Evaluation of self-collected nasal, urine, and saliva samples for molecular detection of SARS-CoV-2 using an EUA approved RT-PCR assay and a laboratory developed LAMP SARS-CoV-2 test.

As the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread throughout the world, millions of positive cases of COVID-19 were registered and, even though there are millions of people already vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, a large part of the global population remains vulnerable to contracting the virus. Massive nasopharyngeal sample collection in Puerto Rico at the beginning of the pandemic was limited by the scarcity of trained personnel and testing sites. To increase SARS-CoV-2 molecular testing availability, we evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of self-collected nasal, saliva, and urine samples using the TaqPath reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) COVID-19 kit to detect SARS-CoV-2.

Vaginal Microbiota and HPV in Latin America: A Narrative Review.

With the expansion of human microbiome studies in the last 15 years, we have realized the immense implications of microbes in human health. The human holobiont is now accepted, given the commensal relationships with bacteria, fungi, parasites, viruses, and human cells. The cervicovaginal microbiota is a specific case within the human microbiome where diversity is lower to maintain a chemical barrier of protection against infections.

Exploring the knowledge and attitudes of college-educated Hispanics toward the transgender community in Puerto Rico.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitudes of a sample of Hispanics in Puerto Rico (PR) toward the transgender community.

Methods: A cross-sectional study addressing Hispanics, aged 21 years or older who lived in PR, was performed from March to September 2021. Participants were invited through online advertisement shared on social media pages.

Knowledge of Obesity's Health Related Outcomes among Hispanic Women living in Puerto Rico.

Objective: The primary aim of this cross-sectional study was to assess, according to previous cancer diagnosis, the knowledge Puerto Rican women have on the link between obesity-endometrial, -breast, and colon cancer, and determine women's most common source for medical information.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, eligible female patients (n=234) from the Gynecology and Gynecology-Oncology Clinics completed a self-administered survey from October 2014 to March 2016. Participants were evaluated on sociodemographic, body mass index, knowledge of the obesity-cancer link, and source of medical information.

Inflammatory cytokines and a diverse cervicovaginal microbiota associate with cervical dysplasia in a cohort of Hispanics living in Puerto Rico.

Cervical cancer (CC) is women's fourth most common cancer worldwide. A worrying increase in CC rates in Hispanics suggests that besides Human papillomavirus infections, there may be other cofactors included in the epithelial microenvironment that could play a role in promoting the disease. We hypothesized that the cervical microbiome and the epithelial microenvironment favoring inflammation is conducive to disease progression in a group of Hispanics attending gynecology clinics in Puerto Rico.

Gynecologic Conditions in a Cohort with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Descriptive Analysis.

Objective: Past studies have demonstrated that women with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have a higher risk of gynecological conditions than do women without it. We aimed to characterize the gynecological histories of Hispanic Women living in Puerto Rico with IBD.

Methods: We identified women, aged 21 to 55 years, with a confirmed IBD diagnosis and receiving follow-up care from the University of Puerto Rico IBD clinics from 2017 through 2020.

The cervical microbiota of Hispanics living in Puerto Rico is nonoptimal regardless of HPV status.

The cervicovaginal microbiota is influenced by host physiology, immunology, lifestyle, and ethnicity. We hypothesized that there would be differences in the cervicovaginal microbiota among pregnant, nonpregnant, and menopausal women living in Puerto Rico (PR) with and without human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and cervical cancer. We specifically wanted to determine if the microbiota is associated with variations in cervical cytology.

Understanding the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Prenatal Care of a Group of Pregnant Hispanic Women living in Puerto Rico.

Objective: To understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prenatal care of pregnant Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. The participants' profiles were determined through an online questionnaire to analyze COVID-19 related behaviors and experiences.

Contraceptive use Among Hispanic Women Living in Puerto Rico.

Objective: To assess the contraceptive methods used by sexually active Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico.

Methods: From October 2016 through February 2018, 518 patients completed a self-administered questionnaire. The inclusion criteria were being over the age of 21 and having visited San Juan City Hospital or University District Hospital.

Telehealth as a potential tool for outreach among women in Puerto Rico.

Background: Access to the full spectrum of healthcare should be available to all individuals. After the revocation of the constitutional right to abortion, women have fewer alternatives to unplanned pregnancy. Telehealth provides an additional option for such pregnancies through its remote provision of services.

Psychosexual Impact on a Sample of Hispanic Women With Human Papillomavirus.

Objectives: Our study investigates the psychosexual impact of human papillomavirus (HPV) diagnosis and its associated conditions on Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico.

Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted on 205 women between 21 and 65 years old who received services at the Gynecology Clinics of the Medical Sciences Campus from April 2019 to December 2019. After obtaining approval from the institutional review board (March 27, 2019) and the informed consent of participants, participants completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and 4 psychological symptomatology-based questionnaires that measured levels of anxiety, depression, sexual satisfaction, and self-esteem.

Evaluation of sexual violence among lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico.

Objective: To investigate the association between sexual orientation and sexual violence in Hispanic women living in Puerto Rico.

Methods: Secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study. An anonymous web-based questionnaire was distributed in Puerto Rico between February and April 2016.

Knowledge and Attitudes about Transgender Healthcare: Exploring the Perspectives of Hispanic Medical Students.

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the knowledge and attitudes about transgender care in Hispanic medical students at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine (UPR SOM).

