Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Machine Learning-Based Classification Of Chronic Traumatic Brain Injury Using Hybrid Diffusion Imaging, Jennifer Muller, Ruixuan Wang, Devon Middleton, Mahdi Alizadeh, Kichang Kang, Ryan Hryczyk, George Zabrecky, Chloe Hriso, Emily Navarreto, Nancy Wintering, Anthony J. Bazzan, Chengyuan Wu, Daniel A. Monti, Xun Jiao, Qianhong Wu, Andrew B. Newberg, Feroze Mohamed

Marcus Institute of Integrative Health Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can cause progressive neuropathology that leads to chronic impairments, creating a need for biomarkers to detect and monitor this condition to improve outcomes. This study aimed to analyze the ability of data-driven analysis of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and neurite orientation dispersion imaging (NODDI) to develop biomarkers to infer symptom severity and determine whether they outperform conventional T1-weighted imaging.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A machine learning-based model was developed using a dataset of hybrid diffusion imaging of patients with chronic traumatic brain injury. We first extracted the useful features from the hybrid diffusion imaging …

Weight Cutting In Female Ufc Fighters, Cassandra Evans, Charles Stull, Gabriel Sanders, Anthony A. Ricci, Duncan French, Jose Antonio, Corey Peacock

HPD Articles

It is common practice for fight sport athletes to use a variety of weight manipulation strategies to compete in desired weight classes. Although numerous studies have highlighted rapid weight loss (RWL) strategies and the magnitude of weight loss, few have focused specifically on weight loss in female fighters. The purpose of this study was to provide descriptive information on professional UFC female fighters engaging in RWL in all women’s UFC weight divisions: strawweight (52.2 kg): flyweight (56.7 kg); bantamweight (61.2 kg); featherweight (65.8 kg).

"We Just Have To Trust The People In White Lab Coats": Analyzing Distrust In Vaccine Hesitant Comments On The Hhs Nondiscrimination In Health Programs And Activities Proposed Rule, Hima Bindu Lakshmi Vedantham

Dissertations and Theses

Vaccine attitudes provide a valuable site for analyzing trust relations on both interpersonal and institutional levels. This study is a content analysis of public comments submitted from August through October 2022 in response to a proposed rule issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which sought to strengthen non-discrimination protections in healthcare programs. Specifically, it examines the role of distrust in shaping and reinforcing vaccine hesitant beliefs, experiences, and healthcare decisions. The five themes identified in the study illustrate a breakdown in trust in pharmaceutical companies, government actors, and healthcare providers, reflecting broader social patterns. In the …

Chronic Granulomatous Reaction To Semipermanent Eyebrow Tint, Saba Suleman, Maria Villegas, Thomas Davis, Charles S. Stevens, Patricia Castaneda

School of Medicine Publications

Eyebrow micropigmentation, also known as eyebrow microblading or embroidery, is a new technique in the field of semi-permanent cosmetics that are used for therapeutic and aesthetic purposes to recreate eyebrow structure and definition. It uses synthetic pigment that is deposited through fine needles into the papillary dermis and remains till the body metabolizes the pigment and clinically fades away by 12-18 months. Similar to other tattooing procedures, microblading involves risks including local inflammation, infection, allergic contact dermatitis, and granulomatous reactions that can occur from months to years after the procedure. We describe herein a case of a 49-year-old female who …

Abdominal Aortic Calcification, Bone Mineral Density And Fractures: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis Of Observational Studies, Abadi K. Gebre, Joshua R. Lewis, Kevin Leow, Pawel Szulc, David Scott, Peter R. Ebeling, Marc Sim, Germaine Wong, Wai H. Lim, John T. Schousboe, Douglas P. Kiel, Richard L. Prince, Alexander J. Rodriguez

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Abdominal aortic calcification (AAC) has been inconsistently associated with skeletal health. We aimed to investigate the association of AAC with bone mineral density (BMD) and fracture risk by pooling the findings of observational studies. Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched (August 2021). All clinical studies that assessed the association between AAC and BMD or fracture were included. AAC was categorized into any/advanced (all higher reported groups) versus no/less advanced (lowest reported group). Pooled standardized mean differences (SMDs) and risk ratios (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were determined for BMD and fracture, respectively, using …

Design, Synthesis, And Evaluation Of Novel Δ2‑Thiazolino2‑Pyridone Derivatives That Potentiate Isoniazid Activity In An Isoniazid-Resistant Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Mutant, Souvik Sarkar, Anne E. Mayer Bridwell, Erin R. Wang, Samuel R. Mckee, Joy Valenta, Gregory A. Harrison, Kelly N. Flentie, Frederick L. Henry, Christina L. Stallings, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

No abstract provided.

