Rates of Stress Ulcer Prophylaxis Deprescribing in Children Receiving Usual versus High-Dose Corticosteroids in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit with Status Asthmaticus.

To compare deprescribing rates of stress ulcer prophylaxis (SUP) between children receiving "usual-dose" (<4 mg/kg/day methylprednisolone equivalents) versus "high-dose" (≥4 mg/kg/day methylprednisolone equivalents) corticosteroids for status asthmaticus in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). This retrospective, cohort study included children <18 years of age receiving corticosteroids for status asthmaticus and SUP from 1/1/2017 to 6/31/2022. The primary objective was to compare the number of children that were deprescribed SUP following transition from the PICU to the floor and at hospital discharge between groups.

Vasopressin induced hyponatremia in infants <3 months of age in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Objectives: Vasopressin is used for shock and acute pulmonary hypertension in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and is associated with hyponatremia. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence, severity, contributing risk factors associated with vasopressin-induced hyponatremia in neonates and infants <3 months of age in the NICU. The primary objective was to determine the incidence of hyponatremia (<130 mEq/L) and severe hyponatremia (<125 mEq/L).

Gabapentin for Delirium in Infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

Objective: A protocol was developed for neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) delirium: Step 1, gabapentin for pain or melatonin for sleep; Step 2, add on other Step 1 agent; Step 3, antipsychotics. The purpose of this study was to describe the utility and dosing of gabapentin for NICU delirium.

Methods: Retrospective evaluation of NICU patients from January 1, 2021-December 31, 2022 who received >1 dose of gabapentin based on the delirium protocol.

Risk factors for positive follow-up blood cultures in critically ill adults with Gram-negative bacteraemia.

Objectives: To evaluate the utility of follow-up blood cultures (FUBCs) for Gram-negative bloodstream infection (BSI) in ICU patients and identify risk factors for repeat positive cultures.

Methods: This was a single-centre, retrospective cohort study of critically ill adults with Gram-negative BSI between 1 January 2015 and 1 January 2020. Critically ill patients with one or more blood cultures positive for a Gram-negative organism were included.

The relationship and interdependence of auditory thresholds, proposed behavioural measures of hidden hearing loss, and physiological measures of auditory function.

Objectives: Standard diagnostic measures focus on threshold elevation but hearing concerns may occur independently of threshold elevation - referred to as "hidden hearing loss" (HHL). A deeper understanding of HHL requires measurements that locate dysfunction along the auditory pathway. This study aimed to describe the relationship and interdependence between certain behavioural and physiological measures of auditory function that are thought to be indicative of HHL.

Incidence of gastrointestinal bleeding with hydrocortisone use in neonates and infants less than three months of age in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the incidence of hydrocortisone-associated gastrointestinal bleeding (GIB) in infants <3 months and compare rates with or without stress ulcer prophylaxis.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study of NICU patients <3 months who received hydrocortisone for hypotension. Three logistic regressions were conducted for adjusted associations between GIB, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), or infection and clinical characteristics.

Exploring Pharmacy Students' Leadership Styles Using the 5 Voices Assessment.

Objective: Leadership development assessments are a critical component of student pharmacists' understanding and development of effective team strategies.

Methods: The 5 Voices tool, developed by GiANT Worldwide, was incorporated into the leadership curriculum across 2 colleges of pharmacies for second-year Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) students. One public land-grant institution administers the assessment in the fall semester during a 2-h class session as part of a leadership elective leadership course and a private liberal arts institution distributes the 5 Voices assessment to all students during a 1-h spring semester required course.

Social Media Authentication and Users' Assessments of Health Information: Random Assignment Survey Experiment.

Background: In an effort to signal the authenticity of user accounts, social networking sites (SNSs) such as Facebook and X, formerly known as Twitter, use visual heuristics (blue checkmarks) to signify whether accounts are verified. While these verification badges are generally well recognized (and often coveted) by SNS users, relatively little is known about how they affect users' perceptions of accuracy or their likelihood of engaging with web-based information. This is particularly true in the case of information posted by medical experts and health care professionals.

Toward parametric Bayesian adaptive procedures for multi-frequency categorical loudness scaling.

A series of Bayesian adaptive procedures to estimate loudness growth across a wide frequency range from individual listeners was developed, and these procedures were compared. Simulation experiments were conducted based on multinomial psychometric functions for categorical loudness scaling across ten test frequencies estimated from 61 listeners with normal hearing and 87 listeners with sensorineural hearing loss. Adaptive procedures that optimized the stimulus selection based on the interim estimates of two types of category-boundary models were tested.

Public perceptions of artificial intelligence in healthcare: ethical concerns and opportunities for patient-centered care.

Background: In an effort to improve the quality of medical care, the philosophy of patient-centered care has become integrated into almost every aspect of the medical community. Despite its widespread acceptance, among patients and practitioners, there are concerns that rapid advancements in artificial intelligence may threaten elements of patient-centered care, such as personal relationships with care providers and patient-driven choices. This study explores the extent to which patients are confident in and comfortable with the use of these technologies when it comes to their own individual care and identifies areas that may align with or threaten elements of patient-centered care.

