Health disparities in chronic back pain and associated mortality seen in ischemic cardiac disease: a commentary.

Prescription opioid use for nonmalignant chronic pain has grown in the US over the last decade. Those with chronic back pain have a higher risk of mortality from ischemic heart disease than those without. Studies have demonstrated a higher prevalence of cardiac disease in adults who report chronic pain.

Self-Reported Prevalence of Hypertension and Antihypertensive Medication Use Among Asian Americans: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 2013, 2015 and 2017.

Asian Americans are one of the fastest growing races in the US. The objectives of this report were to assess self-reported hypertension prevalence and treatment among Asian Americans. Merging 2013, 2015, and 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data, we estimated self-reported hypertension and antihypertensive medication use among non-Hispanic Asian Americans (NHA) and compared estimates between NHA and non-Hispanic whites (NHW), and by NHA subgroup (Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese/other).

Awareness of Stroke Signs and Symptoms and Calling 9-1-1 Among US Adults: National Health Interview Survey, 2009 and 2014.

Introduction: Early recognition of stroke symptoms and recognizing the importance of calling 9-1-1 improves the timeliness of appropriate emergency care, resulting in improved health outcomes. The objective of this study was to assess changes in awareness of stroke symptoms and calling 9-1-1 from 2009 to 2014.

Methods: We analyzed data among 27,211 adults from 2009 and 35,862 adults from 2014 using the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS).

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy after an upper and lower endoscopy: a case report and review of the literature.

Background: Gastrointestinal endoscopies are safe and follow guidelines that emphasize patient care. Although adverse outcomes are rare, high-risk patients may be predisposed to certain events.

Case Presentation: We report a unique case of a Caucasian woman with takotsubo cardiomyopathy following an upper and lower endoscopy.

Hypoglycemia secondary to factitious hyperinsulinism in a foster care adolescent - a case report of munchausen syndrome in a community hospital emergency department setting.

Background: Factitious disorder causing hypoglycemia is a psychiatric condition in which patients deliberately use blood sugar lowering medications to cause severe symptoms for the purposes of hospitalization or other primary gains.

Case Presentation: We report a case of factitious hypoglycemia in a 19-year-old foster care adolescent female who presented to the Emergency Department with recurrent hypoglycemic episodes, to the degree that the patient required large amounts of dextrose and further management by intensive care unit hospitalization. Further inquiry revealed that the patient intentionally injected herself with large doses of insulin for the purposes of seeking hospital admission.

Low-dose radiation use in diagnostic imaging and cancer therapy settings.

Current methods of radiation safety are characterized by age-old hypotheses that claim low doses of radiation, such as those received in diagnostic imaging and cancer treatment, increase the risk of cancer. The linear no-threshold hypothesis dates back to 70 years and has not been scientifically validated, yet it remains the driving force behind current regulatory policies concerning radiation exposure. The linear no-threshold hypothesis has birthed the "as low as reasonably achievable" concept that is commonly practiced in medical professions to limit radiation exposure.

Area Health Education Center (AHEC) programs for rural and underrepresented minority students in the Alabama Black Belt.

Background: This paper evaluated the implementation West Central Alabama Area Health Education Center programs for high school students in grades 9-12 through participant-reported evaluations and feedback during the  September 1st, 2013 to August 31st, 2014 fiscal year. The programs targeted racial/ethnic minorities and/or rural individuals interested in pursuing a career as a healthcare provider in medically underserved counties of Alabama.

Methods: Students participated in enrichment activities related to prospective health careers that included: successful college preparedness, knowledge about health careers, and the types of primary care health professions that are needed in underserved Alabama communities.

Understanding the importance of medical student clerkships in poor health outcome regions served by Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) in impoverished locations of Southern United States.

Area Health Education Centers provide health professional students the opportunity to explore the benefits of practicing in a rural and underserved location. The status of health conditions in chronic disease patients residing in impoverished regions of the US provides the chance to understand the factors that are responsible for constant inadequate outcomes in underserved and rural communities. Many limiting barriers to positive health outcomes occur in disproportionate numbers in the Southern Black Belt.

Peer Coaches to Improve Diabetes Outcomes in Rural Alabama: A Cluster Randomized Trial.

Purpose: It is unclear whether peer coaching is effective in minority populations living with diabetes in hard-to-reach, under-resourced areas such as the rural South. We examined the effect of an innovative peer-coaching intervention plus brief education vs brief education alone on diabetes outcomes.

Methods: This was a community-engaged, cluster-randomized, controlled trial with primary care practices and their surrounding communities serving as clusters.