Nutritional Profile And Health Benefits Of Stevia Rebaudiana Bertoni: An Updated Review, Ishrat Fatima, Mubashrah Munir, Sehrish Sadia, Akash Tariq, Rahmatullah Qureshi

Journal of Bioresource Management

Aim of this comprehensive review is to document the up-dated data about pharmaceutical potential of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni with special focus on its antioxidant activity. A total of 184 research articles were reviewed and five research engines were used to collect the data. The S. rebaudiana (Asteraceae) is indigenous to South America, now cultivated in many countries worldwide to be used as a natural bio-sweetener. Various nutritionally and medically important bioactive compounds such as diterpene glycosides, fatty acids, alkaloids, tannins, saponins, anthraquinones, phenolics, flavonoids, carbohydrates, carotenoids, steroids, polysaccharides and other phytochemicals constitute chemical composition of Stevia. Owing to the …

Immunotherapy Targeting Different Immune Compartments In Combination With Radiation Therapy Induces Regression Of Resistant Tumors, Nils-Petter Rudqvist, Maud Charpentier, Claire Lhuillier, Erik Wennerberg, Sheila Spada, Caroline Sheridan, Xi Kathy Zhou, Tuo Zhang, Silvia C Formenti, Jennifer S Sims, Alicia Alonso, Sandra Demaria

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Radiation therapy (RT) increases tumor response to CTLA-4 inhibition (CTLA4i) in mice and in some patients, yet deep responses are rare. To identify rational combinations of immunotherapy to improve responses we use models of triple negative breast cancer highly resistant to immunotherapy in female mice. We find that CTLA4i promotes the expansion of CD4+ T helper cells, whereas RT enhances T cell clonality and enriches for CD8+ T cells with an exhausted phenotype. Combination therapy decreases regulatory CD4+ T cells and increases effector memory, early activation and precursor exhausted CD8+ T cells. A combined gene signature comprising these three CD8+ …

The Role Of Fdg-Pet In The Evaluation Of Hidradenitis Suppurativa: A Systematic Review, Sahithi Talasila, Eric M. Teichner, Robert C Subtirelu, David H Xiang, Cyrus Ayubcha, Thomas Werner, Abass Alavi, Mona-Elisabeth Revheim

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic skin disorder characterized by nodules, comedones, and sinus tracts that often leave prominent scarring. In recent years, non-invasive imaging techniques have been used to assess the inflammatory activity, vascularization, and treatment response of lesions. Specifically, fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT) scans may aid in identifying systemic inflammation in patients with HS, improving diagnosis. Inflamed hypermetabolic tissues exhibit a greater uptake of FDG due to increased glucose uptake and vascularity. A systematic review was conducted to summarize the utility of nuclear imaging techniques in the diagnosis and treatment follow-up of HS. PubMed, Scopus, …

Single-Centre, Single-Blinded, Randomised, Parallel Group, Feasibility Study Protocol Investigating If Mandibular Advancement Device Treatment For Obstructive Sleep Apnoea Can Reduce Nocturnal Gastro-Oesophageal Reflux (Mad-Reflux Trial), Saoirse O'Toole, Rebecca Moazzez, Gabriella Wojewodka, Sebastian Zeki, Jafar Jafari, Katherine Hope, Andrew Brand, Zoe Hoare, Suzanne Scott, Kodchawan Doungsong, Victory Ezeofor, Rhiannon Tudor Edwards, Panagis Drakatos, Joerg Steier

Pacific Faculty Work

Introduction Just under half of patients with obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) also have gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD). These conditions appear to be inter-related and continual positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy, the gold standard treatment for OSA to prevent airway collapse, has been shown to reduce GORD. As the impact of mandibular advancement devices, a second-line therapy for OSA, on GORD has yet to be investigated, a feasibility study is needed prior to a definitive trial. Methods This will be a single-centre, single-blinded, tertiary-care based, interdisciplinary, parallel randomised controlled study. Potential OSA participants presenting to the sleep department will be pre-screened …

Sudden Vision Loss Heralding Covid-19-Associated Aspergillosis. Report Of 2 Cases, Tamara R. Vrabec, David R. Anderson, Priyal K. Shaw, Tatyana Milman

Wills Eye Hospital Papers

Purpose

To describe clinical, radiographic, laboratory and cytopathologic findings in 2 patients who developed vision loss due to endogenous aspergillus endophthalmitis during hospitalization for COVID-19 pneumonia.

