Opioid utilization after orthopaedic trauma hospitalization among Medicaid-insured adults.

Opioids are vital to pain management and sedation after trauma-related hospitalization. However, there are many confounding clinical, social, and environmental factors that exacerbate pain, post-injury care needs, and receipt of opioid prescriptions following orthopaedic trauma. This retrospective study sought to characterize differences in opioid prescribing and dosing in a national Medicaid eligible sample from 2010-2018.

Advancing Equity in U.S. Hospital Systems: Employee Understandings of Health Equity and Steps for Improvement.

Goals: Equity in the U.S. healthcare system remains a vital goal for healthcare leaders.

Perception of weight and threat to health.

Objectives: To examine African American women's perception of their risk for obesity-related comorbid illnesses compared to their weight category.

Methods: Participants were recruited from urban health centers in Atlanta, Georgia. Anthropometric measurements and self-reported demographics, medical conditions, and health beliefs about obesity and its related comorbid diseases were recorded.

Adolescent contraceptive care for the practicing pediatrician.

Improved use of contraception has been intrinsic in the decline of teenaged pregnancies in the United States. Recent advances in contraception, including the development of new progestins and longer-acting reversible methods, have greatly increased the options available for adolescents. By frankly discussing adverse effects, offering clear explanations of noncontraceptive benefits, and developing strategies for improving compliance, providers can play a key role in facilitating successful contraceptive use in young patients.

Serologic detection of herpes simplex virus type 2 antibodies among pregnant women using a point-of-care test from Focus Diagnostics.

Background: Serologic assays that identify herpes simplex type 2 (HSV-2) type-specific antibodies have been commercially available for more than a decade. Greater acceptance of these tests is hindered by uncertainty regarding their performance in real-world clinical settings.

Objectives: The primary objective was to compare the test characteristics of the Focus HerpeSelect Express Assay (EA) versus the Focus HerpeSelect enzyme linked immunoassay (ELISA) for detection of HSV-2 type-specific antibodies among pregnant women enrolled from 3 geographic sites with varying prevalences of HSV-2 infection.

Do African American mothers accurately estimate their daughters' weight category?

Objectives: We attempted to determine if mothers of overweight daughters accurately perceived the daughters' weight category and whether physician diagnosis of overweight was associated with accurate maternal perception of a daughter's weight.

Design: This was a cross-sectional study that used the Morehouse School of Medicine Obesity Health Belief Survey. Descriptive statistics were used with categorical variables; chi2 was used to identify associations between dichotomous and categorical data.

Estimating dissemination of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Sexually Transmitted Disease Treatment Guidelines from a survey of physicians.

Periodically, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) produce guidelines for the treatment of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in the USA. To date, few evaluations of the dissemination of these guidelines exist. A paper and pencil survey was distributed via priority mail to a sample of Atlanta-area physicians, 416 (34%) of whom responded with complete data.

Sexual history-taking among primary care physicians.

Background: Because many people seek sexual healthcare in settings where they seek primary healthcare, the extent to which primary care physicians take sexual histories is important. We surveyed Atlanta-area primary care physicians to estimate the extent to which they take sexual histories as well as the components of those histories and the circumstances under which they are taken.

Methods: Four-hundred-sixteen physicians in four specialties (obstetrics/gynecology, internal medicine, general/family practice, pediatrics) responded to a mail survey conducted during 2003-2004.

Sexually transmitted disease prevention in adolescents and young adults.

Objective: Sexuality is one of the most pervasive aspects of the human life cycle. It warrants attention in childhood, adolescence and adulthood, and is an integral part of each health maintenance visit. Given this, it is unfortunate that U.

Reducing HIV/AIDS transmission among African-American females: is the female condom a solution?

Rates of HIV/AIDS have increased at an alarming rate among minority women, especially African-American women. Suggestions that have been presented to decrease HIV/AIDS transmission among African-American women include promoting abstinence and the use of the male condom. Little recognition and support have been given for promoting the female condom as a viable solution to combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

HIV testing rates among African Americans: why are they not increasing?

HIV/AIDS disproportionately affects the African-American community. It is imperative to increase the awareness of HIV/AIDS as well as the amount of people getting tested. Sometimes strategies to increase testing in the African-American community do not have to do with access but more so with other circumstances surrounding testing.

Physicians' STD diagnosis and screening practices in the South.

Objectives: Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) remain at high levels in the South compared with the rest of the nation. Physician diagnosis levels and screening behaviors fall among the elements about which more knowledge is needed to address these high levels. This article assesses Southern physicians' STD diagnosis histories and screening behaviors, focusing on curable STDs.

Adolescent beliefs about infertility.

Purpose: Explore adolescents' definition of fertility and range of beliefs regarding causes of infertility.

Methods: Qualitative study involving five focus groups that met between April 2001 and December 2001 at a hospital-based adolescent health center. All groups were led by one experienced moderator and observed by two investigators.

Attitudes and experiences with levonorgestrel 100 microg/ethinyl estradiol 20 microg among women during a 3-month trial.

To describe attitudes and experiences with a low-dose oral contraceptive pill (Alesse) over 3 months, women aged 18 years and older (n = 218) were enrolled from 16 locations to evaluate their experiences with Alesse. The questionnaire assessed demographic and personal characteristics, attitudes and experiences, and satisfaction. The participants had a mean age of 26.