Public Health Commons^™

Investigating The Association Of Total Cholesterol Level And Odds Of Angina In Women Over 40: A Cohort Study Using Data From The Framingham Heart Study, Katelyn Mitchell

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

Objective To investigate the association between total cholesterol level and the odds of experiencing angina in women over the age of 40.

Methods This retrospective cohort study was conducted using a subset of the cohort from the Framingham Heart Study to create a multivariable logistic regression model for analysis. Out of the 4,434 participants in the Framingham cohort, 2,148 participants were women over the age of 40 and included in this study.

Results Of the participants who experienced angina (n=308) in this study, 62% had high cholesterol at the baseline. After controlling for age, women with high cholesterol had 2.03 …

A Cohort Study Examining The Risk Of Smoking On The Likelihood Of Developing Angina Among Women Under Age 65, Sarah Ward

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

Objective:

To determine if current smoking status is a risk factor for angina among women under the age of 65.

Methods:

A subset of participants from the Framingham Heart Studywere used to complete a cohort study. The analyses evaluated population means and characteristics, followed by bivariate and multivariable logistic regression, to determine the association of smoking and other key factors with angina.

Results:

Smoking status had a significant association to angina(OR 0.67, 95% CI: 0.52, 0.86, p-value= 0.0015). Age as a categorical variable had a significant relationship with angina (OR 0.97, 95% CI: 0.617, 1.520, p-value=

Conclusions:

Smoking had a …

Beryllium Work Area And Tank Waste, Angelica Zarate

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

My capstone was conducted at the Hanford site in Richland, Washington. It was once a location that produced weapons-grade plutonium, but now its mission is to clean up the radioactive waste that was left behind. My project focused on beryllium and how much is present in the 56 million gallons of waste that needs to be disposed of. I evaluated the OSHA regulations for beryllium work areas, medical surveillance, and beryllium exposure's environmental and health implications. The purpose was to determine if the concentrations present meet the requirements to continue to be considered a beryllium work area.

Comparative Study Of Coronary Heart Disease Incidence In Smokers Vs. Non Smokers: A Longitudinal Cohort Analysis From The Framingham Heart Study, Mona Melvin Periera

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

Objective: To evaluate the association between smoking and coronary heart disease (CHD) incidence while adjusting for potential confounding factors, including age, education level, systolic blood pressure, BMI, serum cholesterol, and diabetes, using data from the Framingham Heart Study.

Methods: A cohort of 4,434 participants aged 32–70 years, free of CHD at baseline, was analyzed. Smoking status (current vs. non-current smokers) was the primary exposure, and CHD incidence was the outcome. Adjustments were made for confounders using multivariable logistic regression models. Unadjusted and adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

Results: CHD was diagnosed in 27.96% of …

The Role Of Serum Total Cholesterol In Coronary Heart Disease: A Prospective Cohort Analysis From The Framingham Heart Study, Sanish Maharjan

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

Objective: To investigate the association between serum total cholesterol and coronary heart disease (CHD), accounting for key risk factors in adults aged 32–70 years.

Methods: We analyzed data from 4,382 participants of the Framingham Heart Study, a prospective cohort study with 24 years of follow-up. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between serum cholesterol and CHD, adjusting for age, sex, smoking status, systolic blood pressure, BMI, diabetes, and heart rate.

Results: Individuals with high (aOR = 1.87; 95% CI = 1.52 - 2.32; p<.0001) and borderline high (aOR = 1.40; 95% CI = 1.13 - 1.75; p = 0.0024) cholesterol levels have significantly higher odds of developing CHD than those with normal cholesterol. Older (aOR=1.03; 95% CI=1.03–1.05), male (aOR=2.16; 95% CI=1.86–2.51), current smokers (aOR=1.20; 95% CI=1.03–1.39), hypertensive (aOR=1.88; 95% CI=1.55–2.26), obese (aOR=3.03; 95% CI=1.24–7.43), and diabetic individuals (aOR=2.41; 95% CI=1.63–3.56), had significantly higher CHD risk.

