Equipment and Supplies Commons^™

Redesigning Nasogastric Feeding Tubes To Prevent Dislodgement, Sydney Ruth Rester, Shelby Lynn Berry

Honors Theses

Seniors at the University of Mississippi studying biomedical engineering complete a senior project that seeks to solve a problem in healthcare. Our team, composed of Sydney Rester, Shelby Berry, Andrew Ulmer, and Alex Bromley, sought to improve care associated with nasogastric feeding tubes. We identified two major problems: clogging and tube dislodgement. To address the problem of dislodgement, the team crafted a new feeding tube design with a balloon attachment. The attachment prevents a patient from pulling the feeding tube out and keeps the tube from dislodging due to normal patient movement. We further determined that our tube should be …

Redesigning Nasogastric Feeding Tubes To Prevent Dislodgement, Shelby Lynn Berry, Sydney Ruth Rester

Honors Theses

Seniors at the University of Mississippi studying biomedical engineering complete a senior project that seeks to solve a problem in healthcare. Our team, composed of Sydney Rester, Shelby Berry, Andrew Ulmer, and Alex Bromley, sought to improve care associated with nasogastric feeding tubes. We identified two major problems: clogging and tube dislodgement. To address the problem of dislodgement, the team crafted a new feeding tube design with a balloon attachment. The attachment prevents a patient from pulling the feeding tube out and keeps the tube from dislodging due to normal patient movement. We further determined that our tube should be …

Design And Preliminary Testing Of A Multi-Use 3d-Printed Splint For Wilderness Medicine, Ryan Desrochers, John Desrochers

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Splinting devices are commonplace in emergency medicine, as musculoskeletal and soft tissue injuries account for a majority of nonfatal events in wilderness medicine. Current splint designs, such as the SAM splint, sacrifice site-specific stability for their portability. This leads to the need for a similarly portable, but more securely fitting splint device. This design aims to provide a lightweight, multi-use, reusable, biodegradable, and inexpensive solution for splinting in wilderness medicine. A thin plate constructed of polylactic acid extruded from a 3D printer becomes easily malleable after submersion in hot water and can be form fitted to almost any location on …

The Angiovac® Device Limits Lethal Complications Of Sepsis And Severe Infective Endocarditis With A Large Tricuspid Valve Vegetation: A Case Report, Dua Xiao, Raeann Dalton, Adam Fineman, Michael Benz, Antonios Tsompanidis

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Introduction: Infectious endocarditis of the tricuspid valve is a common complication of intravenous drug use. Endocarditis caused by viridans streptococci can lead to heart valve vegetations which may be life threatening due to the potential for embolism and obstruction. Management of large valvular vegetations is often difficult due to the risks involved with open heart surgery, especially in patients with comorbid conditions. The AngioVac® device has been shown in rare cases to be effective at debulking vegetations without the need for invasive surgery.

Case Presentation: We present a patient with a history of intravenous heroin use disorder, hepatitis C, spinal …

Human Airway Mucociliary Tissue Cultures Chronically Exposed To E-Cigarette Vapors Exhibit Altered Cell Populations And Increased Secretion Of Immunomodulatory Cytokines, Vanessa Pizutelli, Vincent Manna, Shannon Dwyer, Salvatore Caradonna

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Vape-pens or electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are handheld battery powered devices that use a vape-liquid to produce a vapor that is inhaled by the user. The active ingredients in commercial vape-liquids are commonly nicotine, tetrahydrocannabinol or cannabidiol. A consequence of the rise in e-cigarette usage was the 2019 emergence of a vaping-induced respiratory disease denoted ‘e-cigarette or vaping use-associated lung injury’ (EVALI). One of the suspected causes of EVALI is Vitamin E Acetate (VEA), which was found to be a diluent in certain illicit tetrahydrocannabinol vape-pens, whereas nicotine is commonly diluted in equal parts propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin (PG:VG). The …

Importance Of Serial Ekgs In The Emergency Room Setting, Swet Patel, James Espinosa, Alan Lucerna

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Chest pain is one of the most common chief complaints that presents to the emergency department. More than 8 million patients with chest related complaints present each year with about 10% of all ED visits comprise of cardiovascular emergencies. Immediate evaluation is the standard of care to differentiate between life threatening conditions and non-life threatening ones with the use of 12-lead electrocardiograph (EKG) and bedside monitors. The 12 lead EKG remains gold standard for initial screening and evaluating patients with chest pain and angina equivalents. The test is fairly inexpensive and noninvasive with providing vital information about cardiac rhythm. The …

Handheld Bedside Pocus In The Evaluation Of Neck Swelling: A Case Of Ludwig's Angina, Alex Gechlik, Frank Wheeler, James Espinosa, Alan Lucerna, Henry Schuitema

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Ludwig's angina is a rare and life threatening cellulitic infection, first described by German physician, Wilhelm Frederick Von Ludwig in 1836, as a gangrenous infection of the soft tissue floor of the mouth and neck. The potential to spread rapidly to contiguous tissues surrounding the upper airways, notably the glottis, resulted in Ludwig's angina carrying a high mortality rate near 50% in the pre- antibiotic era. It necessitates rapid detection and management to assure respiratory compromise does not occur. This case study is novel as it illustrates handheld bedside POCUS utilization in diagnosing Ludwig’s Angina.

