Factors Associated With Compliance With 24-Hour Urine Collection.

Objective: To identify how demographic factors, stone-associated medical comorbidities, and treatment predict compliance with 24-hour urine collection.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective medical record review of patients treated for urolithiasis between August 2014 and March 2017 was performed. Patient demographics, medical characteristics, stone factors, type of treatment, and compliance data were included for patients requested to submit a collection.

Induction techniques that reduce redistribution hypothermia: a prospective, randomized, controlled, single blind effectiveness study.

Background: While much effort has been devoted to correcting intraoperative hypothermia, less attention has been directed to preventing redistribution hypothermia. In this study, we compared three different anesthetic induction techniques to standard IV propofol inductions (control) in their effect on reducing redistribution hypothermia.

Methods: Elective, afebrile patients, age 18 to 55 years, were randomly assigned to one of four groups (n = 50 each).

Outpatient antibiotic prescribing patterns in pediatric academic and community practices.

Little is known about antibiotic prescribing differences between academic and community outpatient settings. This retrospective, cross-sectional chart review compares compliance with Infectious Diseases Society of America and American Academy of Pediatrics prescribing guidelines for otitis media, sinusitis, and pharyngitis in academic and affiliated community practices. The study results for correct antibiotic prescribing rate in the academic setting (67%) compared with the community setting (21%) demonstrate the urgent need for stewardship in community outpatient clinics.

Effects of a pharmacist-driven intervention program on hospital readmissions.

Purpose: Results of a study to determine whether routine use of a multifaceted medication-focused intervention at a safety-net hospital was feasible and could reduce hospital readmissions in a Medicare fee-for-service population are reported.

Methods: A quality-improvement cohort study of 1,059 admissions of 667 patients at an inner-city hospital was conducted. Patients in the intervention groups received some or all components of the multifaceted "Medication REACH" intervention, with direct pharmacist involvement from admission through postdischarge aftercare.

Gestational weight gain among minority adolescents predicts term birth weight.

Background: In adolescents, there is limited evidence on the independent and additive effect of prepregnancy body mass index (BMI) and gestational weight gain on infant birth weight. Data also show that this effect may vary by race. We sought to examine the impact of maternal prepregnancy BMI and gestational weight gain on birth weight and risk of large for gestational age (LGA) in term newborns of minority adolescent mothers.

Food Insecurity in Patients with High Hospital Utilization.

Having access to adequate and appropriate food is a major population health issue. This study investigated food insecurity in patients with high rates of inpatient hospitalization ("super-utilizers"). Forty adults with ≥3 hospital inpatient admissions within a 12-month period were interviewed in an urban hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, between March 2015 and May 2015.

Change in childhood lead exposure prevalence with new reference level.

In 2012, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed the "actionable" reference blood lead level from 10 μg/dL to 5 μg/dL, representing the highest 2.5 percentile of lead levels nationwide. In a high-risk urban community, the prevalence of children classified as lead exposed increased ninefold, from 1% to 9.

Impact of a Rewards-Based Incentive Program on Promoting Fruit and Vegetable Purchases.

Objectives. We assessed the impact of a rewards-based incentive program on fruit and vegetable purchases by low-income families. Methods.

Concomitant proton pump inhibitors with mycophenolate mofetil and the risk of rejection in kidney transplant recipients.

Background: Recent pharmacokinetic studies have demonstrated that proton pump inhibitors (PPI) reduce exposure of mycophenolic acid. However, the clinical significance of this drug-drug interaction on transplantation outcomes has not been determined.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study in kidney transplant recipients who were prescribed rabbit antithymocyte globulin, calcineurin inhibitor, mycophenolate mofetil, and steroids.

Bimodal aldosterone distribution in low-renin hypertension.

Background: In low-renin hypertension (LRH), serum aldosterone levels are higher in those subjects with primary aldosteronism and may be lower in those with non-aldosterone mineralocorticoid excess or primary renal sodium retention. We investigated the hypothesis that the frequency distribution of aldosterone in LRH is bimodal.

Methods: Of the 3,532 attendees at the sixth examination cycle of the Framingham Offspring Study, 1,831 were included in this cross-sectional analysis after we excluded those with conditions or taking medications such as antihypertensive drugs that might affect renin or aldosterone.

The use of financial incentives to increase fresh fruit and vegetable purchases in lower-income households: results of a pilot study.

Identifying effective strategies to promote healthier eating in underserved populations is a public health priority. In this pilot study, we examined the use of financial incentives to increase fresh fruit and vegetable purchases in low-income households (N=29). Participants received pre-paid coupons to buy fresh produce at the study store during the intervention period.

A randomized comparative study of manually assisted versus robotic-assisted body weight supported treadmill training in persons with a traumatic brain injury.

Objectives: (1) To compare the effects of robotic-assisted treadmill training (RATT) and manually assisted treadmill training (MATT) in participants with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and (2) to determine the potential impact on the symmetry of temporal walking parameters, 6-minute walk test, and the mobility domain of the Stroke Impact Scale, version 3.0 (SIS).

Design: Randomized prospective study.

