Validation of a spatial agent-based model for Taenia solium transmission ("CystiAgent") against a large prospective trial of control strategies in northern Peru.

Background: The pork tapeworm (Taenia solium) is a parasitic helminth that imposes a major health and economic burden on poor rural populations around the world. As recognized by the World Health Organization, a key barrier for achieving control of T. solium is the lack of an accurate and validated simulation model with which to study transmission and evaluate available control and elimination strategies.

Understanding transmission and control of the pork tapeworm with CystiAgent: a spatially explicit agent-based model.

Background: The pork tapeworm, Taenia solium, is a serious public health problem in rural low-resource areas of Latin America, Africa and Asia, where the associated conditions of nuerocysticercosis (NCC) and porcine cysticercosis cause substantial health and economic harms. An accurate and validated transmission model for T. solium would serve as an important new tool for control and elimination, as it would allow for comparison of available intervention strategies, and prioritization of the most effective strategies for control and elimination efforts.

Dental Caries and Otitis Media Among Schoolchildren in Palau.

Both oral disease and middle ear infections are highly prevalent in Pacific Island children. These diseases are multifactorial and likely attributable in part to both social and environmental factors. It has been two decades since these diseases were defined in Palau, and at the time were noted to be among the most common conditions and presented a substantial burden among Palau's children.

Using registry data to characterize the incidence and causes of blindness in Oregon.

In the United States, there is no reliable data to describe the prevalence of eye diseases leading to visual impairment and little active surveillance to address this knowledge gap. Data that is readily available from many state blind registries may provide helpful information on trends and causes of blindness. We analyzed new registrations with the Oregon Commission for the Blind (OCB) and Oregon State Department of Administrative Services (DAS) from 1961 to 2016 for causes of and trends in blindness.

Seasonal patterns in risk factors for Taenia solium transmission: a GPS tracking study of pigs and open human defecation in northern Peru.

Background: Taenia solium (cysticercosis) is a parasitic cestode that is endemic in rural populations where open defecation is common and free-roaming pigs have access to human feces. The purpose of this study was to examine the roaming patterns of free-range pigs, and identify areas where T. solium transmission could occur via contact with human feces.

Open versus robot-assisted radical cystectomy: 30-day perioperative comparison and predictors for cost-to-patient, complication, and readmission.

The objectives of this study are to evaluate if robotic cystectomy demonstrates reduced complications, readmissions, and cost-to-patient compared to open approach 30-day post-operatively, and to identify predictors of complication, readmission, and cost-to-patient. This retrospective cohort study analyzed 249 patients who underwent open (n = 149) or robotic (n = 100) cystectomy from 2009 to 2015 at our institution. Outcomes included 30-day post-operative complication, readmission, and cost-to-patient charges.

Factors Associated With Adherence to Nasoalveolar Molding (NAM) by Caregivers of Infants Born With Cleft Lip and Palate.

Objective: Identify factors associated with adherence to nasoalveolar molding (NAM) therapy.

Design: Retrospective case-control study.

Setting: Tertiary referral center.

Healthy & Empowered Youth: A Positive Youth Development Program for Native Youth.

Introduction: During 2010-2012, Oregon Health & Science University's Prevention Research Center, a Northwest Tribe, and the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, collaborated to evaluate the Healthy & Empowered Youth Project, a school- and community-based positive youth development program for American Indian and Alaska Native high school students.

Methods: The Native STAND (Students Together Against Negative Decisions) curriculum was enhanced with hands-on learning activities in media design to engage students in sexual and reproductive health topics covered by the curriculum. Guest speakers, field trips, and extracurricular activities were added to provide academic enrichment, engage students in cultural activities, and offer opportunities for career development.

Internet-Based Delivery of Evidence-Based Health Promotion Programs Among American Indian and Alaska Native Youth: A Case Study.

Background: American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth face multiple health challenges compared to other racial/ethnic groups, which could potentially be ameliorated by the dissemination of evidence-based adolescent health promotion programs. Previous studies have indicated that limited trained personnel, cultural barriers, and geographic isolation may hinder the reach and implementation of evidence-based health promotion programs among AI/AN youth. Although Internet access is variable in AI/AN communities across the United States, it is swiftly and steadily improving, and it may provide a viable strategy to disseminate evidence-based health promotion programs to this underserved population.

Prenatal Depression Screening by Certified Nurse-Midwives, Oregon.

Introduction: About 18% of pregnant women have major or minor depression during pregnancy, but many are neither screened nor treated. Lack of treatment can have serious adverse consequences for the woman and her child. Since 2002, the American College of Nurse-Midwives has advised midwives to integrate prevention, universal screening, treatment, and/or referral for depression into the care they provide.

Fear of Falling Is Associated with Recurrent Falls in People with Multiple Sclerosis: A Longitudinal Cohort Study.

Background: People with multiple sclerosis (MS) fall frequently, and there are few clinically valid tools to measure the risk factors for falls. We assessed the unidimensionality of the 7-item Falls Efficacy Scale-International (FES-I), a measure of fear of falling, and determined whether the 7-item FES-I is associated with recurrent falls in people with MS.

Methods: Falls were counted prospectively for 6 months using fall calendars in 58 people with MS (age, 18-50 years; Expanded Disability Status Scale score, 0-6).

