Publications by authors named "McCourt E"

The association of low birth weight and development of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is well established for singletons; however, the association of birth weight and ROP in twins of discordant weight is understudied. Using an ROP registry, we investigated whether smaller twins were at greater risk for developing any stage ROP (stage 1 or greater in either eye) compared with their larger siblings, after adjusting for birth weight and gestational age. Discordance was defined as a birth weight difference of >25%.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

While foot immersion and neck cooling have been recommended for protecting heat-vulnerable groups, recent evidence does not support their efficacy for mitigating increases in physiological heat strain in older adults. However, their influence on self-reported environmental symptoms and mood-state remains unclear. Seventeen older adults (nine females, median [interquartile range] age: 72 [69-74]) completed three randomized heat exposures (6-h; 38°C, 35% relative humidity) with no cooling (control), foot immersion to mid-calf in 20°C water for the final 40-min of each hour (foot immersion), or foot immersion with a wet towel (20°C) around the neck (foot immersion with neck cooling).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Foot immersion and neck cooling are recommended cooling strategies for protecting heat-vulnerable persons during heat waves. While we recently showed that these strategies do not limit core temperature increases in older adults during prolonged heat exposure, we did observe small reductions in heart rate. Expanding on these findings, we examined the effects of foot immersion with and without neck cooling on cardiac autonomic function.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Corneal epithelial defects heal as new cells grow from the limbus, but effective topical treatments are lacking; human breast milk (HBM) contains bioactive molecules that may aid epithelial healing, prompting this study to explore its effectiveness.
  • In a mouse model, defects were created and treated with HBM, a standard ophthalmic ointment, or saline, with results analyzed at multiple time points using various methods like fluorescein, RT-qPCR, and ELISA.
  • Results indicated that HBM-treated corneas showed significantly better re-epithelialization and increased cellular proliferation markers (Ki67) within 8 hours of treatment, suggesting that HBM can enhance corneal wound healing and may warrant further research on limbal
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Older adults are at greater risk of heat-related morbidity and mortality during heat waves, which is commonly linked to impaired thermoregulation. However, little is known about the influence of increasing age on the relation between thermal strain and perceptual responses during daylong heat exposure. We evaluated thermal and perceptual responses in 20 young (19-31 yr) and 39 older adults (20 with hypertension and/or type 2 diabetes; 61-78 yr) resting in the heat for 9 h (heat index: 37°C).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

To maintain heat balance during exercise, humans rely on skin blood flow and sweating to facilitate whole body dry and evaporative heat exchange. These responses are modulated by the rise in body temperature (thermal factors), as well as several nonthermal factors implicated in the cardiovascular response to exercise (i.e.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Amblyopia is a common cause of monocular vision impairment and disproportionally affects developmentally delayed children. Photoscreeners have been suggested as a method to detect amblyopia risk factors (ARFs) in children with developmental disabilities who may not be amenable to traditional vision screening methods. The Spot Vision Screener is a commonly used photoscreener for detecting ARF and has shown excellent sensitivity and accuracy in the general pediatric population.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Children with unexplained bilateral cataracts routinely undergo testing for genetic, infectious, and metabolic etiologies. We evaluated the diagnostic yield of various tests ordered by pediatric ophthalmologists to evaluate bilateral cataracts in children at a single institution.

Methods: We retrospectively identified all children with bilateral unexplained cataracts who underwent cataract surgery by a pediatric ophthalmologist at Children's Hospital Colorado from 2006 to 2022.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Digital transformation in healthcare improves the safety of health systems. Within our health service, a new digital hospital has been established and two wards from a neighbouring paper-based hospital transitioned into the new digital hospital. This created an opportunity to evaluate the impact of complete digital transformation on medication safety.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

