Accuracy of Self-Reported Weight Among Adolescent and Young Adults Following Bariatric Surgery.

Purpose: This study evaluates accuracy of self-reported weight in adolescent bariatric surgery patients.

Materials And Methods: During follow-up visits, participants self-reported weight and had weight measured. The differences between self-reported and measured weights were analyzed from 60 participants.

Weight Loss and Health Status 3 Years after Bariatric Surgery in Adolescents.

Background: Bariatric surgery is increasingly considered for the treatment of adolescents with severe obesity, but few prospective adolescent-specific studies examining the efficacy and safety of weight-loss surgery are available to support clinical decision making.

Methods: We prospectively enrolled 242 adolescents undergoing weight-loss surgery at five U.S.

Musculoskeletal Pain, Self-reported Physical Function, and Quality of Life in the Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) Cohort.

Importance: Obesity is associated with chronic musculoskeletal pain and is a risk factor for disability and osteoarthritis.

Objectives: To describe the prevalence, sites, and intensity of musculoskeletal pain in adolescents with severe obesity; to evaluate associations between musculoskeletal pain and self-reported physical function as well as weight-related quality of life; and to evaluate the association between musculoskeletal pain and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) is a prospective, observational study that collects standardized data on adolescents undergoing weight loss surgery at 5 US centers.

Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Severely Obese Adolescents: The Teen Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) Study.

Importance: Severe obesity is increasingly common in the adolescent population but, as of yet, very little information exists regarding cardiovascular disease (CVD) risks in this group.

Objective: To assess the baseline prevalence and predictors of CVD risks among severely obese adolescents undergoing weight-loss surgery.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A prospective cohort study was conducted from February 28, 2007, to December 30, 2011, at the following 5 adolescent weight-loss surgery centers in the United States: Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio; Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio; Texas Children's Hospital in Houston; University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Children's Hospital of Alabama in Birmingham.

Severe obesity and comorbid condition impact on the weight-related quality of life of the adolescent patient.

Objectives: To assess links between comorbid health status, severe excess weight, and weight-related quality of life (WRQOL) in adolescents with severe obesity and undergoing weight-loss surgery (WLS) to inform clinical care.

Study Design: Baseline (preoperative) data from Teen Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery, a prospective multicenter observational study of 242 adolescents with severe obesity (MedianBMI = 50.5 kg/m(2); Meanage = 17.

Evaluation of a Teleform-based data collection system: a multi-center obesity research case study.

Utilizing electronic data capture (EDC) systems in data collection and management allows automated validation programs to preemptively identify and correct data errors. For our multi-center, prospective study we chose to use TeleForm, a paper-based data capture software that uses recognition technology to create case report forms (CRFs) with similar functionality to EDC, including custom scripts to identify entry errors. We quantified the accuracy of the optimized system through a data audit of CRFs and the study database, examining selected critical variables for all subjects in the study, as well as an audit of all variables for 25 randomly selected subjects.

Adolescent bariatric surgery program characteristics: the Teen Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) study experience.

The number of adolescents undergoing weight loss surgery (WLS) has increased in response to the increasing prevalence of severe childhood obesity. Adolescents undergoing WLS require unique support, which may differ from adult programs. The aim of this study was to describe institutional and programmatic characteristics of centers participating in Teen Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS), a prospective study investigating safety and efficacy of adolescent WLS.

Perioperative outcomes of adolescents undergoing bariatric surgery: the Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) study.

Importance: Severe obesity in childhood is a major health problem with few effective treatments. Weight-loss surgery (WLS) is being used to treat severely obese adolescents, although with very limited data regarding surgical safety for currently used, minimally invasive procedures.

Objective: To assess the preoperative clinical characteristics and perioperative safety outcomes of severely obese adolescents undergoing WLS.

Validation of a weight history questionnaire to identify adolescent obesity.

Background: Past body weight may be a more informative factor than current weight for risk of chronic disease development. Often, investigators must rely on subject recall to gauge past body weights. The Cincinnati Weight History Questionnaire (CWHQ) was developed to aid in the retrospective identification of adults who were obese during adolescence.

Improving noninvasive methods of assessing liver fibrosis in patients with hepatitis C virus/human immunodeficiency virus co-infection.

Background & Aims: Liver fibrosis is a significant concern for patients with hepatitis C virus/human immunodeficiency virus co-infection. Fibrosis staging by biopsy is accurate, but costly and invasive. Several fibrosis prediction models using noninvasive biomarkers have been developed but are suboptimal in co-infected patients.

Randomized trial to assess the efficacy of intraoperative steroid use in decreasing acute urinary retention after transperineal radioactive iodine-125 implantation for prostate cancer.

Background: Acute urinary retention is a potential complication of brachytherapy, with the literature estimating that 5% to 22% of patients require catheterization within 48 hours after implantation. In theory, postimplantation edema could be reduced by using intraoperative steroids. A prospective trial was conducted randomizing patients to a single intraoperative dose of dexamethasone versus no steroid use.

