Dissemination of VMAT-2 Inhibitors: A New Class Drug for Tardive Dyskinesia and Huntington Disease.

Background And Objectives: In 2017, the FDA approved deutetrabenazine (AUSTEDO) for the treatment of tardive dyskinesia (TD) and chorea associated with Huntington disease (HD). Concurrently, valbenazine (INGREZZA) was approved specifically for TD. The adoption of new medications is influenced by various factors, including patient's medical needs, the prescriber's adoption of new practice, and external environmental factors (e.

Challenges Faced by Rural Health Care Providers Caring for Parkinson's Disease Patients in Neighbor Islands of Hawai'i.

When compared to their urban counterparts, rural regions have worse health outcomes and more challenges in health care access. As the only island state in the US, Hawai'i's unique geographic layout may magnify these disparities. However, there are limited publications on the impact of urban-rural disparities in health care in Hawai'i.

Assessing Racial Disparities in Access, Use, and Outcomes for Pregnant and Postpartum Veterans and Their Infants in Veterans Health Administration.

Limited population-based data examines racial disparities among pregnant and postpartum Veterans. Our objective was to determine whether Black/white racial disparities in health care access, use, and Veteran and infant outcomes are present among pregnant and postpartum Veterans and their infants using Veterans Health Administration (VA) care. The VA National Veteran Pregnancy and Maternity Care Survey included all Veterans with a VA paid live birth between June 2018 and December 2019.

Gender differences in social support for diabetes self-management: A qualitative study among veterans.

Objective: Describe the role of social support in veterans' diabetes self-management and examine gender differences.

Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews among veterans with diabetes from one Veterans Health Administration Health Care System. Participants described how support persons influenced their diabetes self-management and perspectives on a proposed self-management program incorporating a support person.

Using an antimalarial in mosquitoes overcomes Anopheles and Plasmodium resistance to malaria control strategies.

The spread of insecticide resistance in Anopheles mosquitoes and drug resistance in Plasmodium parasites is contributing to a global resurgence of malaria, making the generation of control tools that can overcome these roadblocks an urgent public health priority. We recently showed that the transmission of Plasmodium falciparum parasites can be efficiently blocked when exposing Anopheles gambiae females to antimalarials deposited on a treated surface, with no negative consequences on major components of mosquito fitness. Here, we demonstrate this approach can overcome the hurdles of insecticide resistance in mosquitoes and drug resistant in parasites.

The COSMIC Bubble Helmet: A Non-Invasive Positive Pressure Ventilation System for COVID-19.

COSMIC Medical, a Vancouver-based open-source volunteer initiative, has designed an accessible, affordable, and aerosol-confining non-invasive positive-pressure ventilator (NIPPV) device, known as the COSMIC Bubble Helmet (CBH). This device is intended for COVID-19 patients with mild-to-moderate acute respiratory distress syndrome. : CBH is composed of thermoplastic polyurethane, which creates a flexible neck seal and transparent hood.

Long-term association between diet quality and characteristics of the gut microbiome in the multiethnic cohort study.

As past usual diet quality may affect gut microbiome (GM) composition, we examined the association of the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2015 assessed 21 and 9 years before stool collection with measures of fecal microbial composition in a subset of the Multiethnic Cohort. A total of 5936 participants completed a validated quantitative FFQ (QFFQ) at cohort entry (Q1, 1993-1996), 5280 at follow-up (Q3, 2003-2008) and 1685 also at a second follow-up (Adiposity Phenotype Study (APS), 2013-2016). All participants provided a stool sample in 2013-2016.

AMPA Receptor Surface Expression Is Regulated by S-Nitrosylation of Thorase and Transnitrosylation of NSF.

The regulation of α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptor (AMPAR) trafficking affects multiple brain functions, such as learning and memory. We have previously shown that Thorase plays an important role in the internalization of AMPARs from the synaptic membrane. Here, we show that N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) activation leads to increased S-nitrosylation of Thorase and N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor (NSF).

Concomitant Bilateral Salpingo-Oophorectomy at Hysterectomy: Differences by Race and Menopausal Status in the Veterans Affairs Health Care System, 2007-2014.

Hysterectomy can be performed with concomitant bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO) to treat symptomatic pathology of the ovary (, endometriosis) or to prevent ovarian cancer. Our objective was to examine the relationship between race and concomitant BSO by menopausal status in the Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system. This is a longitudinal study utilizing VA administrative data to identify hysterectomies provided or paid for by VA (, source of care) between 2007 and 2014.