With rising global temperatures, heat-related mortality is increasing, particularly among older adults. Although this is often attributed to declines in thermoregulatory function, little is known regarding the effect of age on the cellular processes associated with mitigating heat-induced cytotoxicity. We compared key components of the cellular stress response in 19 young (19-31 yr; 10 female) and 37 older adults (61-78 yr; 10 female) during 9 h of heat exposure (40°C, 9% relative humidity).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Aging is associated with an elevated risk of heat-related mortality and morbidity, attributed, in part, to declines in thermoregulation. However, comparisons between young and older adults have been limited to brief exposures (1-4 h), which may not adequately reflect the duration or severity of the heat stress experienced during heat waves. We therefore evaluated physiological responses in 20 young (19-31 yr; 10 females) and 39 older (61-78 yr; 11 females) adults during 9 h of rest at 40°C and 9% relative humidity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis (CTX) is a rare, autosomal recessive bile acid synthesis disorder caused by pathologic variants in CYP27A1, a gene involved in bile acid synthesis. Impaired function in this gene leads to accumulation of plasma cholestanol (PC) in various tissues, often in early childhood, resulting in such clinical signs as infantile diarrhea, early-onset bilateral cataracts, and neurological deterioration. The current study aimed to identify cases of CTX in a population of patients with a greater CTX prevalence than the general population, to facilitate early diagnosis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We sought to define the mechanism underlying lung microvascular regeneration in a model of severe acute lung injury (ALI) induced by selective lung endothelial cell ablation. Intratracheal instillation of DT in transgenic mice expressing human diphtheria toxin (DT) receptor targeted to ECs resulted in ablation of >70% of lung ECs, producing severe ALI with near complete resolution by 7 days. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, eight distinct endothelial clusters were resolved, including alveolar aerocytes (aCap) ECs expressing apelin at baseline and general capillary (gCap) ECs expressing the apelin receptor.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Intracranial arachnoid cysts are relatively common in the pediatric population. Rarely, they rupture, leading to acute subdural fluid collections, which can cause a sudden increase in intracranial pressure. The purpose of this study was to characterize ophthalmic sequelae in a large cohort of these patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The 2018 Australian Heart Failure (HF) guidelines strongly recommended commencing sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT-2is) in HF patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The uptake of SGLT-2is for HF patients with T2DM in our health service is unknown.

Aims: To determine the adoption of the 2018 HF guidelines by assessing the temporal trends of SGLT-2is' usage in HF patients with T2DM at Metro South Health (MSH) hospitals, in South-East Queensland.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The medical records of 2,457 infants screened and staged for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) at the University of Colorado Hospital and Children's Hospital Colorado between 2006 and 2021 were reviewed to identify those with "unstable clinical course," that is, babies who did not meet the published birthweight (BW) or gestational age (GA) screening criteria but for whom an ROP examination was requested by the treating neonatologist. A total of 146 infants (5.9%) with unstable clinical course were identified and found to be similar to infants meeting the BW/GA criteria for ROP screening in terms of sex, race/ethnicity, and singleton/multiple birth.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We present a case of ganciclovir-resistant cytomegalovirus retinitis (CMV) in a 4-month-old boy with congenital CMV infection. This case highlights the potential utility of a combination of intermittent viral load monitoring and retinal examinations in cases of congenital CMV with retinitis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Opioid prescribing rates are continuing to increase in Australia in line with prescribing rates seen internationally. Prescribing limits are one policy strategy to reduce short-term opioid prescribing, but there is limited evidence of their impact.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of state and national policy interventions on changes to oxycodone 5 mg discharge prescriptions in public hospitals using electronic prescribing in Queensland, Australia by evaluating the proportion of oxycodone 5 mg discharge prescriptions written for ≤ 10 tablets across the study period.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Computerised Physician Order Entry (CPOE) software is increasingly used across the world to improve medication safety. However, few high-quality studies have reviewed the impact of CPOE on prescribing errors and patient harm.

Objective: To investigate the effect of a hybrid CPOE-paper prescribing system on prescribing errors at a secondary hospital site.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

To mitigate excessive rises in core temperature (>1 °C) in non-heat acclimatized workers, the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) provides heat stress limits (Action Limit Values; ALV), defined by the wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and a worker's metabolic rate. However, since these limits are based on data from men, their suitability for women remains unclear. We therefore assessed core temperature and heart rate in men ( = 19; body surface area-to-mass ratio: 250 (SD 17) cm/kg) and women ( = 15; body surface area-to-mass ratio: 268 (SD 24) cm/kg) aged 18-45 years during 180 min of walking at a moderate metabolic rate (200 W/m) in WBGTs below (16 and 24 °C) and above (28 and 32 °C) ACGIH ALV.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To determine the prevalence of physician burnout among ophthalmologists in the United States and identify associated risks.

Setting: All practice types within the United States.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To determine changes in the clinical treatment of pediatric patients taking vigabatrin for seizure control in response to results of electroretinogram (ERG) performed for retinal toxicity screening.

Methods: The authors retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients who received ERGs at Children's Hospital of Colorado from 2009 to 2012. Age, indication for ERG, ERG data, and clinical management of vigabatrin were extracted from the records.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Ivosidenib is a potent and selective small molecule inhibitor of mutant isocitrate dehydrogenase 1. Accurate measurement of ivosidenib is the key to ivosidenib pharmacokinetics in clinical trials. Quantitation of ivosidenib was conducted by using a stable isotope labeled compound (ivosidenib-d) as the internal standard.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF