Community-led approaches to making naloxone available in public settings: Implementation experiences in the HEALing communities study.

Background: Expanding public naloxone access is a key strategy to reduce opioid overdose fatalities. We describe tailored community-engaged, data-driven approaches to install and maintain naloxone housing units (naloxone boxes) in New York State and estimate the cost of these approaches.

Methods: Guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, we collected data from administrative records and key informant interviews that documented the unique processes employed by four counties enrolled in the HEALing Communities Study to install and maintain naloxone housing units.

Economic Evaluations of Establishing Opioid Overdose Prevention Centers in 12 North American Cities: A Systematic Review.

Objectives: Overdose prevention centers (OPCs) provide a safe place where people can consume preobtained drugs under supervision so that a life-saving medical response can be provided quickly in the event of an overdose. OPCs are programs that are established in Canada and have recently become legally sanctioned in only a few United States jurisdictions.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review that summarizes and identifies gaps of economic evidence on establishing OPCs in North America to guide future expansion of OPCs.

nnUNet for Automatic Kidney and Cyst Segmentation in Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease.

Background: Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD) is a genetic disorder that causes uncontrolled kidney cyst growth, leading to kidney volume enlargement and renal function loss over time. Total kidney volume (TKV) and cyst burdens have been used as prognostic imaging biomarkers for ADPKD.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate nnUNet for automatic kidney and cyst segmentation in T2-weighted (T2W) MRI images of ADPKD patients.

Deep learning-based automated kidney and cyst segmentation of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease using single vs. multi-institutional data.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate if a deep learning model trained with a single institution's data has comparable accuracy to that trained with multi-institutional data for segmenting kidney and cyst regions in magnetic resonance (MR) images of patients affected by autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD).

Methods: We used TensorFlow with a Keras custom UNet on 2D slices of 756 MRI images of kidneys with ADPKD obtained from four institutions in the Consortium for Radiologic Imaging Studies of Polycystic Kidney Disease (CRISP) study. The ground truth was determined via a manual plus global thresholding method.

Effect of manuka honey socket dressing on postoperative sequelae and complications following third molar extraction: A randomized controlled study.

To evaluate the effect of manuka honey on the healing of mandibular third molar extraction sockets. This was a prospective randomized study at a tertiary health institution in Lagos, Nigeria. All extractions were transalveolar, using the distobuccal bone guttering technique.

Mucociliary clearance augmenting drugs block SARS-CoV-2 replication in human airway epithelial cells.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, is devastatingly impacting human health. A prominent component of COVID-19 is the infection and destruction of the ciliated respiratory cells, which perpetuates dissemination and disrupts protective mucociliary transport (MCT) function, an innate defense of the respiratory tract. Thus, drugs that augment MCT could improve the barrier function of the airway epithelium and reduce viral replication and, ultimately, COVID-19 outcomes.

Mucociliary Clearance Augmenting Drugs Block SARS-Cov-2 Replication in Human Airway Epithelial Cells.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, is devastatingly impacting human health. A prominent component of COVID-19 is the infection and destruction of the ciliated respiratory cells, which perpetuates dissemination and disrupts protective mucociliary transport (MCT) function, an innate defense of the respiratory tract. Thus, drugs that augment MCT could improve barrier function of the airway epithelium, reduce viral replication and, ultimately, COVID-19 outcomes.

Mucociliary transport deficiency and disease progression in Syrian hamsters with SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Substantial clinical evidence supports the notion that ciliary function in the airways is important in COVID-19 pathogenesis. Although ciliary damage has been observed in both in vitro and in vivo models, the extent or nature of impairment of mucociliary transport (MCT) in in vivo models remains unknown. We hypothesize that SARS-CoV-2 infection results in MCT deficiency in the airways of golden Syrian hamsters that precedes pathological injury in lung parenchyma.

Perfusion Change of Hepatocellular Carcinoma During Atezolizumab plus Bevacizumab Treatment: A Pilot Study.

Purpose: To investigate whether the early perfusion change in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) predicts the long-term therapeutic response to atezolizumab plus bevacizumab.

