Physician Assistants/Associates With Doctoral Degrees: Where Are They Now?

Purpose: The impact of holding a doctoral credential by clinically practicing physician assistants/associates (PAs) remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate practice patterns and describe demographic characteristics of PAs who have terminal doctoral degrees.

Methods: This was a secondary analysis of data obtained from the 2021 Salary Survey of the American Academy of PAs.

Tea Tree Essential Oil Kills and Persisters.

Persister cells are a small subpopulation of non-growing bacteria within a population that can survive long exposures to antibiotic treatment. Following antibiotic removal, persister cells can regrow and populate, playing a key role in the chronic reoccurrence of bacterial infections. The development of new molecules and methods to kill bacterial persisters is critical.

Human Oral Mucosa as a Potentially Effective Source of Neural Crest Stem Cells for Clinical Practice.

We report in this study on the isolation and expansion of neural crest stem cells (NCSCs) from the epithelium of oral mucosa (OM) using reagents that are GMP-certified and FDA-approved for clinical use. Characterization analysis showed that the levels of keratins , , , , , and -specific to OM epithelial cells-were significantly lower in the experimental NCSCs. While was decreased with no statistically significant difference, the earliest neural crest specifier genes , , , , , , and showed a trend in increased expression in NCSCs.

Black Americans' Diminished Return of Educational Attainment on Tobacco Use in Baltimore City.

Background: Socioeconomic status (SES) indicators such as educational attainment are fundamental factors affecting health. One mechanism through which education affects health is by reducing the likelihood of engaging in high-risk behaviors such as smoking. However, according to the marginalization-related diminished returns (MDRs) theory, the association between education and health may be weaker for marginalized populations such as Black than White, primarily due to racism and discrimination.

Using Community-Partnered Participatory Research to Value the "Community Lens" and Promote Equity in Community-Academic Partnerships.

Background: Community input is crucial for identifying characteristics necessary for equitable, sustainable community-academic partnerships (CAPs). A November 2021 conference, honoring the late Dr. Loretta Jones and the Community-Partnered Participatory Research (CPPR) model, was held to gather input for designing a learning institute for community members as co-equal partners with academics in research, program, and policy initiatives.

Social isolation, social media use, and poor mental health among older adults, California Health Interview Survey 2019-2020.

Background: Older adults' engagement on social media may be a resource to reduce loneliness and improve mental health.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine loneliness and social media use and its association with severe psychological distress among older adults and whether social media use moderated the association of loneliness on severe psychological distress among older adults.

Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of the 2019-2020 California Health Interview Survey.

Care of the Aged, Women's Health, and Measuring Religion, Spirituality and Health.

This issue of JORH explores various concerns related to the care of the elderly within a number of countries (namely China, India, Iran, Israel, Turkey, USA). Issues relating to Women's Health are also considered across the life span but particularly with regard to gynaecology, paediatrics, cancer, mental health and wellbeing. Research is presented on the empirical measurement of religion, spirituality and health with scales developed and/or tested in Iran, India, Haiti, Taiwan, Jordan and the Netherlands.

Allostatic load in the US general population: Race and educational intersection.

Objectives: Educational attainment is a protective factor against poor health, but high educational attainment has a weaker effect on black people than on white people; this pattern has been called marginalization-related diminished returns (MDRs). Using a national sample of white people and black people 25 years and above, this study estimates the association between high educational attainment and allostatic load between black people and white people, and within each group.

Study Design: This cross-sectional study uses data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 1999 and 2016, including 2761 black people and 7058 white people.

Need for Time and Training: Pediatric Program Directors' Perceptions About Mentorship of Residents.

Objective: We aimed to describe pediatric program directors' perceptions of existing mentorship programs in pediatric residencies, to assess whether characteristics used for mentor-mentee assignments impact mentoring outcomes, and to identify barriers to success in mentorship programs.

Methods: With the support of the Association of Pediatric Program Directors (APPD) Research Task Force, we conducted a cross-sectional survey study of all associate pediatric program directors in the United States in March 2022.

Results: Nearly half (82 of 197, 41.

Systematic evidence review and meta-analysis of outcomes associated with cancer genetic counseling.

Purpose: Genetic counseling (GC) is standard of care in genetic cancer risk assessment (GCRA). A rigorous assessment of the data reported from published studies is crucial to ensure the evidence-based implementation of GC.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 17 patient-reported and health-services-related outcomes associated with pre- and post-test GC in GCRA in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) methodology.