Brief Review: Iv Fluid Choice In The Emergency Department, Kaywan Saed, James Espinosa, Alan Lucerna

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Normal saline and balanced crystalloids, such as lactated Ringer's (LR) and Plasma-Lyte A, are commonly used in the emergency setting for fluid resuscitation. However, there has been growing interest in recent years in whether balanced crystalloids may be superior to normal saline, particularly in critically ill patients.

Normal saline has been the traditional fluid of choice for decades due to its widespread availability, low cost, and presumed safety. However, normal saline has a high chloride concentration (154 mmol/L), which can lead to hyperchloremic metabolic acidosis and other adverse effects, such as renal vasoconstriction and reduced renal blood flow.

In contrast, …

Isolated Temazepam Overdose: A Unique Case Of An Unresponsive Female, Eric Doane

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Cases of acute overdose presenting to the emergency department pose a great challenge given that history can sometimes be limited or at times be inaccurate. While naloxone is routinely given in the field to help reduce opiate’s sedating effects, the routine use of flumazenil has not been routinely adopted in cases of benzodiazepine overdose. This is because, unlike naloxone, there are many medications that act on the GABA receptor, and flumazenil is only specific for binding to the benzodiazepine/GABA receptor. This can lead to an unmasking of other medications that may be co-ingested that also effect the GABA receptor leading …

Practicality In Pocus: Benefits Of Ultrasound Training In Medical Education, Robert Martin, Ho An Lau, Ryan Morrison, Kate Deiling

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

As point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) becomes an integral component of healthcare, both undergraduate and graduate medical POCUS education is urgently necessary in curricula. Despite the apparent need of POCUS curricula, there remains a lingering question: Are there evidence-based benefits to POCUS training in undergraduate and/or graduate medical education settings? This systematic review utilized PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus to identify articles of interest that met the inclusion criteria and relevance to undergraduate and/or graduate medical education. Qualitative evaluation of research was conducted to identify common themes for benefits of POCUS and the requirements or characteristics for effective POCUS educational curricula. Results …

Case Report: Anaphylactic Reaction To Magnesium Sulfate, Nicholas Coan, Kelly Schiers, James Espinosa, Alan Lucerna

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

We report a case of a 65-year-old female who prior to being discharged from the hospital developed an anaphylactic reaction after receiving an intravenous magnesium sulfate infusion. After extensive literature review, there are few documented hypersensitivity reactions documented. This case report is to highlight a known human response, anaphylaxis, but in response to the repletion of an essential electrolyte to human life, magnesium.

Infective Endocarditis Secondary To Needle Embolization To The Heart, Tony Elias, David Barsoum, Robert Malak, Veyola Rezkalla, Maziyar Daneshvar, Howard Weinberg, Rafail Beshai

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Needle embolisms in the heart are very rare, even though the number of intravenous drug users (IVDUs) has increased over the past 10 years.Due to varied symptomology-chest pain, dyspnoea, fever, or asymptomatic, this remains a complex and likely underdiagnosed condition. We describe a 31-year-old female with past medical history of IV drug use who presented to the emergency room with heart palpitations and described it as her “heart feels funny” and shortness of breath. She acknowledged intravenous (IV) heroin use and stated that the last time to use IV drugs was 2 days before coming to the hospital.

To our …

Purple Urine Bag Syndrome (Pubs) In A Patient With A Chronic Indwelling Foley, Kelsey Murray, Kishan Patel

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Purple urine bag syndrome (PUBS) is a rare medical condition characterized by the appearance of purple discoloration in the urine collection bag of patients who use catheters for urinary drainage. PUBS is primarily seen in elderly, female, and institutionalized patients who have chronic indwelling catheters. The discoloration occurs due to the presence of certain bacteria that produce pigments, which react with the plastic materials of the catheter and urine collection bag, leading to the formation of a purple color. In addition to the aesthetic concerns, PUBS may also indicate an underlying urinary tract infection or other medical conditions that require …

Patient And Provider Experience With Artificial Intelligence Screening Technology For Diabetic Retinopathy In A Rural Primary Care Setting, Brian M. Nolan, Emma R. Daybranch, Kerri Barton, Neil Korsen

Journal of Maine Medical Center

Introduction: The development of autonomous artificial intelligence for interpreting diabetic retinopathy (DR) images has allowed for point-of-care testing in the primary care setting. This study describes patient and provider experiences and perceptions of the artificial intelligence DR screening technology called EyeArt by EyeNuk during implementation of the tool at Western Maine Primary Care in Norway, Maine.

