Pediatrics Commons^™

Quality Improvement In Pediatric Head Trauma With Pecarn Rules Implementation As Computerized Decision Support, Shireen M. Atabaki, Brian Jacobs, Kathleen Jacobs, Samira Shahzeidi, Nia Heard-Garris, Meghan Chamberlain, Robert Grell, James M. Chamberlain

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Background: For the 1.4 million emergency department (ED) visits for traumatic brain injury (TBI) annually in the United States, computed tomography (CT) may be over utilized. The Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network developed 2 prediction rules to identify children at very low risk of clinically important TBI. We implemented these prediction rules as decision support within our electronic health record (EHR) to reduce CT.

Objective: To test EHR decision support implementation in reducing CT rates for head trauma at 2 pediatric EDs.

Methods: We compared monthly CT rates 1 year before [preimplementation (PRE)] and 1 year after [postimplementation (POST)] …

Targeting The Pd-1 Pathway In Pediatric Solid Tumors And Brain Tumors, Lars M. Wagner, Val R. Adams

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

While remarkable advances have been made in the treatment of pediatric leukemia over the past decades, new therapies are needed for children with advanced solid tumors and high-grade brain tumors who fail standard chemotherapy regimens. Immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors acting through the programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) pathway has shown efficacy in some chemotherapy-resistant adult cancers, generating interest that these agents may also be helpful to treat certain refractory pediatric malignancies. In this manuscript we review current strategies for targeting the PD-1 pathway, highlighting putative biomarkers and the rationale for investigation of these drugs to treat common pediatric tumors such …

Duty Hours: More Rest? More Sleep? Less Learning?, Enrique Gomez-Pomar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Normative Spatiotemporal Mri Atlas Of The Fetal Brain For Automatic Segmentation And Analysis Of Early Brain Growth., Ali Gholipour, Caitlin K Rollins, Clemente Velasco-Annis, Abdelhakim Ouaalam, Alireza Akhondi-Asl, Onur Afacan, Cynthia M Ortinau, Sean Clancy, Catherine Limperopoulos, Edward Yang, Judy A Estroff, Simon K Warfield

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Longitudinal characterization of early brain growth in-utero has been limited by a number of challenges in fetal imaging, the rapid change in size, shape and volume of the developing brain, and the consequent lack of suitable algorithms for fetal brain image analysis. There is a need for an improved digital brain atlas of the spatiotemporal maturation of the fetal brain extending over the key developmental periods. We have developed an algorithm for construction of an unbiased four-dimensional atlas of the developing fetal brain by integrating symmetric diffeomorphic deformable registration in space with kernel regression in age. We applied this new …

Neutralizing Anti-Interleukin-1Β Antibodies Reduce Ischemia-Related Interleukin-1Β Transport Across The Blood-Brain Barrier In Fetal Sheep, Aparna Patra, Xiaodi Chen, Grazyna B. Sadowska, Jiyong Zhang, Yow-Pin Lim, James F. Padbury, William A. Banks, Barbara S. Stonestreet

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Hypoxic ischemic insults predispose to perinatal brain injury. Pro-inflammatory cytokines are important in the evolution of this injury. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is a key mediator of inflammatory responses and elevated IL-1β levels in brain correlate with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes after brain injury. Impaired blood-brain barrier (BBB) function represents an important component of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in the fetus. In addition, ischemia-reperfusion increases cytokine transport across the BBB of the ovine fetus. Reducing pro-inflammatory cytokine entry into brain could represent a novel approach to attenuate ischemia-related brain injury. We hypothesized that infusions of neutralizing IL-1β monoclonal antibody (mAb) reduce IL-1β transport across …

Usage Of 3d Models Of Tetralogy Of Fallot For Medical Education: Impact On Learning Congenital Heart Disease., Yue-Hin Loke, Ashraf S Harahsheh, Axel Krieger, Laura J Olivieri

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common human birth defect, and clinicians need to understand the anatomy to effectively care for patients with CHD. However, standard two-dimensional (2D) display methods do not adequately carry the critical spatial information to reflect CHD anatomy. Three-dimensional (3D) models may be useful in improving the understanding of CHD, without requiring a mastery of cardiac imaging. The study aimed to evaluate the impact of 3D models on how pediatric residents understand and learn about tetralogy of Fallot following a teaching session.

