Contraceptive Method Usage Pattern and Percentage of New Pregnancies Among Adolescent and Young Adult Family Planning Patients: A Mixed-Methods Retrospective Study.

Objectives: Despite increased access to contraceptive methods (CM), the United States still has the highest rate of adolescent pregnancy among industrialized nations, and adolescents from historically marginalized groups are disproportionately affected. In this study, we sought to (1) understand if differences in CM usage were associated with differential percentages of new pregnancies among adolescents and young adult patients attending a family planning (FP) clinic at an urban community practice and (2) identify areas of improvement in our FP counseling.

Methods: Mixed-methods study design consisting of (1) a 12-month retrospective chart review and (2) a self-answered cross-sectional survey of FP patients.

Assessment of Screening Tools to Identify Substance Use Disorders Among Adolescents.

Importance: Efficient screening tools that effectively identify substance use disorders (SUDs) among youths are needed.

Objective: To evaluate the psychometric properties of 3 brief substance use screening tools (Screening to Brief Intervention [S2BI]; Brief Screener for Tobacco, Alcohol, and Drugs [BSTAD]; and Tobacco, Alcohol, Prescription Medication, and Other Substances [TAPS]) with adolescents aged 12 to 17 years.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This cross-sectional validation study was conducted from July 1, 2020, to February 28, 2022.

Racial and Ethnic Differences in Length of Stay for US Children Hospitalized for Acute Osteomyelitis.

Objective: To examine the associations between race and ethnicity and length of stay (LOS) for US children with acute osteomyelitis.

Study Design: Using the Kids' Inpatient Database, we conducted a cross-sectional study of children <21 years old hospitalized in 2016 or 2019 with acute osteomyelitis. Using survey-weighted negative binomial regression, we modeled LOS by race and ethnicity, adjusting for clinical and hospital characteristics and socioeconomic status.

A Patient Portal Intervention to Promote Adolescent and Young Adult Self-Management Skills.

Objective: Failure to transfer care to adult medicine is associated with gaps in health care access and poor health outcomes among young adults. We examined whether a patient portal educational intervention is acceptable and can improve adolescent and young adult (AYA) self-management skills toward transition readiness to adult care.

Methods: We conducted a single site feasibility study using a mixed research method consisting of 1) a patient portal one-on-one educational intervention with pre- and postsurveys adapted from the Transition Readiness Assessment Questionnaire to assess participant self-management skills and portal user activity; 2) portal user experience was assessed through semistructured interviews until thematic saturation was reached.

Improving HPV Vaccination Rates in a Racially and Ethnically Diverse Pediatric Population.

Background And Objectives: Nationally, 54.2% of youth are fully vaccinated for human papilloma virus (HPV) with persistent gender and racial/ethnic disparities. We used a quality improvement approach to improve completion of the HPV vaccine series by age 13 years.

A Patient Navigator Intervention Supporting Timely Transfer Care of Adolescent and Young Adults of Hispanic Descents Attending an Urban Primary Care Pediatrics Clinic.

Unlabelled: While comprehensive health care transition is associated with better health outcomes, navigating health care transition can be difficult for adolescents and young adults (AYAs), especially those with fewer resources. Our practice serves low-income patients from birth to their 26th birthday; many are medically and socially complex and experience several obstacles to navigate care. As a result, most have not initiated a transfer to adult medicine by age 25.

Assessment of: self-management skills towards transition readiness and patient portal use among Hispanic adolescent and young adult patients.

We conducted a 15-item self-answered survey to assess self-management skills and explore interest in a patient portal among publicly insured Hispanic youths ages 12-25. Out of 61 participants, 33% did not know how to schedule an appointment, 50% how to refill prescriptions, 58% how to access their personal health information, 84% were unaware of the portal and 92% never used it. Referring to the portal as an online application increased participants interest by 39%.

A Previsit Screening Checklist Improves Teamwork and Access to Preventive Services in a Medical Home Serving Low-Income Adolescent and Young Adult Patients.

Publicly insured adolescents and young adults experience significant obstacles in accessing primary care services. As a result, they often present to their medical appointments with multiple unmet needs, adding time and complexity to the visit. The goal of this project was to optimize team work and access to primary care services among publicly insured adolescents and young adults attending an urban primary care clinic, using a previsit screening checklist to identify patient needs and delegate tasks within a care team to coordinate access to health services at the time of the visit.

Functional significance of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the lactase gene in diverse US patients and evidence for a novel lactase persistence allele at -13909 in those of European ancestry.

Objectives: Recent data from mainly homogeneous European and African populations implicate a 140-bp region 5' to the transcriptional start site of LCT (the lactase gene) as a regulatory site for lactase persistence and nonpersistence. Because there are no studies of US nonhomogeneous populations, we performed genotype/phenotype analysis of the -13910 and -22018 LCT single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in New England children, mostly of European ancestry.

Methods: Duodenal biopsies were processed for disaccharidase activities, RNA quantification by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), allelic expression ratios by PCR, and genotyping and SNP analysis.

Final adult height of children with inflammatory bowel disease is predicted by parental height and patient minimum height Z-score.

Background: This study was designed to elucidate the contribution of parental height to the stature of children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), who often exhibit growth impairment. Accordingly, we compared patients' final adult heights and target heights based on measured parental heights and examined predictors of final adult height in pediatric IBD patients.

Methods: We prospectively analyzed the growth of 295 patients diagnosed between ages 1 and 18 (211 Crohn's disease [CD], 84 ulcerative colitis [UC]) and their family members (283 mothers, 231 fathers, 55 siblings).