Publications by authors named "Jim Oates"

Article Synopsis
  • The study validated algorithms using Medicare claims data to accurately identify Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and lupus nephritis (LN), aiming to improve the Lupus Index for research purposes.
  • Researchers analyzed retrospective data from a South Carolina cohort and compared algorithm performance based on ICD-10 codes, finding that the best results for SLE were from two ICD-10 codes with or without a 30-day gap.
  • The results emphasize the need for specific algorithms tailored to research goals, facilitating better geographical resource allocation and studies on health disparities and clinical trial site identification.
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Objective: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) affects nine women to every man worldwide, and these patients are at greater risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Clinical studies have demonstrated that patients with SLE are more likely to develop CVD, including cardiac and vascular dysfunction. Although many preclinical models of SLE are available, including treatment with Toll-like receptor (TLR) 7/8 agonists, a consistent preclinical model of SLE-like CVD with systemic, cardiac, renal, and cerebral endothelial activation and cardiac dysfunction has yet to be described.

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Objective: Health literacy is an important social determinant of health, with limited health literacy associated with worse health outcomes. This study examined the associations between limited health literacy with patient-reported outcomes and disease activity/damage among 267 Black women with active systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) enrolled in the Peer Approaches to Lupus Self-Management (PALS) program.

Methods: The three-item Chew Health Literacy Screening was used to dichotomize those reporting in the "limited" range on any item with outcomes compared via generalized linear models.

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Nitric oxide (NO) is widely recognized for its role in regulating renal function and blood pressure. However, the precise mechanisms by which NO affects renal epithelial cells remain understudied. Our previous research has shown that NO signaling in glomerular podocytes can be initiated by Angiotensin II (ANG II) but not by ATP.

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Article Synopsis
  • Increased mechanical stretch of endothelial cells contributes to cardiovascular and renal diseases and its effects vary between sexes.
  • Endothelial cells, while not typical antigen-presenting cells, can still express important molecules (MHCs) that influence immune responses when stimulated by cytokines.
  • Experiments showed that in male renal endothelial cells, mechanical stretch decreased MHC I expression but increased it in females, with both sexes showing upregulation of MHC II, indicating sex-dependent responses to mechanical stress.
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Article Synopsis
  • The study examined the reliability of electronic health record (EHR) data for understanding the relationship between tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) and infections among patients with autoimmune diseases.
  • EHR data from clinical research networks (CRNs) was pooled, and the accuracy of identifying new TNFi users was evaluated against Medicare claims data, which served as a benchmark.
  • Results showed that a significant portion of EHR prescriptions were unlinked to actual claims, leading to underreporting of hospitalization rates for infections when relying solely on EHR data, indicating the need for integrating additional data sources for accurate pharmacoepidemiology studies.
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Objectives: Families that contain multiple siblings affected with childhood onset of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) likely have strong genetic predispositions. We performed whole exome sequencing (WES) to identify familial rare risk variants and to assess their effects in lupus.

Methods: Sanger sequencing validated the two ultra-rare, predicted pathogenic risk variants discovered by WES and identified additional variants in 562 additional patients with SLE.

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Objectives: There is an intricate interplay between the microbiome and the immune response impacting development of normal immunity and autoimmunity. However, we do not fully understand how the microbiome affects production of natural-like and pathogenic autoantibodies. Peptidoglycan (PGN) is a component of the bacterial cell wall which is highly antigenic.

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Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multisystem autoimmune disease with a peak age of presentation between the 15 and 40 years with a wide variety of disease manifestations. Although there is no formal definition, late onset SLE is generally defined in the literature as onset after the age of 50. It is estimated that 2% to 20% of patients with SLE overall fall into this category.

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Objective: Blood microbiome has been analyzed in cancer patients using machine learning. We aimed to study whether the plasma microbiome represents the microbial community in the gut among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and healthy controls (HCs).

Methods: Paired plasma and stool samples from female patients with SLE and female HCs were assessed for microbiome composition by microbial 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing.

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Substantial evidence has supported the role of endothelial cell (EC) activation and dysfunction in the development of hypertension, chronic kidney disease (CKD), and lupus nephritis (LN). In both humans and experimental models of hypertension, CKD, and LN, ECs become activated and release potent mediators of inflammation including cytokines, chemokines, and reactive oxygen species that cause EC dysfunction, tissue damage, and fibrosis. Factors that activate the endothelium include inflammatory cytokines, mechanical stretch, and pathological shear stress.