METHODS: Pediatric residents rotating through an inpatient Cardiology rotation were recruited. The …

Impact Of A National Guideline On Antibiotic Selection For Hospitalized Pneumonia., Derek J Williams, Matthew Hall, Jeffrey S Gerber, Mark I Neuman, Adam L Hersh, Thomas V Brogan, Kavita Parikh, Sanjay Mahant, Anne J Blaschke, Samir S Shah, Carlos G Grijalva

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the impact of the 2011 Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society/Infectious Diseases Society of America pneumonia guideline and hospital-level implementation efforts on antibiotic prescribing for children hospitalized with pneumonia.

METHODS: We assessed inpatient antibiotic prescribing for pneumonia at 28 children's hospitals between August 2009 and March 2015. Each hospital was also surveyed regarding local implementation efforts targeting antibiotic prescribing and organizational readiness to adopt guideline recommendations. To estimate guideline impact, we used segmented linear regression to compare the proportion of children receiving penicillins in March 2015 with the expected proportion at this same time point had the guideline not …

Waiting 2 Minutes After Sucrose Administration—Unnecessary?, Naomi Meesters, Sinno Simons, Joost Van Rosmalen, Irwin Reiss, John Van Den Anker, Monique Van Dijk

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Background Worldwide, oral sucrose is standard of care in many neonatal intensive care units to relieve procedural pain in neonates. This study aims to determine if time interval between sucrose administration and heelstick correlates with pain scores.

Methods Neonates were prospectively studied with variable time intervals and assessed with the Premature Infant Pain Profile-Revised (PIPP-R).

Results 150 neonates were included with a median gestational age of 30⁺⁶ (IQR 27⁺⁶–33⁺²) weeks and a median time interval of 72 (IQR 39–115) seconds between sucrose administration and heelstick. In multiple regression analysis, this time interval was not significantly …

Embryonic Transcription Factor Expression In Mice Predicts Medial Amygdala Neuronal Identity And Sex-Specific Responses To Innate Behavioral Cues., Julieta E Lischinsky, Katie Sokolowski, Li Peijun, Shigeyuki Esumi, Yasmin Kamal, Meredith Goodrich, Livio Oboti, Timothy R Hammond, Meera Krishnamoorthy, Daniel Feldman, Molly Huntsman, Judy Liu, Joshua G Corbin

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The medial subnucleus of the amygdala (MeA) plays a central role in processing sensory cues required for innate behaviors. However, whether there is a link between developmental programs and the emergence of inborn behaviors remains unknown. Our previous studies revealed that the telencephalic preoptic area (POA) embryonic niche is a novel source of MeA destined progenitors. Here, we show that the POA is comprised of distinct progenitor pools complementarily marked by the transcription factors Dbx1 and Foxp2. As determined by molecular and electrophysiological criteria this embryonic parcellation predicts postnatal MeA inhibitory neuronal subtype identity. We further find that Dbx1-derived and …

Ux007 For The Treatment Of Long Chain-Fatty Acid Oxidation Disorders: Safety And Efficacy In Children And Adults Following 24weeks Of Treatment., J Vockley, B Burton, G T Berry, N Longo, J Phillips, Pranoot Tanpaiboon, +Several Additional Authors

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Long-chain fatty acid oxidation disorders (LC-FAOD) lead to accumulation of high concentrations of potentially toxic fatty acid intermediates. Newborn screening and early intervention have reduced mortality, but most patients continue to experience frequent hospitalizations and significant morbidity despite treatment. The deficient energy state can cause serious liver, muscle, and heart disease, and may be associated with an increased risk of sudden death. Triheptanoin is a medium odd-chain fatty acid. Anaplerotic metabolites of triheptanoin have the potential to replace deficient tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle intermediates, resulting in net glucose production as a novel energy source for the treatment of LC-FAOD. …

