Increasing Knowledge and Health Literacy about Preterm Births in Underserved Communities: An Approach to Decrease Health Disparities, a Pilot Study.

Introduction: Health disparities can negatively impact subsets of the population who have systematically experienced greater socioeconomic obstacles to health. For example, health disparities between ethnic and racial groups continue to grow due to the widening gap in large declines in infant and fetal mortality among Caucasians compared to Black non-Hispanic or African Americans. According to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, preterm birth remains a leading cause of infant morbidity and mortality.

Determination of vitamin D in relation to body mass index and race in a defined population of black and white women.

Objective: To examine the contributions of obesity and race to levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] and parathyroid hormone (PTH) in a defined cohort of black and white women.

Methods: An interventional study was conducted from October 2004 to March 2008, among 219 healthy female volunteers. Serum 25(OH)D and PTH levels were determined in 117 African American women and 102 white women and the results were compared with body mass index (BMI), percentage body fat, serum lipids, and PTH levels.

Racial influence on the polycystic ovary syndrome phenotype: a black and white case-control study.

Objective: To estimate racial disparities in the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) phenotype between white and black women with PCOS.

Design: Case-control study.

Setting: Two academic medical centers.

Effects of metformin in adolescents with polycystic ovary syndrome undertaking lifestyle therapy: a pilot randomized double-blind study.

Our small study does not support the addition of metformin to the lifestyle of adolescents. Although there are favorable trends toward hyperandrogenism with metformin, these must be balanced against the increased rate of gastrointestinal side effects. However, other treatments were associated with an improved quality of life.

The effects of metformin with lifestyle therapy in polycystic ovary syndrome: a randomized double-blind study.

Objective: To determine if the combination of lifestyle (caloric restriction and exercise) and metformin (MET) would be superior to lifestyle and placebo (PBO) in improving the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) phenotype.

Design: Double-blind randomized 6-month trial of MET versus PBO.

Setting: Two academic medical centers.

Does polycystic ovary syndrome increase the disparity in metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular-related health for African-American women?

There have been few formal studies of differences in the phenotype of PCOS among women of African-American ancestry. Generally, African-American women tend to have an adverse cardiovascular risk profile when compared with women of other racial groups. The metabolic syndrome is a clinical disorder that identifies individuals at risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

A comparison of methods and results in recruiting white and black women into reproductive studies: the MMC-PSU cooperative center on reproduction experience.

Establishing a holistic approach for the enrollment of subjects into clinical trials that includes strategies for the recruitment of non-traditional and minority populations has been an elusive task. The existence of such a design, that is understood and embraced by investigators and the target communities, would streamline the current level of commitment of time, energy and resources. This is necessary to successfully encourage individual and community participation in research studies.