Association of Depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder with Receipt of Minimally Invasive Hysterectomy for Uterine Fibroids: Findings from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Background: When hysterectomy is used to treat uterine fibroids, a minimally invasive versus open abdominal approach is preferred. Depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may be associated with surgical mode. We sought to examine whether depression and PTSD are associated with minimally invasive hysterectomy (MIH).

Understanding Variation in Availability and Provision of Minimally Invasive Hysterectomy: A Qualitative Study of Department of Veterans Affairs Gynecologists.

Background: Approximately one-half of women undergoing hysterectomy in the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system receive minimally invasive hysterectomies (MIH), with Black women less likely than White women to receive MIH. We sought to characterize gynecologists' perspectives on factors contributing to the availability and provision of MIH and on the role of race/ethnicity in decision making.

Methods: Between October 2017 and January 2018, we conducted 16 in-depth semistructured telephone interviews with Department of Veterans Affairs gynecologists exploring practice characteristics and barriers and facilitators to providing MIH, including clinical and nonclinical characteristics of patients impacting surgical decision making.

Contributors to Racial Disparities in Minimally Invasive Hysterectomy in the US Department of Veterans Affairs.

Background: Minimally invasive hysterectomy for fibroids decreases recovery time and risk of postoperative complications compared with abdominal hysterectomy. Within Veterans Affair (VA), black women with uterine fibroids are less likely to receive a minimally invasive hysterectomy than white women.

Objective: To quantify the contributions of patient, facility, temporal and geographic factors to VA black-white disparity in minimally invasive hysterectomy.

Non-classical B Cell Memory of Allergic IgE Responses.

The long-term effectiveness of antibody responses relies on the development of humoral immune memory. Humoral immunity is maintained by long-lived plasma cells that secrete antigen-specific antibodies, and memory B cells that rapidly respond to antigen re-exposure by generating new plasma cells and memory B cells. Developing effective immunological memory is essential for protection against pathogens, and is the basis of successful vaccinations.

Reproductive Health of Women Veterans: A Systematic Review of the Literature from 2008 to 2017.

The literature on the reproductive health and healthcare of women Veterans has increased dramatically, though there are important gaps. This article aims to synthesize recent literature on reproductive health and healthcare of women Veterans. We updated a literature search to identify manuscripts published between 2008 and July 1, 2017.

Preconception Health Risk Factors in Women with and without a History of Military Service.

Introduction: Given the increasing number of women service members and veterans of childbearing age, it is important to understand the preconception risks in this potentially vulnerable population. This study compared the prevalence of modifiable preconception risk factors among women with and without a history of service.

Methods: Analyses included data from the 2013 and 2014 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

Women Veterans' Experiences with Department of Veterans Affairs Maternity Care: Current Successes and Targets for Improvement.

Introduction: Little is known about women veterans' experiences accessing and using Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) maternity care, which is nearly all purchased from non-VA providers.

Objective: To understand women veterans' experiences, preferences, and challenges using VA maternity care.

Methods: We conducted 27 semistructured interviews with women veterans who used VA maternity care during fiscal year 2016.

Thorase variants are associated with defects in glutamatergic neurotransmission that can be rescued by Perampanel.

The AAA+ adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) Thorase plays a critical role in controlling synaptic plasticity by regulating the expression of surface α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptors (AMPARs). Bidirectional sequencing of exons of , the gene encoding Thorase, in a cohort of patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls revealed rare Thorase variants. These variants caused defects in glutamatergic signaling by impairing AMPAR internalization and recycling in mouse primary cortical neurons.

Precision therapy for a new disorder of AMPA receptor recycling due to mutations in .

Objective: encodes Thorase, a mediator of α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-proprionate (AMPA) receptor recycling; in this work, we characterized the phenotype resulting from mutations and developed a targeted therapy in both mice and humans.

Methods: Using exome sequencing, we identified a novel mutation (p.E276X) as the etiology of a devastating neurologic disorder characterized by hypertonia, seizures, and death in a consanguineous family.

Preconception care and reproductive planning in primary care.

Preconception care is designed to identify and reduce biomedical, behavioral, and social risks to the health of a woman or her baby before pregnancy occurs. Few women present requesting preconception care; however, 1 in 10 US women of childbearing age will become pregnant each year. As primary care physicians (PCPs) care for reproductive-aged women before, between, and after their pregnancies, they are ideally positioned to help women address health risks before conception, including optimizing chronic conditions, to prevent adverse pregnancy and longer-term health outcomes.