Junctional Ectopic Tachycardia Secondary To Myocarditis Associated With Sudden Cardiac Arrest, Michael E. A. Cunningham, Robin W. Doroshow, Laura Oliveri, Jeffrey P. Moak

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

High Throughput In Vivo Functional Validation Of Candidate Congenital Heart Disease Genes In Drosophila., Jun-Yi Zhu, Yulong Fu, Margaret Nettleton, Adam Richman, Zhe Han

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Genomic sequencing has implicated large numbers of genes and de novo mutations as potential disease risk factors. A high throughput in vivo model system is needed to validate gene associations with pathology. We developed a Drosophila-based functional system to screen candidate disease genes identified from Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) patients. 134 genes were tested in the Drosophila heart using RNAi-based gene silencing. Quantitative analyses of multiple cardiac phenotypes demonstrated essential structural, functional, and developmental roles for more than 70 genes, including a subgroup encoding histone H3K4 modifying proteins. We also demonstrated the use of Drosophila to evaluate cardiac phenotypes resulting …

Addendum Guidelines For The Prevention Of Peanut Allergy In The United States: Report Of The National Institute Of Allergy And Infectious Diseases–Sponsored Expert Panel, Alkis Togias, Susan F. Cooper, Maria L. Acebal, Amal Assa'ad, James R. Baker, Lisa A. Beck, Julie Block, Carol Byrd-Bredbenner, Edmond S. Chan, Lawrence F. Eichenfield, David M Fleischer, George J. Fuchs Iii, Glenn T. Furuta, Matthew J. Greenhawt, Ruchi S. Gupta, Michele Habich, Stacie M. Jones, Kari Keaton, Antonella Muraro, Marshall Plaut, Lanny J. Rosenwasser, Daniel Rotrosen, Hugh A. Sampson, Lynda C. Schneider, Scott H. Sicherer, Robert Sidbury, Jonathan Spergel, David R. Stukus, Carina Venter, Joshua A. Boyce

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Background: Food allergy is an important public health problem because it affects children and adults, can be severe and even life-threatening, and may be increasing in prevalence. Beginning in 2008, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, working with other organizations and advocacy groups, led the development of the first clinical guidelines for the diagnosis and management of food allergy. A recent landmark clinical trial and other emerging data suggest that peanut allergy can be prevented through introduction of peanut-containing foods beginning in infancy.

Objectives: Prompted by these findings, along with 25 professional organizations, federal agencies, and patient advocacy …

Distinct Neural Bases Of Disruptive Behavior And Autism Symptom Severity In Boys With Autism Spectrum Disorder., Y.J. Daniel Yang, Denis G Sukhodolsky, Jiedi Lei, Eran Dayan, Kevin A. Pelphrey, Pamela Ventola

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Disruptive behavior in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an important clinical problem, but its neural basis remains poorly understood. The current research aims to better understand the neural underpinnings of disruptive behavior in ASD, while addressing whether the neural basis is shared with or separable from that of core ASD symptoms.

METHODS: Participants consisted of 48 male children and adolescents: 31 ASD (7 had high disruptive behavior) and 17 typically developing (TD) controls, well-matched on sex, age, and IQ. For ASD participants, autism symptom severity, disruptive behavior, anxiety symptoms, and ADHD symptoms were measured. All participants were scanned while …

Pediatric Cardiovascular Care In Uganda: Current Status, Challenges, And Opportunities For The Future., Twalib Olega Aliku, Sulaiman Lubega, Judith Namuyonga, Tom Mwambu, Michael Oketcho, John O Omagino, Craig Sable, Peter Lwabi

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

In many developing countries, concerted action against common childhood infectious diseases has resulted in remarkable reduction in infant and under-five mortality. As a result, pediatric cardiovascular diseases are emerging as a major contributor to childhood morbidity and mortality. Pediatric cardiac surgery and cardiac catheterization interventions are available in only a few of Sub-Saharan African countries. In Uganda, open heart surgeries (OHSs) and interventional procedures for pediatric cardiovascular disease are only possible at the Uganda Heart Institute (UHI), having been started with the help of expatriate teams from the years 2007 and 2012, respectively. Thereafter, independent OHS and cardiac catheterization have …