Conclusions: Elevated serum cholesterol significantly increases CHD risk, emphasizing …

What Is The Evidence? Updates In The Use Of Antenatal Corticosteroids For Patients At Risk Of Preterm Birth, Moti Gulersen, Cynthia Gyamfi-Bannerman

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Faculty Papers

Antenatal corticosteroids have long been considered one of the most important antenatal therapies available for pregnant patients at risk of preterm birth based on the associated reduction of neonatal morbidity and mortality following their administration. However, despite decades of research since their incorporation into routine clinical practice, a number of key questions related to antenatal corticosteroid use remain. These include evaluating the impact of antenatal corticosteroids at gestational ages outside of the previously recommended window of 24 0/7–33 6/7 weeks of gestation, determining factors associated with optimal steroid timing in order to reduce unnecessary exposure, alterations in its dosing regimen, …

The Informal, Non-Prescribed Use Of Antiretroviral Medications For Prep Among A National Us-Based Sample Of Gay, Bisexual, And Other Men Who Have Sex With Men: A Cross-Sectional Study, Mance E. Buttram, Matthew S. Ellis, Krishen D. Samuel, Matthew Hayhurst

Health, Human Performance and Recreation Faculty Publications and Presentations

This brief report presents findings on informal, non-prescribed PrEP use among an online sample of gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (n = 196). Mean age was 33.4. Participants were Hispanic (13.3%), African American (15.8%), white (63.8%), and other race/ethnicity (6.6%). Informal PrEP users (11%) more frequently reported past year sexually transmitted infections (p < 0.001), group sex (p < 0.001), sex in public (p < 0.01), transactional sex (p < 0.001), ever receiving a formal PrEP prescription (p < 0.05), and ease of finding diverted HIV medications on gay dating/sex apps (p < 0.05). Formal PrEP uptake should be encouraged to mitigate potential negative consequences of informal use.

The Impact Of Armed Conflicts On Hiv Treatment Outcomes In Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Hafte Kahsay Kebede, Hailay Abrha Gesesew, Amanuel Tesfay Gebremedhin, Paul Ward

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Despite the fact that Sub-Saharan Africa bears a disproportionate burden of armed conflicts and HIV infection, there has been inadequate synthesis of the impact of armed conflict on HIV treatment outcomes. We summarized the available evidence on the impact of armed conflicts on HIV treatment outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa from 2002 to 2022. Methods: We searched four databases; MEDLINE, PubMed, CINHAL, and Scopus. We also explored grey literature sources and reviewed the bibliographies of all articles to identify any additional relevant studies. We included quantitative studies published in English from January 1, 2002 to December 30, 2022 that reported …

Association Between Inflammatory Bowel Disease And Cancer Risk: Evidence Triangulation From Genetic Correlation, Mendelian Randomization, And Colocalization Analyses Across East Asian And European Populations, Di Liu, Meiling Cao, Haotian Wang, Weijie Cao, Chenguang Zheng, Yun Li, Youxin Wang

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which includes Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), has been associated with several cancer risks in observational studies, but the observed associations have been inconsistent and may face the bias of confounding and reverse causality. The potential causal relationships between IBD and the risk of cancers remain largely unclear. Methods: We performed genome-wide linkage disequilibrium score regression (LDSC), standard two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR), and colocalization analyses using summary genome-wide association study (GWAS) data across East Asian and European populations to evaluate the causal relationships between IBD and cancers. Sensitivity analyses for the MR approach …

Maternal Glycemic Status And Longitudinal Fetal Body Composition And Organ Volumes Based On Three-Dimensional Ultrasonography, Kathryn A Wagner, Jessica L Gleason, Zhen Chen, Cuilin Zhang, Stefanie N Hinkle, Dian He, Wesley Lee, Roger B Newman, John Owen, Daniel W Skupski, William A Grobman, Seth Sherman, Fasil Tekola-Ayele, Jagteshwar Grewal, Katherine L Grantz

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objective: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) increases the risk of fetal overgrowth as measured by two-dimensional ultrasonography. Whether fetal three-dimensional (3D) soft tissue and organ volumes provide additional insight into fetal overgrowth is unknown.