Methods: We retrospectively selected 19 subjects (median age: 62 years, 4 females, and 15 males) having advanced HCC and treated with atezolizumab alone (n = 3) or in combination with bevacizumab (n = 16). The 4-phased CT or MRI imaging was performed for each subject before and at 9 ± 2 and 21 ± 5 weeks after therapy initiation.

Early Experience of Laparoscopic Surgery in a Teaching Hospital in Rural Nigeria.

Introduction/background: Laparoscopic surgery is still at its budding phase in low resource countries. The reasons for this include poor financing of the health sector and lack of trained personnel. The aim of this article is to highlight our initial experiences, our challenges in setting up laparoscopic surgery in a private tertiary hospital in rural southwestern Nigeria, and to share our efforts towards alleviating these challenges.

Wound Healing Following Palatoplasty Using Either Honey or Warm Saline Mouth Bath for Postoperative Wound Care: A Randomized-Controlled Study.

Objective: To evaluate and compare the effect of honey or saline mouth bath for wound care on the rate of re-epithelisation of the lateral palatal defects and occurrence of early postoperative complications following palatoplasty.

Methodology: This was a prospective randomized study on participants with non-syndromic cleft palate conducted at a tertiary health institution in Lagos, Nigeria. The test group received oral honey drops for post-operative care for an initial period of two weeks post-surgery, while the control group had regular oral toileting using a warm saline solution.

Mucociliary Transport Deficiency and Disease Progression in Syrian Hamsters with SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

Substantial clinical evidence supports the notion that ciliary function in the airways plays an important role in COVID-19 pathogenesis. Although ciliary damage has been observed in both and models, consequent impaired mucociliary transport (MCT) remains unknown for the intact MCT apparatus from an model of disease. Using golden Syrian hamsters, a common animal model that recapitulates human COVID-19, we quantitatively followed the time course of physiological, virological, and pathological changes upon SARS-CoV-2 infection, as well as the deficiency of the MCT apparatus using micro-optical coherence tomography, a novel method to visualize and simultaneously quantitate multiple aspects of the functional microanatomy of intact airways.

Economic Evaluations of Pharmacologic Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder: A Systematic Literature Review.

Objective: The crisis of opioid use puts a strain on resources in the United States and worldwide. There are 3 US Food and Drug Administration-approved medications for treatment of opioid use disorder: methadone, buprenorphine, and injectable extended-release naltrexone (XR-NTX). The comparative effectiveness and cost vary considerably among these 3 medications.

Barriers to biomedical care for people with epilepsy in Uganda: A cross-sectional study.

Objective: Epilepsy, a neurological disorder with effective biomedical treatment, remains largely untreated in Uganda. Potential reasons for this treatment gap (TG) include limited access to trained providers and clinics, social stigmata of seizures, cultural beliefs, or lack of public understanding of epilepsy as a treatable condition. The current study aimed to formally evaluate barriers faced by people with epilepsy (PWE) in Uganda when seeking biomedical care.

Parental drug use and racial and ethnic disproportionality in the U.S. foster care system.

Background And Aims: Following nearly a decade of entry declines, foster care entries in the United States began to rise steadily since 2012, largely because of dramatic increases in home removals involving parental drug use (PDU). America's ongoing opioid crisis and recent changes in drug policies have been associated with the growth in PDU entries. The extent to which these and other recent factors have affected historical racial/ethnic differences in the foster care system is unknown.

Pluralistic and singular causal attributions for epilepsy in Uganda.

Objective: In Uganda, causal attributions for epilepsy reflect a variety of beliefs and impact care-seeking behavior, perpetuate stigma, and undermine the effectiveness of interventions to narrow the epilepsy treatment gap. The objective of this study was to characterize beliefs about seizure etiology to gain a better understanding of how epilepsy is conceptualized in the community in order to inform culturally appropriate educational policies and interventions.

Methods: In a community-based study, 15,383 participants were surveyed about beliefs related to 15 potential causes for epilepsy.

