Automated Grading System for Evaluation of Superficial Punctate Keratitis Associated With Dry Eye.

Purpose: To develop an automated method of grading fluorescein staining that accurately reproduces the clinical grading system currently in use.

Methods: From the slit lamp photograph of the fluorescein-stained cornea, the region of interest was selected and punctate dot number calculated using software developed with the OpenCV computer vision library. Images (n = 229) were then divided into six incremental severity categories based on computed scores.

Impact of Individualized Diet Intervention on Body Composition and Respiratory Variables in Children With Respiratory Insufficiency: A Pilot Intervention Study.

Objectives: Diet modification may improve body composition and respiratory variables in children with respiratory insufficiency. Our objective was to examine the effect of an individualized diet intervention on changes in weight, lean body mass, minute ventilation, and volumetric CO2 production in children dependent on long-term mechanical ventilatory support.

Design: Prospective, open-labeled interventional study.

Identification of Recurrent Clostridium difficile Infection Using Administrative Codes: Accuracy and Implications for Surveillance.

Objective: To develop an algorithm using administrative codes, laboratory data, and medication data to identify recurrent Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) and to examine the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and performance of this algorithm.

Methods: We identified all patients with 2 or more International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Edition, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) codes for CDI (008.45) from January 1 through December 31, 2013.

Impact of Mandatory Public Reporting of Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections on Blood Culture and Antibiotic Utilization in Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Units.

Background: As mandatory public reporting of healthcare-associated infections increases, there is concern that clinicians could attempt to decrease rates by avoiding the diagnosis of reportable infections.

Objective: To determine whether blood culture and antibiotic utilization changed after mandatory public reporting of central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI).

Design: Interrupted time-series of blood culture and antibiotic rates before and after state-specific implementation of mandatory public reporting.

Musical Sound Quality in Cochlear Implant Users: A Comparison in Bass Frequency Perception Between Fine Structure Processing and High-Definition Continuous Interleaved Sampling Strategies.

Objectives: Med-El cochlear implant (CI) patients are typically programmed with either the fine structure processing (FSP) or high-definition continuous interleaved sampling (HDCIS) strategy. FSP is the newer-generation strategy and aims to provide more direct encoding of fine structure information compared with HDCIS. Since fine structure information is extremely important in music listening, FSP may offer improvements in musical sound quality for CI users.

Tight Glycemic Control With Insulin Does Not Affect Skeletal Muscle Degradation During the Early Postoperative Period Following Pediatric Cardiac Surgery.

Objective: Critical illness is associated with significant catabolism, and persistent protein loss correlates with increased morbidity and mortality. Insulin is a potent anticatabolic hormone; high-dose insulin decreases skeletal muscle protein breakdown in critically ill pediatric surgical patients. However, insulin's effect on protein catabolism when given at clinically utilized doses has not been studied.

Novel strategies for sedentary behavior research.

Purpose: This article reports on the "Novel Strategies for Sedentary Behavior Research" session of the Sedentary Behavior: Identifying Research Priorities workshop.

Methods: The purpose of this session of the workshop were to propose strategies for accomplishing a research agenda in dealing with sedentary behavior and to consider research priorities for people at high risk for excess sedentary behavior.

Results And Conclusions: The four major recommendations from this workshop were as follows: 1) To add repeated objective measures of physical activity and sedentary behavior to existing cohort studies and standardize approaches to measurement and analysis.

Paths of resistance to EGFR inhibitors: is NF enough?

Although the majority of patients with EGFR-mutant lung cancer respond well to EGF receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI), all patients eventually develop resistance. The mechanism of acquired resistance is still unknown for a considerable subset of cases. This study reveals the NF1 tumor suppressor gene as a new mediator of resistance to EGFR TKIs and provides a mechanistic rationale for developing combination therapies.

Assessment of hemoglobin threshold for packed RBC transfusion in a medical-surgical PICU.

Objective: Results of a large multicenter randomized clinical trial published in 2007 demonstrated no benefit in using a liberal versus conservative RBC transfusion threshold in stable critically ill children. Using the conservative threshold decreased the number of RBC transfusions without increasing adverse outcomes. We aimed to determine if wide dissemination of this evidence altered the hemoglobin threshold used for RBC transfusions in our pediatric medical-surgical ICU.

Genome-wide linkage analysis of TMPRSS2-ERG fusion in familial prostate cancer.

Fusion of the 5'-untranslated region of androgen-regulated TMPRSS2 promoter with ETS transcription factor family members is found frequently in prostate cancers, and recent work suggests that the most common TMPRSS2-ERG fusion is associated with an aggressive clinical phenotype compared with fusion-negative prostate cancer. Thus far, analysis of the fusion has been limited to sporadic cases of prostate cancer. In the current study, we explore for an enrichment of TMPRSS2-ERG fusion in familial prostate cancer.