Cardiovascular outcomes of type 2 myocardial infarction among COVID-19 patients: a propensity matched national study.

Background: Myocardial infarction Type II (T2MI) is a prevalent cause of troponin elevation secondary to a variety of conditions causing stress/demand mismatch. The impact of T2MI on outcomes in patients hospitalized with COVID-19 is not well studied.

Methods: The Nationwide Inpatient Sample database from the year 2020 was queried to identify COVID-19 patients with T2MI during the index hospitalization.

Association of Demographic, Clinical, and Social Determinants of Health With COVID-19 Vaccination Booster Dose Completion Among US Veterans.

This cohort study investigates the association of demographic, clinical, and social determinants of health with COVID-19 booster completion among enrollees in the US Veterans Health Administration to identify vulnerable subpopulations.

NAMS 2021 Utian Translational Science SymposiumSeptember 2021, Washington, DCCharting the path to health in midlife and beyond: the biology and practice of wellness.

Charting the Path to Health in Midlife and Beyond: The Biology and Practice of Wellness was a Translational Science Symposium held on Tuesday, September 21, 2021. Foundational psychosocial and behavioral approaches to promote healthy aging and strategies to disseminate this information were discussed. The following synopsis documents the conversation, describes the state of the science, and outlines a path forward for clinical practice.

Biallelic -associated retinal dystrophies: Expanding the mutational and clinical spectrum.

Purpose: To evaluate the phenotypic spectrum of autosomal recessive associated retinal dystrophies and assess genotypic associations.

Methods: A retrospective multicenter study was performed of patients with biallelic -associated retinal dystrophies. Data including presenting symptoms and age, visual acuity, kinetic perimetry, full field electroretinogram, fundus examination, multimodal retinal imaging, and genotype were evaluated.

Meta-analysis of Intraprocedural Comparative Effectiveness of Vascular Plugs Vs Coils in Proximal Splenic Artery Embolization and Associated Patient Radiation Exposure.

Purpose: To compare vascular plugs to coil embolization of the proximal splenic artery and evaluate differences in radiation exposure to the patients.

Methods: An electronic literature search was performed for relevant studies from January 2000 to July 2018 that compared the efficacy of vascular plugs vs coils in splenic artery embolization. Only studies that investigated coil or vascular plug use, without combination with other embolic agents, were included.

Lurasidone Improves Psychopathology and Cognition in Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia.

Purpose/background: In addition to clozapine, other atypical antipsychotic drugs pharmacologically similar to clozapine, for example, olanzapine, risperidone, and melperone, are also effective in a similar proportion of treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) patients, ~40%. The major goal of this study was to compare 2 doses of lurasidone, another atypical antipsychotic drug, and time to improvement in psychopathology and cognition during a 6-month trial in TRS patients.

Methods/procedures: The diagnosis of TRS was based on clinical history and lack of improvement in psychopathology during a 6-week open trial of lurasidone 80 mg/d (phase 1).

A Meta-analysis of Comparative Outcome and Cost-Effectiveness of Internal Iliac Artery Embolization with Vascular Plug Versus Coil.

Purpose: To evaluate the comparative outcome and cost of vascular plugs versus coils for internal iliac artery embolization prior to endovascular aortic aneurysm repair.

Method: A search was performed for internal iliac artery embolization studies in adult patients from January 2005 to July 2018. Inclusion criteria included embolization of unilateral or bilateral IIAs with either coils or plug(s) prior to endovascular aortic repair.

Predicting Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome and Renal Replacement Therapy in Shiga Toxin-producing Escherichia coli-infected Children.

Background: Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) infections are leading causes of pediatric acute renal failure. Identifying hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) risk factors is needed to guide care.

Methods: We conducted a multicenter, historical cohort study to identify features associated with development of HUS (primary outcome) and need for renal replacement therapy (RRT) (secondary outcome) in STEC-infected children without HUS at initial presentation.

Loss Of SNAP Is Associated With Food Insecurity And Poor Health In Working Families With Young Children.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helps working families meet their nutritional needs. Families whose earned income increases in a given month may have their SNAP benefits abruptly reduced or cut off in the following month. Using sentinel sample data from 2007-15 for families with children younger than age four, we investigated how SNAP benefit reductions or cutoffs resulting from increased income were related to economic hardships (food and energy insecurity, unstable housing, forgone health and/or dental care, and health cost sacrifices) and to caregiver and child health.

The Need to Promote Sexual Health in America: A New Vision for Public Health Action.

Sexual health is considered to be a state of wellness with physical, emotional, mental, and social dimensions. Sexual health can contribute to our overall well-being in each of these dimensions. However, despite the intrinsic importance and positive aspects of sexuality in our lives, the United States presently faces significant challenges related to the sexual health of its citizens, including human immunodeficiency virus, other sexually transmitted infections, viral hepatitis, unintended pregnancies, sexual violence, sexual dysfunction, and cancers in reproductive tracts with serious disparities among the populations affected.

