Non-invasive cardiac output monitor validation study in pediatric cardiac surgery patients.

Study Objective: To validate a non-invasive cardiac output monitor in pediatric cardiac surgery patients.

Design: Prospective trial.

Setting: Operating room.

Dexmedetomidine use in patients undergoing electrophysiological study for supraventricular tachyarrhythmias.

Background: Dexmedetomidine is a selective alpha-2 adrenergic agonist with sedative, analgesic, and anxiolytic properties. Dexmedetomidine has not been approved for use in pediatrics. Dexmedetomidine has been reported to depress sinus node and atrioventricular nodal function in pediatric patients; it has been suggested that the use of dexmedetomidine may not be desirable during electrophysiological studies.

Learning Styles as Predictors of Fieldwork Performance and Learning Adaptability of Graduate Nontraditional Occupational Therapy Students.

Background: Assessing the learning styles of nontraditional graduate students and their adaptation to the fieldwork context is important for the achievement of educational success.

Methods: A non-experimental mixed-methods design examining learning styles, fieldwork performance, and adaptation to the clinical setting in a sample of 84 graduate nontraditional occupational therapy students. Kolb's Learning Style Inventory and the Fieldwork Performance Evaluation were the outcome measures.

Nitrous oxide procedural sedation in non-fasting pediatric patients undergoing minor surgery: a 12-year experience with 1,058 patients.

Background: Nitrous oxide's safety and efficacy for minor procedures is an alternative to general anesthesia, complex sedation protocols, or local anesthetic alone.

Methods: A retrospective review of prospectively-collected data (2000-2012) identified 1,058 children who received single-agent nitrous oxide for minor surgery.

Results: Children (n = 1,058, male 42 %, female 58 %) aged 1-23 years (mean = 9.

Treatment of suspected acute perforated appendicitis with antibiotics and interval appendectomy.

Background: Initial antibiotics with planned interval appendectomy (interval AP) have been used to treat patients with complicated perforated appendicitis; however, little experience exists with this approach in children with suspected acute perforated appendicitis (SAPA). We sought to determine the outcome of initial antibiotics and interval AP in children with SAPA.

Methods: Over an 18-month period, 751 consecutive patients underwent appendectomy including 105 patients with SAPA who were treated with initial intravenous antibiotics and planned interval AP ≥ 8 weeks after presentation.

Can we predict podiatric medical school grade point average using an admission screen?

Background: Most medical school admission committees use cognitive and noncognitive measures to inform their final admission decisions. We evaluated using admission data to predict academic success for podiatric medical students using first-semester grade point average (GPA) and cumulative GPA at graduation as outcome measures.

Methods: In this study, we used linear multiple regression to examine the predictive power of an admission screen.

Comparison of point-of-care activated clotting time systems utilized in a single pediatric institution.

This study compares four different activated clotting time (ACT) point-of-care (POC) testing systems used at our institution for the management of patients undergoing heparin therapy. We evaluated these systems under identical conditions to determine their accuracy, reproducibility, ease of use, and cost. Two separate testing stations containing four ACT systems were used.

Role of high definition colonoscopy in colorectal adenomatous polyp detection.

Aim: To investigate the rates of polyp detection in a mixed risk population using standard definition (SDC) vs high definition colonoscopes (HDC).

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort comparative study of 3 colonoscopists who each consecutively performed 150 SDC (307, 200 pixel) and 150 HDC (792, 576 pixels) in a community teaching hospital.

Results: A total of 900 colonoscopies were evaluated (mean age 56, 46.

Victim's profile analysis reveals homicide affinity for minorities and the youth.

Background: In this study we have examined the risk of death by homicide in Miami-Dade County and Broward County (BC); and examined the association between socioeconomic status and homicide while describing victim's typical characteristics such as age, gender, race/ethnicity, and type of injury.

Methods: Data was collected from the County's Medical Examiner's Offices, Census Bureau, and Federal Bureau of Investigation between 2004 and 2007.

Results: There has been an increase in the risk of dying by homicide in the studied area; the homicide rate for the selected period was two times higher than the national average.

Congestive heart failure admissions: factors related to hospital length of stay.

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is an illness that affects millions of Americans each year; the cost associated with treatment and care is extensive. This study was based on a total of 480 patients admitted to the Mercy Hospital in Miami, Florida, during 2005. Average length of stay was significantly different based upon type of health insurance, race/ethnicity, marital status, admission source, attending physician specialty, discharge disposition, number of consultations while admitted, surgical procedure, and illness severity.

Prevalence of Helicobacter pylori seropositivity among patients undergoing bariatric surgery: a preliminary study.

Background: The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (HP) seropositivity in patients undergoing bariatric surgery with that of the general population.

Methods: H. pylori serologies, tested by ELISA, were collected on 240 morbidly obese patients seen at the Cleveland Clinic Florida and on 2444 randomly selected patients seen at the Cleveland Clinic Health System from 2003-2005.