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Not so long ago, defining the "medical record" was simple. It was the paper chart-volume upon volume that captured the serial, dutifully recorded events of a person's health care at a hospital or physician's office. Entries were typically handwritten, dated and timed, and signed in ink with title (i.

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In order to develop prediction models of one-year treatment response in lupus nephritis, an approach using machine learning to combine traditional clinical data and novel urine biomarkers was undertaken. Contemporary lupus nephritis biomarkers were identified through an unbiased PubMed search. Thirteen novel urine proteins contributed to the top 50% of ranked biomarkers and were selected for measurement at the time of lupus nephritis flare.

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The United States has a deficit of rheumatology specialists. This leads to an increased burden in accessing care for patients requiring specialized care. Given that most rheumatologists are located in urban centers at large hospitals, many lupus patients must travel long distances for routine appointments.

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Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic inflammatory disease in which the immune system attacks healthy tissues. While pharmaceutical therapies are an important part of disease management, behavioral interventions have been implemented to increase patients' disease self-management skills, provide social support, and encourage patients to take a more active role in their care. Three interventions are considered in this study; peer-to-peer methodology, patient support group, and a patient navigator program that were implemented among largely African American women with SLE at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC).

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Objective: Elevated interleukin-10 (IL-10) levels in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have B cell-promoting effects, contributing to autoantibody production and tissue damage. We aimed to characterize up-regulated IL-10+ B cell subsets and dysregulated IL10 expression in SLE B cells for new therapeutic options.

Methods: Proportions of Th10 and IL-10+ B cell subsets in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were assessed using flow cytometry.

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Objective: Lupus nephritis (LN) is an immune complex-mediated glomerular and tubulointerstitial disease in patients with SLE. Prediction of outcomes at the onset of LN diagnosis can guide decisions regarding intensity of monitoring and therapy for treatment success. Currently, no machine learning model of outcomes exists.

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Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects females more than males, with African Americans developing more severe manifestation of the disease. SLE patients are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), and SLE women 35-44 years old have 50 fold the incidence rate of CVD. Because SLE patients do not follow the typical age and gender pattern for CVD, but instead an accelerated disease course, the traditional biomarkers of elevated LDL and total cholesterol levels do not accurately assess their CVD risk.

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Objective: The Care-coordination Approach to Learning Lupus Self-Management (CALLS) study was designed to improve SLE disease self-management. This study aims to assess the benefits of the intervention compared with existing lupus care.

Methods: Participants were randomly assigned to participate in 12-weekly phone sessions with the patient navigator that included structured educational content, care coordination and patient-centred support services, or a usual care control condition.

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Introduction: Identifying predictors of patient outcomes evaluated over time may require modeling interactions among variables while addressing within-subject correlation. Generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) and generalized estimating equations (GEEs) address within-subject correlation, but identifying interactions can be difficult if not hypothesized . We evaluate the performance of several variable selection approaches for clustered binary outcomes to provide guidance for choosing between the methods.

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Objective: To examine the therapeutic effects of camptothecin (CPT) and topotecan (TPT), inhibitors of transcription factor Fli-1 and topoisomerase, on lupus nephritis in (NZB × NZW)F1 (NZBWF1) mice, and to examine the effects of CPT and TPT on inflammatory mediators in human renal cells.

Methods: Female NZBWF1 mice were treated with vehicle, cyclophosphamide (CYC), CPT (1 mg/kg or 2 mg/kg), or TPT (0.03 mg/kg, 0.

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Blood microbiome is important to investigate microbial-host interactions and the effects on systemic immune perturbations. However, this effort has met with major challenges due to low microbial biomass and background artifacts. In the current study, microbial 16S DNA sequencing was applied to analyze plasma microbiome.

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Klotho long recognized for its role in anti-aging, is potentially implicated in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and systemic sclerosis. Aging of the immune system coincides with the inability of the body to recognize self-antigens, which often leads to autoimmune responses. The role of Klotho in these autoimmune diseases should be of high interest; however, few articles have been published exploring the role of Klotho in the pathogenesis, organ involvement, or clinical manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and systemic sclerosis.

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Objective: Electronic health records (EHRs) represent powerful tools to study rare diseases. Our objective was to develop and validate EHR algorithms to identify systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) births across centers.

Methods: We developed algorithms in a training set using an EHR with over 3 million subjects and validated the algorithms at 2 other centers.

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