Publications by authors named "Gertz S"

South Asians living in the United States are frequently underrepresented in health research. Their lack of participation limits the generalizability of research to them and keeps them from receiving the high-quality care and innovation that some studies may offer. "Research Ready" is a five-panel, community co-created graphic-style story that encourages discussion around the purpose of research, safety/protection while participating, and why diverse participation-including South Asians-improves study results and leads to more effective interventions/treatments.

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Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) uses cytotoxic chemotherapy and/or radiation followed by intravenous infusion of stem cells to cure malignancies, bone marrow failure and inborn errors of immunity, hemoglobin and metabolism. Lung injury is a known complication of the process, due in part to disruption in the pulmonary microenvironment by insults such as infection, alloreactive inflammation and cellular toxicity. How microorganisms, immunity and the respiratory epithelium interact to contribute to lung injury is uncertain, limiting the development of prevention and treatment strategies.

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Pediatric COVID-19 vaccination is effective in preventing COVID-19-related hospitalization, but duration of protection of the original monovalent vaccine during SARS-CoV-2 Omicron predominance merits evaluation, particularly given low coverage with updated COVID-19 vaccines. During December 19, 2021-October 29, 2023, the Overcoming COVID-19 Network evaluated vaccine effectiveness (VE) of ≥2 original monovalent COVID-19 mRNA vaccine doses against COVID-19-related hospitalization and critical illness among U.S.

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Article Synopsis
  • A study investigated the impact of pre-existing immunocompromising conditions (ICCs) on pediatric patients with acute COVID-19 admitted to intensive care across 55 hospitals in the U.S.!
  • Out of 1,274 patients, 105 had ICCs, which were linked to higher in-hospital mortality (11.4% vs. 4.6%) and longer hospital stays, although initial disease severity was similar between those with and without ICCs.!
  • Despite the challenges, most patients with ICCs survived and left the hospital without new severe health issues, highlighting a positive aspect of the outcomes for these vulnerable patients.!
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Article Synopsis
  • This study aims to define immunocompromised-associated pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome (I-PARDS) and contrast it with regular pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome (PARDS).
  • Data were analyzed from the PARDIE study, which included a wide dataset of children with PARDS across 145 PICUs in 27 countries.
  • Findings indicate that children with I-PARDS have a higher severity of illness, increased PICU mortality, and are less likely to be extubated successfully within 28 days compared to those with regular PARDS.
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Introduction: Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Sepsis Investigators (PALISI) is a network fostering clinical research to optimize care for critically ill children. We aim to examine the efforts of the PALISI Network to increase gender parity in research, as evidenced by authorship.

Methods: The first and senior authors of all published PALISI articles from 2002 to 2021 were analyzed for gender of presentation.

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Article Synopsis
  • A study analyzed the clinical characteristics and vaccination status of young children hospitalized for acute COVID-19 across 28 pediatric hospitals in the U.S. from September 2022 to May 2023.
  • Of the 597 children examined, only 4.5% had completed their primary COVID-19 vaccination series, while 7.0% had started but not completed it, with the majority being unvaccinated.
  • Most children admitted with severe COVID-19, including those requiring intensive care, were previously healthy and had not initiated vaccination, highlighting a concerning gap in immunization among vaccine-eligible young kids.
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  • Lung injury is really important for kids' survival after getting special treatments for blood diseases, and scientists want to learn more about how germs and the body work together in the lungs.
  • In a big study, researchers looked at lung samples from 229 kids at 32 hospitals over 8 years and found 4 different groups of patients based on their lung microbe makeup.
  • Each group had different health outcomes: one group had low infection rates and low death rates, while others had high infection and death rates, showing that the type of lung microbes can greatly affect survival.
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Objective: To identify risk factors for persistent impairments after pediatric hospitalization for acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) or multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Methods: Across 25 U.S.

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Article Synopsis
  • Infants under 6 months are not eligible for COVID-19 vaccines, but maternal vaccination during pregnancy can help protect these infants from being hospitalized due to COVID-19.
  • A study found that vaccinated mothers showed a 35% effectiveness in preventing COVID-19-related hospitalizations in infants under 6 months and 54% for those under 3 months.
  • Vaccinated mothers had lower rates of severe outcomes for their infants, such as intensive care unit admissions and the need for mechanical ventilation, highlighting the importance of vaccination for expectant mothers.*
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Advanced analysis of the morphological features of the photoplethysmographic (PPG) waveform may provide greater understanding of mechanisms of action of photobiomodulation (PBM). Photobiomodulation is a non-ionizing, red to near-infrared irradiation shown to induce peripheral vasodilatation, promote wound healing, and reduce pain. Using laser Doppler flowmetry combined with thermal imaging we found previously in a clinical study that PBM stimulates microcirculatory blood flow and that baseline palm skin temperature determines, at least in part, why some individuals respond favorably to PBM while others do not.

