Perceived Risks and Benefits and Frequency of Cannabis Use Among People with HIV in Different Legal Environments.

We sought to describe the prevalence of and motivation for cannabis use and whether legalization of cannabis impacts the frequency and perceived risks and benefits of use in people living with HIV (PWH). The study was based on two HIV clinics located in Cleveland, Ohio, and Aurora, Colorado. Participants responded to a 45-question survey, and responses were summarized in aggregate and stratified by the frequency of cannabis use and site.

Percutaneous vertebral augmentation for acute traumatic vertebral Fractures: A TQIP database study.

Patients with vertebral fractures may be treated with percutaneous vertebroplasty (VP) and kyphoplasty (KP) for pain relief. Few studies examine the use of VP and KP in the setting of an acute trauma. In this study, we describe the current use of VP/KP in patients with acute traumatic vertebral fractures.

Functional Status is Key to Long-term Survival in Emergency General Surgery Conditions.

Introduction: Emergency General Surgery (EGS) conditions in older patients constitutes a substantial public health burden due to high morbidity and mortality. We sought to utilize a supervised machine learning method to determine combinations of factors with the greatest influence on long-term survival in older EGS patients.

Methods: We identified community dwelling participants admitted for EGS conditions from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey linked with claims (1992-2013).

Heterogeneous pain trajectories in persons with Parkinson's disease.

Introduction: Pain is a common and complex symptom in Parkinson's disease. The underlying mechanisms and longitudinal patterns are not well understood, which impedes therapeutic decision making. The objectives of this study were to characterize longitudinal pain trajectories, identify clusters (subgroups) with similar patterns, and examine associations with sociodemographic and clinical characteristics.

Surgical Repair vs Stent for Esophageal Perforation: A Multi-institutional Database Analysis.

Background: Endoscopic esophageal stenting is used as an alternative to surgical repair for esophageal perforation. Multi-institutional studies supporting stenting are lacking. The purpose of this study was to compare the outcomes of surgical repair and esophageal stenting in patients with esophageal perforation using a nationally representative database.

Age as a Barrier to Surgical Stabilization of Rib Fractures in Patients with Flail Chest.

Introduction: Although randomized trials demonstrate a benefit to surgical stabilization of rib fractures (SSRF), SSRF is rarely performed. We hypothesized older patients were less likely to receive SSRF nationally.

Methods: The 2016 National Inpatient Sample was used to identify adults with flail chest.

Uncovering Disparities in Scholarly Productivity among Junior Surgical Society Grant Recipients.

Background: Despite increasing the number of women and ethnic minority groups in surgery, the academic advancement of such individuals within surgical fields lags behind Caucasian men. We sought to identify gender and ethnic inequalities in the receipt of surgical society research grants for young faculty investigators and compare the scholarly productivity of these groups.

Materials And Methods: In this cross-sectional and retrospective study, the gender and race of surgical society grant recipients were determined from surgical society Web sites.

Albeit ever more technological, there's no place like home.

Prero MY, Birnkrant DJ, Carter JC. Albeit ever more technological, there’s no place like home. .

The case for behavioral health integration into primary care.

Chronic health disorders can be better managed without increasing costs by engaging in collaborative care management of depression and anxiety.

Behavioral Health Consult: Schizophrenia: Ensuring an accurate Dx, optimizing treatment.

Steven R, a 21-year-old man, visited the clinic accompanied by his mother. He did not speak much, and his mother provided his history. Over the previous 2 months, she had overheard him whispering in an agitated voice, even though no one else was nearby.

The Management of Partial Zone II Intrasynovial Flexor Tendon Lacerations: A Literature Review of Biomechanics, Clinical Outcomes, and Complications.

Background: Penetrating trauma or lacerations within zone II of the flexor sheath may result in partial tendon injury. The proper management of this injury is controversial; the literature contains differing indications for surgical treatment and postoperative rehabilitation.

Methods: A literature review of the Cochrane, MEDLINE, and PubMed databases was performed using the following search criteria: partial, flexor, tendon, and laceration.

Commentary: Integrated Pediatric Primary Care: Moving From Why to How.

