade was used. …

Nurse Graduates’ Experiences With Pain Science – A Qualitative Study, Rachel Bee, Cynthia Goodrich

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

Background: While the nursing profession has made great strides in pain management over the last 20 years, patients often report being under-assessed and undertreated for pain.

Purpose: The study purpose was to understand the lived experiences of practicing nurses who had completed a baccalaureate-level pain management course during their undergraduate training. The study aims included understanding how pain management skills were implemented in the clinical arena, determining barriers to implementing pain management skills, and identifying opportunities to improve the patient experience regarding pain management.

Design: The researchers implemented a qualitative methodology with a phenomenological design. Data collection consisted of semi-structured …

Framing Medical Mission Trip: Decisions With The Code Of Ethics For Nurses, Kelly Arraf

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

student reflection

A Review Of 3d Printing Technology In Drug Design Applications, Hasanain Shakir Mahmood, Jinan M. Al-Mousawy, Jamal Ali Ashoor, Ashti M.H. Saeed, Alaa Abdul Razzaq Al-Nuaimi, Pegah Khosravian

Maaen Journal for Medical Sciences

Sustainable technologies such as Additive manufacturing or three-dimensional printing (3D printing) have resulted in drastic changes in a number of industries including healthcare and pharmaceuticals. The current review focuses on the achievements accomplished on the effectiveness of three-dimensional printing in the field of drug designing and development. This technology is very precise and can be customized and that gives a way of developing complicated drug delivery systems and individualized medications. Promising areas of focus are the development of particular formulations of medicinal preparations, identification of new approaches to the drug release and potential creation of specific drug production for specific …

Piezosurgery - Modern Dentistry's Innovative Tool - A Review Article, Amjed Kadhim Al-Naaly, Ahmed Fadhel Al-Quisi

Maaen Journal for Medical Sciences

Background: In implantology, piezosurgery is a novel and cutting-edge method of bone surgery. Various ultrasonic frequencies can be used for selective cutting, which preserves essential anatomical structures by only operating on solidified hard tissues. Piezoelectric osteotomy is a technique that can be used to precisely and safely prepare receptor sites for procedure implants, acquire bone grafts classified as autogenous (blocks and particles), perform osteotomies used for alveolar crest bone expansion, lift the maxillary sinus, and remove dental implants. Clinically and physiologically, the outcomes are outstanding, especially regarding osteocyte vitality.

Objectives: This review aims to highlight the advantages and …

Association Between Mri Findings Of Facet Arthropathy And Synovitis With Health-Related Outcome And Pain Scores Following Therapeutic Lumbar Facet Injections., Michael S Green, Michele Van Hal, Matthew Onimus, Christopher R Hoffman, Dhruv K C Goyal, Valeria Potigailo, Khuram S Kazmi

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

Low back pain is a common complaint among adults. The facet joint is a major source of lumbar pain, and therapeutic facet injections have gained popularity as a minimally invasive treatment option. In addition, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) utilization for diagnosing low back pain has increased significantly over the past few decades. Facet synovitis is an entity characterized by edema and inflammatory changes affecting the facet joints, adjacent bone marrow, and surrounding soft tissues. Although its underlying etiology remains poorly understood, recent reports suggest a high incidence in patients with arthropathy and arthritis. It is essential to explore potential correlations …

The Lived Experiences Of Work Related Violence Against Public Health Professionals During Covid-19 Pandemic, Cynthia Howell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Work-related violence (WRV) against public health professionals is increasingly prevalent worldwide but received much greater attention during the COVID-19 pandemic. This qualitative study addressed a gap in the literature by exploring public health professionals' experiences with WRV threats, what factors contributed to their vulnerability, and the severity of these threats during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2023. Rogers' (1975) Protection Motivation Theory was the conceptual framework for phenomenological study. Twelve public health professionals, both male and female, including epidemiologists, nurses, physicians, researchers/scientists, and community health workers, who actively worked during the COVID-19 pandemic and were residents of New York …

Marijuana Legalization And Opioid Use Disorder In Ontario, Canada, From 2015 To 2021, Luke Ome Agada

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study examined the trends in opioid-related hospitalizations and deaths in Ontario, Canada, from 2015, to 2021, with a particular focus on the periods before and after cannabis legalization. The social problem addressed was the ongoing opioid crisis, exacerbated by rising opioid-related health issues. Grounded in the harm reduction theory, this research explored whether cannabis legalization could serve as a substitute to mitigate opioid use disorder. Data were extracted from the Discharge Database, Emergency Department Database, National Ambulatory Care Reporting System, and Hospital Morbidity Database. Analysis using the generalized estimation equation (GEE) method revealed a significant increase in opioid-related hospitalizations, …

