Public Health Commons^™

Trends And Seasonality Of Emergency Department Visits And Hospitalizations For Suicidality Among Children And Adolescents In The Us From 2016 To 2021, Youngran Kim, Trudy Millard Krause, Scott D Lane

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

IMPORTANCE: The detection of seasonal patterns in suicidality should be of interest to clinicians and US public health officials, as intervention efforts can benefit by targeting periods of heightened risk.

OBJECTIVES: to examine recent trends in suicidality rates, quantify the seasonality in suicidality, and demonstrate the disrupted seasonality patterns during the spring 2020 COVID-19-related school closures among US children and adolescents.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This population-based, descriptive cross-sectional study used administrative claims data from Optum's deidentifed Clinformatics Data Mart Database. Participants included children aged 10 to 12 years and adolescents aged 13 to 18 years who were commercially insured …

Association Of Timing Of Moderate-To-Vigorous Physical Activity With Changes In Glycemic Control Over 4 Years In Adults With Type 2 Diabetes From The Look Ahead Trial, Jingyi Qian, Qian Xiao, Michael P Walkup, Mace Coday, Melissa L Erickson, Jessica Unick, John M Jakicic, Kun Hu, Frank A J L Scheer, Roeland J W Middelbeek, Look Ahead Research Group

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to determine the association of the time-of-day of bout-related moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (bMVPA) with changes in glycemic control across 4 years in adults with overweight/obesity and type 2 diabetes.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Among 2,416 participants (57% women; mean age, 59 years) with 7-day waist-worn accelerometry recording at year 1 or 4, we assigned bMVPA timing groups based on the participants' temporal distribution of bMVPA at year 1 and recategorized them at year 4. The time-varying exposure of bMVPA (≥10-min bout) timing was defined as ≥50% of bMVPA occurring during the same time period (morning, midday, afternoon, …

The Effects Of Obesity And Metabolic Abnormalities On Severe Covid-19-Related Outcomes After Vaccination: A Population-Based Study, Rebeca Kelly, Diego Aviles, Catriona Krisulevicz, Krystal Hunter, Lauren Krill, David Warshal, Olga Ostrovsky

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

High mortality rates in ovarian cancer have been linked to recurrence, metastasis, and chemoresistant disease, which are known to involve not only genetic changes but also epigenetic aberrations. In ovarian cancer, adipose-derived stem cells from the omentum (O-ASCs) play a crucial role in supporting the tumor and its tumorigenic microenvironment, further propagating epigenetic abnormalities and dissemination of the disease. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor derived from green tea, and Indole-3-carbinol (I3C), a histone deacetylase inhibitor from cruciferous vegetables, carry promising effects in reprograming aberrant epigenetic modifications in cancer. Therefore, we demonstrate the action of these diet-derived compounds in …

Prematurity Blunts Protein Synthesis In Skeletal Muscle Independently Of Body Weight In Neonatal Pigs, Marko Rudar, Jane K Naberhuis, Agus Suryawan, Hanh V Nguyen, Marta L Fiorotto, Teresa A Davis

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background

Postnatal growth failure in premature infants is associated with reduced lean mass accretion. Prematurity impairs the feeding-induced stimulation of translation initiation and protein synthesis in the skeletal muscle of neonatal pigs. The objective was to determine whether body weight independently contributes to the blunted postprandial protein synthesis.

Methods

Preterm and term pigs that were either fasted or fed were stratified into quartiles according to birth weight to yield preterm and term groups of similar body weight; first and second quartiles of preterm pigs and third and fourth quartiles of term pigs were compared (preterm-fasted, n = 23; preterm-fed, n …

African American Males Have More Distress During Cancer Treatment Than White Males, Stephanie Kjelstrom, Charis Wynn, Sharon Larson

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

African American (AA) males have a higher incidence and mortality rate for some cancers than other races and sexes, which could be associated with distress during treatment, medical mistrust, and health disparities. We hypothesize distress in AA males during treatment is higher than in other races and sexes. We assessed effect modification of moderate to severe (≥ 4) distress scores during cancer treatment by race and sex, age, and socioeconomic status (SES). National Comprehensive Cancer Network's distress thermometer (scale 0-10) and characteristics for 770 cancer patients were collected from a Philadelphia hospital. Variables included age, sex, race, smoking status, marital …

