FAIR reporting of clinical trials for public health practice.

The number of clinical trials is rapidly growing, and automation of literature processing is becoming desirable but unresolved. Our purpose was to assess and increase the readiness of clinical trial reports for supporting automated retrieval and implementation in public health practice. We searched the Medline database for a random sample of clinical trials of HIV/AIDS management with likely relevance to public health in Africa.

Public safety redefined: Mitigating trauma by centering the community in community mental health.

The summer of 2020 marked a shift in public perception of police brutality and racism in the United States. Following the police murder of George Floyd and ensuing social unrest, the appropriate role and function of the police in communities have been a frequent topic of debate. Of particular concern is the intersection of policing and mental health where we see a pattern of police using excessive force disproportionately against persons with disabilities, especially mental health disabilities (Autistic Self Advocacy Network, 2017).

Data Integration for the Study of Outstanding Productivity in Biomedical Research.

Our goal is to analyze improvement of scientific performance in a multidimensional outcome space, with a focus on US-based biomedical research. With the growing diversity of research databases, limiting assessment of scientific productivity to bibliometric measures such as number of publications, impact factor of journals and number of citations, is increasingly challenged. Using a wider range of outcomes, from publications through practice improvements to entrepreneurial outcomes, overcomes many current limitations in the study of research growth.

Streptococcus pneumoniae potently induces cell death in mesothelial cells.

Pleural infection/empyema is common and its incidence continues to rise. Streptococcus pneumoniae is the commonest bacterial cause of empyema in children and among the commonest in adults. The mesothelium represents the first line of defense against invading microorganisms, but mesothelial cell responses to common empyema pathogens, including S.

Ethnic Disparities in Trauma-Related Mental Illness: Is Ethnic Identity a Buffer?

Despite evidence that racial and ethnic characteristics influence the impact of traumatic exposure on psychological health, little is known about how race and ethnic identity can alter, and possibly protect against, the effects of trauma on the psychiatric diagnoses of women. Therefore, the present study examined the moderating role of race/ethnicity and ethnic identity in the link between trauma exposure and psychiatric diagnosis for African American and Caucasian college women. Participants were a sample of 242 women from the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States who self-identified as African American or Black (31%) and European American or Caucasian (69%; age = 19.

Canadian epileptologists' counseling of drivers amidst guideline inconsistencies.

Background: Epilepsy is a common medical condition for which physicians perform driver fitness assessments. The Canadian Medical association (CMA) and the Canadian Council of Motor transportation administrators (CCMTA) publish documents to guide Canadian physicians' driver fitness assessments.

Objectives: We aimed to measure the consistency of driver fitness counseling among epileptologists in Canada, and to determine whether inconsistencies between national guidelines are associated with greater variability in counseling instructions.

A collaborative mental health research agenda in a community of poor and underserved Latinos.

The goal of this project was to engage community members and grassroots organizations in a discussion regarding perceived mental health needs and priorities of the population of underserved Latinos in Montgomery County, Maryland. Community-based participatory research was used to establish structures for participation and to design studies that effectively address local mental health needs. Four focus groups with 30 Latino lay health promoters and 20 key informant interviews were conducted to ascertain communal mental health needs and priorities.

Cultural protective factors for community risks and substance use among rural African American adolescents.

Relatively little attention has been afforded to protective factors for community-level risks among non-urban populations. This study examined the extent to which traditional cultural attitudes and behaviors of 137 African American adolescents (ages 12-17) from a rural community moderated the relationship between perceived community disorganization and substance use behaviors. Results from hierarchical linear regression revealed that traditional cultural attitudes and behaviors were differentially related to community disorganization and adolescent substance use.

Gold diggers, video vixens, and Jezebels: stereotype images and substance use among urban African American girls.

Background: This study sought to examine the relationship of negative stereotype attitudes and endorsement of western standards of beauty (i.e., colorism) on the substance use behavior of low-income urban African American girls.

Outcomes of multigestational pregnancies affected by congenital diaphragmatic hernia.

Background/purpose: The prognosis for multiple vs singleton pregnancies affected by congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is not known. To improve the counseling of families with multiple gestation pregnancies complicated by CDH, we examined outcomes of a consecutive series of CDH cases occurring in multiple gestation pregnancy referrals.