Examining The Relationship Between Employment And Health Status Among Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder (Asd) In The United States, Winifred Beckles

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), characterized by challenges in social communication and repetitive behaviors, is a developmental disability that impacts over five million adults in the United States. Despite the significant amount of research literature on the association between health and employment in the general population, there remains a gap in research on the relationship between health and employment in adults with autism. Utilizing the Social Ecological Model (SEM) framework, this study examined whether there is a relationship between employment, current living status, non-paid activities, United States Census regions, type of health insurance, and health status when controlling for age, race, …

Umbilical Amniotic Membrane (Am-Uc) As A Skin Substitute In Periocular Reconstruction: A Case Series, Jane Spadaro, Komalpreet Tur, Alon Kahana

Conference Presentation Abstracts

No abstract provided.

Characterizing The Progression From Mild Cognitive Impairment To Dementia: A Network Analysis Of Longitudinal Clinical Visits, Muskan Garg, Sara Hejazi, Sunyang Fu, Maria Vassilaki, Ronald C Petersen, Jennifer St Sauver, Sunghwan Sohn

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: With the recent surge in the utilization of electronic health records for cognitive decline, the research community has turned its attention to conducting fine-grained analyses of dementia onset using advanced techniques. Previous works have mostly focused on machine learning-based prediction of dementia, lacking the analysis of dementia progression and its associations with risk factors over time. The black box nature of machine learning models has also raised concerns regarding their uncertainty and safety in decision making, particularly in sensitive domains like healthcare.

Objective: We aimed to characterize the progression of health conditions, such as chronic diseases and neuropsychiatric symptoms, …

Iodine Contrast Should Be Avoided In Patients With Or At Risk For Thyroid Eye Disease, Jane Spadaro, Brittany Simmons, Alon Kahana

Conference Presentation Abstracts

No abstract provided.

Anatomy Of Lower Eyelid Fat Pad Vasculature As Found In Lower Eyelid Blepharoplasties, Irene Lee, Nishita Sheth, Evan Black, Christopher Delmarkarian, Julie Woodward

Conference Presentation Abstracts

No abstract provided.

Academic Partnerships In Transforming Nursing And Midwifery Education In Africa: A Systematic Scoping Review Protocol, Claudine Muraraneza, Donatilla Mukamana, Godfrey Katende, Oliva Bazirete, Liz Wolvaardt

School of Nursing & Midwifery, East Africa

Background. In recent decades, the literature on global partnerships in nursing and midwifery education, to enhance the quality of education and produce competent graduates in the labor market, is on the rise in Africa. However, there is a gap regarding the best practices and barriers in the African context. This systematic scoping review aims to map the evidence of academic partnerships in transforming nursing and midwifery education in Africa.

Methods. The review will be guided by Arksey and O’Malley’s methodology framework through five stages: (1) Identifying the research question, (2) identifying relevant studies, (3) study selection, (4) charting the data, …

Evaluation Of Ki-67 Expression And Large Cell Content As Prognostic Markers In Mzl: A Multicenter Cohort Study, Natalie S Grover, Marcus Watkins, Nancy L Bartlett, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Marginal zone lymphoma (MZL) can have varied presentations and pathologic features, including high Ki-67 expression ( > 20%) as well as increased numbers of large B cells (LC). However, there are limited data available demonstrating the prognostic significance of these variables in patients with MZL. In this multi-institutional retrospective cohort study of patients with MZL treated at 10 centers, we evaluated the association between the presence of Ki-67 expression and increased LCs on survival and risk of histologic transformation (HT). A total of 785 patients were included (60% with extranodal MZL, 20% with nodal MZL, and 20% with splenic MZL). Among …

Black Women’S Perceptions Of Perinatal Healthcare In New York City Community Health Centers, Asiyah Franklin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of Black women who have received perinatal care in New York City (NYC) community health centers and the perceived impact on their maternal health behaviors and outcomes. Although maternal health care delivery and outcomes among Black women have been explored in research, socially and economically disenfranchised Black women in NYC who rely on community health centers for perinatal care have not been included in this research. This study involved addressing the lack of knowledge of Black women’s experiences with perinatal care in NYC’s community health system and consisted of …