Research design and methods: We prospectively evaluated longitudinal 3D fetal body composition and organ volumes in a diverse U.S. singleton pregnancy cohort (2015-2019). Women were diagnosed with GDM, impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), or normal glucose tolerance (NGT). Up to five 3D ultrasound scans measured fetal body composition and organ volumes; trajectories were modeled using linear mixed models. Overall and weekly mean differences in fetal 3D trajectories were …

Experiences In Providing A Community Educational Resource For The All Of Us Researcher Workbench, Deborah I Ritter, Jinyoung Byun, Jun Wang, Stephen Richards, Pamela N Luna, Laterrica Williams, Julie R Coleman, Jasmine N Baker, Shamika Ketkar, Ashley M Butler, Latanya Hammonds-Odie, Elizabeth G Atkinson, Kim C Worley, Debra D Murray, Brendan Lee, Steven E Scherer

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

OBJECTIVE: Educational offerings to fill the bioinformatics knowledge gap are a key component to enhancing access and use of health data from the All of Us Research Program. We developed a Train the Trainer-based, innovative training series including project-based learning, modular on-demand demonstrations, and unstructured tutorial time as a model for educational engagement in the All of Us community.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: We highlight our training modules and content, with training survey data informing cycles of development in the creation of a 6-module training series with modular demonstrations.

RESULTS: We have conducted 2 public iterations of the Train the Trainer …

Percutaneous Mechanical Aspiration For Infective Endocarditis: Proceedings From An Inaugural Multidisciplinary Summit And Comprehensive Review, Lucas X Marinacci, Sanjum S Sethi, Molly L Paras, Abdallah El Sabbagh, Eric A Secemsky, M Rizwan Sohail, Christoph Starck, Benjamin Bearnot, Evin Yucel, Raymond H M Schaerf, Yasir Akhtar, Ahmad Younes, Marquand Patton, Pedro Villablanca, Seenu Reddy, Daniel Enter, John M Moriarty, William Brent Keeling, Stephanie El Hajj Younes, Charles Kiell, Kenneth Rosenfield

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The clinical presentation and epidemiology of infective endocarditis (IE) have evolved over time. While the cornerstones of IE treatment remain antimicrobial therapy and surgery, percutaneous mechanical aspiration (PMA) has emerged as an option for carefully selected patients as a complementary modality, based on retrospective data, case series, and expert experience. In this comprehensive review, we summarize the proceedings from an inaugural summit dedicated to the discussion of PMA in the global management of IE, consisting of experts across multiple disciplines from diverse geographic regions and care environments. After conceptualizing the 3 major roles of PMA as a bridge to decision, …

A Proteome-Wide Association Study Identifies Putative Causal Proteins For Breast Cancer Risk, Tianying Zhao, Shuai Xu, Jie Ping, Guochong Jia, Yongchao Dou, Jill E Henry, Bing Zhang, Xingyi Guo, Michele L Cote, Qiuyin Cai, Xiao-Ou Shu, Wei Zheng, Jirong Long

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified more than 200 breast cancer risk-associated genetic loci, yet the causal genes and biological mechanisms for most loci remain elusive. Proteins, as final gene products, are pivotal in cellular function. In this study, we conducted a proteome-wide association study (PWAS) to identify proteins in breast tissue related to breast cancer risk.

METHODS: We profiled the proteome in fresh frozen breast tissue samples from 120 cancer-free European-ancestry women from the Susan G. Komen Tissue Bank (KTB). Protein expression levels were log2-transformed then normalized via quantile and inverse-rank transformations. GWAS data were also generated for …

Analyzing Sars-Cov-2 Wastewater Surveillance Data For Public Health Impact In Southern Nevada, Casey A. Barber

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Background: Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers determined that levels of severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) genetic material in wastewater could provide information about COVID-19 occurrence in communities. Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) efforts have subsequently expanded throughout the U.S. and internationally; the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) initiated its National Wastewater Surveillance System (NWSS) in September of 2020 and continues its SARS-CoV-2 wastewater monitoring efforts following the end of the federal COVID-19 public health emergency in May 2023. The field of WBE has reached a critical juncture in determining the future of how SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveillance data …

Development And Testing The Predictability Of An Instrument Based On The Multi- Theory Model (Mtm) Of Health Behavior Change For Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (Prep) Uptake Among People Of Color, Siddharth Raich