An Evaluation of Oral Midazolam for Anxiety and Pain in First-Trimester Surgical Abortion: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: To estimate the effect of oral midazolam on patient pain and anxiety perception during first-trimester surgical abortion.

Methods: Between May and December 2013, we conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Patients between 6 0/7 and 10 6/7 weeks of gestation received 10 mg oral midazolam or placebo 30-60 minutes before surgical abortion.

Perceived racial discrimination in health care, completion of standard diabetes services, and diabetes control among a sample of American Indian women.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine perceived experiences of racial discrimination (perceived discrimination) in health care and its associations with completing standards of care for diabetes management and diabetes control.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 200 adult American Indian (AI) women with type 2 diabetes from 4 health care facilities located on tribal reservations in the Pacific Northwest. Participants completed a survey, and medical records were abstracted.

Impact of an electronic health record operating room management system in ophthalmology on documentation time, surgical volume, and staffing.

Importance: Although electronic health record (EHR) systems have potential benefits, such as improved safety and quality of care, most ophthalmology practices in the United States have not adopted these systems. Concerns persist regarding potential negative impacts on clinical workflow. In particular, the impact of EHR operating room (OR) management systems on clinical efficiency in the ophthalmic surgery setting is unknown.

Predicting adherence to diabetic eye examinations: development of the compliance withAnnual Diabetic Eye Exams Survey.

Objective: To identify variables that predict adherence with annual eye examinations using the Compliance with Annual Diabetic Eye Exams Survey (CADEES), a new questionnaire designed to measure health beliefs related to diabetic retinopathy and annual eye examinations.

Design: Questionnaire development.

Participants: Three hundred sixteen adults with diabetes.

Psychometrics of a new questionnaire to assess glaucoma adherence: the Glaucoma Treatment Compliance Assessment Tool (an American Ophthalmological Society thesis).

Purpose: To report the psychometrics of the Glaucoma Treatment Compliance Assessment Tool (GTCAT), a new questionnaire designed to assess adherence with glaucoma therapy.

Methods: We developed the questionnaire according to the constructs of the Health Belief Model. We evaluated the questionnaire using data from a cross-sectional study with focus groups (n = 20) and a prospective observational case series (n=58).

Provider practice characteristics that promote interpersonal continuity.

Purpose: Becoming certified as a patient-centered medical home now requires practices to measure how effectively they provide continuity of care. To understand how continuity can be improved, we studied the association between provider practice characteristics and interpersonal continuity using the Usual Provider Continuity Index (UPC).

Methods: We conducted a mixed-methods study of the relationship between provider practice characteristics and UPC in 4 university-based family medicine clinics.

The relationship between vehicle roof crush and head, neck and spine injury in rollover crashes.

Background: It is well established that rollover crashes are associated with a higher risk of serious injury and death than other types of crashes. Some of the most serious injuries that can result from a rollover crash are those to the head, neck and spine. The mechanism of injury to these body parts in a rollover is a matter of dispute in the literature.

Perceived experiences of discrimination in health care: a barrier for cancer screening among American Indian women with type 2 diabetes.

Purpose: Breast and cervical cancer-mortality disparities are prominent among American Indian women. These disparities, in part, may result from patients perceived experiences of discrimination in health care. This report evaluates the impact of perceived discrimination on screening for breast and cervical cancer in a sample of 200 American Indian women with type 2 diabetes.

Hydrocodone-acetaminophen for pain control in first-trimester surgical abortion: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: Although hydrocodone-acetaminophen is commonly used for pain control in first-trimester abortion, the efficacy of oral opioids for decreasing pain has not been established. Our objective was to estimate the effect of hydrocodone-acetaminophen on patient pain perception during first-trimester surgical abortion.

Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial.

Built environment and its influences on walking among older women: use of standardized geographic units to define urban forms.

Consensus is lacking on specific and policy-relevant measures of neighborhood attributes that may affect health outcomes. To address this limitation, we created small standardized geographic units measuring the transit, commercial, and park area access, intersection, and population density for the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area. Cluster analysis was used to identify six unique urban forms: central city, city periphery, suburb, urban fringe with poor commercial access, urban fringe with pool park access, and satellite city.

Shocks burden and increased mortality in implantable cardioverter-defibrillator patients.

Background: Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) shocks are associated with an increased risk of death. It is unclear whether ICD shocks are detrimental per se or a marker of higher risk patients.

Objective: We aimed to assess the association between ICD shocks and time to death after correction for baseline mortality based on the Seattle Heart Failure Model (SHFM).

Impaired fasting tolerance among Alaska native children with a common carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1A sequence variant.

A high prevalence of the sequence variant c.1436C→T in the CPT1A gene has been identified among Alaska Native newborns but the clinical implications of this variant are unknown. We conducted medically supervised fasts in 5 children homozygous for the c.

Bicycle commuter injury prevention: it is time to focus on the environment.

Background: Few data exist on the risk of injury while commuting to work or school by bicycle. The proportion of commuters choosing to travel by bike is increasing in the United States, and information on injury incidence and the influences of rider characteristics and environmental factors may suggest opportunities for prevention actions.

Methods: Bicycle commuters in the Portland, OR, metropolitan area were recruited via the websites and community advertising to participate in a 1-year study.