The role of smokeless tobacco use in smoking persistence among male college students.

Background: Significant changes in the tobacco industry have led to heightened concern about co-use of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco (SLT) products.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess whether male cigarette smokers who also used SLT products, in the first semester of their first year of college, were more or less likely than male cigarette smokers who did not use SLT products to still be smoking by the first semester of their senior year.

Methods: Using a longitudinal, observational study, we followed a cohort of undergraduate students from 11 four-year universities in North Carolina and Virginia through their college career.

Coagulation indices in very preterm infants from cord blood and postnatal samples.

Background: Very premature infants are at high risk of bleeding complications; however, few data exist on ranges for standard coagulation tests.

Objectives: The primary objective of this study was to measure standard plasma coagulation tests and thrombin generation in very premature infants compared with term infants. The secondary objective was to evaluate whether an association existed between coagulation indices and intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH).

Increased vitamin D and calcium intake associated with reduced mammographic breast density among premenopausal women.

Vitamin D has been identified as a weak protective factor for postmenopausal breast cancer (relative risk, ~0.9), whereas high breast density has been identified as a strong risk factor (relative risk, ~4-6). To test the hypothesis that there is an association between vitamin D intake, but not circulating vitamin D levels, and mammographic breast density among women in our study, we conducted a cross-sectional study of 165 screening mammography patients at Nashville General Hospital's Breast Health Center, a public facility serving medically indigent and underserved women.

Rural vs. urban disparities in association with lower urinary tract symptoms and benign prostatic hyperplasia in ageing men, NHANES 2001-2008.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate rural/urban and socio-demographic disparities in lower urinary tract symptoms and benign prostatic hyperplasia (LUTS/BPH) in a nationally representative population of men.

Methods: Data on men age ≥40 years (N = 4,492) in the 2001-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys were analysed. Self-report of physician-diagnosed enlarged prostate and/or BPH medication use defined recognised LUTS/BPH.

The Co-occurring Syndrome-Coexisting Erectile Dysfunction and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia and Their Clinical Correlates in Aging Men: Results From the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Objective: To establish a descriptive profile of men with coexistent erectile dysfunction (ED) and/or benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), ED only or BPH only compared to those with neither condition and to identify the determinants of coexisting disease.

Materials And Methods: Self-report and/or medication use measures defining ED and BPH were assessed in men aged ≥40 years (N = 2142) between 2001 and 2004 using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. Descriptive analyses examined the ED and/or BPH covariate distribution.

K2 and Spice use among a cohort of college students in southeast region of the USA.

Background: K2 and Spice consist of an herbal blend of plant matter and chemical synthetic cannabinoids. These substances emerged in the early 2000s as a popular alternative to marijuana among youth and young adults.

Objectives: This study sought to identify rates and correlates of K2 and Spice at college entry and first use during college.

Efficacy of HIV Postexposure Prophylaxis: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Nonhuman Primate Studies.

Background: The efficacy of antiretrovirals as postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) to prevent viral acquisition was demonstrated in nonhuman primate models of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the early 1990s. To complement the evidence base for efficacy of HIV PEP in humans, we systematically reviewed the published data on PEP efficacy across animal studies.

Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase were searched from inception to 31 May 2014 for randomized and nonrandomized studies reporting seroconversions among uninfected animals exposed to HIV or simian immunodeficiency virus, irrespective of route of exposure.

Variation in Breast Cancer-Risk Factor Associations by Method of Detection: Results From a Series of Case-Control Studies.

Concerns about breast cancer overdiagnosis have increased the need to understand how cancers detected through screening mammography differ from those first detected by a woman or her clinician. We investigated risk factor associations for invasive breast cancer by method of detection within a series of case-control studies (1992-2007) carried out in Wisconsin, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire (n=15,648 invasive breast cancer patients and 17,602 controls aged 40-79 years). Approximately half of case women reported that their cancer had been detected by mammographic screening and half that they or their clinician had detected it.

Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial of Green Tea Catechins for Prostate Cancer Prevention.

Preclinical, epidemiologic, and prior clinical trial data suggest that green tea catechins (GTC) may reduce prostate cancer risk. We conducted a placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial of Polyphenon E (PolyE), a proprietary mixture of GTCs, containing 400 mg (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) per day, in 97 men with high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HGPIN) and/or atypical small acinar proliferation (ASAP). The primary study endpoint was a comparison of the cumulative one-year prostate cancer rates on the two study arms.

Drug repurposing: a systematic approach to evaluate candidate oral neuroprotective interventions for secondary progressive multiple sclerosis.

Objective: To develop and implement an evidence based framework to select, from drugs already licenced, candidate oral neuroprotective drugs to be tested in secondary progressive multiple sclerosis.

Design: Systematic review of clinical studies of oral putative neuroprotective therapies in MS and four other neurodegenerative diseases with shared pathological features, followed by systematic review and meta-analyses of the in vivo experimental data for those interventions. We presented summary data to an international multi-disciplinary committee, which assessed each drug in turn using pre-specified criteria including consideration of mechanism of action.

