A critical analysis of American insurance coverage for imaging and surgical treatment of lymphedema.

Background: Over 35 million Americans have lymphedema. Nonetheless, lymphedema is underdiagnosed and undertreated worldwide. We investigated whether the rates of coverage for imaging and surgical procedures may contribute to the limited care provided for lymphedema.

Trends in the research profile of matched independent plastic surgery fellows.

The independent plastic surgery pathway recruits candidates with 5 years of surgical training who are typically more advanced in research than their integrated counterparts. Research productivity helps to discriminate between applicants. However, no studies exist detailing the academic attributes of matched independent plastic surgery candidates.

Academic Productivity Among Plastic Surgery Subspecialty Fellowship Applicants.

Introduction: Plastic surgery subspecialty fellowships are highly competitive. Academic productivity is an objective metric that can be used to compare candidates. This study aims to evaluate intersubspecialty differences in academic profiles of plastic surgery fellows.

Integrated Plastic Surgery Match: Trends in Research Productivity of Successful Candidates.

Background: Plastic surgery continues to be one of the most competitive specialties in the residency match. Research productivity is a key component of the selection process. Nevertheless, potential applicants have a poor understanding of the strength of their research credentials in comparison to other applicants.

A Multidisciplinary Technique for Concurrent Panniculectomy-Living Donor Renal Transplantation.

Background: Recently, it has been shown that panniculectomy concurrent to living donor renal transplantation is a safe option for management of renal transplant recipients with a large focal pannus. This combined management requires precise coordination of teams. We describe the technique, timing, and sequence for combined renal transplantation and panniculectomy.

A Review of Insurance Coverage of Gender-Affirming Genital Surgery.

Background: Despite the multiple benefits of gender-affirming surgery for treatment of gender dysphoria, research shows that barriers to care still exist. Third-party payers play a pivotal role in enabling access to transition-related care. The authors assessed insurance coverage of genital reconstructive ("bottom") surgery and evaluated the differences between policy criteria and international standards of care.

A Unique, Innovative, Easy-to-Use Program to Improve Young Children's Attitudes About and Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables.

Getting children to eat fruits and vegetables (FV) is an important strategy for the prevention of childhood obesity. However, efforts to increase access to FV have also resulted in many of the vegetables and fruits being wasted, leaving children without the nutritional benefits and the resources not achieving their full desired impact. Multidisciplinary influences have shaped a new program for children ages 2 to 7 that can increase the desirability of and consumption of FV.

Gender Surgery Beyond Chest and Genitals: Current Insurance Landscape.

Background: Plastic surgery plays an essential role in the treatment of gender dysphoria. International standards of care currently consider genital and chest surgeries to be medically necessary. Ancillary procedures such as facial surgery, chondrolaryngoplasty, hair restoration/removal, and body contouring are considered cosmetic surgeries except in individual circumstances.

Health Insurance Coverage of Gender-Affirming Top Surgery in the United States.

Background: Despite the medical necessity, legislative mandates, and economic benefits of gender-affirming surgery, access to treatment remains limited. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) has proposed guidelines for transition-related surgery in conjunction with criteria to delineate medical necessity. The authors assessed insurance coverage of "top" gender-affirming surgery and evaluated the differences between insurance policy criteria and WPATH recommendations.

Validation of the Actical Accelerometer in Multiethnic Preschoolers: The Children's Healthy Living (CHL) Program.

This study aimed to determine the validity and reliability of the Actical accelerometer for measuring physical activity (PA) in preschool children of mixed ethnicity, compared with direct observation via a modified System for Observing Fitness Instruction Time (SOFIT) protocol and proxy parental reports (PA Logs). Fifty children in Hawai'i wore wrist-mounted accelerometers for two 7-day periods with a washout period between each week. Thirty children were concurrently observed using SOFIT.

Recruitment Strategies and Lessons Learned from the Children's Healthy Living Program Prevalence Survey.

The US Affiliated Pacific region's childhood obesity prevalence has reached epidemic proportions. To guide program and policy development, a multi-site study was initiated, in collaboration with partners from across the region, to gather comprehensive information on the regional childhood obesity prevalence. The environmental and cultural diversity of the region presented challenges to recruiting for and implementing a shared community-based, public health research program.

Pacific Tracker 2 - expert system (PacTrac2-ES) behavioural assessment and intervention tool for the Pacific Kids DASH for Health (PacDASH) study.

