Anti-Müllerian hormone as a predictor of oocyte yield following controlled ovarian stimulation in the rhesus macaque.

Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) is widely used in the clinic as a biomarker for ovarian reserve and to predict ovarian response to gonadotropin stimulation. Patients with higher AMH levels tend to yield more oocytes and have better outcomes from assisted reproductive technology (ART) procedures. The goal of this study is to determine if AMH can be used to predict the outcome of controlled ovarian stimulation in rhesus macaques, which are commonly used in biomedical research, to refine animal use while maximizing oocyte yield.

Establishing the normal range of sperm DNA fragmentation index (% DFI) for rhesus macaques.

The Sperm Chromatin Structure Assay (SCSA) is a robust test with high repeatability and precision. It is a clinically accepted assay that defines risk for infertility in men by measuring the degree of DNA fragmentation (% DFI) in sperm. The objective of this study was to adapt and validate the SCSA for rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and establish a range for % DFI in fertile males.

A Comparison of Oocyte Yield between Ultrasound-Guided and Laparoscopic Oocyte Retrieval in Rhesus Macaques.

Obtaining quality oocytes is a prerequisite for ART-based studies. Here we describe a method for transabdominal ultrasound-guided (US) oocyte retrieval in rhesus macaques () and compare it to the standard surgical approach using laparoscopy (LAP). We analyzed oocyte yield from six continuous reproductive seasons (2017-2023) that included = 177 US-guided and = 136 laparoscopic oocyte retrievals.

Cessation of chronic delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol use partially reverses impacts on male fertility and the sperm epigenome in rhesus macaques.

Objective: To determine whether discontinuation of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) use mitigates THC-associated changes in male reproductive health using a rhesus macaque model of daily THC edible consumption.

Design: Research animal study.

Setting: Research institute environment.

Chronic exposure to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol impacts testicular volume and male reproductive health in rhesus macaques.

Objective: To determine the dose-dependent effect of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) exposure on male testes and reproductive health in a nonhuman primate model.

Design: Research animal study.

Setting: Research institute.

Individual and combined effects of 5-year exposure to hyperandrogenemia and Western-style diet on metabolism and reproduction in female rhesus macaques.

Study Question: What is the impact of prolonged exposure to hyperandrogenemia (T), Western-style diet (WSD) and the combination on metabolic and reproductive function in female rhesus macaques, particularly in the post-partum period?

Summary Answer: Combined T + WSD worsened measures of insulin sensitivity and parameters of cyclicity following prolonged (5 years) exposure, but there was no effect on post-partum metabolic function.

What Is Known Already: Women with hyperandrogenemia due to polycystic ovary syndrome are at higher risk for gestational diabetes and Type 2 diabetes post-partum, but it is unknown if this is related to hyperandrogenemia. Hyperandrogenemia in the presence of a WSD worsens metabolic function in female nonhuman primates.

Telehealth provides a comprehensive approach to the surgical patient.

Background: This study describes telehealth use within the Department of Surgery in a large urban academic medical center and its role in diverse surgical patients.

Methods: We performed a retrospective descriptive study of video telehealth visits conducted by an academic urban surgery department from February 2017 to November 2017. We report our experience in accordance with the National Quality Forum recommended domains of access, experience and effectiveness.

Hormonal regulation of oviductal glycoprotein 1 (OVGP1; MUC9) in the rhesus macaque cervix.

Background: Macaques are outstanding animal models for the development of new contraceptives. In women, progestin-only contraceptives often fail to block ovulation and are believed to act by altering cervix physiology. Herein, we assessed oviductal glycoprotein 1 (OVGP1) in the macaque cervix as a marker for progestogen action.

Chronic hyperandrogenemia and western-style diet beginning at puberty reduces fertility and increases metabolic dysfunction during pregnancy in young adult, female macaques.

Study Question: What are the impacts of elevated testosterone (T) and an obesogenic western-style diet (WSD), either independently or together, on fertility and metabolic adaptations of pregnancy in primates?

Summary Answer: Testosterone increases the time to achieve pregnancy, while a WSD reduces overall fertility, and the combination of testosterone and WSD additionally impairs glucose tolerance and causes pregnancy loss.

What Is Known Already: Both hyperandrogenemia and obesity are hallmarks of polycystic ovary syndrome, which is a leading cause of infertility among women worldwide. Female macaques receiving T and WSD beginning at puberty show increased metabolic, ovarian and uterine dysfunction in the non-pregnant state by 3 years of treatment.

Chronic hyperandrogenemia in the presence and absence of a western-style diet impairs ovarian and uterine structure/function in young adult rhesus monkeys.

Study Question: Does chronic hyperandrogenemia beginning at menarche, in the absence and presence of a western-style diet (WSD), alter ovarian and uterine structure-function in young adult rhesus monkeys?

Summary Answer: Phenotypic alterations in ovarian and uterine structure/function were induced by exogenous testosterone (T), and compounded in the presence of a WSD (T+WSD).