Methods: Clinical characteristics and morbidity and mortality data were gathered for a consecutive series of infants with CDH from 16 multiple gestation pregnancies.

Underlying mechanisms in the relationship between Africentric worldview and depressive symptoms.

This study examines underlying mechanisms in the relationship between an Africentric worldview and depressive symptoms. Participants were 112 African American young adults. An Africentric worldview buffered the association between perceived stress and depressive symptoms.

Identification of MIR390a precursor processing-defective mutants in Arabidopsis by direct genome sequencing.

Transacting siRNA (tasiRNA) biogenesis in Arabidopsis is initiated by microRNA (miRNA) -guided cleavage of primary transcripts. In the case of TAS3 tasiRNA formation, ARGONAUTE7 (AGO7)-miR390 complexes interact with primary transcripts at two sites, resulting in recruitment of RNA-DEPENDENT RNA POLYMERASE6 for dsRNA biosynthesis. An extensive screen for Arabidopsis mutants with specific defects in TAS3 tasiRNA biogenesis or function was done.

Stress and stress reduction among African American women: a brief report.

This brief report looks at the impact of discrimination, poverty and daily hassles on the stress and the subsequent health of African American women. Using this contextual framework, an Africentric, female-centered stress reduction program is presented to address the specific needs of this population. Thirty-three African American women between the ages of 22 and 63 participated in either an 8-h pilot of the proposed Africentric program or a 7-h standard stress reduction intervention.

Survival of severe congenital diaphragmatic hernia has morbid consequences.

Background/purpose: Fetal tracheal occlusion (TO) was developed in an attempt to enhance prenatal lung growth and improve survival in fetuses with severe congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). We conducted a randomized, controlled clinical trial in 24 fetuses with severe left CDH (liver herniated into the thorax and low lung-to-head ratio) to compare survival after endoscopic fetal TO vs standard perinatal care (control) and prospectively followed up the 16 survivors (9 control, 7 TO) to compare neurodevelopmental, respiratory, surgical, growth, and nutritional outcomes.

Methods: At 1 and 2 years old, subjects underwent evaluation consisting of medical and neurological history and physical, developmental testing, nutritional assessment, oxygen saturation and pulmonary function testing, chest radiograph, and echocardiogram.

Quantitative analysis of temporal lobe white matter T2 relaxation time in temporal lobe epilepsy.

The objective of this study was to assess temporal lobe white matter (WM) quantitatively using T2 relaxometry in patients with pharmacologically intractable temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). T2 relaxometry was performed using a dual-echo sequence with 23 contiguous oblique coronal slices in 56 consecutive TLE patients and in 30 healthy subjects. Averages of six slices were chosen to calculate T2 relaxation time in the temporal lobe WM (WM-T2) and the hippocampus (Hippo-T2).

Syringocystadenoma papilliferum: an unusual cutaneous lesion in a pediatric patient.

We report a case of syringocystadenoma papilliferum, a rare cutaneous adnexal neoplasm, occurring synchronously in two distinct unusual locations in a 22-month-old child with lesions on the lower leg and back.

The influence of cultural and racial identification on the psychosocial adjustment of inner-city African American children in school.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship and combined influence of racial identity and Africentric values on African American children's psychosocial adjustment. Participants were 104 (53 males, 51 females) African American fourth-grade students attending an inner-city public school in a northeastern city. Child and teacher ratings were used to assess the relationship between racial identity, Africentric values, and several indices of child psychosocial adjustment, including child behavior control, school interest, and teacher perceptions of child strengths and problems in the classroom.

Contrast material-enhanced MRA overestimates severity of carotid stenosis, compared with 3D time-of-flight MRA.

Objective: Non-contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) carotid imaging with the time-of-flight (TOF) technique compares favorably with angiography, ultrasound, and excised plaques. However, gadolinium contrast-enhanced MRA (CE-MRA) has almost universally replaced TOF-MRA, because it reduces imaging time (25 seconds vs 10 minutes) and improves signal-to-noise ratio. In our practice we found alarming discrepancies between CE-MRA and TOF-MRA, which was the impetus for this study.