Boiling Histotripsy Lesion Characterization On A Clinical Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Guided High Intensity Focused Ultrasound System., Avinash Eranki, Navid Farr, Ari Partanen, Karun Sharma, Hong Chen, Christopher T Rossi, Satya V V N Kothapalli, Matthew Oetgen, Aerang Kim, Ayele H Negussie, David Woods, Bradford J Wood, Peter C W Kim, Pavel S. Yarmolenko

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

PURPOSE: High intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) is a non-invasive therapeutic technique that can thermally ablate tumors. Boiling histotripsy (BH) is a HIFU approach that can emulsify tissue in a few milliseconds. Lesion volume and temperature effects for different BH sonication parameters are currently not well characterized. In this work, lesion volume, temperature distribution, and area of lethal thermal dose were characterized for varying BH sonication parameters in tissue-mimicking phantoms (TMP) and demonstrated in ex vivo tissues.

METHODS: The following BH sonication parameters were varied using a clinical MR-HIFU system (Sonalleve V2, Philips, Vantaa, Finland): acoustic power, number of cycles/pulse, total …

Hypertension In The Pediatric Kidney Transplant Recipient., Olga Charnaya, Asha Moudgil

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Hypertension after kidney transplant is a frequent occurrence in pediatric patients. It is a risk factor for graft loss and contributes to the significant burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in this population. The etiology of posttransplant hypertension is multifactorial including donor factors, recipient factors, medications, and lifestyle factors similar to those prevalent in the general population. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring has emerged as the most reliable method for measuring hypertension in pediatric transplant recipients, and many consider it to be essential in the care of these patients. Recent technological advances including measurement of carotid intima-media thickness, pulse wave velocity, and …

Endotypes Of Difficult-To-Control Asthma In Inner-City African American Children., K R Brown, R Z Krouse, A Calatroni, C M Visness, U Sivaprasad, C M Kercsmar, E C Matsui, J B West, M M Makhija, M A Gill, H Kim, M Kattan, D Pillai, J E Gern, W W Busse, A Togias, A H Liu, G K Khurana Hershey

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

African Americans have higher rates of asthma prevalence, morbidity, and mortality in comparison with other racial groups. We sought to characterize endotypes of childhood asthma severity in African American patients in an inner-city pediatric asthma population. Baseline blood neutrophils, blood eosinophils, and 38 serum cytokine levels were measured in a sample of 235 asthmatic children (6-17 years) enrolled in the NIAID (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)-sponsored Asthma Phenotypes in the Inner City (APIC) study (ICAC (Inner City Asthma Consortium)-19). Cytokines were quantified using a MILLIPLEX panel and analyzed on a Luminex analyzer. Patients were classified as Easy-to-Control or …

Training Us Health Care Professionals On Human Trafficking: Where Do We Go From Here?, Clydette Powell, Kirsten Dickins, Hanni Stoklosa

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Some 21 million adults and children are labor-trafficked or sex-trafficked through force, fraud, or coercion. In recognition of the interface between trafficking victims and the healthcare setting, over the last 10 years there has been a notable increase in training of health care professionals (HCPs) on human trafficking (HT) and its health implications. Many organizations have developed curricula and offered training in various clinical settings. However, methods and content of this education on trafficking vary widely, and there is little evaluation of the impact of the training. The goal of this study was to assess the gaps and strengths in …

The Current Consensus On The Clinical Management Of Intracranial Ependymoma And Its Distinct Molecular Variants., Kristian W Pajtler, Stephen C Mack, Vijay Ramaswamy, Christian A Smith, Hendrik Witt, Amy Smith, Eugene Hwang, +Several Additional Authors