Observations

Two unvaccinated sexagenarian male smokers lost vision within one month of contracting COVID-19 pneumonia. Initially, both received high dose steroids, nasal cannula oxygen and remdesivir. Immunomodulators tocilizumab or baricitinib were added during week 2 in case 1 and 2 respectively. Upon presentation after discharge from a post-COVID rehabilitation unit, visual acuities were light perception and hand motion. In both cases, inpatient blood and ocular fluid cultures were negative, serum 1,3-beta-D-glucan was positive, and …

One Font Doesn’T Fit All: The Influence Of Digital Text Personalization On Comprehension In Child And Adolescent Readers, Shannon M. Sheppard, Susanne L. Nobles, Anton Palma, Sophie Kajfez, Marjorie Jordan, Kathy Crowley, Sofie Beier

Communication Sciences and Disorders Faculty Articles and Research

Reading comprehension is an essential skill. It is unclear whether and to what degree typography and font personalization may impact reading comprehension in younger readers. With advancements in technology, it is now feasible to personalize digital reading formats in general technology tools, but this feature is not yet available for many educational tools. The current study aimed to investigate the effect of character width and inter-letter spacing on reading speed and comprehension. We enrolled 94 children (kindergarten–8th grade) and compared performance with six font variations on a word-level semantic decision task (Experiment 1) and a passage-level comprehension task (Experiment 2). …

Online Versus Face-To-Face Communication Sciences And Disorders Graduate Student Outcomes: A Causal-Comparative And Correlational Study, Nicole Christine Shears

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative and predictive correlational study was to investigate how online CSD graduate students compare to their face-to-face peers based on three measurable student outcomes with an additional investigation of how their age impacts these outcomes. This study is important because the number of online graduate programs in CSD is growing despite a lack of evidence in the research that online programs in this field have similar student outcomes as their face-to-face counterparts. This ex post facto study investigated outcomes from 188 students who graduated from or were previously enrolled in a CSD graduate program from …

The Lived Experiences Of Nursing Students Spiritual Well-Being During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Phenomenological Research Study, Pamela Williams-Jones

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to examine the concept of the spiritual well-being of senior-level nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research was reinforced by Parse's (1992) human becoming theory which contains the construct of spirituality. Student nurses are “knowing beings" with a sense of purpose, constantly propelling themselves toward possibilities and freely choosing personal meaning in situations in an intersubjective process of relating value priorities. This study will also be reinforced by the conceptual framework of the spiritual framework of coping by Gall et al. (2005). This framework was used to guide the nursing students' …

Impact Of Fall Education To Nursing Staff On Oncology Patient Fall Rates, Danni Nina Sloane

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Falls and fall-related injuries impact patients' health outcomes and are the most commonly reported adverse event in hospitals for patients over 65 years of age. This scholarly project was conducted to evaluate the effect of evidence-based education to the Registered Nurses and Certified Nursing Assistance in the medical and surgical oncology inpatient on reducing the number of patients falling. Retrospective reviews of patient fall rates, were conducted two months before the fall educational sessions, and prospective reviews were conducted after implementing fall education. Patient falls also affect reimbursement rates and, on average, increase a patient’s length of stay by about …

Multicultural Assessment Practices: A Phenomenological Study Examining Speech-Language Pathologists' Self-Efficacy, Paola Jessica Flores

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand speech-language pathologists’ (SLP) self-efficacy beliefs toward assessing culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students within public elementary schools in California. Bandura’s self-efficacy theory guided this study since it evaluated SLPs’ belief in their capacity to manage their motivation, behavior, and social environment to carry out appropriate assessment procedures for CLD students. As not all students from CLD backgrounds are accurately identified, gathering the SLPs’ lived experiences regarding current assessment practices helped provide insight into the appropriate identification of SLI. Participants included SLPs employed by rural public school districts in California, with students …

Treatment Of Rib Fractures Of The Elderly Patients In The Acute Care Setting: An Integrative Review, Adella Jo Boeding

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This integrative review aimed to identify best practices associated with treatment for multiple rib fractures. The clinical question is, “In patients 60 and older with multiple rib fractures, are conservative treatments more effective in reducing comorbidities and mortality than surgical treatments?” This Integrative Review was conducted using Whitemore and Kanfl’ as a framework. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were also used to conduct this review. Steps included problem identification, literature search with inclusion and exclusion criteria, data evaluation, data analysis through reduction and extraction, and presentation. This integrative review established that people over 65 experience …

Complementary And Integrative Therapies Available For Treating Veterans With Ptsd: An Integrative Review, Kelly Ann Greene