The effect of educational intervention based on the Progressively Lowered Stress Threshold extended model on the process of caregiving for people with dementia.

Background: This study examined the impacts of an educational intervention based on the Progressively Lowered Stress Threshold (PLST) extended model on caregiving for people with dementia (PWD).

Method: This study was conducted in Isfahan, Iran, from May 2016 to June 2018, with 38 caregivers of PWD as participants assigned to an intervention group. Data were collected using a multi-sectional, researcher-developed questionnaire that recorded the demographic characteristics, and measured the dementia-related knowledge and caregiving practices of the participants.

The role of Neurochemicals, Stress Hormones and Immune System in the Positive Feedback Loops between Diabetes, Obesity and Depression.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and depression are significant public health and socioeconomic issues. They commonly co-occur, with T2DM occurring in 11.3% of the US population, while depression has a prevalence of about 9%, with higher rates among youths.

Association of neighborhood gentrification and residential moves with hypertension and diabetes control in Los Angeles County, 2014-2019: A retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To examine whether gentrification exposure is associated with future hypertension and diabetes control.

Methods: Linking records from an integrated health care system to census-tract characteristics, we identified adults with hypertension and/or diabetes residing in stably low-SES census tracts in 2014 (n = 69,524). We tested associations of census tract gentrification occurring between 2015 and 2019 with participants' disease control in 2019.

Decisional conflict, caregiver mastery, and depression among Chinese parental caregivers of children with leukemia.

Background: Informal caregivers of children with leukemia can be emotionally and psychiatrically vulnerable when facing difficult treatment decisions (e.g., chemotherapy, targeted therapy, radiation, transplantation).

Use and outcomes of antihypertensive medication treatment in the US hypertensive population: A gender comparison.

Background: Although effective antihypertensive medications have existed for decades, only about half of the hypertensive individuals are considered to have controlled blood pressure. Limited research studies have investigated gender disparity in the utilization and effectiveness of antihypertensive medications treatment. To examine the gender difference in antihypertensive medications' use and the effect of using antihypertensive medication treatment on blood pressure control among the U.

Examining racial disparity in psychotic disorders related ambulatory care visits: an observational study using national ambulatory medical care survey 2010-2015.

Background: One of the most consistent research findings related to race and mental health diseases is the disproportionately high rate of psychotic disorder diagnoses among people of color, specifically people of African descent. It is important to examine if a similar pattern exists among specific psychotic disorders. We aimed to examine the racial/ethnic differences in ambulatory care visits diagnosed with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders (SSDs).

"She Is Stand-Offish Like That": Black Adults' Recognition of Child Behaviors Associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to identify the sociocultural factors in the Black community that contribute to a delay in identification of Black children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Methods: Four focus groups with parents of typically developing children were conducted at 2 Black Churches using a community-partnered participatory research approach and the socioecological model. Participants completed sociodemographic surveys, viewed CDC Autism Training Videos of Black children with ASD, and reported on their behavioral observations.

Overnight urinary melatonin levels in women with and without HIV: An observational cohort study.

Introduction: Despite significant improvements in longevity and quality of life associated with antiretroviral therapy, individuals with HIV still suffer from a higher burden of sleep and circadian disruption and inflammatory-based diseases than individuals without HIV. While melatonin is a hormone that has a role in sleep and circadian regulation and has anti-inflammatory properties, the overnight concentration of the urinary melatonin metabolite has not yet been reported in people with HIV.

Methods: The aim of this study was to compare the overnight urinary melatonin metabolite levels in women aged 35-70 years with HIV (n = 151) to a well-matched comparison group of women without HIV (n = 147).

Effect of index HIV self-testing for sexual partners of clients enrolled in antiretroviral therapy (ART) programs in Malawi: A randomized controlled trial.

Background: HIV testing among the sexual partners of HIV-positive clients is critical for case identification and reduced transmission in southern and eastern Africa. HIV self-testing (HIVST) may improve uptake of HIV services among sexual partners of antiretroviral therapy (ART) clients, but the impact of HIVST on partner testing and subsequent ART initiation remains unclear.

Methods And Findings: We conducted an individually randomized, unblinded trial to assess if an index HIVST intervention targeting the partners of ART clients improves uptake of testing and treatment services in Malawi.

Advancements in small molecule drug design: A structural perspective.

In this review, we outline recent advancements in small molecule drug design from a structural perspective. We compare protein structure prediction methods and explore the role of the ligand binding pocket in structure-based drug design. We examine various structural features used to optimize drug candidates, including functional groups, stereochemistry, and molecular weight.