What Is Known Already: Hyperandrogenemia is a well-established component of PCOS and is observed in adolescent girls, indicating a potential pubertal onset of disease symptoms. Obesity is often associated with hyperandrogenemia and it is hypothesized that metabolic dysfunction exacerbates PCOS symptoms.

Effect of menstrual cycle phase and hormonal treatments on evaluation of tubal patency in baboons.

Background: We evaluated whether menstrual cycle phase influences the assessment of tubal patency by hysterosalpingography (HSG) in baboons.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of baseline tubal patency studies and serum estradiol (E ) and progesterone (P4) values obtained from female baboons used as models for development of non-surgical permanent contraception in women. The main outcome measure was bilateral tubal patency (BTP) in relationship with estradiol level.

Chronic combined hyperandrogenemia and western-style diet in young female rhesus macaques causes greater metabolic impairments compared to either treatment alone.

Study Question: Does developmental exposure to the combination of hyperandrogenemia and western-style diet (WSD) worsen adult metabolic function compared to either treatment alone?

Summary Answer: Young female rhesus macaques treated for 3 years, beginning at menarche, with combined testosterone (T) and WSD have increased weight gain and insulin resistance compared to controls and animals treated with either T or WSD alone.

What Is Known Already: Hyperandrogenemia is a well-established component of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and can be observed in peripubertal girls, indicating a potential pubertal onset of the disease. Obesity is often associated with hyperandrogenemia in peripubertal girls, and overweight girls appear to be at higher risk for the development of PCOS later in life.

Arteriovenous Fistula Creation by Nephrologist Access Surgeons Worldwide.

Several years ago, we published an article in this journal entitled "Autologous Arteriovenous Fistula Creation by Nephrologists." The goal of that effort was to review outcomes published by nephrologist access surgeons from around the world. An attempt was also made to define the elements that were necessary for successful autologous fistula creation in hopes that they might be used by others in an effort to increase the number of and durability of autologous fistulas in the dialysis population.

The unjust world problem: Towards an ethics of advocacy for healthcare providers and researchers.

This article addresses the problem of the relative lack of connection between two ethical perspectives in the healthcare field: an ethics of humane care and an ethics of social justice. The first underlies the critique by practitioners and researchers of differentials between healthcare providers and patients in the irrespective levels of control over communication and collaboration in clinical encounters. The second informs the critique by public health researchers and policy makers of the structural basis of social inequality, poverty, and violence that are the sources of racial, ethnic and class differentials in levels of health.

Patient stories, narratives of resistance and the ethics of humane care: a la recherche du temps perdu.

Over the past 20 years, the study of patient-physician relationships and the discourse of clinical encounters has become a major area of inquiry. Interest in these topics is closely linked to an ethic of humane care, reflecting widespread criticism of a technocratic approach to clinical practice. A narrow framing of this approach led to the neglect of a category of patients' socially grounded accounts of their illness and treatment experiences referred to as 'narratives of resistance'.

Surgical management of transcranial hypoglossal schwannomas.

Hypoglossal schwannomas are rare cranial base neoplasms that originate in the posterior cranial fossa and extend through the hypoglossal canal in a dumbell fashion. Recent experience with this unusual neoplasm prompted a search for an operative approach to remove the lesion with a minimization of postoperative morbidity from bleeding and iatrogenic cranial nerve deficits. This report describes the use of the transcondylar approach with monitoring of the lower basal cranial nerves to totally remove a transcranial hypoglossal schwannoma with no new-onset cranial nerve palsies.

Technical aspects of intraoperative monitoring of lower cranial nerve function.

The efficacy of monitoring facial nerve activity in decreasing long-term morbidity has promoted an interest in monitoring other at-risk cranial nerves during procedures that involve manipulation of the basal cranial nerves. This presentation details practical techniques for monitoring the lower cranial nerves, which have been experientially developed over the past 9 years. Emphasis is placed on the selection of electrodes and procedural changes required for reliable and safe stimulation of the basal cranial nerves.

Hearing preservation following a transtemporal resection of an acoustic schwannoma: a case report.

The transtemporal or translabyrinthine approach is generally regarded as the most reliable method of ensuring total tumor removal and preservation of facial nerve function in the resection of a cerebellopontine angle tumor. This is particularly true in removing a tumor that has a significant extension into the patient's internal auditory canal. An anticipated deficit associated with the approach is a total hearing loss in the patient's hearing on the operated side.

Rollover measurements with Auditec NU-6 word lists.

Auditec cassette tape recordings of NU-6 word lists were used to obtain performance-intensity functions for phonetically balanced words (PI-PB) from 25 subjects with normal hearing, 19 subjects with presumed cochlear disorders, and 9 subjects with confirmed retrocochlear lesions. A rollover index greater than .35 differentiated retrocochlear hearing loss from cochlear hearing loss, although some retrocochlear subjects scored well below that level.