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

HIV/AIDS continues to be a significant public health problem in the US and globally. In the US, it disproportionately affects people of color. In 2012, Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) was approved by the FDA for HIV prevention. PrEP reduces the chances of acquiring HIV by 99% among people at high risk. However, PrEP uptake among people of color remains low. Therefore, this study aimed to develop and test the predictability of an instrument to describe the intent to initiate and sustain PrEP use among people of color. This research utilized an exploratory sequential mixed methods design based on the fourth-generation, multi-theory …

A Multiple X-Ray-Source Array (Mxa) System With A Planar Two-Dimensional Source Distribution For Digital Breast Tomosynthesis, Alejandro Sisniega, Andrew M Hernandez, Shadi A Shakeri, Elizabeth A Morris, John M Boone, Jeffrey H Siewerdsen, Paul R Schwoebel

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) has outpaced digital mammography in clinical adoption in the United States; however, substantial technological limitations remain to image quality in DBT, including undersampling from a one-dimensional (1D) scan geometry, x-ray source motion during acquisition, and patient motion artifacts from long exam times.

Purpose: A thermionic cathode x-ray system employing two-dimensional (2D, planar) multiple x-ray-source arrays (MXA) is proposed to improve DBT image quality.

Methods: A 1D MXA, consisting of a linear array of thermionic cathodes was used to simulate a 2D MXA. The 1D MXA included 11 focal spots separated by a distance of Δd …

Promotion And Tenure For Medical Physicists Should Be Based On Article Specific Measures And Not On Journal Impact Factor, Samantha Hedrick, Jinzhong Yang, Yi Rong

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: A Guide To Navigating Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Polina Chuikov, Bilal Ahmed, Brennan Smith, Karina Medina, Masoud Harati

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Enhancing Resources For Addressing Childhood Obesity, Ankita Satyavarapu, Ihunanya Agomuoh, Kaab Husain, Kristofer Hilliard, Rachel Lycans, Rene Andino-Galva, William Burstein

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Better Sleep In Improved Cardiovascular Health, Jenna Brokaw, Kalyyanee Nanaaware, Mikhail Salnikov, Nicholas Daher, Timothy Page, Zoha Rizvi

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Capturing Undiagnosed Hypertension In Ophthalmology Clinics, Alexander Hayes, Dominic Sacca, Indrea Joplin, Owen Stratton, Whitney Bowyer

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Selective Mutism In The Pediatric Patient, Alexis Pitts, Michael Koerner, Sarah Eggert, William Gadbois

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Beating Hearts: Navigating Cardiovascular Disease Resources, Julia Tenbusch, Kaelan Patel, Maxim Jani, Nand Ganesh, Nicole Flores, Venkata Patchigolla

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Resources For The Providers To Improve Adult Hiv Outcome, Amolak Jhand, Ariana Cho, Brayden Bitterman, Jhonny Avila Mendoza, Madeline Evans, Sabrina Khan

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Resources To Improve Childhood Social Anxiety, Anastasia Sahu, Claire Keum, Devin Babi, Jack Spurlock, Pontia Doroudian, Suhas Nagappala

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Cardiovascular Disease In Adults, Amber Jackson, Hayat Bazzi, Raina Awdish, Timothy Chalom, Tobias Cox

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Diet And Excersize Education To Improve Adult Obesity, David Elyas, Dhwani Krishnan, Joseph Overway, Melissa Connop, Swathi Srikantan, Zahira Malik

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Prevention And Management Of Copd, Alexander Sonaglia, Anagha Srivatsa, Hunter Cohn, Kendall Conway, Laith Fakhouri, Parmida Abdoli

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Addressing Cardiovascular Disease Through Diet Education, Alexander Restum, Alexandra Stone, Anna Lundh, Bradley Libs, Caitlin Alindogan, Jaylin Jones

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.

Chronic Illness Education 2024: Tips And Resources For Optimal Heart Health, Genevieve Murray, Jeswin David, Matthew George, Raghav Rajesh, Simran Qureshi, Ward Hedges

Patient Education Projects

No abstract provided.