Using rewards-based incentives to increase purchase of fruit and vegetables in lower-income households: design and start-up of a randomized trial.

Objective: To report the design and baseline results of a rewards-based incentive to promote purchase of fruit and vegetables by lower-income households.

Design: A four-phase randomized trial with wait-listed controls. In a pilot study, despite inadequate study coupon use, purchases of fresh fruit (but not vegetables) increased, but with little maintenance.

The safety and efficacy of enhanced external counterpulsation as a treatment for angina in patients with aortic stenosis.

Background: Comorbid aortic stenosis (AS) has been considered a precaution when applying enhanced external counterpulsation (EECP) to individuals with angina due to concerns about treatment-related hemodynamic changes.

Hypothesis: The aim of this study was to determine whether EECP safely reduces symptoms of myocardial ischemia and improves hemodynamics in individuals with AS.

Methods: Forty-three patients with AS (average age, 73 years; 86% male) and 43 comparison patients without AS were chosen from a database of 1327 EECP patients.

Fresh fruit and vegetable purchases in an urban supermarket by low-income households.

Objective: To investigate the predictors of fresh fruit and vegetable purchases in a low-income population and identify subgroups in which interventions to increase such purchases might prove useful.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of 209 shopping transactions from 30 households. Individual and household characteristics obtained from primary shopper.

Breastfeeding among inner-city women: from intention before delivery to breastfeeding at hospital discharge.

Objective: This study assessed the degree to which women's intention to breastfeed prior to delivery translates to actual breastfeeding at hospital discharge and to investigate predictors of breastfeeding in a minority inner-city population.

Study Design And Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of consecutive mother-infant dyads born July-September 2010 and discharged from the nursery at an academic community hospital in Philadelphia.

Results: The demographics of the 578 women who participated included a mean age of 25.

Photos vs silhouettes for evaluation of African American profile esthetics.

Introduction: Patient photos and silhouettes are commonly used in clinical evaluations and orthodontic research to evaluate profile esthetics. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the use of photos or silhouettes is a more appropriate method of evaluating African American profile esthetics and whether there are different profile esthetic preferences among clinicians when using photos compared with silhouettes.

Methods: Pretreatment records of 20 adolescent African American patients were selected (10 male, 10 female) from the orthodontic clinic at the Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia.

Effect of atorvastatin on the cortical bones of corticosteroid treated rabbits.

Osteoporosis ("secondary" osteoporosis) and avascular necrosis (AVN) of the femoral head are well-known adverse effects of corticosteroid therapy. Statins have been reputed to increase bone strength and bone density. In this study, we evaluated the effect of atorvastatin calcium on the flexural properties (3-point bending strength and modulus) of corticosteroid (methylprednisolone acetate) treated rabbit femurs and tibias.

Saddle pulmonary embolism: is it as bad as it looks? A community hospital experience.

Background: Saddle pulmonary embolism represents a large clot and a risk for sudden hemodynamic collapse. However, the clinical presentation and outcomes vary widely. On the basis of the findings of right heart dysfunction on echocardiograms, computed tomography angiography, or cardiac enzyme elevation, some argue for the use of thrombolytics or catheter thrombectomy even for hemodynamically stable patients.

Efficacy of a filled-resin sealant in preventing decalcification during orthodontic treatment.

Introduction: Enamel decalcification during orthodontic treatment is a persistent problem. Resin-based sealants have been developed to protect enamel from decalcification. The purpose of this in-vivo study was to compare the effect of a fluoride-releasing filled enamel sealant with that of an unfilled nonfluoride control.

Mitral annular calcium causing mitral stenosis.

Mitral annular calcium (MAC) is a common finding at echocardiography, although it is an unusual cause of severe mitral stenosis. Although MAC is known to be associated with atherosclerosis and chronic kidney disease, little is known about its natural history as affects mitral valve function. This report describes a cohort of 37 outpatients with severe MAC (>5 mm) of whom 32 were followed longitudinally with echocardiography (mean follow-up 2.

A multi-institutional comparison of radical retropubic prostatectomy, radical perineal prostatectomy, and robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy for treatment of localized prostate cancer.

To evaluate the pathological stage and margin status of patients undergoing radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP), radical perineal prostatectomy (RPP) and robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP). We performed a retrospective analysis of 196 patients who underwent RRP, RPP, and RALP as part of our multi-institution program. Fifty-seven patients underwent RRP, 41 RPP, and 98 RALP.

Analysis of weight loss after bariatric surgery using mixed-effects linear modeling.

Background: The standard analysis of bariatric surgery weight outcomes data (using t tests) is well known. However, these uncontrolled comparisons may yield misleading results and limit the range of research questions. The aim of the study was to develop a valid approach to the longitudinal analysis of weight loss outcomes after bariatric surgery using multivariable mixed models.

Nasal temperature can be used as a reliable surrogate measure of core temperature.

Background: All current methods of core temperature monitoring have limitations. There is at least one skin temperature probe that can be modified to a nasal temperature probe (NP). This study was conducted to validate this modified skin temperature probe as an accurate surrogate measure of core temperature by comparing the temperature measurements obtained from NP to those from the esophageal stethoscope (ES).