Methods: This non-randomized, single-center, prospective observational study surveyed 102 patients and 13 primary care providers on their experience of the new screening intervention.

Results: All surveyed providers agreed that the new screening tool would improve access and annual screening rates. Some providers also identified …

Combination Thromboembolism Prevention Prophylaxis, Karma Davis

MSN Capstone Projects

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a leading cause of preventable hospital death in the United States (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). The correct selection of VTE prophylaxis in hospitalized patients is critical in stopping increased length of stays, incurring extra costs, and preventing deaths. Currently, the single modality of pneumatic compression sleeves (ICD) are often utilized for inpatient deep vein thrombosis prevention. ICDs are an easy, quick way for physicians to meet the requirement for VTE prevention in both general medical patients and those in the critical care unit. However, patients may remove or refuse this type of prevention …

Utilizing The System Engineering Trade Study Analysis Method To Analyze Patient Aeromedical Evacuation, Sara Shaghaghi, Jeremy M. Slagley, Michael E. Miller, Gaiven Varshney

Faculty Publications

The US Air Force has gone through many aeromedical patient isolation transport system designs. The first designs were developed in response to the Ebola outbreak in 2014 and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. The trade study analysis part of the system engineering design method was used to analyze the historic and current aeromedical patient contamination control transport systems. A trade study is a process that evaluates alternatives based upon various “-ilities”, such as reconfigurability, flexibility, durability, cost, and more, and performs a systematic analysis to aid designers in producing a ‘good’ design alternative given the large set of possible solutions. …

Digital 3d Brain Mri Arterial Territories Atlas, Chin-Fu Liu, Johnny Hsu, Xin Xu, Ganghyun Kim, Shannon M. Sheppard, Erin L. Meier, Michael I. Miller, Argye E. Hillis, Andreia V. Faria

Communication Sciences and Disorders Faculty Articles and Research

The locus and extent of brain damage in the event of vascular insult can be quantitatively established quickly and easily with vascular atlases. Although highly anticipated by clinicians and clinical researchers, no digital MRI arterial atlas is readily available for automated data analyses. We created a digital arterial territory atlas based on lesion distributions in 1,298 patients with acute stroke. The lesions were manually traced in the diffusion-weighted MRIs, binary stroke masks were mapped to a common space, probability maps of lesions were generated and the boundaries for each arterial territory was defined based on the ratio between probabilistic maps. …

Bundle Up To Improve Cauti, Jennifer Anderson, Valorie Dearmon

DNP Manuscripts

Catheter Associated Urinary Tract Infections (CAUTIs) are a leading cause of healthcare acquired infections. Strong evidence for CAUTI best practices exists, however, the struggle to translate best practice evidence into everyday practice remains a challenge. Catheter associated urinary tract infection rates continue to be a problem despite organizational efforts to implement best practice guidelines; the challenge is to effectively translate and embed best practices into everyday practice. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will no longer reimburse hospitals for expenses associated with hospital acquired CAUTI; moreover, hospitals are subject to penalties for high rates of hospital acquired CAUTIs. …

Combining Novel Direction Modulated Brachytherapy Tandem-And-Ovoids Applicators For Treatment Planning Of Multi-Institutional Cervical Cancer Cases: Removing Needles In Intracavitary-Interstitial Techniques, Sharmin Alam

Theses and Dissertations

Lack of standard guidelines for optimal needle insertion during high-dose-rate (HDR) intracavitary-interstitial (IC-IS) brachytherapy of the cervix means a sophisticated and technical skillset of inserting needles next to IC applicators must be developed to enhance plan quality. This study sought to evaluate the performance of two separate direction modulated brachytherapy (DMBT) tandem applicators used in conjunction with one set of novel DMBT ovoids, to effectively obviate the need for IS needles.

A cohort of 32 retrospective clinical HDR brachytherapy plans was re-planned with Varian’s BrachyVision^® treatment planning system, using VEGO^® inverse optimization algorithm, with dose heterogeneity accounted for …

Factors Contributing To Ventilator Dependent Days In Covid-19, Isaac Ginsberg, Samantha Eteve, Bryan Lunt, Kenneth Krell

Continental, MidAmerica, & Mountain Divisions Research Day 2023

No abstract provided.