Whether to address behavioral health issues in pediatric primary care is no longer debated; instead, we are challenged to determine "how" and who can best deliver services in an effective and sustainable manner. This commentary explores how pediatric psychology can contribute to this discussion by developing and evaluating innovative clinical models (such as a hybrid Collaborative Care/Primary Care Behavioral Health model) and expanding workforce and teaching initiatives.

A synthetic peptide targeting the BH4 domain of Bcl-2 induces apoptosis in multiple myeloma and follicular lymphoma cells alone or in combination with agents targeting the BH3-binding pocket of Bcl-2.

Bcl-2 inhibits apoptosis by two distinct mechanisms but only one is targeted to treat Bcl-2-positive malignancies. In this mechanism, the BH1-3 domains of Bcl-2 form a hydrophobic pocket, binding and inhibiting pro-apoptotic proteins, including Bim. In the other mechanism, the BH4 domain mediates interaction of Bcl-2 with inositol 1,4, 5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3Rs), inhibiting pro-apoptotic Ca2+ signals.

Factors contributing to facial asymmetry in identical twins.

Background: This study examines the potential contributions of environmental factors to variations in facial symmetry between identical twins.

Methods: Identical male and female twins were recruited from the Twins Days Festival in 2009 and 2010. Subjects independently completed a comprehensive questionnaire on their medical and personal history, and then posed for digital facial photography from several different angles.

Cardiac and pulmonary function variability in Duchenne/Becker muscular dystrophy: an initial report.

The Duchenne and Becker forms of muscular dystrophy are associated with dilated cardiomyopathy and are diseases in which pulmonary function peaks and then progressively declines. In this report, the authors quantify cardiopulmonary function variability among brothers. Brothers in 3 of 7 eligible sibships had discordant pulmonary function, with significant differences between the brothers' peak forced vital capacities and their vital capacities at last comparable age.

The treatment of HIV-associated nephropathy.

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) preserves kidney function in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated nephropathy (HIVAN). Emerging data also document substantial renal benefits of ART in the general HIV-infected population, which is associated in part with suppression of HIV-1 viral replication. The extent to which the response to ART differs in persons with HIVAN compared with those with other HIV-associated kidney disorders is unknown.

HIV and the Kidney.

Direct effects of HIV-1 infection on the kidney combine with immune and genetic factors, comorbidities, coinfections, and medication toxicities to induce a spectrum of kidney disorders in HIV disease. The most dramatic of these, HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN), emerges almost exclusively in persons of African descent and is associated with rapid progression to end-stage renal disease in the absence of antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART modifies the natural history of HIVAN, but the renal benefits of ART may not be limited to HIVAN.

Symptomatic nephrolithiasis in prolonged survivors of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

In this study, we describe the association between Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and symptomatic nephrolithiasis. The DMD patients were matched to non-ambulatory control patients with non-DMD neurological diagnoses via retrospective chart review. All patients with DMD and symptomatic nephrolithiasis were over 20 years old.

Parent-Child Interactions During the Initial Weeks Following Brain Injury in Young Children.

Objective: To understand how traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects parent-child interactions acutely following injury.

Participants: Young children hospitalized for TBI ( = 80) and orthopedic injuries (OI; = 113).

Method: Raters coded videotaped interactions during free play and structured tasks for parental warmth/responsiveness and negativity and child warmth, behavior regulation, and cooperation.

Use of the laryngeal mask airway in patients with severe muscular dystrophy who require sedation or anesthesia.

Severe muscular dystrophy (MD) has historically led to death in early adulthood, due to mainly cardiopulmonary complications. However, with newer methods of cardiac and respiratory management, survival has improved, and patients with MD are more frequently undergoing procedures requiring deep sedation or anesthesia. Respiratory management of these patients during procedures is challenging; safe and effective options for respiratory support are needed.

Association of transient tachypnea of the newborn and childhood asthma.

Objective: To determine if transient tachypnea of the newborn (TTN) is independently associated with childhood asthma.

Methods: The sampling frame was a computerized database on 18,379 term infants born between January 1, 1996 and December 31, 2000 in an urban tertiary care hospital. This was a case-control study nested in a cohort of all term newborns who were subsequently diagnosed with asthma (n = 2137) and a similar number of birthday-matched controls.