Access to clinically indicated genetic tests for pediatric patients with Medicaid: Evidence from outpatient genetics clinics in Texas.

Purpose: Little is known about how Medicaid coverage policies affect access to genetic tests for pediatric patients. Building upon and extending a previous analysis of prior authorization requests (PARs), we describe expected coverage of genetic tests submitted to Texas Medicaid and the PAR and diagnostic outcomes of those tests.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed genetic tests ordered at 3 pediatric outpatient genetics clinics in Texas.

The effects of Müller-Lyer illusion on toe clearance height in stair ascent.

Background: The appearance of a stair can impact the safe negotiation of stair climbing. Increasing toe clearance height is a common strategy for reducing the risk of tripping when stepping onto a raised surface.

Research Question: Can the Müller-Lyer illusion cause people to increase their toe clearance height when walking over a stair?

Methods: Indoors, 15 healthy individuals (9 women and 6 men) walked up a 3-step staircase with each step 60 cm wide, 18 cm tall, and 30.

The Empathy Project: A Skills-Development Game: Innovations in Empathy Development.

Context: Empathy is increasingly described as a learnable skill and is included in professionalism requirements for health care providers, yet there are few effective tools for developing and practicing empathy skills.

Innovation: An educational innovation intended to isolate and develop skills to respond to patients' emotions. The game-based tool was developed on the job during the authors' Hospice and Palliative Medicine fellowship year and was played with learners in various disciplines.

Blunted satiety in fatty Zucker rats.

Levels of weight gain have hit an epidemic level with rates of overweight and obesity diagnoses topping all-time highs. Elevated body weight has been linked to increased rates of cardiac problems, blood pressure issues, and risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Leptin, a hormone produced by the body that is involved in energy balance by inhibiting hunger has been implicated as an underlying mechanism that differentially contributes to food-seeking motivation.