Eliminating Error in Central Line Scheduling and Placement Using Quality Improvement Methods.

Background: The Joint Commission defines a sentinel event as "surgery or other invasive procedure performed at the wrong site, on the wrong patient, or that is the wrong (unintended) procedure for a patient regardless of the type of procedure or the magnitude of the outcome." At our institution, we observed a low but consistent rate of incorrect surgical line placement for pediatric patients with cancer.

Study Design: Following quality improvement methodology and using the resources available on a large academic medical campus we designed and implemented a new multi-factorial process to schedule and place surgical central lines for pediatric patients with cancer.

Landmark Positioning on a Map: An Alternative Measure of Spatial Ability for Identifying Students Who May Benefit From Learning Gross Anatomy with Virtual Reality.

Research has shown an inconsistent relationship between spatial abilities and learning outcomes from virtual anatomical tools. Instructors must understand this relationship to select appropriate resources for diverse learners. To identify appropriate tests for measuring spatial ability and evaluate the effectiveness of virtual anatomical resources, this study compared 96 students' visuospatial ability (measured using the Mental Rotation Task [MRT] and Landmark Position on a Map [LPM] tests) with learning outcomes from experimental anatomy sessions and undergraduate anatomical course examinations.

Discovery of Highly Selective Inhibitors of Microtubule-Associated Serine/Threonine Kinase-like (MASTL).

By virtue of its role in cellular proliferation, microtubule-associated serine/threonine kinase-like (MASTL) represents a novel target and a first-in-class (FIC) opportunity to provide a new impactful therapeutic agent to oncology patients. Herein, we describe a hit-to-lead optimization effort that resulted in the delivery of two highly selective MASTL inhibitors. Key strategies leveraged to enable this work included structure-based drug design (SBDD), analysis of lipophilic efficiency (LipE) and novel synthesis.

Morphological comparison of astrocytes in the lamina cribrosa and glial lamina.

Purpose: Although the mechanisms underlying glaucomatous neurodegeneration are not yet well understood, cellular and small animal models suggest that LC astrocytes undergo early morphologic and functional changes, indicating their role as early responders to glaucomatous stress. These models, however, lack the LC found in larger animals and humans, leaving the morphology of LC astrocytes and their role in glaucoma initiation underexplored. In this work, we aimed to characterize the morphology of LC astrocytes and determine differences and similarities with astrocytes in the mouse glial lamina (GL), the analogous structure in a prominent glaucoma model.

Does the Addition of a Tibial Stem Extender in Total Knee Arthroplasty Decrease Risk of Aseptic Loosening in Patients with Obesity? An Analysis from the American Joint Replacement Registry.

Mechanical loosening is a leading cause of failure of total knee arthroplasties (TKAs) for which obesity may be a risk factor. With rising rates of obesity and increasing incidence of TKA, the identification of factors to mitigate this cause of failure is necessary. The purpose of this study is to determine if the use of a tibial stem extender (TSE) decreases the risk of mechanical loosening in patients with obesity undergoing TKA.