A randomized controlled trial to examine the effect of the Pediatric Opioid Analgesia Self-Instruction System (PedOASIS) tool on pediatric hematology/oncology trainee education.

Background: Many children with hematologic and oncologic diagnoses require opioids for management of pain, yet knowledge gaps persist among pediatric hematology/oncology (PHO) fellows.

Objective: Pediatric Opioid Analgesia Self-Instruction System (PedOASIS) is an interactive, case-based education tool designed for independent learning. The goal of this study was to evaluate its efficacy in increasing PHO fellows' knowledge and comfort with using opioids to manage pain.

Preventing the Early Introduction of Juice and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages in Infants' Diets: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

A randomized controlled trial was conducted to determine whether a simple educational intervention targeting parents of young infants could have an impact on the consumption of juice and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) in early childhood and decrease overweight and obesity rates. Parents of 2- to 4-month-old infants were randomized into intervention (n = 67) and control (n = 77) groups. Parents completed questionnaires about juice and SSB consumption and knowledge at baseline and 1-year follow-up.

Comparison of Resident and Faculty Screening for Social Determinants of Health in an Academic Pediatric Primary Care Practice.

Background: Social determinants of health (SDH) have an important role in children's health and development and should be investigated in pediatric well child care.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of children aged 5-17 at well visits at an urban academic pediatric primary care practice was performed. Chi-square tests of independence and z-test for proportions were used to assess differences between residents and faculty SDH screening.

Diversity of the National Medical Student Body - Four Decades of Inequities.

A racially and ethnically diverse health care workforce remains a distant goal, the attainment of which is contingent on the inclusivity of the national medical student body. We examined the diversity of medical school applicants and enrollees over the past four decades with an eye toward assessing the progress made. Data on the gender and race or ethnic group of enrollees in all medical doctorate degree-granting U.

Effects of environmental variability on superspreading transmission events in stochastic epidemic models.

Superspreaders (individuals with a high propensity for disease spread) have played a pivotal role in recent emerging and re-emerging diseases. In disease outbreak studies, host heterogeneity based on demographic (e.g.

Variation in microparasite free-living survival and indirect transmission can modulate the intensity of emerging outbreaks.

Variation in free-living microparasite survival can have a meaningful impact on the ecological dynamics of established and emerging infectious diseases. Nevertheless, resolving the importance of indirect and environmental transmission in the ecology of epidemics remains a persistent challenge. It requires accurately measuring the free-living survival of pathogens across reservoirs of various kinds and quantifying the extent to which interaction between hosts and reservoirs generates new infections.

Evaluation of knowledge and comfort with opioid prescribing among pediatric hematology/oncology fellows.

Background: Deficits in knowledge and comfort related to pain management have been demonstrated in adult hematology/oncology fellows. No such evaluation has been undertaken in pediatric hematology/oncology (PHO) trainees.

Procedure: An IRB-approved survey was administered to PHO fellows throughout the United States (US) to assess comfort with opioid dosing, attitudes related to the use of opioids, and knowledge of basic concepts including weight-based dosing, incomplete cross-tolerance, and management of side effects.

Introducing Juice and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages in Early Infancy: Parental Knowledge and Intended Behaviors.

Objective: Assess caregivers' knowledge about juice and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and identify factors that contribute to their early introduction.

Methods: One hundred forty-four parents of young infants completed a 45-item questionnaire focused on infant nutrition.

Results: Seventy-two percent of parents plan to give juice to their babies starting in the first year of life; only 16% plan to introduce SSBs.

A lipidome-wide association study of the lipoprotein insulin resistance index.

Background: The lipoprotein insulin resistance (LPIR) score was shown to predict insulin resistance (IR) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) in healthy adults. However, the molecular basis underlying the LPIR utility for classification remains unclear.

Objective: To identify small molecule lipids associated with variation in the LPIR score, a weighted index of lipoproteins measured by nuclear magnetic resonance, in the Genetics of Lipid Lowering Drugs and Diet Network (GOLDN) study (n = 980).

Variation in SARS-CoV-2 free-living survival and environmental transmission can modulate the intensity of emerging outbreaks.

Variation in free-living, microparasite survival can have a meaningful impact on the ecological dynamics of established and emerging infectious diseases. Nevertheless, resolving the importance of environmental transmission in the ecology of epidemics remains a persistent challenge, requires accurate measuring the free-living survival of pathogens across reservoirs of various kinds, and quantifying the extent to which interaction between hosts and reservoirs generates new infections. These questions are especially salient for emerging pathogens, where sparse and noisy data can obfuscate the relative contribution of different infection routes.

