Disparities in postpartum readmission by patient- and hospital-level social risk factors in the United States: a retrospective multistate analysis, 2015-2020.

Background: Postpartum readmission is an area of focus for improving obstetric care and reducing costs. We examined disparities in all-cause 30-day postpartum readmission by patient- and hospital-level factors in the United States.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using 2015-2020 records from the State Inpatient Databases from four states.

Elemental Characterization of Ambient Particulate Matter for a Globally Distributed Monitoring Network: Methodology and Implications.

Global ground-level measurements of elements in ambient particulate matter (PM) can provide valuable information to understand the distribution of dust and trace elements, assess health impacts, and investigate emission sources. We use X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy to characterize the elemental composition of PM samples collected from 27 globally distributed sites in the Surface PARTiculate mAtter Network (SPARTAN) over 2019-2023. Consistent protocols are applied to collect all samples and analyze them at one central laboratory, which facilitates comparison across different sites.

Racism, COVID-19, and Health Inequity in the USA: a Call to Action.

The current national COVID-19 mortality rate for Black Americans is 2.1 times higher than that of Whites. In this commentary, we provide historical context on how structural racism undergirds multi-sector policies which contribute to racial health inequities such as those highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pregnancy and postpartum outcomes in a universally tested population for SARS-CoV-2 in New York City: a prospective cohort study.

Objective: To describe differences in outcomes between pregnant women with and without coronavirus dsease 2019 (COVID-19).

Design: Prospective cohort study of pregnant women consecutively admitted for delivery, and universally tested via nasopharyngeal (NP) swab for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. All infants of mothers with COVID-19 underwent SARS-CoV-2 testing.

Density and Homogeneous Internal Composition of Primary Brown Carbon Aerosol.

The presence of atmospheric brown carbon (BrC) has been the focus of many recent studies. These particles, predominantly emitted from smoldering biomass burning, absorb light in the near-ultraviolet and short visible wavelengths and offset the radiative cooling effects associated with organic aerosols. Particle density dictates their transport properties and is an important parameter in climate models and aerosol instrumentation algorithms, but our knowledge of this particle property is limited, especially as functions of combustion temperature and fuel type.

Pregnant trauma victims experience nearly 2-fold higher mortality compared to their nonpregnant counterparts.

Background: Trauma is the leading nonobstetric cause of death in women of reproductive age, and pregnant women in particular may be at increased risk of violent trauma. Management of trauma in pregnancy is complicated by altered maternal physiology, provider expertise, potential disparate imaging, and distorted anatomy. Little is known about the impact of trauma on maternal mortality.

Changes in cardiac index during labour analgesia: A double-blind randomised controlled trial of epidural versus combined spinal epidural analgesia - A preliminary study.

Background And Aims: Combined spinal-epidural (CSE) analgesia for labour and delivery is occasionally associated with foetal bradycardia. Decreases in cardiac index (CI) and/or uterine hypertonia are implicated as possible aetiological factors. No study has evaluated CI changes following combined spinal analgesia for labour and delivery.

Management of pregnant patients who refuse medically indicated cesarean delivery.

The doctrine of informed refusal may become difficult to adhere to in obstetric practice, especially in situations in which the fetus's life is at risk. One rare yet potentially problematic situation of informed refusal is the case of a pregnant woman who refuses to undergo a medically indicated cesarean delivery that would ensure the well-being of her fetus. Although some would argue that patient autonomy takes precedence and the woman's informed refusal should be respected, others would argue that beneficence, justice, and doing no harm to the viable fetus should ethically overrule the refusal of a surgery.

Successful application of lead isotopes in source apportionment, legal proceedings, remediation and monitoring.

In late 2006, the seaside community in Esperance Western Australia was alerted to thousands of native bird species dying. The source of the lead (Pb) was determined by Pb isotopes to derive from the handling of Pb carbonate concentrate through the Port, which began in July 2005. Concern was expressed for the impact of this on the community.

Trauma in pregnancy.

In the United States, trauma is the leading nonobstetric cause of maternal death. The principal causes of trauma in pregnancy include motor vehicle accidents, falls, assaults, homicides, domestic violence, and penetrating wounds. The managing team evaluating and coordinating the care of the pregnant trauma patient should be multidisciplinary so that it is able to understand the physiologic changes in pregnancy.

Antenatal corticosteroids prior to 24 weeks' gestation and neonatal outcome of extremely low birth weight infants.

We sought to determine if antenatal corticosteroid treatment administered prior to 24 weeks' gestation influences neonatal morbidity and mortality in extremely low-birth-weight infants. A retrospective review was performed of all singleton pregnancies treated with one complete course of antenatal corticosteroids prior to 24 weeks' gestation and delivered between 23(0)/(7) and 25(6)/(7) weeks. These infants were compared with similar gestational-age controls.