Epilepsy beliefs and misconceptions among patient and community samples in Uganda.

Objective: The objective of the study was to characterize and compare the attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions about epilepsy across community and patient cohorts in Uganda.

Methods: This was a descriptive study utilizing two samples: a randomly selected, national survey community sample and a hospital-based patient sample of people with epilepsy (PWE) and their caregivers attending clinic settings in Kampala and Mbarara, Uganda for epilepsy care. Both samples were surveyed about their beliefs about epilepsy, its treatment, and people who have the illness.

Stakeholder views of the practical and cultural barriers to epilepsy care in Uganda.

Objective: Epilepsy is one of the most prevalent, treatable neurological diseases globally. In sub-Saharan Africa, people with epilepsy (PWE) frequently seek treatment from traditional or pastoral healers, who are more accessible than biomedical care providers. This often contributes to the substantial time delay in obtaining adequate biomedical care for these patients.

The use of High-Pressure Processing (HPP) to improve the safety and quality of raw coconut (Cocos nucifera L) water.

This research investigated the use of high-pressure processing (HPP) for inactivating vegetative pathogens and spoilage microbiota in fresh unfiltered coconut water (Cocos nucifera L) from nuts obtained from Florida and frozen CW from Brazil with pH >5.0 and storage at 4 °C. Additionally, CW was evaluated to determine if it supported the growth and toxin production of Clostridium botulinum with or without the use of HPP when stored at refrigeration temperatures.

A High-Content Screen Reveals New Small-Molecule Enhancers of Ras/Mapk Signaling as Probes for Zebrafish Heart Development.

Zebrafish is the preferred vertebrate model for high throughput chemical screens to discover modulators of complex biological pathways. We adapted a transgenic zebrafish line, , which reports on fibroblast growth factor (Fgf)/Ras/Mapk activity, into a quantitative, high-content chemical screen to identify novel Fgf hyperactivators as chemical probes for zebrafish heart development and regeneration. We screened 10,000 compounds from the TimTec ActiProbe library, and identified several structurally distinct classes of molecules that enhanced Fgf/Ras/Mapk signaling.

DNAH6 and Its Interactions with PCD Genes in Heterotaxy and Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia.

Heterotaxy, a birth defect involving left-right patterning defects, and primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), a sinopulmonary disease with dyskinetic/immotile cilia in the airway are seemingly disparate diseases. However, they have an overlapping genetic etiology involving mutations in cilia genes, a reflection of the common requirement for motile cilia in left-right patterning and airway clearance. While PCD is a monogenic recessive disorder, heterotaxy has a more complex, largely non-monogenic etiology.

A genetically targetable near-infrared photosensitizer.

Upon illumination, photosensitizer molecules produce reactive oxygen species that can be used for functional manipulation of living cells, including protein inactivation, targeted-damage introduction and cellular ablation. Photosensitizers used to date have been either exogenous, resulting in delivery and removal challenges, or genetically encoded proteins that form or bind a native photosensitizing molecule, resulting in a constitutively active photosensitizer inside the cell. We describe a genetically encoded fluorogen-activating protein (FAP) that binds a heavy atom-substituted fluorogenic dye, forming an 'on-demand' activated photosensitizer that produces singlet oxygen and fluorescence when activated with near-infrared light.

The effect of neighbourhood mortality shocks on fertility preferences: a spatial econometric approach.

According to the demographic transition theory, fertility rates fall in response to declines in child mortality rates. Although national statistics indicate that child mortality rates have been declining over time, Ghana's fertility rates appear to have stalled. This paper hypothesises that women's fertility behaviours may be more responsive to child mortality experiences at more localised levels.

Variable geographic distribution of Blastocystis subtypes and its potential implications.

Blastocystis is a common intestinal micro-eukaryote found in both humans and non-human hosts and known to be genetically very diverse. It has been divided into numerous subtypes (STs), nine of which have been identified in humans to date. Surveys of ST prevalence have started to emerge over the past few years but to date no data are available for any African country except Egypt and Tanzania.