Treatment of Hypercalcemic Hyperparathyroidism After Kidney Transplantation Is Associated With Improved Allograft Survival.

Background: Hyperparathyroidism (HPT) and malignancy are the most common causes of hypercalcemia. Among kidney transplant (KT) recipients, hypercalcemia is mostly caused by tertiary HPT. Persistent tertiary HPT after KT is associated with allograft failure.

An Evaluation of Health Literacy in Patients Undergoing Surgical Evaluation for Thyroid Disease.

Introduction: Health literacy (HL) is the ability to comprehend and apply health information to make informed health-care decisions. Poor HL results in the inability to provide informed consent, medication noncompliance, inconsistent follow-up, and delayed seeking of care. Data about HL in endocrine surgery is currently lacking.

Barriers and Facilitators for Under-Represented in Medicine (URiM) Medical Students Interested in Surgical Sub-specialties.

Background: Little is known on drivers and detractors underrepresented in medicine (URiM) medical students face.

Methods: Using the nominal group technique (NGT), we explored experiences that strengthen or weaken the enthusiasm to pursue a career in surgery among URiM medical students (October 2021- April 2022); participants voted on the three most important experiences (weight of 3= top rated, = 1 for the lowest rated). Responses from NGT with at least one vote were weighted, ranked, and categorized.

Real-world trends in incidence of bacterial sexually transmissible infections among gay and bisexual men using HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in Australia following nationwide PrEP implementation: an analysis of sentinel surveillance data.

Background: Although data from large implementation trials suggest that sexually transmissible infection (STI) risk increases among gay and bisexual men who initiate HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), there are few data on the trends in population-level STI incidence in the years following widespread PrEP implementation. We aimed to describe trends in bacterial STI incidence among gay and bisexual men using PrEP across Australia in the context of broad PrEP availability through Australia's subsidised medicines scheme.

Methods: We analysed linked clinical data from HIV-negative gay and bisexual men aged 16 years or older who had been prescribed PrEP across a sentinel surveillance clinical network, including 37 clinics in Australia, between Jan 1, 2016, and Dec 31, 2019.

Using the H-index as a factor in the promotion of surgical faculty.

Introduction: Academic productivity is an important determinant for promotion. However, the measurement of academic productivity is ill-defined. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the academic productivity at the time of promotions at our institution.

Sexual health service adaptations to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Australia: a nationwide online survey.

Objective: Examine the changes in service delivery Australian public sexual health clinics made to remain open during lockdown.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey designed and delivered on Qualtrics was emailed to 21 directors of public sexual health clinics across Australia from July-August 2020 and asked about a variety of changes to service delivery. Descriptive statistics were calculated.

Human papillomavirus prevalence and risk factors among Australian women 9-12 years after vaccine program introduction.

Background: In Australia, high and widespread uptake of the quadrivalent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine has led to substantial population-level reductions in the prevalence of quadrivalent vaccine targeted HPV genotypes 6/11/16/18 in women aged ≤ 35 years. We assessed risk factors for HPV detection among 18-35 year old women, 9-12 years after vaccine program introduction.

Methods: Women attending health services between 2015 and 2018 provided a self-collected vaginal specimen for HPV genotyping (Roche Linear Array) and completed a questionnaire.

Twelve tips for implementing effective service learning.

Service learning is an educational methodology that facilitates transformation of students' knowledge, attitudes and attitudes around holistic care through work with community organizations. To implement academically, defensible service learning requires faculty endorsement, consideration of course credit, an enthusiastic champion able to negotiate agreements with organizations, organizations' identification of their own projects so they are willing to both fund and supervise them, curricular underpinning that imparts the project skills necessary for success, embedding at a time when students' clinical identity is being formed, small packets of curriculum elements delivered "just in time" as students engage with their project, flexible online platform/s, assessment that is organically related to the project, providing cross cultural up-skilling, and focused on the students' responsibility for their own product. The result is a learning experience that is engaging for medical students, links the university to the community, and encourages altruism which is otherwise reported to decline through medical school.

Detection of and from pooled rectal, pharyngeal and urine specimens in men who have sex with men.

Objectives: Screening of men who have sex with men (MSM) for (CT) and (NG) requires sampling from anorectal and pharyngeal sites in addition to urogenital sampling. Due to the cost of testing multiple anatomical sites individually testing of pooled specimens has potential merit. The Cepheid GeneXpert CT/NG assay (GeneXpert), which also has potential for point-of-care nucleic acid testing in the sexual health clinic, has not been assessed for pooled specimen testing.

Early sexual experiences of teenage heterosexual males in Australia: a cross-sectional survey.

Objective: There are limited data on the patterns of early sexual behaviours among Australian teenage heterosexual boys. This study describes the nature and onset of early sexual experiences in this population through a cross-sectional survey.

Design: A cross-sectional survey between 2014 and 2015 SETTING: Major sexual health clinics and community sources across Australia PARTICIPANTS: Heterosexual men aged 17-19 years RESULTS: There were 191 men in the study with a median age of 19.