Blm Overexpression As A Predictive Biomarker For Chk1 Inhibitor Response In Parp Inhibitor-Resistant Brca-Mutant Ovarian Cancer, Nitasha Gupta, Tzu-Ting Huang, Jayakumar R Nair, Daniel An, Grant Zurcher, Erika J Lampert, Ann Mccoy, Ashley Cimino-Mathews, Elizabeth M Swisher, Marc R Radke, Christina M Lockwood, Jonathan B Reichel, Chih-Yuan Chiang, Kelli M Wilson, Ken Chih-Chien Cheng, Darryl Nousome, Jung-Min Lee

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors (PARPis) have changed the treatment paradigm in breast cancer gene (BRCA)–mutant high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSC). However, most patients eventually develop resistance to PARPis, highlighting an unmet need for improved therapeutic strategies. Using high-throughput drug screens, we identified ataxia telangiectasia and rad3-related protein/checkpoint kinase 1 (CHK1) pathway inhibitors as cytotoxic and further validated the activity of the CHK1 inhibitor (CHK1i) prexasertib in PARPi-sensitive and -resistant BRCA-mutant HGSC cells and xenograft mouse models. CHK1i monotherapy induced DNA damage, apoptosis, and tumor size reduction. We then conducted a phase 2 study (NCT02203513) of prexasertib …

Microbiome Alteration Via Fecal Microbiota Transplantation Is Effective For Refractory Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Induced Colitis, Taylor M Halsey, Anusha S Thomas, Tomo Hayase, Weijie Ma, Hamzah Abu-Sbeih, Baohua Sun, Edwin Roger Parra, Zhi-Dong Jiang, Herbert L Dupont, Christopher Sanchez, Rawan El-Himri, Alexandria Brown, Ivonne Flores, Lauren Mcdaniel, Miriam Ortega Turrubiates, Matthew Hensel, Dung Pham, Stephanie S Watowich, Eiko Hayase, Chia-Chi Chang, Robert R Jenq, Yinghong Wang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) target advanced malignancies with high efficacy but also predispose patients to immune-related adverse events like immune-mediated colitis (IMC). Given the association between gut bacteria with response to ICI therapy and subsequent IMC, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) represents a feasible way to manipulate microbial composition in patients, with a potential benefit for IMC. Here, we present a large case series of 12 patients with refractory IMC who underwent FMT from healthy donors as salvage therapy. All 12 patients had grade 3 or 4 ICI-related diarrhea or colitis that failed to respond to standard first-line (corticosteroids) and second-line …