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

PTSD is described as the resulting from exposure to threatened or real injury, death, or sexual violence. Its symptoms have four different clusters: avoidance, re-experiencing, hyperarousal, and negative alterations in mood. PTSD is a widespread diagnosis among U.S. military veterans. This is a way of daily life for many veterans, and not all therapy is successful. The Veterans Health Administration (VA) recognizes that conventional therapy is not always appropriate for each veteran with PTSD. The VA has developed the Whole Health approach, which represents a move toward more person-driven health care, which the VA characterizes as proactive, patient driven, and …

Identifying The Serious Clinical Outcomes Of Adverse Reactions To Drugs By A Multi-Task Deep Learning Framework, Haochen Zhao, Peng Ni, Qichang Zhao, Xiao Liang, Di Ai, Shannon Erhardt, Jun Wang, Yaohang Li, Jianxin Wang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) have a direct impact on human health. As continuous pharmacovigilance and drug monitoring prove to be costly and time-consuming, computational methods have emerged as promising alternatives. However, most existing computational methods primarily focus on predicting whether or not the drug is associated with an adverse reaction and do not consider the core issue of drug benefit-risk assessment-whether the treatment outcome is serious when adverse drug reactions occur. To this end, we categorize serious clinical outcomes caused by adverse reactions to drugs into seven distinct classes and present a deep learning framework, so-called GCAP, for predicting the …

Cost-Effectiveness Of Ticagrelor Plus Aspirin Versus Aspirin In Acute Ischaemic Stroke Or Transient Ischaemic Attack: An Economic Evaluation Of The Thales Trial, Amarjeet Tank, S Claiborne Johnston, Ritika Jain, Pierre Amarenco, Carl Mellström, Klas Rikner, Hans Denison, Per Ladenvall, Mikael Knutsson, Anders Himmelmann, Scott R Evans, Stefan James, Carlos A Molina, Yongjun Wang, Mario Ouwens

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVE: THALES demonstrated that ticagrelor plus aspirin reduced the risk of stroke or death but increased bleeding versus aspirin during the 30 days following a mild-to-moderate acute non-cardioembolic ischaemic stroke (AIS) or high-risk transient ischaemic attack (TIA). There are no cost-effectiveness analyses supporting this combination in Europe. To address this, a cost-effectiveness analysis was performed.

METHODS: Cost-effectiveness was evaluated using a decision tree and Markov model with a short-term and long-term (30-year) horizon. Stroke, mortality, bleeding and EuroQol-5 Dimension (EQ-5D) data from THALES were used to estimate short-term outcomes. Model transitions were based on stroke severity (disabling stroke was defined …

Temporal Dynamics Of Genetically Heterogeneous Extended-Spectrum Cephalosporin-Resistant Escherichia Coli Bloodstream Infections, William C Shropshire, Benjamin Strope, Selvalakshmi Selvaraj Anand, Jordan Bremer, Patrick Mcdaneld, Micah M Bhatti, Anthony R Flores, Awdhesh Kalia, Samuel A Shelburne

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Extended-spectrum cephalosporin-resistant Escherichia coli (ESC-R-Ec) is an urgent public health threat with sequence type clonal complex 131 (STc131), phylogroup B2 strains being particularly concerning as the dominant cause of ESC-R-Ec infections. To address the paucity of recent ESC-R-Ec molecular epidemiology data in the United States, we used whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to fully characterize a large cohort of invasive ESC-R-Ec at a tertiary care cancer center in Houston, Texas, collected from 2016 to 2020. During the study time frame, there were 1,154 index E. coli bloodstream infections (BSIs) of which 389 (33.7%) were ESC-R-Ec. …

Public Health Instructors' Attitudes Regarding Online Instructional Course Design: A Collective Case Study, Meaghan A. Gargin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this collective case study was to describe instructors’ attitudes regarding Keller’s personalized system of instruction (PSI) for a sample of online master’s-level public health instructors at an institution of higher education. The central research question was how do public health instructors describe their attitudes regarding personalized system of instruction and online graduate education? The institution selected for this investigation was “University A.” The theory guiding this study was Keller’s personalized system of instruction (PSI), as it features five elements for student-centered course design in higher education learning. The elements include: (a) self-pacing, (b) unit mastery, (c) lectures …

Bioaccumulation Of Non-Essential Trace Elements Detected In Women's Follicular Fluid, Urine, And Plasma Is Associated With Poor Reproductive Outcomes Following Single Euploid Embryo Transfer: A Pilot Study, Andrea Palomar, Roberto Gonzalez-Martin, Alicia Quiñonero, Nuria Pellicer, Rocio Fernandez-Saavedra, Isabel Rucandio, Rodolfo Fernandez-Martinez, Estefania Conde-Vilda, Alberto J. Quejido, Caroline Zuckerman, Christine Whitehead, Richard T. Scott, Francisco Dominguez