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Multiple independent genomic profiling efforts have recently identified clinically and molecularly distinct subgroups of ependymoma arising from all three anatomic compartments of the central nervous system (supratentorial brain, posterior fossa, and spinal cord). These advances motivated a consensus meeting to discuss: (1) the utility of current histologic grading criteria, (2) the integration of molecular-based stratification schemes in future clinical trials for patients with ependymoma and (3) current therapy in the context of molecular subgroups. Discussion at the meeting generated a series of consensus statements and recommendations from the attendees, which comment on the prognostic evaluation and treatment decisions of patients …

Plasmodium Falciparum Histidine-Rich Protein-2 Plasma Concentrations Are Higher In Retinopathy-Negative Cerebral Malaria Than In Severe Malarial Anemia., Gregory S Park, Robert O Opoka, Estela Shabani, Alexis Wypyszynski, Benjamin Hanisch, Chandy C John

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Background

Malaria retinopathy has been proposed as marker of “true” cerebral malaria (CM), ie, coma due to Plasmodium falciparum vs coma due to other causes, with incidental P falciparum parasitemia. Plasma P falciparum histidine-rich protein-2 (PfHRP2) concentrations distinguish retinopathy-positive (RP) from retinopathy-negative (RN) CM but have not been compared between RN CM and other forms of severe malaria or asymptomatic parasitemia (AP). Methods

We compared plasma PfHRP2 concentrations in 260 children with CM (247 examined for retinopathy), 228 children with severe malarial anemia (SMA), and 30 community children with AP. Results

Plasmodium falciparum HRP2 concentrations were higher in children with …

Mycn Amplification Is Associated With Repressed Cellular Immunity In Neuroblastoma: An In Silico Immunological Analysis Of Target Database, Peng Zhang, Xiaofang Wu, Moushumi Basu, Chen Dong, Pan Zhang, Yang Liu, Anthony D. Sandler

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Purpose: RNA and DNA sequencing data are traditionally used to discern intrinsic cellular pathways in cancer pathogenesis, their utility for investigating the tumor microenvironment (TME) has not been fully explored. This study explores the use of sequencing data to investigate immunity within the TME.

Experimental design: Here, we use immune cell fraction estimation analysis to determine the immune profiles in the microenvironment of neuroblastoma (NB) based on RNA-seq data in the TARGET database. The correlation between immune cell transcripts and prognosis in pediatric NB is also investigated.

Results: In silico analysis revealed a strong inverse correlation between MYCNamplification and …

Disorders Of Metal Metabolism, Carlos Ferreira, William A. Gahl

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Trace elements are chemical elements needed in minute amounts for normal physiology. Some of the physiologically relevant trace elements include iodine, copper, iron, manganese, zinc, selenium, cobalt and molybdenum. Of these, some are metals, and in particular, transition metals. The different electron shells of an atom carry different energy levels, with those closest to the nucleus being lowest in energy. The number of electrons in the outermost shell determines the reactivity of such an atom. The electron shells are divided in sub-shells, and in particular the third shell has s, p and d sub-shells. Transition metals are strictly defined as …

Toward A Rapid Production Of Multivirus-Specific T Cells Targeting Bkv, Adenovirus, Cmv, And Ebv From Umbilical Cord Blood, Hema Dave, Min Luo, J.W. Blaney, Shabnum Patel, Cecilia Barese, Conrad Russell Cruz, Elizabeth J. Shpall, Catherine M. Bollard, Patrick J. Hanley

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Umbilical cord blood (CB) has emerged as an effective alternative donor source for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Despite this success, the prolonged duration of immune suppression following CB transplantation and the naiveté of CB T cells leave patients susceptible to viral infections. Adoptive transfer of ex vivo-expanded virus-specific T cells from CB is both feasible and safe. However, the manufacturing process of these cells is complicated, lengthy, and labor-intensive. We have now developed a simplified method to manufacture a single culture of polyclonal multivirus-specific cytotoxic T cells in less than 30 days. It eliminates the need for a live virus …

Medical Genetics And Genomic Medicine In The United States. Part 2: Reproductive Genetics, Newborn Screening, Genetic Counseling, Training, And Registries, Debra S. Regier, Carlos Ferreira, Suzanne Hart, Donald Hadley, Maximilian Muenke

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

eview of genetics in the United States with emphasis on the prenatal, metabolic, genetic counseling, and training aspects of the field.

