Feasibility and Impact of a Student-Led, Semi-Structured, Near-Peer Student Guides Program on Navigating Through Medical School.

Background: Mentorship is critical to developing health professionals. Near-peer mentorship pairs senior mentors with junior peers to help navigate academic, professional, and social aspects of training.

Methods: In this convergent parallel mixed methods study, we assessed the feasibility, usability, professional and social impact, and barriers to implementation of a 16-week semi-structured, near-peer, student guides program involving 39 first year medical students (MS1s) and 41 fourth year medical students (MS4s).

Mentored peer review of standardized manuscripts as a teaching tool for residents: a pilot randomized controlled multi-center study.

Background: There is increasing need for peer reviewers as the scientific literature grows. Formal education in biostatistics and research methodology during residency training is lacking. In this pilot study, we addressed these issues by evaluating a novel method of teaching residents about biostatistics and research methodology using peer review of standardized manuscripts.

Transcranial Doppler Sonography: Atypical Dicrotic Pulse Waveforms in a Man with HIV Infection and Severe Cardiomyopathy.

A 27-year-old human immunodeficiency virus--positive man presented with abdominal pain. Computed tomography of the abdomen revealed large right pleural effusion, pericardial effusion and marked ascites with diffuse intra- and extraperitoneal lymphadenopathy. Echocardiography showed severely reduced left ventricular systolic function.

Predictors of 30-day hospital readmission following ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke.

Stroke patients have a high rate of 30-day readmission. Understanding the characteristics of patients at high risk of readmission is critical. A retrospective case-control study was designed to determine factors associated with 30-day readmission after stroke.

Transcranial Doppler identifies a malfunctioning extraventricular drain.

Transcranial Doppler (TCD) is an invaluable tool allowing real-time monitoring of physiologic blood flow velocity changes. We present a case where TCD monitoring for vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage identified blood flow velocity changes consistent with sudden increased intracranial pressure (ICP) due to a malfunctioning extraventricular drain. The primary team was alerted to these findings, and immediately revised her shunt with normalization of ICP and TCD.

A multicenter study to provide evidence of construct validity in a computer-based outcome measure of neurology clinical skills.

Background: Using computer-based simulation to assess clinical skill-a key competence for medical trainees-enables standardization and exposure to a broad sample of physical findings. The purpose of this study is to provide evidence of construct validity for a computer-based outcome measure of neurology clinical skills.

Method: A total of 128 medical students and neurology residents at four institutions volunteered to take a 34-question computer-based test designed to measure neurology clinical skills.

Development of a reliable multimedia, computer-based measure of clinical skills in bedside neurology.

Purpose: This study reports the development of reliable multimedia, computer-based measures of bedside neurology skills.

Method: A consortium of neurologists and medical educators (1) identified bedside skills and (2) created a computer-based test. Test-item stems were multimedia clips of standardized patients.

Hemodynamic effects of innominate artery occlusive disease on anterior cerebral artery.

Stenoses of the innominate artery (IA) may affect flow conditions in the carotid arteries. However, alternating flow in ipsilateral anterior cerebral artery (ACA) due to IA stenosis is extremely rare. A 49-year-old woman who was evaluated for symptomatic cerebrovascular disease presented with right latent subclavian and right carotid system steal.

Ophthalmic artery flow direction on color flow duplex imaging is highly specific for severe carotid stenosis.

Background/purpose: Collateral flow patterns are important risk factors for brain ischemia in the presence of internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis or occlusion. Ophthalmic artery (OA) flow reversal, routinely studied by transcranial Doppler sonography, is an important marker for high-grade ICA stenosis or occlusion. The authors sought to define the value of assessing OA flow direction with color flow duplex ultrasonography (CDUS) in the setting of significant ICA disease.