Development Of A Definition Of Postacute Sequelae Of Sars-Cov-2 Infection, Tanayott Thaweethai, Sarah E Jolley, Elizabeth W Karlson, Emily B Levitan, Bruce Levy, Grace A Mccomsey, Lisa Mccorkell, Girish N Nadkarni, Sairam Parthasarathy, Upinder Singh, Tiffany A Walker, Caitlin A Selvaggi, Daniel J Shinnick, Carolin C M Schulte, Rachel Atchley-Challenner, George A Alba, Radica Alicic, Natasha Altman, Khamal Anglin, Urania Argueta, Hassan Ashktorab, Gaston Baslet, Ingrid V Bassett, Lucinda Bateman, Brahmchetna Bedi, Shamik Bhattacharyya, Marie-Abele Bind, Andra L Blomkalns, Hector Bonilla, Hassan Brim, Patricia A Bush, Mario Castro, James Chan, Alexander W Charney, Peter Chen, Lori B Chibnik, Helen Y Chu, Rebecca G Clifton, Maged M Costantine, Sushma K Cribbs, Sylvia I Davila Nieves, Steven G Deeks, Alexandria Duven, Ivette F Emery, Nathan Erdmann, Kristine M Erlandson, Kacey C Ernst, Rachael Farah-Abraham, Cheryl E Farner, Elen M Feuerriegel, Judes Fleurimont, Vivian Fonseca, Nicholas Franko, Vivian Gainer, Jennifer C Gander, Edward M Gardner, Linda N Geng, Kelly S Gibson, Minjoung Go, Jason D Goldman, Halle Grebe, Frank L Greenway, Mounira Habli, John Hafner, Jenny E Han, Keith A Hanson, James Heath, Carla Hernandez, Rachel Hess, Sally L Hodder, Matthew K Hoffman, Susan E Hoover, Beatrice Huang, Brenna L Hughes, Prasanna Jagannathan, Janice John, Michael R Jordan, Stuart D Katz, Elizabeth S Kaufman, John D Kelly, Sara W Kelly, Megan M Kemp, John P Kirwan, Jonathan D Klein, Kenneth S Knox, Jerry A Krishnan, Andre Kumar, Adeyinka O Laiyemo, Allison A Lambert, Margaret Lanca, Joyce K Lee-Iannotti, Brian P Logarbo, Michele T Longo, Carlos A Luciano, Karen Lutrick, Jason H Maley, Gail Mallett, Jai G Marathe, Vincent Marconi, Gailen D Marshall, Christopher F Martin, Yuri Matusov, Alem Mehari, Hector Mendez-Figueroa, Robin Mermelstein, Torri D Metz, Richard Morse, Jarrod Mosier, Christian Mouchati, Janet Mullington, Shawn N Murphy, Robert B Neuman, Janko Z Nikolich, Ighovwerha Ofotokun, Elizabeth Ojemakinde, Anna Palatnik, Kristy Palomares, Tanyalak Parimon, Samuel Parry, Jan E Patterson, Thomas F Patterson, Rachel E Patzer, Michael J Peluso, Priscilla Pemu, Christian M Pettker, Beth A Plunkett, Kristen Pogreba-Brown, Athena Poppas, John G Quigley, Uma Reddy, Rebecca Reece, Harrison Reeder, W B Reeves, Eric M Reiman, Franz Rischard, Jonathan Rosand, Dwight J Rouse, Adam Ruff, George Saade, Grecio J Sandoval, Jorge L Santana, Shannon M Schlater, Frank C Sciurba, Fitzgerald Shepherd, Zaki A Sherif, Hyagriv Simhan, Nora G Singer, Daniel W Skupski, Amber Sowles, Jeffrey A Sparks, Fatima I Sukhera, Barbara S Taylor, Larissa Teunis, Robert J Thomas, John M Thorp, Paul Thuluvath, Amberly Ticotsky, Alan T Tita, Katherine R Tuttle, Alfredo E Urdaneta, Daisy Valdivieso, Timothy M Vanwagoner, Andrew Vasey, Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez, Zachary S Wallace, Honorine D Ward, David E Warren, Steven J Weiner, Shelley Welch, Sidney W Whiteheart, Zanthia Wiley, Juan P Wisnivesky, Lynn M Yee, Sokratis Zisis, Leora I Horwitz, Andrea S Foulkes

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

IMPORTANCE: SARS-CoV-2 infection is associated with persistent, relapsing, or new symptoms or other health effects occurring after acute infection, termed postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), also known as long COVID. Characterizing PASC requires analysis of prospectively and uniformly collected data from diverse uninfected and infected individuals.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a definition of PASC using self-reported symptoms and describe PASC frequencies across cohorts, vaccination status, and number of infections.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Prospective observational cohort study of adults with and without SARS-CoV-2 infection at 85 enrolling sites (hospitals, health centers, community organizations) located in 33 states plus Washington, DC, …

Congenital Malformations And Preeclampsia Associated With Integrase Inhibitor Use In Pregnancy: A Single-Center Analysis., Christiana Smith, Angela J. Fought, Joyce F. Sung, Jennifer R. Mckinney, Torri D. Metz, Kirk B. Fetters, Sarah Lazarus, Shannon Capraro, Emily Barr, Carrie Glenny, Jenna Buehler, Adriana Weinberg, Chip Perinatal Medical Team

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Antiretroviral therapy (ART) decreases perinatal HIV transmission, but concerns exist regarding maternal and infant safety. We compared the incidence of congenital malformations and other adverse outcomes in pregnancies exposed to integrase inhibitor (INSTI) versus non-INSTI ART.

SETTING: Single-site review of all pregnancies among women living with HIV between 2008 and 2018.