Nasopharyngeal Microbiome Diversity Changes Over Time In Children With Asthma, Marcos Pérez-Losada, Lamia Alamri, Keith Crandall, Robert J. Freishtat

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Background

The nasopharynx is a reservoir for pathogens associated with respiratory illnesses such as asthma. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has been used to characterize the nasopharyngeal microbiome of infants and adults during health and disease; less is known, however, about the composition and temporal dynamics (i.e., longitudinal variation) of microbiotas from children and adolescents. Here we use NGS technology to characterize the nasopharyngeal microbiomes of asthmatic children and adolescents (6 to 18 years) and determine their stability over time.

Methods

Two nasopharyngeal washes collected 5.5 to 6.5 months apart were taken from 40 children and adolescents with asthma living in the …

Genetic Variation In The Histamine Production, Response, And Degradation Pathway Is Associated With Histamine Pharmacodynamic Response In Children With Asthma, Bridgette L. Jones, Catherine M.T. Sherwin, Xiaoxi Liu, Hongying Dai, Carrie A. Vyhlidal

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Introduction: There is growing knowledge of the wide ranging effects of histamine throughout the body therefore it is important to better understand the effects of this amine in patients with asthma. We aimed to explore the association between histamine pharmacodynamic (PD) response and genetic variation in the histamine pathway in children with asthma.

Methods: Histamine Iontophoresis with Laser Doppler Monitoring (HILD) was performed in children with asthma and estimates for area under the effect curve (AUEC), maximal response over baseline (Emax), and time of Emax (Tmax) were calculated using non-compartmental analysis and non-linear mixed-effects model with a linked effect PK/PD …

Necrotizing Fasciitis Secondary To Aeromonas Infection Presenting With Septic Shock, Nikhil Bhatia, Manuel Castro-Borobio, John N. Greene, Sowmya Nanjappa

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

This report describes a case of necrotizing fasciitis presenting with septic shock due to an Aeromonas infection. The patient cut his foot while mowing the lawn and then spent time in a pool with black mold. He began feeling ill and developed swelling and a quarter-sized black area on his right lower extremity. Despite being hemodynamically unstable with systolic blood pressure in the low 70s, the patient was transferred to our facility from outside hospital 100 miles away. Upon arriving to facility, the patient appeared to be septic and the infected area of skin had grown. Irrigation and debridement were …

Predicting Tacrolimus Concentrations In Children Receiving A Heart Transplant Using A Population Pharmacokinetic Model, Joseph E. Rower, Chris Stockmann, Matthew W. Linakis, Shaun S. Kumar, Xiaoxi Liu, E. Kent Korgenski, Catherine M.T. Sherwin, Kimberly M. Molina

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Objective Immunosuppressant therapy plays a pivotal role in transplant success and longevity. Tacrolimus, a primary immunosuppressive agent, is well known to exhibit significant pharmacological interpatient and intrapatient variability. This variability necessitates the collection of serial trough concentrations to ensure that the drug remains within therapeutic range. The objective of this study was to build a population pharmacokinetic (PK) model and use it to determine the minimum number of trough samples needed to guide the prediction of an individual’s future concentrations.

Design, setting and patients Retrospective data from 48 children who received tacrolimus as inpatients at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt …

Association Between School Performance And Body Mass Index, Megan Rajagopal, Alissa Briggs, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The purpose of this paper is to determine the relationship between grade point average and other factors, including: body mass index, exercise habits, and weight perception. Data from School-Based Health Promotion Centers (SBHC) were used for this study. Students in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades were screened at the SBHC for a variety of behaviors and lifestyle characteristics using the Perkins Adolescent Risk Screen (PARS). Data from a total 579 students (281 males and 298 females; 278 sixth graders, 151 seventh graders, and 150 eight graders) were obtained. Of these students, 145 were underweight, with a BMI less than 18.5; …