Exploring the Utility and Fairness of a Multi-institutional Situational Judgment Test.

Objective: To pilot a situational judgment test (SJT) developed to assess empathy, integrity, and teamwork and explore differences in performance between first-year (P1) and fourth-year (P4) student pharmacists based on gender, race or ethnicity, and geographical region.

Methods: An SJT was developed to assess empathy, integrity, and teamwork, using best practices. The SJT was piloted tested with P1 and P4 student pharmacists at 5 institutions.

Toward Automating Diagnosis of Middle- and Inner-ear Mechanical Pathologies With a Wideband Absorbance Regression Model.

Objectives: During an initial diagnostic assessment of an ear with normal otoscopic exam, it can be difficult to determine the specific pathology if there is a mechanical lesion. The audiogram can inform of a conductive hearing loss but not the underlying cause. For example, audiograms can be similar between the inner-ear condition superior canal dehiscence (SCD) and the middle-ear lesion stapes fixation (SF), despite differences in pathologies and sites of lesion.

Estimating Tiotropium Wasted Doses After Adding Revefenacin to an Inpatient Formulary: A Single-Center Cross-Sectional Study.

Revefenacin is a once-daily nebulized long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA). Revefenacin is supplied as single-use nebulized vials, which may be preferable and less costly for hospital and health-system pharmacies to dispense versus multidose tiotropium inhalers. Estimates of LAMA multidose inhaler wasted doses remains unknown.

Belief in misinformation and acceptance of COVID-19 vaccine boosters: A survey analysis.

Objective: This study examines the impact of misinformation belief on the willingness of American adults to receive ongoing COVID-19 vaccine boosters.

Methods: A representative survey of 600 adults in the state of Florida was fielded in August of 2023. For this study, responses were analyzed for the 443 previously vaccinated respondents in that sample using both descriptive and inferential statistical methods.

Effect of Phytonadione on Correction of Coagulopathy in Pediatric Patients With Septic Shock.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate phytonadione in children with septic shock with disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC). The primary objective was to identify the number of patients with an international normalized ratio (INR), defined as ≤1.2, following phytonadione.

Delirium Assessment Treatment Strategies in Critically Ill Pediatric Patients: A Pediatric Pharmacy Association Practice-Based Research Network Survey Study.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to describe overall screening, prevention, and treatments for pediatric delirium at various neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), cardiac intensive care units (CICUs), and pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) from the Pediatric Pharmacy Association (PPA) membership. The primary objective was to identify the number of respondents that had a defined delirium-based protocol. The secondary objectives included identification of delirium assessment tools used, first- and second-line delirium treatment options, and monitoring practices for antipsychotics for delirium management.

Broadcast health: Leveraging YouTube for community health education.

Objective: In community health, there is great demand but limited time for the delivery of staff and patient education. During the COVID-19 pandemic, evolving needs necessitated that health education be provided in an accurate and timely manner. This paper describes the development, implementation, and evaluation of a YouTube channel designed to disseminate health education to a wide audience of public health workers and patient populations.

Melatonin Use in Infants Admitted to Intensive Care Units.

Objectives: Sleep deprivation is a risk factor for delirium development, which is a frequent complication of intensive care unit admission. Melatonin has been used for both delirium prevention and treatment. Melatonin safety, efficacy, and dosing information in neonates and infants is lacking.

Breakthrough COVID-19 infections and perceived vaccine effectiveness.

Introduction: While SARS-CoV-2 vaccines provide significant protection against severe COVID-19 illness, breakthrough infections have sparked confusion among patients about the effectiveness of vaccination. It's unclear if (or to what extent) breakthrough infection experiences impact public perceptions of COVID-vaccine effectiveness, though the answer may have significant implications for public health communications and ongoing vaccine acceptance.

Methods: We conducted a survey of 2,500 adults in the United States (February 27 - March 9, 2023) in order to better understand the relationship between breakthrough COVID-19 infections and perceived vaccine effectiveness.

Metabolic and Sensory Components of Age-Related Hearing Loss: Associations With Distortion- and Reflection-Based Otoacoustic Emissions.

Age-related hearing loss is difficult to study in humans because multiple genetic and environmental risk factors may contribute to pathology and cochlear function declines in older adults. These pathologies, including degeneration of the stria vascularis, are hypothesized to affect outer hair cells responsible for active cochlear amplification of low-level sounds. Otoacoustic emission (OAE) measures are used to quantify the energy added to the traveling wave in cochlear amplification, which typically weakens with increased pure-tone thresholds and for older individuals.

Opening the Black Box: Agreement and Reliability of a Situational Judgment Test Across Multiple Institutions.

Objective: The primary objective of this study was to examine the levels of agreement and reliability of a situational judgment test (SJT) using a diverse pool of pharmacy practice faculty as subject matter experts. Secondary aims included analyses to build support for test validity and fairness.

Methods: An SJT containing 18 scenarios and 118 responses assessing empathy, integrity, and teamwork was developed and delivered to pharmacy practice faculty at 5 schools of pharmacy across the United States.