METHODS: We used binomial family generalized estimating equations to model the relationship of congenital anomalies and pregnancy outcomes with exposure to INSTI or dolutegravir (DTG) versus non-INSTI ART.

RESULTS: Among 257 pregnancies, 77 women received ≥1 INSTI (54 DTG, 14 elvitegravir, 15 raltegravir), 167 received non-INSTI, and 3 …

Diet Quality Among Pre-Adolescent African American Girls In A Randomized Controlled Obesity Prevention Intervention Trial, Debbe Thompson, Yiming Mirabile, Noemi Islam, Chishinga Callender, Salma M A Musaad, Julie Miranda, Jennette P Moreno, Jayna M Dave, Tom Baranowski

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Consuming an unhealthy diet increases health risks. This study assessed the impact of a culturally adapted behaviorally innovative obesity prevention intervention (The Butterfly Girls and the Quest for Founder’s Rock) on diet quality in pre-adolescent non-Hispanic Black/African American girls. The RCT consisted of three groups (experimental, comparison, and waitlist control); block randomization allocated participants to each group. The two treatment groups varied in terms of whether or not they set goals. Data were collected at baseline (prior to receiving the intervention), post 1 (3 months post-baseline), and post 2 (6 months post-baseline). Two dietitian-assisted 24 h dietary recalls …

Medicaid Expansion, Chemotherapy Delays, And Racial Disparities Among Women With Early-Stage Breast Cancer, Mariana Chavez-Macgregor, Xiudong Lei, Catalina Malinowski, Hui Zhao, Ya-Chen Shih, Sharon H Giordano

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act extends eligibility for participating states and has been associated with improved outcomes by facilitating access to care. Delayed initiation of adjuvant chemotherapy is associated with worse outcomes among patients with early-stage breast cancer (BC). The impact of Medicaid expansion in narrowing delays by race and ethnicity has not been studied, to our knowledge.

METHODS: This was a population-based study using the National Cancer Database. Patients diagnosed with primary early-stage BC between 2007 and 2017 residing in states that underwent Medicaid expansion in January 2014 were included. Time to chemotherapy initiation and proportion …

Early Postpartum Hba1c After Hyperglycemia First Detected In Pregnancy-Imperfect But Not Without Value, Ankia Coetzee, David R Hall, Mari Van De Vyver, Magda Conradie

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: South African women of childbearing age are disproportionally affected by obesity and at significant risk of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). Unless pregnant, they do not readily undergo screening for T2DM. With a local focus on improved antenatal care, hyperglycemia is often first detected in pregnancy (HFDP). This may erroneously be attributed to Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) in all without considering T2DM. Glucose evaluation following pregnancy is essential for early detection and management of women with T2DM in whom persistent hyperglycemia is to be expected. Conventional testing with an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) is cumbersome, prompting investigation for …

Adverse Birth Outcomes Of Adolescent And Young Adult Women Diagnosed With Cancer During Pregnancy, Andrea C Betts, L Aubree Shay, Philip J Lupo, Sandi L Pruitt, Michael E Roth, Marlyn A Allicock, Barbara A Cohn, Caitlin C Murphy

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: We examined adverse birth outcomes among adolescent and young adult women diagnosed with cancer (AYA women, ages 15-39 years) during pregnancy.

METHODS: We linked data from the Texas Cancer Registry, vital records, and Texas Birth Defects Registry to identify all singleton births to AYA women diagnosed during pregnancy from January 1999 to December 2016. We compared prevalence of adverse live birth outcomes between AYA women and women without cancer (matched 1:4 on age, race and ethnicity, and year). Among AYA women, we used log-binomial regression to identify factors associated with these outcomes. Statistical tests were 2-sided.