Cost analysis of treatment strategies for the control of HSV-2 infection in the U.S.: A mathematical modeling-based case study.

Infection of Herpes Simplex Virus type 2 (HSV-2) is a lifelong sexually transmitted disease. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 11.9% of the United States (U.

Modeling the dynamics of glucose, insulin, and free fatty acids with time delay: The impact of bariatric surgery on type 2 diabetes mellitus.

The role of free fatty acids (FFA) on Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) progression has been studied extensively with prior studies suggesting that individuals with shared familial genetic predisposition to metabolic-related diseases may be vulnerable to dysfunctional plasma FFA regulation. A harmful cycle arises when FFA are not properly regulated by insulin contributing to the development of insulin resistance, a key indicator for T2DM, since prolonged insulin resistance may lead to hyperglycemia. We introduce a hypothesis-driven dynamical model and use it to evaluate the role of FFA on insulin resistance progression that is mathematically constructed within the context of individuals that have genetic predisposition to dysfunctional plasma FFA.

A Systematic Scoping Review of Surgically Manipulated Adipose Tissue and the Regulation of Energetics and Body Fat in Animals.

Objective: Surgical manipulations of adipose tissue by removal, or partial lipectomy, have demonstrated body fat compensation and recovered body weight, suggesting that the body is able to resist changes to body composition. However, the mechanisms underlying these observations are not well understood. The purpose of this scoping review is to provide an update on what is currently known about the regulation of energetics and body fat after surgical manipulations of adipose tissue in small mammals.

The Role of Vertical Transmission in the Control of Dengue Fever.

In this work, a two-strain dengue model with vertical transmission in the mosquito population is considered. Although vertical transmission is often ignored in models of dengue fever, we show that effective control of an outbreak of dengue can depend on whether or not the vertical transmission is a significant mode of disease transmission. We model the effect of a control strategy aimed at reducing human-mosquito transmissions in an optimal control framework.

Modeling the Diet Dynamics of Children: the Roles of Socialization and the School Environment.

Childhood obesity is a health emergency in many parts of the world including the U.S. and, consequently, identifying local, regional or national intervention models capable, of altering the dynamics of obesity at scales that make a difference remains a challenge.

Illustration of Measurement Error Models for Reducing Bias in Nutrition and Obesity Research Using 2-D Body Composition Data.

Objective: This study aimed to illustrate the use and value of measurement error models for reducing bias when evaluating associations between body fat and having type 2 diabetes (T2D) or being physically active.

Methods: Logistic regression models were used to evaluate T2D and physical activity among adults aged 19 to 80 years from the Photobody Study (n = 558). Self-reported T2D and physical activity were categorized as "yes" or "no.

The association between allostatic load and anthropometric measurements among a multiethnic cohort of children.

Objective: This study investigated if levels of allostatic load (ALoad) differed according to race/ethnicity in children and if ALoad was associated with obesity-related measures.

Methods: A multiethnic sample of 307 children aged seven to 12 was evaluated, composed of 39% European American (EA), 35% African American (AA), and 26% Hispanic American (HA) youth. Anthropometric measurements were evaluated by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and other measurements included body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC).

Modeling eating behaviors: The role of environment and positive food association learning via a Ratatouille effect.

Eating behaviors among a large population of children are studied as a dynamic process driven by nonlinear interactions in the sociocultural school environment. The impact of food association learning on diet dynamics, inspired by a pilot study conducted among Arizona children in Pre-Kindergarten to 8th grades, is used to build simple population-level learning models. Qualitatively, mathematical studies are used to highlight the possible ramifications of instruction, learning in nutrition, and health at the community level.

Assessing the impact of public health interventions on the transmission of pandemic H1N1 influenza a virus aboard a Peruvian navy ship.

Background: Limited data exist on transmission dynamics and effectiveness of control measures for influenza in confined settings.

Objectives: To investigate the transmission dynamics of a 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza A outbreak aboard a Peruvian Navy ship and quantify the effectiveness of the implemented control measures.

Methods: We used surveillance data and a simple stochastic epidemic model to characterize and evaluate the effectiveness of control interventions implemented during an outbreak of 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza A aboard a Peruvian Navy ship.