Paediatric ED BiPAP continuous quality improvement programme with patient analysis: 2005-2013.

Objective: In paediatric moderate-to-severe asthmatics, there is significant bronchospasm, airway obstruction, air trapping causing severe hyperinflation with more positive intraplural pressure preventing passive air movement. These effects cause an increased respiratory rate (RR), less airflow and shortened inspiratory breath time. In certain asthmatics, aerosols are ineffective due to their inadequate ventilation.

Drug delivery into the cochlear apex: Improved control to sequentially affect finely spaced regions along the entire length of the cochlear spiral.

Background: Administering pharmaceuticals to the scala tympani of the inner ear is a common approach to study cochlear physiology and mechanics. We present here a novel method for in vivo drug delivery in a controlled manner to sealed ears.

New Method: Injections of ototoxic solutions were applied from a pipette sealed into a fenestra in the cochlear apex, progressively driving solutions along the length of scala tympani toward the cochlear aqueduct at the base.

Cerebral oximetry with cerebral blood volume index in detecting pediatric stroke in a pediatric ED.

Background: Despite pediatric stroke awareness and pediatric stroke activation systems, recognition and imaging delays along with activation inconsistency still occur. Reliable objective pediatric stroke detection tools are needed to improve detection and activations. Regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rcso2) with cerebral blood volume index (CBVI) can detect abnormal cerebral physiology.

Validity and reliability of the Patient-Reported Arthralgia Inventory: validation of a newly-developed survey instrument to measure arthralgia.

Background: There is a need for a survey instrument to measure arthralgia (joint pain) that has been psychometrically validated in the context of existing reference instruments. We developed the 16-item Patient-Reported Arthralgia Inventory (PRAI) to measure arthralgia severity in 16 joints, in the context of a longitudinal cohort study to assess aromatase inhibitor-associated arthralgia in breast cancer survivors and arthralgia in postmenopausal women without breast cancer. We sought to evaluate the reliability and validity of the PRAI instrument in these populations, as well as to examine the relationship of patient-reported morning stiffness and arthralgia.

STOP STEMI©-a novel medical application to improve the coordination of STEMI care: a brief report on door-to-balloon times after initiating the application.

Objective: The objective of our study was to evaluate the effect of the STOP STEMI© medical application on door-to-balloon (D2B) time in patients arriving to our emergency department with an acute ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI). STOP STEMI© is a novel medical application developed by physicians to improve the coordination and communication tasks essential to rapid assessment and care of the patients suffering from a STEMI.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective before and after review of the Good Shepherd Health System STEMI quality assurance/improvement dashboard for a 10-month period between November, 2012 and September, 2013 (4 months before STOP STEMI© and 6 months after).

Role of endocrinologists in eliminating health care disparities.

Objective: To review some of the persistent disparities in health and health care in the United States related to race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, with a focus on diabetes mellitus and obesity, and to discuss the role of endocrinologists in preventing these disparities.

Methods: Some of the efforts made by the US government, such as public health strategies, to address health disparities are outlined, and statistics about diabetes and obesity are presented.

Results: The elimination of health disparities, recognized as a national challenge for decades, is a national priority as defined in the national goals for Healthy People 2010.

Fine-needle aspiration diagnosis of thyroid blastomycosis.

Objective: To describe an elusive case of blastomycosis involving the thyroid gland, which was ultimately diagnosed by use of ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (FNA).

Methods: We present a case report, including clinical features, results of laboratory studies, and radiographic, computed tomographic, and ultrasonographic findings. In addition, the treatment and the utility of FNA of the thyroid relative to the diagnosis of blastomycosis are discussed.

Intramuscular electroporation delivery of IFN-alpha gene therapy for inhibition of tumor growth located at a distant site.

Although electroporation has been shown in recent years to be a powerful method for delivering genes to muscle, no gene therapy via electro-injection has been studied for the treatment of tumors. In an immunocompetent tumor-bearing murine model, we have found that delivery of a low dose of reporter gene DNA (10 microg) to muscle via electroporation under specific pulse conditions (two 25-ms pulses of 375 V/cm) increased the level of gene expression by two logs of magnitude. Moreover, administration of 10 microg of interferon (IFN)-alpha DNA plasmid using these parameters once a week for 3 weeks increased the survival time and reduced squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) growth at a distant site in the C3H/HeJ-immunocompetent mouse.

An update on the use of drugs for common eye problems in older patients.

Common ophthalmic disorders occurring in older adults often can be managed in the primary care setting with appropriate medication. This review focuses on pharmacologic intervention for dry eye, allergy, glaucoma, inflammatory disease, and infection, as well as diagnostic agents for dilation. Discussed are the selection, proper administration, dosage forms, and side effects of ophthalmic agents.