RESULTS: AYA women …

Physical And Stressful Psychological Impacts Of Prolonged Personal Protective Equipment Use During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study, Giuseppe Candido, Costanza Tortù, Chiara Seghieri, Riccardo Tartaglia, Chiara Baglioni, Paolo Citti, Ida Marina Raciti, Micaela La Regina, Silvia Simonini, Moira Urbani, Chiara Parretti, Paul Barach

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Healthcare workers (HCWs) caring for COVID-19 infected patients are exposed to stressful and traumatic events with potential for severe and sustained adverse mental and physical health consequences. Our aim was to assess the magnitude of physical and mental health outcomes of HCWs due to the prolonged use of personal protective equipment (PPE) treating COVID-19 patients.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study assessed the symptoms of stress, anxiety, insomnia, and psychological resilience using the Stress and Anxiety to Viral Epidemics (SAVE) scale, Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), and Resilience Scale (RS), respectively, in Italy between 1st February and 31st March 2022. The physical …

Digital Health Technologies For Peripartum Depression Management Among Low-Socioeconomic Populations: Perspectives From Patients, Providers, And Social Media Channels, Alexandra Zingg, Tavleen Singh, Amy Franklin, Angela Ross, Sudhakar Selvaraj, Jerrie Refuerzo, Sahiti Myneni

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Peripartum Depression (PPD) affects approximately 10-15% of perinatal women in the U.S., with those of low socioeconomic status (low-SES) more likely to develop symptoms. Multilevel treatment barriers including social stigma and not having appropriate access to mental health resources have played a major role in PPD-related disparities. Emerging advances in digital technologies and analytics provide opportunities to identify and address access barriers, knowledge gaps, and engagement issues. However, most market solutions for PPD prevention and management are produced generically without considering the specialized needs of low-SES populations. In this study, we examine and portray the information and technology needs …

Sex Differences In The Clinical Presentation Of Early Psychosis In A Primary Care Setting, Brooke Carter, Rebecca Rodrigues, Jennifer Reid, Suzanne Archie, Amanda L Terry, Lena Palaniyappan, Arlene G Macdougall, Aristotle Voineskos, Saadia Hameed Jan, Liisa Jaakkimainen, Branson Chen, Neo Sawh, Kelly K. Anderson

Epidemiology and Biostatistics Publications

Primary care is an important part of the help-seeking pathway for young people experiencing early psychosis, but sex differences in clinical presentation in these settings are unexplored. We aimed to identify sex differences in clinical presentation to primary care services in the 1-year period prior to a first diagnosis of psychotic disorder. We identified first-onset cases of non-affective psychotic disorder over a 10-year period (2005-2015) using health administrative data linked with electronic medical records (EMRs) from primary care (n = 465). Detailed information on encounters in the year prior to first diagnosis was abstracted, including psychiatric symptoms, other relevant behaviours, …

Evaluating The Use Of Blood Pressure Polygenic Risk Scores Across Race/Ethnic Background Groups, Nuzulul Kurniansyah, Matthew O Goodman, Alyna T Khan, Jiongming Wang, Elena Feofanova, Joshua C Bis, Kerri L Wiggins, Jennifer E Huffman, Tanika Kelly, Tali Elfassy, Xiuqing Guo, Walter Palmas, Henry J Lin, Shih-Jen Hwang, Yan Gao, Kendra Young, Gregory L Kinney, Jennifer A Smith, Bing Yu, Simin Liu, Sylvia Wassertheil-Smoller, Joann E Manson, Xiaofeng Zhu, Yii-Der Ida Chen, I-Te Lee, C Charles Gu, Donald M Lloyd-Jones, Sebastian Zöllner, Myriam Fornage, Charles Kooperberg, Adolfo Correa, Bruce M Psaty, Donna K Arnett, Carmen R Isasi, Stephen S Rich, Robert C Kaplan, Susan Redline, Braxton D Mitchell, Nora Franceschini, Daniel Levy, Jerome I Rotter, Alanna C Morrison, Tamar Sofer

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

We assess performance and limitations of polygenic risk scores (PRSs) for multiple blood pressure (BP) phenotypes in diverse population groups. We compare "clumping-and-thresholding" (PRSice2) and LD-based (LDPred2) methods to construct PRSs from each of multiple GWAS, as well as multi-PRS approaches that sum PRSs with and without weights, including PRS-CSx. We use datasets from the MGB Biobank, TOPMed study, UK biobank, and from All of Us to train, assess, and validate PRSs in groups defined by self-reported race/ethnic background (Asian, Black, Hispanic/Latino, and White). For both SBP and DBP, the PRS-CSx based PRS, constructed as a weighted sum of PRSs …

Refugee Women’S Receptiveness For Virtual Engagement On Reproductive Health During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Heike Thiel De Bocanegra, Zahra Goliaei, Nossin Khan, Sereen Banna, Rawnaq Behnam, Sheila K Mody

Faculty Publications & Research of the TUC Public Health Program

BACKGROUND: Refugee women who leave their country due to persecution and violence have multiple barriers to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. The COVID-19 pandemic added an additional barrier to in-person reproductive health education, dialogue, and clinical care. This study aimed to assess the potential of using virtual group meetings as a forum for refugee women to learn about and discuss reproductive health concerns such as cervical cancer screening, family planning, childbirth, and postpartum care.

