Publications by authors named "Amy L Alexander"

Placental site trophoblastic tumor (PSTT) is a rare variant of gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) that is characterized by slow growth resulting in mostly uterine-confined disease, low human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) levels, and resistance to chemotherapy. Our objective was to update our center's experience with PSTT with respect to presentation, prognostic factors, treatment, and outcomes from 2003 to 2019. Thirteen women with PSTT were identified.

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Perivascular epithelioid cell tumors (PEComa) represent a rare family of tumors characterized by distinct histology and immunohistochemistry characteristics. Approximately one-quarter of reported cases are gynecologic in origin and associated pregnancies are rare. We report a case of PEComa in pregnancy with initial undiagnosed presentation at 18 weeks of gestation and subsequent presentation and diagnosis at 30 weeks of gestation.

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Objective: To estimate the associations among race, route of hysterectomy, and postoperative complications among women undergoing hysterectomy for benign indications.

Methods: A cohort study was performed. All patients undergoing hysterectomy for benign indications, recorded in the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program and its targeted hysterectomy file in 2015, were identified.

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Background: While positive peritoneal cytology is no longer included among the endometrial cancer staging criteria, Federation International de Gynecologie et Obstetrique recommends continued collection of pelvic washings for cytology to produce additional data that may be used to determine the significance of positive cytology for prognosis and treatment of endometrial cancer.

Objectives: The objectives of the study was to validate that positive cytology is a predictor of decreased survival in early endometrial cancer and to test whether adjuvant chemotherapy for positive cytology is associated with increased survival.

Study Design: We performed an observational retrospective cohort analysis of the 2010-2013 National Cancer Database including women with cytology status and Federation International de Gynecologie et Obstetrique stage IA-II endometrial cancer.

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There is no reliable way to distinguish symptomatic uterine fibroids from sarcoma without a surgical specimen. Many women with a uterine sarcoma are initially managed without hysterectomy under a presumed fibroid diagnosis, without understanding sarcoma risks. Currently many alternatives to hysterectomy, including medical and procedural interventions, for treatment of fibroids are promoted.

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Expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI)-1, the major physiological inhibitor of fibrinolysis, is increased in the lung following inhalation of ozone (O), a gaseous air pollutant. PAI-1 regulates expression of interleukin (IL)-6, keratinocyte chemoattractant (KC), and macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-2, which are cytokines that promote lung injury, pulmonary inflammation, and/or airway hyperresponsiveness following acute exposure to O Given these observations, we hypothesized that PAI-1 contributes to the severity of the aforementioned sequelae by regulating expression of IL-6, KC, and MIP-2 following acute exposure to O To test our hypothesis, wild-type mice and mice genetically deficient in PAI-1 (PAI-1-deficient mice) were acutely exposed to either filtered room air or O (2 ppm) for 3 h. Four and/or twenty-four hours following cessation of exposure, indices of lung injury [bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) protein and epithelial cells], pulmonary inflammation (BALF IL-6, KC, MIP-2, macrophages, and neutrophils), and airway responsiveness to aerosolized acetyl-β-methylcholine chloride (respiratory system resistance) were measured in wild-type and PAI-1-deficient mice.

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Acute exposure to ozone (O3), an air pollutant, causes pulmonary inflammation, airway epithelial desquamation, and airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR). Pro-inflammatory cytokines-including IL-6 and ligands of chemokine (C-X-C motif) receptor 2 [keratinocyte chemoattractant (KC) and macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-2], TNF receptor 1 and 2 (TNF), and type I IL-1 receptor (IL-1α and IL-1β)-promote these sequelae. Human resistin, a pleiotropic hormone and cytokine, induces expression of IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8 (the human ortholog of murine KC and MIP-2), and TNF.

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Introduction: This study was conducted to: develop a multidimensional measure of display clutter for advanced head-up displays (HUDs) incorporating enhanced and synthetic vision; assess the influence of HUD configuration on perceptions of display clutter, workload, and flight performance; model clutter scores in terms of visual display properties; and model flight performance in terms of subjective and objective clutter indices.

Methods: In a flight simulator, 18 pilots with different levels of flight experience flew approaches divided into three segments. Three HUD configuration sets were presented under two levels of flight workload.

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Introduction: Synthetic and enhanced vision systems (SVS and EVS) are being introduced into the cockpit to promote safety under workload conditions. Integration of existing iconic imagery with SVS and EVS displays may lead to perceptions of clutter. This research evaluated head-up display (HUD) features, including SVS, EVS, traffic collision avoidance system symbology, flight pathway (TUNNEL) guidance, and different primary flight display symbol sets, on pilot perceptions of clutter.

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Two experiments conducted in a high-fidelity flight simulator examined the effects of guidance symbology, display size, and geometric field of view (GFOV) within a synthetic vision system (SVS). In Experiment 1, 18 pilots flew highlighted and low-lighted tunnel-in-the-sky displays, as well as a less cluttered follow-me aircraft (FMA), through a series of curved approaches over rugged terrain. The results revealed that both tunnels supported better flight path tracking and lower workload levels than did the FMA because of the availability of more preview information.

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Two experiments were conducted in which participants performed a vehicle dispatching task. The intensity of one information source (vehicles in Experiment 1, destinations in Experiment 2) was varied to examine the effects of salience and discrimination on both searching for and processing the information in a cluttered display. Response times were recorded for questions either requiring focused attention on or divided attention between the different information domains in the map.

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