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Combat soldiers are currently faced with using a hearing-protection device (HPD) at the cost of adequately detecting critical signals impacting mission success. The current study tested the performance of the Perforated-Concave-Earplug (pCEP), a proof-of-concept passive HPD consisting of a concave bowl-like rigid structure attached to a commercial roll-down earplug, designed to improve sound localization with minimal compromising of noise attenuation. Primarily intended for combat/military training settings, our aim was an evaluation of localization of relevant sound sources (single/multiple gunfire, continuous noise, spoken word) compared to 3M™-Combat-Arms™4.

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Importance: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) and infant hospitalization worldwide.

Objective: To evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of RSV-related critical illness in US infants during peak 2022 RSV transmission.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional study used a public health prospective surveillance registry in 39 pediatric hospitals across 27 US states.

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Objectives: To develop, evaluate, and explore the use of a pediatric ordinal score as a potential clinical trial outcome metric in children hospitalized with acute hypoxic respiratory failure caused by viral respiratory infections.

Design: We modified the World Health Organization Clinical Progression Scale for pediatric patients (CPS-Ped) and assigned CPS-Ped at admission, days 2-4, 7, and 14. We identified predictors of clinical improvement (day 14 CPS-Ped ≤ 2 or a three-point decrease) using competing risks regression and compared clinical improvement to hospital length of stay (LOS) and ventilator-free days.

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Many youths and young adults have variable environmental health knowledge, limited understanding of their local environment's impact on their health, and poor environmentally friendly behaviors. We sought to develop and test a tool to reliably capture data, increase environmental health knowledge, and engage youths as citizen scientists to examine and take action on their community's challenges. The Eyewitness Community Survey (ECS) was developed through several iterations of co-design.

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Importance: Acute neurological involvement occurs in some patients with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), but few data report neurological and psychological sequelae, and no investigations include direct assessments of cognitive function 6 to 12 months after discharge.

Objective: To characterize neurological, psychological, and quality of life sequelae after MIS-C.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional cohort study was conducted in the US and Canada.

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Patients undergoing total-knee arthroplasty (TKA) have transient increases in anterior knee skin temperature (ST) that subside as recovery progresses-except in cases of systemic or local prosthetic joint infections (PJI). This meta-analysis was designed to quantify the changes in knee ST following TKA in patients with uncomplicated recovery as a prerequisite for assessing the usefulness of thermal imaging for diagnosis of PJI. This meta-analysis (PROSPERO-CRD42021269864) was performed according to PRISMA guidelines.

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Limited health literacy and access to engaging, relevant, understandable health promotion and disease prevention materials are barriers to achieving and maintaining health. The We-Engage-4-Health program co-created the graphic-style story "Foamy Soap Fun" with community members to reinforce the importance of the primary preventive strategy-handwashing-in limiting spread of COVID-19. Pre/postsurveys were administered, and a modified focus group was conducted to learn community participants' preferences for reading stories (aloud together and/or silently to themselves), versus reading typical health promotion information sheets.

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Article Synopsis
  • This study focused on children and adolescents hospitalized for COVID-19, evaluating the prevalence of bacterial coinfections and the use of empiric antibiotics during their stay.
  • Of the 532 patients analyzed, 63.3% received antibiotics, but only 7.1% had bacterial coinfections, with just 3.0% having respiratory bacterial coinfections.
  • The results indicate that while antibiotic use is common in these cases, bacterial coinfections are rare, suggesting that more careful antibiotic prescribing and quicker assessment for coinfection could be beneficial.
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Aseptic meningitis is a rare but potentially serious complication of intravenous immunoglobulin treatment. In this case series, meningitic symptoms following intravenous immunoglobulin initiation in patients with multisystem inflammatory syndrome were rare (7/2,086 [0.3%]).

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Having a beard is an independent predictor of difficult ventilation by face mask. This study evaluates the efficacy of a novel intra-oral Bag-Valve-Guedel Adaptor (BVGA) in anaesthetized bearded patients. Patients with ASA score 1-2, scheduled for elective surgery, were recruited for this prospective, crossover trial.

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Background: Autoantibodies against type I IFNs occur in approximately 10% of adults with life-threatening coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The frequency of anti-IFN autoantibodies in children with severe sequelae of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is unknown.

Objective: We quantified anti-type I IFN autoantibodies in a multicenter cohort of children with severe COVID-19, multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), and mild SARS-CoV-2 infections.

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Background: Hospitalization for severe influenza infection in childhood may result in postdischarge sequelae.

Objective: To evaluate inpatient management and postdischarge sequelae in children with critical respiratory illness owing to influenza with or without preexisting asthma.

Methods: This was a prospective, observational multicenter study of children (aged 8 months to 17 years) admitted to a pediatric intensive care or high-acuity unit (in November 2019 to April 2020) for influenza.

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