METHOD: We conducted semi-structured interviews with 36 refugee women and stakeholders to assess factors that impact refugee women's receptiveness for virtual platforms to obtain information …

Phase Ii Trial Of Nelipepimut-S Peptide Vaccine In Women With Ductal Carcinoma In Situ, Anne E O'Shea, Guy T Clifton, Na Qiao, Brandy M Heckman-Stoddard, Malgorzata Wojtowicz, Eileen Dimond, Isabelle Bedrosian, Diane Weber, Judy E Garber, Alexander Husband, Ricardo Pastorello, J Jack Lee, Mike Hernandez, Diane D Liu, Lana A Vornik, Powel H Brown, Gheath Alatrash, George E Peoples, Elizabeth A Mittendorf

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

UNLABELLED: NeuVax is a vaccine comprised of the HER2-derived MHC class I peptide E75 (nelipepimut-S, NPS) combined with GM-CSF. We completed a randomized trial of preoperative vaccination with NeuVax versus GM-CSF alone in patients with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). The primary objective was to evaluate for NPS-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses. Patients with human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A2-positive DCIS were enrolled and randomized 2:1 to NeuVax versus GM-CSF alone and received two inoculations prior to surgery. The number of NPS-specific CTL was measured pre-vaccination, at surgery, and 1 and 3 to 6 months post-operation by dextramer assay. Differences in …

The Effects Of Gender And Country Of Origin On Acculturation, Psychological Factors, Lifestyle Factors, And Diabetes-Related Physiological Outcomes Among Mexican Americans: The Starr County Diabetes Prevention Initiative, Sharon A Brown, Heather A Becker, Alexandra A García, Mary M Velasquez, Hirofumi Tanaka, Mary A Winter, William B Perkison, Eric L Brown, David Aguilar, Craig L Hanis

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVES: Examine acculturation and psychological, lifestyle, and physiological factors based on gender and country of origin (U.S. vs. Mexico).

METHODS: Baseline data from the Starr County diabetes prevention study (

RESULTS: Participants were: predominantly female (73%); 51 years of age, on average; born in Mexico (71%); and Spanish-speaking. Individuals spent 11 of their waking hours (range = 0-18 h) in sedentary activities. Compared to females, more males spoke English and reported fewer hours in sedentary activities. Compared to participants born in Mexico, those born in the U.S. were more likely to: speak English; report depressive symptoms; and exhibit elevated BMI …

Cross-Sectional Association Between Neighborhood Socioeconomic Status And Sleep Duration Among Black And White Men And Women: The Southern Community Cohort Study, Samuel H Nyarko, Liying Luo, David G Schlundt, Qian Xiao

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objective: To examine the association of neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) with sleep duration among a large cohort of Black and white men and women in the United States.

Methods: We used data from the Southern Community Cohort Study (SCCS, N = 75,248). Neighborhood SES was based on census data and sleep duration was measured by self-report. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association between neighborhood SES and short (<7 hours) and long (≥9 hours) sleep in the overall sample and according to race-sex subgroups.

Results: In the total sample, when compared with the highest quintile of neighborhood SES, the lowest quintile was associated with higher odds of both short (adjusted ORQ5 vs. …

Association Of Diet Quality With Metabolic (Dysfunction) Associated Fatty Liver Disease In Veterans In Primary Care, Natalia I Heredia, Aaron P Thrift, David J Ramsey, Rohit Loomba, Hashem B El-Serag

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Diet is associated with metabolic (dysfunction)-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), but the dietary composition associated with MAFLD risk has not been well-examined.

AIM: The purpose of this study was to assess the association of two healthy eating indices with the presence and severity of MAFLD in a sample of Veterans in a primary care setting.