Methods: Medical students at the UPR SOM were invited to participate in a questionnaire to assess their attitudes and knowledge about the healthcare of transgender patients. The data were analyzed as percentages and averages using Stata version 14.

Influenza and Tdap Vaccines: Practices and Perception among Hispanic Women attending Tertiary Center in Puerto Rico.

Objective: Explore influenza and Tdap immunization knowledge, attitudes, and practices among Hispanics patients attending prenatal care in a tertiary hospital in Puerto Rico as well as barriers encountered by patients regarding vaccination practices during pregnancy.

Methods: Descriptive study conducted at the University District Hospital prenatal care clinics in the Medical Sciences Campus of Puerto Rico from September 2016 to June 2017.

Results: A total of 189 pregnant women were recruited.

Precision health diagnostic and surveillance network uses S gene target failure (SGTF) combined with sequencing technologies to track emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants.

Introduction: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic revealed a worldwide lack of effective molecular surveillance networks at local, state, and national levels, which are essential to identify, monitor, and limit viral community spread. SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) such as Alpha and Omicron, which show increased transmissibility and immune evasion, rapidly became dominant VOCs worldwide. Our objective was to develop an evidenced-based genomic surveillance algorithm, combining reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and sequencing technologies to quickly identify highly contagious VOCs, before cases accumulate exponentially.

The Use of Oral Hypoglycemic Agents during Pregnancy: An Alternative to Insulin?

Objective: Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM2) are metabolic disorders characterized by increased insulin resistance. Although insulin is the treatment of choice in pregnant patients with DM, the prescription of oral hypoglycemic agents (OHA) has been increasing among practitioners. This study aimed to evaluate the maternal and neonatal outcomes when oral hypoglycemic agents were used in diabetic pregnant women.

The perceptions of female genital self-image and its associations with female sexual distress.

Objective: To evaluate the perception of women living in Puerto Rico regarding their genitalia and explore the associations of those perceptions with female sexual distress.

Methods: Women from Puerto Rico willing to complete a self-administered online survey from June 2018 through July 2020 were included in this cross-sectional study. Inclusion criteria included being between 21 and 65 years of age, living in Puerto Rico, having identified as heterosexual, bisexual, or lesbian, and having been sexually active.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Experiences of Anal Cancer and Anal Cancer Screening Among a Clinical Sample of Hispanic Women.

Objective: Anal cancer screening has been recommended for women with lower genital tract neoplasia, lupus, Crohn disease, HIV, and/or organ transplantation recipients. This study described and compared knowledge, attitudes, and experiences related to anal cancer and anal cancer screening between women at high risk for anal cancer and their counterparts.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study within colposcopy and gynecology oncology clinics in Puerto Rico; 278 women 21 years or older and with prior diagnosis of gynecological neoplasia completed an interviewer-administered questionnaire.

Knowledge among Puerto Rican Women about Risk of Infertility Associated with Overweight and Obesity.

Objective: Our study sought to evaluate how aware the women attending gynecology clinics at the University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus (UPRMSC) were of the association between infertility and excess body weight (i.e., overweight and obesity).

Efficacy of venetoclax in high risk relapsed mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) - outcomes and mutation profile from venetoclax resistant MCL patients.

Venetoclax is effective in relapsed patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). Mechanisms of resistance to venetoclax in MCL are poorly understood. We describe the clinical outcomes and genomic characteristics of 24 multiply relapsed patients (median of five prior lines of therapy) who received venetoclax-based therapies; 67% had progressed on BTK inhibitors (BTKi) and 54% had blastoid or pleomorphic histology.

Genomic profiles and clinical outcomes of de novo blastoid/pleomorphic MCL are distinct from those of transformed MCL.

Blastoid and pleomorphic mantle cell lymphomas (MCLs) are variants of aggressive histology MCL (AH-MCL). AH-MCL can arise de novo (AH-DN) or transform from prior classic variant MCL (AH-t). This study is the first integrated analysis of clinical and genomic characteristics of AH-MCL.

Cervicovaginal Microbiome and Urine Metabolome Paired Analysis Reveals Niche Partitioning of the Microbiota in Patients with Human Papilloma Virus Infections.

In this study, we evaluate the association between vaginal and cervical human papillomavirus infections high-risk types (HPV+H), negative controls (HPV-), the bacterial biota, and urinary metabolites via integration of metagenomics, metabolomics, and bioinformatics analysis. We recently proposed that testing urine as a biofluid could be a non-invasive method for the detection of cervical HPV+H infections by evaluating the association between cervical HPV types and a total of 24 urinary metabolites identified in the samples. As a follow-up study, we expanded the analysis by pairing the urine metabolome data with vaginal and cervical microbiota in selected samples from 19 Puerto Rican women diagnosed with HPV+H infections and HPV- controls, using a novel comprehensive framework, Model-based Integration of Metabolite Observations and Species Abundances 2 (MIMOSA2).

Pre-treatment maximum standardized uptake value predicts outcome after frontline therapy in patients with advanced stage follicular lymphoma.

The impact of pre-treatment maximum standardized uptake value (SUV) on the outcome of follicular lymphoma (FL) following specific frontline regimens has not been explored. We performed a retrospective analysis of 346 patients with advanced stage follicular lymphoma (FL) without histological evidence of transformation, and analyzed the impact of SUV on outcome after frontline therapy. Fifty-two (15%) patients had a SUV >18, and a large lymph node ≥6 cm was the only factor associating with SUV >18 on multivariate analysis (odds ratio 2.