Penicillin Dried Blood Spot Assay for Use in Patients Receiving Intramuscular Benzathine Penicillin G and Other Penicillin Preparations To Prevent Rheumatic Fever.

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) remains an important global health challenge. Administration of benzathine penicillin (BPG) every 3 to 4 weeks is recommended as a secondary prophylaxis to prevent recurrent episodes of acute rheumatic fever and subsequent RHD. Following intramuscular injection, BPG is hydrolyzed to penicillin G (benzylpenicillin).

Human Papillomavirus Prevalence in Unvaccinated Heterosexual Men After a National Female Vaccination Program.

Background: In Australia, high uptake of the quadrivalent human papillomavirus (4vHPV) vaccine has led to reductions in the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) genotypes 6, 11, 16, and 18 in women and girls aged ≤25 years. We evaluated the impact of the program impact on HPV prevalence in unvaccinated male subjects.

Methods: Sexually active heterosexual male subjects aged 16-35 years were recruited in 2014-2016.

Repeatability and comparison of clinical techniques for anterior chamber angle assessment.

Purpose: To assess the repeatability of gonioscopy, van Herick method and anterior segment Optical Coherence Tomography (AS-OCT) and determine the agreement between these techniques within a community optometry setting.

Methods: Gonioscopy, van Herick method and AS-OCT imaging were performed by an optometrist on two occasions, 1 month apart, on 80 subjects aged over 40 years recruited from community optometry practices. Anterior segment images were captured with a spectral domain OCT (Topcon 3D OCT-2000; wavelength 840 nm) set to the Anterior Segment (AS) mode.

Implementation of a 24-hour pharmacy service with prospective medication review in the emergency department.

Background: It is reported that more than 128 million patients are seen in emergency departments (EDs) annually. Patient overcrowding had been associated with an increased occurrence of medication errors.

Purpose: Due to increased patient volume and the need for improved patient safety, a 24-hour pharmacy service was established for our institution's ED.

Simultaneous purification and fractionation of nucleic acids and proteins from complex samples using bidirectional isotachophoresis.

We report on our efforts to create an on-chip system to simultaneously purify and fractionate nucleic acids and proteins from complex samples using isotachophoresis (ITP). We have developed this technique to simultaneously extract extracellular DNA and proteins from human blood serum samples and deliver these to two separate output reservoirs on a chip. The purified DNA is compatible with quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), and proteins can be extracted so as to exclude albumin, the most abundant protein in serum.

High chlamydia positivity rates in Indigenous people attending Australian sexual health services.

Objective: To assess the clinical epidemiology of chlamydia among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) people attending sexual health services around Australia.

Design: Retrospective analysis of routine demographic, behavioural and clinical data, between 1 January 2006 and 31 December 2011.

Setting: 18 sexual health services in major cities and regional centres in five jurisdictions.

On-chip separation and analysis of RNA and DNA from single cells.

The simultaneous analysis of RNA and DNA of single cells remains a challenge as these species have very similar physical and biochemical properties and can cross-contaminate each other. Presented is an on-chip system that enables selective lysing of single living cells, extraction, focusing, and absolute quantification of cytoplasmic RNA mass and its physical separation from DNA in the nucleus using electrical lysing and isotachophoresis (ITP). This absolute quantitation is performed without enzymatic amplification in less than 5 min.

Purification of nucleic acids using isotachophoresis.

Reviewed are methods of nucleic acid (NA) extraction and sample preparation using an electrophoretic purification and focusing method called isotachophoresis (ITP). ITP requires no special surface chemistries or geometric structures, and can be achieved in a compact system with no moving parts. ITP is also compatible with a wide range of samples and lysing methods.

Are Australian sexual health clinics attracting priority populations?

To answer a key question ('Are Australian sexual health clinics attracting priority populations?'), we used data from 44 Australian sexual health clinics between 2004 and 2011. We assessed the proportion of patients that were from priority populations (deemed to be at risk of sexually transmissible infections) and compared this to their proportions in the general population using data from Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Australian Study of Health and Relationships. A χ(2)-test was used.

To develop and measure the effectiveness and acceptability of a pharmacy-based chlamydia screening intervention in Australia.

Objectives: To develop and measure the effectiveness and acceptability of a pharmacy-based chlamydia screening intervention called Emergency Contraception Mediated Pharmacy Access to Chlamydia Testing (ECOMPACT).

Design: Selective, opportunistic and cross-sectional study targeting asymptomatic women requesting emergency contraception (EC).

Setting: 20 community pharmacies in the Perth metropolitan region, Australia.

Integrated printed circuit board device for cell lysis and nucleic acid extraction.

Preparation of raw, untreated biological samples remains a major challenge in microfluidics. We present a novel microfluidic device based on the integration of printed circuit boards and an isotachophoresis assay for sample preparation of nucleic acids from biological samples. The device has integrated resistive heaters and temperature sensors as well as a 70 μm × 300 μm × 3.