Effect of dietary green tea extract and aerosolized difluoromethylornithine during lung tumor progression in A/J strain mice.

Chemoprevention strategies to prevent the development of lung cancer in at-risk individuals are a key component in disease management. In addition to being highly effective, an ideal chemopreventive agent will require low toxicity as patients are likely to require treatment for several years before their risk of cancer is lowered to background levels. In principle, a combination of safe agents that work through distinct mechanisms will improve efficacy while simultaneously maintaining a favorable safety profile.

Career research interests and training of genetic counseling students.

Research is important to validate clinical services, provide information on the effectiveness of practice techniques, and develop the knowledge base of a clinical profession. Genetic counseling students from American Board of Genetic Counseling (ABGC) accredited training programs were surveyed to determine their career research interests and interest in pursuing a hypothetical doctoral degree in genetic counseling. Genetic counseling program directors were surveyed to assess the emphasis on research training within their programs.

Phase I clinical trial of concurrent paclitaxel, carboplatin, and external beam chest irradiation with glutamine in patients with locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Esophagitis is a dose-limiting toxicity of combined chemoradiation therapy in patients with locally advanced lung cancer. Our study aimed at minimizing this complication by using glutamine in an attempt to escalate the dose of chemotherapy. This was a Phase I trial of escalating the dose of weekly paclitaxel and carboplatin with concurrent radiation therapy.

Bisphenol A facilitates bypass of androgen ablation therapy in prostate cancer.

Prostatic adenocarcinomas depend on androgen for growth and survival. First line treatment of disseminated disease exploits this dependence by specifically targeting androgen receptor function. Clinical evidence has shown that androgen receptor is reactivated in recurrent tumors despite the continuance of androgen deprivation therapy.

Genetic counselors and research: current practices and future directions.

Members of the genetic counseling community have debated the need for doctoral degree programs to further advance the profession. However, genetic counselors' interest in conducting independent research and attitudes toward obtaining a doctoral degree in genetic counseling has not been assessed in more than a decade. We designed a comprehensive web-based survey to characterize the current research values and practices of genetic counselors.

Adenotonsillectomy for obstructive sleep apnea syndrome in young children: prevalence of pulmonary complications.

Objective: To determine, in a series of children younger than 6 years undergoing adenotonsillectomy for treatment of clinical obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS), the effect of age on prevalence of postoperative respiratory complications. The primary objective was to define a practice standard for postoperative hospital admission.

Design: Retrospective analysis.

Assessment of scientific and ethical issues in two randomized clinical trial designs for patients with Tourette's syndrome: a model for studies of multiple neuropsychiatric diagnoses.

Most clinical trials in Tourette's syndrome (TS) involve fewer than 60 patients. This is partially due to difficulties recruiting patients who have multiple neuropsychiatric diagnoses. Few studies permit treatment of comorbid diagnoses or compare active treatments.

Asthma as a risk factor for respiratory complications after adenotonsillectomy in children with obstructive breathing during sleep.

Background: Children with asthma are at increased risk for obstructive breathing during sleep. Adenotonsillectomy, the treatment of choice for obstructive breathing during sleep, is associated with significant postoperative respiratory morbidity.

Objective: To determine whether asthma is a risk factor for respiratory complications after adenotonsillectomy in children with obstructive breathing during sleep.

National evaluation of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control Grant Program: study methods.

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) undertook an evaluation of its Lead Hazard Control Grant Program between 1994 and 1999. The Evaluation is the largest study ever done on the effectiveness of lead hazard controls implemented in residential dwellings. The Evaluation had several major objectives: determining the effectiveness of various lead hazard controls in reducing residential dust lead levels and children's blood lead levels, establishing the costs of doing lead hazard control work and factors that influence those costs, determining the rate of clearance testing failures and their causes, and identifying possible negative effects of lead hazard control work on children's blood lead levels.

Meta-analysis of EEG test performance shows wide variation among studies.

Background: EEG results are used for counseling patients with seizures about prognosis and deciding on medications. Published sensitivities of interictal EEG vary widely.

Objective: To account for variation in test characteristics between studies.

Prevalence and location of teeth marks observed on painted surfaces in an evaluation of the HUD lead hazard control grant program.

Data from an evaluation of the HUD Lead Hazard Control Grant Program were used to evaluate the prevalence and location of teeth marks on painted surfaces in residential housing. The results of these analyses will be useful in the development of more effective pediatric lead poisoning prevention programs. These programs have historically placed considerable emphasis on surfaces accessible to children for mouthing activities.

Geographic clustering of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in patients with HIV infection.

To detect whether there was geographic clustering of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia cases among patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, we performed a retrospective analysis of a clinical database. The rates of pneumocystosis were analyzed by zip code zones for evidence of geographical clustering. During the study period, 118 patients at our AIDS Treatment Center had a first episode of P.