METHODS: This was a single center cross-sectional study using a random stratified sample of Veterans enrolled in primary care. Participants underwent a Fibroscan and completed an interviewer-administered Diet History Questionnaire II from which we calculated the Healthy Eating Index-2015 and Alternate Mediterranean Diet Score. …

Recruitment And Reach In A School-Based Pediatric Obesity Intervention Trial In Rural Areas., Bethany Forseth, Brittany Lancaster, Megan Olalde, Christie A. Befort, Rebecca E. Swinburne Romine, Meredith Dreyer, Kelsey Dean, Eve-Lynn Nelson, Ann M. Davis

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study is to evaluate two recruitment strategies on schools and participant participation rates and representativeness (reach) within a pediatric obesity treatment trial tailored for families who live in rural areas.

METHODS: Recruitment of schools was evaluated based on their progress toward enrolling participants. Recruitment and reach of participants were evaluated using (1) participation rates and (2) representativeness of demographics and weight status of participants compared to eligible participants (who did not consent and enroll) and all students (regardless of eligibility). School recruitment, as well as participant recruitment and reach, were evaluated across recruitment methods comparing …

The Tgf-Β Superfamily As Potential Therapeutic Targets In Pancreatic Cancer, William A Grobman, Grecio J Sandoval, Torri D Metz, Tracy A Manuck, Rebecca G Clifton, Brenna L Hughes, George R Saade, Monica Longo, Amber Sowles, Kelly Clark, Hyagriv N Simhan, Dwight J Rouse, Hector Mendez-Figueroa, Cynthia Gyamfi-Bannerman, Jennifer L Bailit, Maged M Costantine, Harish M Sehdev, Alan T N Tita, George A Macones

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether preterm birth rates changed in relation to the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and whether any change depended on socioeconomic status.

METHODS: This is an observational cohort study of pregnant individuals with a singleton gestation who delivered in the years 2019 and 2020 at 1 of 16 U.S. hospitals of the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network. The frequency of preterm birth for those who delivered before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (ie, in 2019) was compared with that of those who delivered after its onset (ie, in 2020). Interaction analyses were performed for …

Association Between Early Prostacyclin Therapy And Extracorporeal Life Support Use In Patients With Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia, Akila B Ramaraj, Samuel E Rice-Townsend, Carrie L Foster, Delphine Yung, Emma O Jackson, Ashley H Ebanks, Matthew T Harting, Rebecca A Stark, Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Study Group

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

IMPORTANCE: Prostacyclin (PGI2) is a therapeutic option to treat congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH)-associated pulmonary hypertension in neonates. Its use may decrease the need for extracorporeal life support (ECLS).

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association of early PGI2 therapy with ECLS use and outcomes among patients with CDH.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This was a cohort study from the CDH Study Group (CDHSG) registry of patients born from January 2007 to December 2019. Patients were from 88 different tertiary pediatric referral centers worldwide that contributed data to the CDHSG. Patients were included in the study if they were admitted within the first …

Evolving Antibiotic Resistance In Group B Streptococci Causing Invasive Infant Disease: 1970–2021, Elizabeth Marie Sabroske, Misu Ailin Sanson Iglesias, Marcia Rench, Trevor Moore, Hanna Harvey, Morven Edwards, Carol J Baker, Anthony R Flores

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: We sought to define the frequency of antibiotic resistance over time in a collection of invasive GBS isolates derived from infant early-onset disease (EOD), late-onset disease (LOD), and late-late onset disease (LLOD).

METHODS: A multicenter retrospective review of infants born from 1970 to 2021 with GBS isolated from blood, cerebrospinal fluid, synovial fluid, cellulitis, or bone. All isolates were serotyped and antimicrobial susceptibility testing performed using disk diffusion.

