Climate Change as a Social Determinant of Health: An Interactive Case-Based Learning Activity.

Introduction: Despite consensus on climate change's impact on humans, medical schools have not widely adopted inclusion of environmental topics into their mandatory curriculum. This educational activity explicitly addresses climate change as one of the environmental determinants of health (EDH).

Methods: We developed a required, 1-hour module for all first-year medical students.

Diabetes Prevalence, Risk Factors, and Care in Asian American and Pacific Islanders of Texas: Data From the 2015-2019 Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the health status and needs of the Asian American/Pacific Islander (AAPI) population with diabetes in Texas.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional secondary analysis of data collected from the Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System in Texas from 2015 to 2019 for non-Hispanic White (NHW) and AAPI adults.

Results: Although the overall crude diabetes prevalence was lower in AAPI adults, age-adjusted diabetes prevalence was higher than in NHWs.

Supporting (or not) the career development of culturally and linguistically diverse migrants and refugees in universities: insights from Australia.

The present study used a mixed-methods approach to understand the challenges faced by Australian higher education institutions in supporting the career development of students from culturally and linguistically diverse migrant and refugee backgrounds. Specifically, this project included a desktop audit of all Australian universities, data from a survey ( = 32) and interviews with staff in various functions ( = 10). Four main challenges were identified: (1) difficulties in identifying and engaging with students; (2) a lack of targeted resources and programs; (3) difficulties faced by students in engaging with employers; and (4) a lack of work-readiness and unfamiliarity of Australian work culture.

Paracervical blocks facilitate timely brachytherapy amidst COVID-19.

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic presents serious challenges for brachytherapists, and in the time-sensitive case of locally advanced cervical cancer, the need for curative brachytherapy (BT) is critical for survival. Given the high-volume of locally advanced cervical cancer in our safety-net hospital, we developed a strategy in close collaboration with our gynecology oncology and anesthesia colleagues to allow for completely clinic-based intracavitary brachytherapy (ICBT).

Methods And Materials: This technical report will highlight our experience with the use of paracervical blocks (PCBs) and oral multimodal analgesia (MMA) for appropriately selected cervical ICBT cases, allowing for completely clinic-based treatment.

Use of Computer-Assisted Instrument Guidance Technology by Student Registered Nurse Anesthetists for Simulated Invasive Procedures.

This study was conducted to determine if computer-assisted instrument guidance (CAIG, Clear Guide Medical), with an optical tracking mechanism, enhances simulated transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block performance in a porcine model by novice student registered nurse anesthetists (SRNAs) compared with standalone ultrasonography (US). In a crossover design, 26 students were randomly assigned into 2 groups: US only and CAIG. Performance was assessed using a task-specific checklist survey tool and a global rating scale to assess performance.

Predictors of difficult epidural placement in pregnant women: A trainees' perspective.

Background And Aims: Epidural analgesia is believed to be the most difficult technique to learn for a trainee. The reason for this is not only inexperience of the provider and the complexity of the technique but also patient factors like obesity, spinal deformity and others which makes the epidural placement difficult. The aim of this study was to evaluate some of the common risk factors for difficult epidural placement as perceived by the anesthesia providers during training, with varying level of experience.

Warfarin-induced skin necrosis following heparin-induced thrombocytopenia.

Anticoagulants, such as heparin and warfarin, are commonly used in the treatment and prevention of thromboembolic events. The risk of developing warfarin-induced skin necrosis (WISN) with warfarin is reported to be <1%. However, the risk of WISN may be increased with the initiation of warfarin in the setting of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and thrombosis syndrome (HITT).

Caring for the Jehovah's Witness Parturient.

Caring for the Jehovah's Witness parturient is a complex task that presents a number of ethical, medical, and legal concerns because many Jehovah's Witnesses refuse allogeneic blood transfusion. Childbirth and its surrounding events may be associated with significant blood loss. Given their significant role in the intraoperative administration of blood products, anesthesia providers should be familiar with factors that must be considered in the perioperative care of Jehovah's Witness parturients.

Molecular characterization of the interaction between sialylated Neisseria gonorrhoeae and factor H.

Human factor H (HufH), a key inhibitor of the alternative pathway of complement, binds to Neisseria gonorrhoeae and constitutes an important mechanism of human-specific complement evasion. The C-terminal domain 20 of HufH contains the binding site for sialylated gonococci. We exploited differences in amino acid sequences between human and non-binding chimpanzee fH domain 20 to create cross-species mutations to define amino acids important for binding to sialylated gonococci.

Species-specificity of Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection: do human complement regulators contribute?

Neisseria gonorrhoeae is the causative agent of gonorrhea, a disease restricted to humans. Complement forms a key arm of the innate immune system that combats gonococcal infections. N.

Lactate dehydrogenase kinetics and inhibition using a microplate reader.

A lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) enzyme kinetics laboratory experiment has been developed in which students obtain kinetic data using a microplate spectrophotometer (reader). These instruments have the capability of reading absorbances of many samples in a very short time frame. In this experiment 12 samples are prepared at a time and the absorbances read in less than 1 min.