Increasing medical student awareness of pathology through a virtual, asynchronous pathology elective.

Faculty from the University of Florida Department of Pathology, Immunology, and Laboratory Medicine developed an asynchronous, fully virtual pathology elective for medical students that emphasizes both foundational pathology concepts as well as the role of pathologists in the broader health system. The program includes ten core modules as well as several selective modules which allows students to tailor their coursework to better align with their desired specialty. After completing each module, students were required to concisely summarize the topic in the form of a 280-character tweet.

Optimizing the data in direct access testing: information technology to support an emerging care model.

Direct access testing (DAT) is an emerging care model that provides on-demand laboratory services for certain preventative, diagnostic, and monitoring indications. Unlike conventional testing models where health care providers order tests and where sample collection is performed onsite at the clinic or laboratory, most interactions between DAT consumers and the laboratory are virtual. Tests are ordered and results delivered online, and specimens are frequently self-collected at home with virtual support.

Diagnostic difficulties in non-tuberculous mycobacterial infection in lung transplant recipients.

Despite antimicrobial prophylaxis, 34% to 59% of lung transplant recipients experience severe life-threatening opportunistic infections, sometimes caused by Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) and Nocardia. Although differentiating these infections is of utmost importance for effective treatment, it can be challenging as they share morphological and growth characteristics. Therefore, culture remains the gold standard for laboratory confirmation.

Colorectal cancer screening completion by patients due or overdue for screening after reminders: a retrospective study.

Background: Patient and clinician reminders were implemented as part of an adherence improvement project at University of Florida (UF) Internal Medicine Clinics. We sought to assess colorectal cancer (CRC) screening completion rates among patients not up-to-date with screening following distribution of reminders and to identify characteristics correlated with screening outcomes.

Methods: Retrospective chart review was performed for patients not up-to-date with CRC screening for whom at least one reminder (patient and/or clinician) was issued in June 2018.

A case report of primary amebic meningoencephalitis in North Florida.

Primary amebic meningoencephalitis is a rare, usually fatal disease, caused by . This case highlights the challenging clinicopathologic diagnosis in a 13-year-old boy who swam in freshwater in northern Florida where a previous case had exposure to a body of water on the same property in 2009.

The Lines That Held Us: Assessing Racial and Socioeconomic Disparities in SARS-CoV-2 Testing.

Background: Racial disparities in SARS-CoV-2 prevalence are apparent. Race is a sociocultural construct, necessitating investigation into how sociocultural factors contribute.

Methods: This cross-sectional study linked laboratory data of adult patients between February 29 and May 15, 2020 with socio-demographics variables from the 2018 American Community Survey (ACS).

Performance of a Semiquantitative Multiplex Bacterial and Viral PCR Panel Compared With Standard Microbiological Laboratory Results: 396 Patients Studied With the BioFire Pneumonia Panel.

Background: Microbiologic results are critical to optimal management of patients with lower respiratory tract infection, but standard methods may take several days. The multiplex polymerase chain reaction BioFire Pneumonia (PN) panel detects 15 common bacterial species semiquantitatively as copy number/mL, 8 viral species, and 7 resistance genes in about an hour within the clinical laboratory.

Methods: We tested 396 unique endotracheal or bronchoalveolar lavage specimens with the BioFire Pneumonia panel and compared the bacterial detections to conventional gram stain and culture results.

The Interaction between Hb A1C and Selected Genetic Factors in the African American Population in the USA.

Background: The global prevalence of diabetes mellitus has been growing in recent decades and the complications of longstanding type 2 diabetes continue to place a burden on healthcare systems. The hemoglobin A1c (Hb A1c) content of the blood is used to assess an individual's degree of glycemic control averaged over 2 to 3 months. In the USA, diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death.

A Critical Review on the Use of Race in Understanding Racial Disparities in Preeclampsia.

Background: Preeclampsia is a significant cause of maternal morbidity and mortality, affecting up to 8% of pregnancies globally. Although the precise etiology is still under study, the literature suggests that vascular changes reduce placental perfusion and affect the remodeling of spiral arteries to create the hallmark feature of preeclampsia: elevated blood pressure. Screening for preeclampsia is currently recommended for all pregnant women, particularly if risk factors exist.

Educational Case: Smooth Muscle Tumors of the Uterus.

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.

Impact of a Point-of-care Respiratory PCR Panel in a Pediatric Clinic on Postvisit Communication and Follow-up Visits.

While the FilmArray Respiratory Panel EZ has been proven to reduce inappropriate antibiotic use in the outpatient pediatric setting, it is unclear whether its implementation will also reduce downstream health costs such as provider visits and telephone calls. This analysis will help pediatricians make more informed decisions on the implementation and judicious use of the Respiratory Panel EZ in their clinical practice.

Educational Case: Ectopic Pregnancy.

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.

Educational Case: Identification of Pulmonary Mycobacteria.

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.

Educational Case: Opportunistic Infections of the Central Nervous System.

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.

Educational Case: Etiologies, Mechanisms, and Treatment of Stroke.

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Clotting factors: Clinical biochemistry and their roles as plasma enzymes.

The purpose of this review is to describe structure and function of the multiple proteins of the coagulation system and their subcomponent domains. Coagulation is the process by which flowing liquid blood plasma is converted to a soft, viscous gel entrapping the cellular components of blood including red cells and platelets and thereby preventing extravasation of blood. This process is triggered by the minimal proteolysis of plasma fibrinogen.

Performance and Impact of a CLIA-waived, Point-of-care Respiratory PCR Panel in a Pediatric Clinic.

Background: Laboratory-based respiratory polymerase chain reaction (PCR) panels are rarely used in outpatient pediatric practice due to prolonged turn-around times and cost of medical equipment. The BioFire FilmArray Respiratory Panel EZ (RP EZ) is a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments-waived respiratory pathogen PCR panel which rapidly tests for 14 common respiratory organisms. The aim of this study was to identify the distribution of organisms seen in pediatric clinics and to determine if utilization of this point-of-care test improved disease management, while exploring impact on clinic workflow.

Educational Case: Group B Streptococcus Meningitis.

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.

Evaluating differences in tuberculosis and nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease in Florida.

Background: Currently, very little data exists that compare the features of pulmonary nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB). Both have similar symptomology and analogous preliminary laboratory results, as both present with positive acid-fast bacilli stains. The objective of this study was to provide data that would help guide clinicians in their decision making regarding isolation precautions for patients, with a preliminary positive result for mycobacteria, prior to species identification.

Hourly Effect of Pretreatment With IV Antibiotics on Blood Culture Positivity Rate in Emergency Department Patients.

Although it is intuitive that antibiotics administered before obtaining a blood culture would reduce the likelihood of obtaining a positive culture, it is not clear exactly how rapidly and to what extent blood becomes sterile after administration of intravenous (IV) antibiotics. Using a large data set of patients admitted from the UFHealth Shands Adult Emergency Department (ED) between 2012 and 2016 (n = 25 686), we had the opportunity to more closely examine the effect of starting IV antibiotics before vs after obtaining blood cultures. We present data on the effect of pretreatment with IV antibiotics for both septic and nonseptic ED patients on the blood culture positivity rate on an hour-by-hour basis, as well as the effects on distribution of species recovered and the impact of antibiotic resistance in empiric treatment with antibiotics.