RESULTS: The most common serotypes in our 2017 isolates were III (n = 1112, 55.1%), Ia (n = 445, 22%), Ib (n = 182, 9%) and II (n = 146, 7.2%). …

A Phase Ii Study Of Neoadjuvant Atezolizumab And Nab-Paclitaxel In Patients With Anthracycline-Resistant Early-Stage Triple-Negative Breast Cancer, Clinton Yam, Elizabeth A Mittendorf, Haven R Garber, Ryan Sun, Senthil Damodaran, Rashmi K Murthy, David Ramirez, Meghan Karuturi, Rachel M Layman, Nuhad Ibrahim, Gaiane M Rauch, Beatriz E Adrada, Rosalind P Candelaria, Jason B White, Elizabeth Ravenberg, Alyson Clayborn, Qing Qing Ding, W Fraser Symmans, Sabitha Prabhakaran, Alastair M Thompson, Vicente Valero, Debu Tripathy, Lei Huo, Stacy L Moulder, Jennifer K Litton

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: Neoadjuvant anti-PD-(L)1 therapy improves the pathological complete response (pCR) rate in unselected triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Given the potential for long-term morbidity from immune-related adverse events (irAEs), optimizing the risk-benefit ratio for these agents in the curative neoadjuvant setting is important. Suboptimal clinical response to initial neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) is associated with low rates of pCR (2-5%) and may define a patient selection strategy for neoadjuvant immune checkpoint blockade. We conducted a single-arm phase II study of atezolizumab and nab-paclitaxel as the second phase of NAT in patients with doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (AC)-resistant TNBC (NCT02530489).

Methods: Patients …

Preterm Birth Alters The Feeding-Induced Activation Of Akt Signaling In The Muscle Of Neonatal Piglets, Agus Suryawan, Marko Rudar, Jane K Naberhuis, Marta L Fiorotto, Teresa A Davis

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Postnatal lean mass accretion is commonly reduced in preterm infants. This study investigated mechanisms involved in the blunted feeding-induced activation of Akt in the skeletal muscle of preterm pigs that contributes to lower protein synthesis rates.

METHODS: On day 3 following cesarean section, preterm and term piglets were fasted or fed an enteral meal. Activation of Akt signaling pathways in skeletal muscle was determined.

RESULTS: Akt1 and Akt2, but not Akt3, phosphorylation were lower in the skeletal muscle of preterm than in term pigs (P < 0.05). Activation of Akt-positive regulators, PDK1 and mTORC2, but not FAK, were lower in preterm than in term (P < 0.05). The formation of Akt complexes with GAPDH and Hsp90 and the abundance of Ubl4A were lower in preterm than in term (P < 0.05). The abundance of Akt inhibitors, PHLPP and SHIP2, but not PTEN and IP6K1, were higher in preterm than in term pigs (P < 0.05). PP2A activation was inhibited by feeding in term but not in preterm pigs (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that preterm birth impairs regulatory components involved in Akt activation, …

Racial/Ethnic Disparities In Cervical Cancer Stage At Diagnosis: Mediating Effects Of Neighborhood-Level Socioeconomic Deprivation, Itunu O Sokale, Abiodun O Oluyomi, Jane R Montealegre, Aaron P Thrift

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Mortality from cervical cancer has declined steadily in the United States over the past several decades due to widespread screening for precancerous and early-stage cervical cancer (ECC), which are significantly easier to treat compared with late-stage cervical cancer (LCC). Unequal screening access continues to cause significant racial/ethnic disparities in cervical cancer diagnosis stage. This study examined the underlying role of neighborhood-level socioeconomic disadvantage as a potential mediator of the association between race/ethnicity and cervical cancer diagnosis stage.

METHODS: We analyzed Texas Cancer Registry data for cervical cancer cases diagnosed among women ages 18 or older from 2010 to 2018. …

The Vitamin D Serum Levels In Pregnant Women Affected By Covid-19: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Luiza Szarpak, Stepan Feduniw, Michal Pruc, Michal Ciebiera, Basar Cander, Mansur Rahnama-Hezavah, Łukasz Szarpak

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Vitamin D can modulate immune responses, and its deficiency is linked to increased autoimmunity and susceptibility to infection. In the general population, it has been observed that serum vitamin D levels are connected with the risk of COVID-19 and its severity. Our study aims to examine reported findings on the effect of vitamin D serum levels on infection of COVID-19 during pregnancy. PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library were searched for relevant studies. Serum vitamin D serum levels in COVID-19-positive and COVID-19-negative pregnant women were 24.61 ± 20.86 ng/mL and 24.12 ± 17.33 ng/mL, respectively. In mild vs. …