Prediction of breast cancer risk based on profiling with common genetic variants.

Background: Data for multiple common susceptibility alleles for breast cancer may be combined to identify women at different levels of breast cancer risk. Such stratification could guide preventive and screening strategies. However, empirical evidence for genetic risk stratification is lacking.

Trends in drug use from urine drug testing of addiction treatment clients.

Objective: Urine drug testing (UDT) can play an important role in the care of patients in recovery from addiction, and it has become necessary for providers and programs to utilize specific, accurate testing beyond what immunoassay (IA) provides.

Design: A database of addiction treatment and recovery programs was sampled to demonstrate national trends in drug abuse and to explore potential clinical implications of differing results due to the type of testing utilized.

Setting: Deidentified data was selected from a national laboratory testing company that had undergone liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

Birth desires and intentions of women diagnosed with a meningioma.

OBJECT To the authors' knowledge, no previous study has examined the impact of meningioma diagnosis on women's birth desires and intentions. In an exploratory study, the authors surveyed women affected by meningioma to determine their attitudes toward childbearing and the influences, including physician recommendations, on this major life decision and compared their responses to those of women in the general population. METHODS Meningioma survivors from the Meningioma Mommas online support group participated in an online survey that included questions on their birth desires and intentions, whether the risk of disease recurrence influenced their reproductive decisions, and risks communicated to them by their physicians.

Multivariable analysis of anesthetic factors associated with time to extubation in dogs.

The purpose of this study was to identify factors that prolong the time to extubation in dogs. Anesthetic records of 900 dogs at a university teaching hospital were searched. Multiple linear regression was used to compare independent predictors (patient demographics, anesthetic and intraoperative variables) with the dependent variable (time to extubation).

A systematic review and meta-analysis of gene therapy in animal models of cerebral glioma: why did promise not translate to human therapy?

Background: The development of therapeutics is often characterized by promising animal research that fails to translate into clinical efficacy; this holds for the development of gene therapy in glioma. We tested the hypothesis that this is because of limitations in the internal and external validity of studies reporting the use of gene therapy in experimental glioma.

Method: We systematically identified studies testing gene therapy in rodent glioma models by searching three online databases.

Longitudinal associations between asthma and general and abdominal weight status among Norwegian adolescents and young adults: the HUNT Study.

Background: In adolescents the temporal directionality to the asthma and adiposity association remains unclear. Asthma may be a consequence of obesity; however, asthma may increase adiposity.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the associations between (i) baseline weight status and subsequent asthma and (ii) baseline asthma and subsequent weight status after 4 and 11 years of follow-up (N = 1543 and N = 1596, respectively) using data from three, sequentially enrolled population-based surveys of Norwegians aged 12-30 years from 1995 to 2008.

Alcohol consumption and prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection among US men in the HPV in Men (HIM) study.

Objectives: Moderate alcohol consumption can impair host defence against viral infections. The objective of this cross-sectional analysis was to assess the association between alcohol intake and prevalent human papillomavirus (HPV) infection among US men enrolled in the HPV in Men (HIM) study using quantitative alcohol intake measured from a Food Frequency Questionnaire.

Methods: The HIM study is a prospective, multinational study of the natural history of HPV infection.

Efficacy of antidepressants in animal models of ischemic stroke: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background And Purpose: Poststroke depression is a prevalent complication of stroke with unclear pathogenesis. The benefits of antidepressants in this context and their effects on stroke recovery other than effects on mood are not clearly defined, with some studies suggesting efficacy in improving functional outcome in both depressed and nondepressed stroke patients. We have analyzed the preclinical animal data on antidepressant treatment in focal cerebral ischemia, modeled±depression, to help inform clinical trial design.

General, but not abdominal, overweight increases odds of asthma among Norwegian adolescents: the Young-HUNT study.

Aim: The aim of this analysis was to examine the association between asthma and general and abdominal weight status, defined by age- and sex-specific cut-offs for body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) in adolescents.

Methods: Participants aged 12-19 years in the Young-HUNT (YH) Study (YH1 1995-1997: n = 8222; YH3 2006-2008: n = 7403) completed self-administered questionnaires in school as part of a series of cross-sectional, population-based studies conducted in Nord-Trøndelag, Norway. Weight, height and WC were measured.

Living in shear: platelets protect cancer cells from shear induced damage.

Pharmacologically and genetically induced thrombocytopenia is associated with decreased metastasis, highlighting the importance of platelets in the bloodborne dissemination of cancer cells. It is frequently suggested that platelets support metastasis, in part, by protecting cancer cells from shear stress, a biomechanical force generated by blood flow. However, there is currently no evidence to support this hypothesis.

E-cigarette availability and promotion among retail outlets near college campuses in two southeastern states.

Introduction: E-cigarettes are relatively new products that simulate the smoking experience. This descriptive study assessed changes in e-cigarette availability and promotions among retailers in 11 college communities in North Carolina and Virginia during a 1-year period.

Methods: During the spring of 2012 and 2013, observers completed assessments in 320 tobacco-selling retailers, including grocery and convenience stores, pharmacies, and tobacco shops.