Stimulation of the side population fraction of ATDC5 chondroprogenitors by hypoxia.

The influence of oxygen tension on the side population (SP) fraction sorted from ATDC5 chondroprogenitor cells was investigated. ATDC5 cells cultured in normoxia (20%) or hypoxia (1% oxygen) were compared. The SP fraction was significantly higher in the cells cultured in hypoxia.

Nine-color flow cytometry for accurate measurement of T cell subsets and cytokine responses. Part I: Panel design by an empiric approach.

Polychromatic flow cytometry offers the unprecedented ability to investigate multiple antigens per cell. Unfortunately, unwanted spectral overlaps and compensation problems increase when more than four colors are used, but these problems can be minimized if staining combinations are chosen carefully. We used an empiric approach to design, test and identify six-color T cell immunophenotyping reagent panels that can be expanded to include three or more functional or other markers in the FITC, PE, and APC channels without significant spectral limitations.

In vitro evaluation of a Ceramicrete-based root-end filling material.

Ceramicrete is an impervious inorganic binder widely used for encapsulating radioactive and hazardous wastes. This study evaluated the feasibility of using a radiopaque Ceramicrete-based material for root-end fillings. Apical seals of root-end preparations filled with Super EBA (Harry J.

Identification of superficial zone articular chondrocyte stem/progenitor cells.

Identification of progenitor/stem cell populations that differentiate specifically towards superficial zone articular chondrocytes is an unmet challenge for cartilage tissue engineering. Using fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) analysis we found a characteristic pattern of "side population" (SP) stem cells identified by the Hoechst 33342 dye. We established micromass cultures from this population of cells and tested their chondrogeneic potential.

Comparison of seal after obturation techniques using a polydimethylsiloxane-based root canal sealer.

A polydimethylsiloxane-based sealer (GuttaFlow) was used for filling single-rooted teeth with four obturation techniques. Prefitted gutta-percha master-cones were employed in groups 1 to 3 with backfilling of the sealer. Apical third of the roots were first filled with GuttaFlow, and sealer-coated master cones were seated with up-and-down motion (group 1) or rotated to place (group 2).

Soluble factors elaborated by human brain endothelial cells induce the concomitant expansion of purified human BM CD34+CD38- cells and SCID-repopulating cells.

The CD34(+)CD38- phenotype identifies a population in the bone marrow that is enriched in the steady state for hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Following ex vivo culture of CD34(+) cells, HSC content is difficult to measure since committed CD34(+)CD38+ progenitors down-regulate CD38 surface expression during culture. In this study, we sought to define the phenotype of human HSCs following ex vivo culture under conditions that support the expansion of human cells capable of repopulating non-obese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID)-repopulating cells (SRCs).

Quantitative analysis demonstrates expansion of SCID-repopulating cells and increased engraftment capacity in human cord blood following ex vivo culture with human brain endothelial cells.

Initial clinical trials examining the transplantation of ex vivo expanded cord blood (CB) cells have failed to demonstrate an impact on hematopoietic recovery compared with historical unmanipulated CB controls. In this study, we tested whether coculture with primary human brain endothelial cells (HUBECs) could increase the engraftment capacity and repopulating cell frequency within CB CD34+ cells. Quantitative analysis demonstrated that HUBEC coculture for 7 days supported a 19-fold greater number of CD34+ cells and 3.

Inhibition of proliferation and induction of apoptosis in SNU-1 human gastric cancer cells by the plant sulfolipid, sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol.

The sulfoglycolipid sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol is present in the membranes of photosynthetic organisms. This sulfolipid reportedly has pharmaceutical potential as an antiviral and antitumor agent, although no studies have examined these properties of the sulfolipids that are consumed in plant foods. This study examined the biological effects of sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol on the human gastric cancer cell line SNU-1.

Feline immunodeficiency virus infection of cats as a model to test the effect of certain in vitro selection pressures on the infectivity and virulence of resultant lentivirus variants.

Three groups of specific pathogen-free (SPF) domestic cats, each containing 5 animals, were infected with one of three closely related FIV variants and monitored for 36 weeks. A fourth group of 5 cats was sham-infected and served as uninfected controls. FIV variants included: (1) a fully virulent animal passaged FIV-Petaluma; (2) a Crandell feline kidney (CrFK) cell-adapted FIV-Petaluma (FIV-CrFK); and (3) a variant of FIV-CrFK (FIV-CrFKAZT) that had been selected in vitro for resistance to azidothymidine.