The Pacific Tracker (PacTrac) is a computer program designed to analyse food intakes of individuals from the Pacific Region. PacTrac's original output included servings of daily intake of food groups according to the United States Food Guide Pyramid, nutrient intake recommendations, and a comparison to other national nutrition recommendations. PacTrac was made available for public use through the Hawaii Foods website (hawaiifoods.

Sharing results from complex disease genetics studies: a community based participatory research approach.

Objectives: Dissemination of research results to communities builds capacity of the community to understand and utilize the results. The objective of this manuscript was to propose a culturally appropriate approach to disseminate complex disease genetics research findings in small Alaska Native communities.

Study Design: The Center for Alaska Native Health Research is a community-based participatory research project (CBPR) directed at understanding the interactions between genetic, nutritional and psychosocial risk factors for obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease in Yup'ik Eskimos.

Psychological stress in adoptive parents of special-needs children.

This article focuses on the nature and extent of parental stress among adoptive parents of special-needs children. In-depth face-to-face interviews of adoptive parents of 35 children were conducted, on average, four months postplacement (but before adoption). One-year follow-up interviews were conducted with parents of 15 (43%) of these children.

Immunocytochemical characterization and subcellular localization of human myristoyl-CoA: protein N-myristoyltransferase in HeLa cells.

Antisera have been raised to three synthetic peptides based on the sequence of human myristoyl-CoA:protein N-myristoyl transferase (NMT) and to the purified enzyme following its expression in Escherichia coli. These antisera have been affinity purified and shown to react both with the E. coli expressed human NMT, and specifically with a protein of molecular weight of 63 kDa in immunoblots of the human cell line HeLa.

Characterization of a polyhistidine-tagged form of human myristoyl-CoA: protein N-myristoyltransferase produced in Escherichia coli.

The enzyme myristoyl-CoA:protein N-myristoyltransferase is responsible for the attachment of a myristoyl group to the N-terminal glycine of a number of cell, viral and fungal proteins. In order to overcome the difficulties of purification of this enzyme from tissue sources, we have produced an N-terminally polyhistidine-tagged version of the enzyme and expressed this in Escherichia coli. The resulting enzyme has a molecular mass of 53 kDa and is fully active showing the expected specificity for myristic acid and causing the N-terminal myristoylation of both synthetic peptide and protein substrates in vitro.

Purification and partial sequencing of myristoyl-CoA:protein N-myristoyltransferase from bovine brain.

The enzyme myristoyl-CoA:protein N-myristoyltransferase (NMT; EC 2.3.1.

Specific psychosocial and behavioral outcomes from the systemic lupus erythematosus self-help course.

This study tested hypotheses about the consistency of specified outcomes with strength of program treatment indexed by time spent in a given activity in the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Self-Help (SLESH) course. Participants had significant increases in enabling skills and in use of relaxation and exercise activities. Participants also had significantly less depression.

Evidence for a non-myristoylated pool of the 80 kDa protein kinase C substrate of rat brain.

A protein of 80 kDa apparent molecular mass was found to be specifically myristolylated in rat brain cytosols derived from either whole brain or synaptosomes. The attachment of the fatty acid took place in the absence of protein synthesis, since the cytosols did not incorporate [14C]lysine into protein, nor did cycloheximide affect the incorporation of the myristic acid into the protein. The fatty acid was incorporated into the protein via an acid-labile/alkali-resistant band, and Pronase digestion of the labelled protein showed that the lipid was covalently linked to a glycine residue.

Characterisation of a myristoyl CoA:glycylpeptide N-myristoyl transferase activity in rat brain: subcellular and regional distribution.

An enzyme activity in rat brain, capable of catalysing the transfer of myristic acid from myristoyl CoA to the amino terminus of synthetic peptides, has been characterised. The synthetic peptides used as substrates were one based on the N-terminal eight amino acids of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase and another hexadecapeptide based on the N-terminal sequence of p60src. This N-myristoyl transferase (NMT) activity, which is both peptide dependent and heat labile, occurs in rat brain at levels at least three times those found in other rat tissues.

A simplified assay for the enzyme responsible for the attachment of myristic acid to the N-terminal glycine residue of proteins, myristoyl-CoA: glycylpeptide N-myristoyltransferase.

A greatly simplified assay for myristoyl-CoA:glycylpeptide N-myristoyltransferase (NMT) activity is described. The assay is based on the differential solubility of the acyl-peptides produced as a consequence of the NMT activity and yields results comparable with those obtained with the original assay described by Towler & Glaser [(1986) Proc. Natl.