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Faculty Papers

This study aims to determine the association of non-essential trace elements present in follicular fluid, plasma, and urine with reproductive outcomes of women undergoing intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidies (PGT-A) and single frozen euploid embryo transfer (SET/FET). This single-center, prospective cohort study included sixty women undergoing ICSI with PGT-A and SET/FET between 2018 and 2019. Urine, plasma and follicular fluid samples were collected on the vaginal oocyte retrieval day to simultaneously quantify ten non-essential trace elements (i.e., Ba, Sr, Rb, Sn, Ti, Pb, Cd, Hg, Sb, and As). We found several associations between the levels of …

Effect Of Various Types Of Extracellular Dna On V Hyugaensis Biofilm Formation, Carmen Gu Liu, Anthony W Maresso

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Marine bacteria face a constant influx of new extracellular DNA (exDNA) due to the massive viral lysis that occurs in the ocean on a daily basis. Generally, biofilms have shown to be induced by self-secreted exDNA. However, the effect of various types of exDNA with varying lengths, self vs non-self, as well as guanine-cytosine content (GC) content on biofilm formation has not been explored, despite being a critical component of the extracellular polymeric substance. To test the effect of such exDNA on biofilms, a marine bioluminescent bacterium (Vibrio hyugaensis) was isolated from the Sippewissett Salt Marsh, USA, and …

(2021) Test Questions For Licensed Professional Counselors, Test Questions

Louisiana Journal of Counseling

No abstract provided.

(2021) The Theory-Application Gap In Non-Clinical Settings, Victoria Rodriguez

Louisiana Journal of Counseling

Theoretical orientation is used to assist clinicians in understanding client behavior, treatment plan development, and evaluating treatment progress. Though the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) places a great emphasis on the importance of using theory in counseling, there is significant research that points to the existence of a gap between counseling theory and the application of theory within the therapeutic process (Murray, 2009; Proctor, 2004). This paper reviewed the barriers that counselors face when applying theory in community mental health settings, schools, medical settings, and, correctional facilities. The literature suggested that there are often distractions …

(2021) Challenges To Interdisciplinary Behavioral Health Training During A Pandemic: A Qualitative Self-Review, Krystal Vaughn, George Hebert

Louisiana Journal of Counseling

This paper explores the new challenges that interdisciplinary health care training clinics have experienced for the respective disciplines of counseling and psychology amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous challenges among these disciplines has always included the differences in specialty areas, ethical codes; and practicum and internship requirements. This current qualitative self-review identified three emergent themes from a training/service delivery perspective: Cessation of In-person Training; Cessation of In-person Assessments and Therapy; and Certification Requirements for Telehealth. Each theme is discussed from both a benefit lens and a challenge lens considering a possible future time where these modifications may need to be adopted …

(2021) Addressing Climate Trauma Among Adolescents: Process-Oriented Group Therapy As A Way Forward, Mya Sherman, John A. Dewell

Louisiana Journal of Counseling

Climate change and climate trauma are producing chronic anxiety, grief, despair, and depression, particularly among adolescents and children. Unfortunately, a sincere discussion of both the mental health implications of climate change and conceptualizations of working through climate trauma has been absent from the counseling literature. We address this gap by examining the impact of climate change on mental health, how individuals cope with climate trauma, and the strong potential of process-oriented group therapy to facilitate healing. Finally, we propose a group therapy model to address climate trauma with adolescents.

(2021) History Of School Counseling In Louisiana, Wendy Rock

Louisiana Journal of Counseling

Understanding our history gives insight and understanding of our current position. Examining historical events and trends enables us to appreciate our present and help us plan for the future. The purpose of this article is to explore the history of school counseling in Louisiana from the 1920s to the present day. The literature examined includes dissertations, publications of professional organizations, current law and proposed laws, task force and organizational reports, and personal communications from school counseling professionals and others. The literature contained in this article dates from 1925 to the present date. It is clear from this review of school …

(2021) Incorporating The Reproductive Story Intervention For Men Having Experienced Pregnancy Loss, Krystn K. Dupree

Louisiana Journal of Counseling

Pregnancy loss and the disenfranchised grief that can accompany the loss can be difficult for parents to process. Counselors can struggle when counseling clients to find a way to process their pregnancy loss and grief. Jaffe (2017) described the reproductive story as an intervention for therapists to use when working with clients who experience a pregnancy loss. Therapists can use a reproductive story to examine clients’ developmental aspects of their childhood and the narrative they developed about what a parent is and what a family look likes. The grief of men will be explored, examining how the reproductive story can …