Exploring the harm reduction paradigm: the role of Board-Certified Psychiatric Pharmacists.

Deaths related to opioid overdoses continue to climb, and there remains a need for innovative strategies to address this ongoing crisis. Harm reduction (HR), a nonjudgmental philosophy aimed at reducing consequences associated with drug use and other potentially unsafe behavior, has emerged as a compassionate and effective approach. Harm reduction further emphasizes overdose prevention and fosters a shift in perspective that recognizes substance use disorder as a disease and not a moral failing.

Comparison of literature mining tools for variant classification: Through the lens of 50 RYR1 variants.

Purpose: The American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics and the Association for Molecular Pathology have outlined a schema that allows for systematic classification of variant pathogenicity. Although gnomAD is generally accepted as a reliable source of population frequency data and ClinGen has provided guidance on the utility of specific bioinformatic predictors, there is no consensus source for identifying publications relevant to a variant. Multiple tools are available to aid in the identification of relevant variant literature, including manually curated databases and literature search engines.

Evidence for Menopause as a Sex-Specific Risk Factor for Glaucoma.

Glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide and is characterized by progressive loss of visual function and retinal ganglion cells (RGC). Current epidemiological, clinical, and basic science evidence suggest that estrogen plays a role in the aging of the optic nerve. Menopause, a major biological life event affecting all women, coincides with a decrease in circulating sex hormones, such as estrogen.

Dependence of visual and cognitive outcomes on animal holder configuration in a rodent model of blast overpressure exposure.

Blast-induced traumatic brain injury is the signature injury of modern military conflicts. To more fully understand the effects of blast exposure, we placed rats in different holder configurations, exposed them to blast overpressure, and assessed the degree of eye and brain injury. Anesthetized Long-Evans rats received blast exposures directed at the head (63 kPa, 195 dB-SPL) in either an "open holder" (head and neck exposed; n = 7), or an "enclosed holder" (window for blast exposure to eye; n = 15) and were compared to non-blast exposed (control) rats (n = 22).

Initiation of L-DOPA Treatment After Detection of Diabetes-Induced Retinal Dysfunction Reverses Retinopathy and Provides Neuroprotection in Rats.

Purpose: L-DOPA treatment initiated at the start of hyperglycemia preserves retinal and visual function in diabetic rats. Here, we investigated a more clinically relevant treatment strategy in which retinal and visual dysfunction designated the beginning of the therapeutic window for L-DOPA treatment.

Methods: Spatial frequency thresholds using optomotor response and oscillatory potential (OP) delays using electroretinograms were compared at baseline, 3, 6, and 10 weeks after streptozotocin (STZ) between diabetic and control rats.

Impacts of high fat diet on ocular outcomes in rodent models of visual disease.

High fat diets (HFD) have been utilized in rodent models of visual disease for over 50 years to model the effects of lipids, metabolic dysfunction, and diet-induced obesity on vision and ocular health. HFD treatment can recapitulate the pathologies of some of the leading causes of blindness, such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR) in rodent models of visual disease. However, there are many important factors to consider when using and interpreting these models.

Behavioral Assessment of Visual Function via Optomotor Response and Cognitive Function via Y-Maze in Diabetic Rats.

The optomotor response and the Y-maze are behavioral tests useful for assessing visual and cognitive function, respectively. The optomotor response is a valuable tool to track changes in spatial frequency (SF) and contrast sensitivity (CS) thresholds over time in a number of retinal disease models, including diabetic retinopathy. Similarly, the Y-maze can be used to monitor spatial cognition (as measured by spontaneous alternation) and exploratory behavior (as measured by a number of entries) in a number of disease models that affect the central nervous system.

Ovariectomy worsens visual function after mild optic nerve crush in rodents.

Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide, and women represent roughly 60% of the affected population. Early menopause and estrogen signaling defects are risk factors for glaucoma. Recently, we found that surgical menopause exacerbated visual dysfunction in an ocular hypertension model of glaucoma.

Intersession Remediation to Minimize Attrition in a Three-Year Pharmacy Program.

To describe an intersession remediation process in an accelerated three-year Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) program and to determine if the remediation process reduced attrition rates, including program withdrawals, progression to advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs), and on-time graduation rates. Attrition was defined as dismissal, withdrawal, leave of absence, and/or change in graduation date. Progression data from students who matriculated between 2008 to 2016, with data available through spring 2017, were analyzed for number of course failures and successful intersession remediation.

Description of a pharmacist-led clinical video telehealth group clinic for opioid overdose prevention and naloxone education.

To achieve the nationwide goal of reducing opioid-related deaths, a clinical pharmacy specialist-led clinical video telehealth (CVT) clinic was created at a Veterans Affairs medical center (VAMC) to deliver opioid overdose prevention and naloxone education to at-risk patients. The purpose of this innovative practice was to improve access to this potentially life-saving intervention to patients across urban and rural areas. This study is a single-center, descriptive analysis of adult patients across 2 VAMC campuses and 4 community-based outpatient clinics from July 11, 2016, through December 31, 2016.

Evaluation of perceptions and knowledge of mental illness in the United States through crowdsourcing.

Introduction: Crowdsourcing is a method of data collection with possible benefits in assessing perceptions of mental illness in a large US population.

Methods: The objective was to describe perceptions and trends of stigma surrounding mental illness in the United States using crowdsourcing. An online survey was conducted evaluating adults in the United States recruited via the online resource Amazon Mechanical Turk.

A case report of guardian-consent forced paliperidone palmitate for behavioral disturbance due to traumatic brain injury.

Psychosis after traumatic brain injury (TBI) occurs in up to 10% of cases. Although guideline consensus is lacking regarding drugs of choice for this condition, current literature points to the use of atypical antipsychotics. This case describes a 58-year-old male with major neurocognitive disorder due to TBI with behavioral disturbance that was successfully treated with paliperidone palmitate.