Long-Term Follow-Up of Persons Living with Perinatally Acquired HIV Infection at a Large HIV Treatment Clinic in Trinidad.

Data on persons with perinatally acquired HIV infection in the Caribbean are limited; thus, a chart review was conducted among these clients at an adult HIV treatment clinic in Trinidad over the period January 01, 2011-June 30, 2023. Sociodemographic, clinical, and laboratory data were extracted and analyzed using RStudio version 2021.09.

Chronogram: an R package for data curation and analysis of infection and vaccination cohort studies.

Motivation: Observational cohort studies that track vaccine and infection responses offer real-world data to inform pandemic policy. Translating biological hypotheses, such as whether different patterns of accumulated antigenic exposures confer differing antibody responses, into analysis code can be onerous, particularly when source data is dis-aggregated.

Results: The R package chronogram introduces the class chronogram, where metadata is seamlessly aggregated with sparse infection episode, clinical and laboratory data.

A comparative cadaveric biomechanical study of bilateral FacetFuse transfacet pedicle screws versus bilateral or unilateral pedicle screw-rod construct.

Background: Achieving optimal immediate stability is crucial in lumbar fusion surgeries. Traditionally, four pedicle screws have been utilized to provide posterior stability at the L5-S1 level. However, the use of bilateral transfacet pedicle screws (TFPS) as an alternative construct has shown promising results in terms of biomechanical stability.

The association of personal, parental, school and community factors with depressive symptoms among a sample of Colombian students of ages 9 to 12 years.

Few studies have examined how the personal characteristics of students, together with factors from their local social environments and communities, affect students living in generally high levels of social disruption. We examined the influence that personal characteristics as well as factors from the local social environments and communities may have on Colombian students' levels of depressive symptoms shortly after the end of the of armed conflict. Data were collected from 710 students attending the fifth grade in a random sample of elementary schools in the province of Sucre in Colombia.

The use of ultrasound-guided imaging to localize peripheral nerve injury in pediatric patients: A case report.

Background: The use of ultrasonography to diagnose and manage peripheral nerve injury is not routinely performed, but is an advantageous alternative to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the pediatric population.

Case Description: The authors report a case of a toddler-aged female who sustained a supracondylar fracture and subsequent median and ulnar nerve injuries. All preoperative and postoperative imaging was performed through high-resolution ultrasound as opposed to MRI.

COVID-19 shed light on Virchow's law of thrombosis.

Virchow's law of thrombosis states that thrombosis in a vessel occurs as a combination of the following: (i) injury to the vessel wall, (ii) stasis of blood flow, and (iii) blood hypercoagulability. Injury to the wall includes infection/inflammation and/or injury to the resident cells of the wall. We postulate that in COVID-19, the SARS-CoV-2 virus directly infects the alveolar type II cell or directly or indirectly infects/injures the pericyte, promoting inflammation and interaction with endothelial cells, thereby causing a cascade of events leading to our observation that thrombosis occurred within the walls of the pulmonary vessels and not in the lumen of the vascular circulation.

Are We Resecting Too Much Colon in Perforated Diverticulitis?

Initially, the Hartmann's procedure was done to reduce mortality in surgery cases of malignant rectal lesions, and not benign disease. However, the procedure was popularized in the management of perforated diverticular disease (PDD) in the 1970s. Herein, we present a case of a patient who had laparotomy and colostomy for PDD.

Challenges for eGFR equations in the developing world.

The populations in countries that have the highest number of individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are the low and middle-income countries which are ethnically diverse. The regional and international data highlighting the need for continuous monitoring of renal function warrants that such countries use equations that give the best estimates of glomerular filtration rate for their settings. While chronic disease conditions such as diabetes and hypertension are the main conditions associated with CKD in adult populations and complicated urinary tract infections and congenital anomalies in the kidney and the urinary tract in the young, the management of patients with CKD at any age can be impacted by medical and non-biological factors.

Follicular thyroid carcinoma in an inbred family of mongrel dogs in Trinidad & Tobago.

Thyroid tumors occur in many domestic species, but are most common in the dog, in which they are classified as follicular or medullary. During 2012-2016, we received tissue specimens or whole carcasses of 4 dogs with variable enlargement of the thyroid glands. The 2 males and 2 females were of mixed (mongrel) inbreeding, 3-4.

interspecific hybrid 'KX4-Hawaii' as a source of agricultural biomass in a water-scarce small island developing state.

Background: is a useful multipurpose tree species for agroforestry systems, but traditional seeded cultivars often become weedy and invasive. A seedless hybrid cultivar, 'KX4-Hawaii', offers a potential solution to this problem. However, relevant agronomic information and information on the performance of 'KX4-Hawaii' under varying growth conditions is required.

The Impact of Climate on Human Dengue Infections in the Caribbean.

Climate change is no longer a hypothetical problem in the Caribbean but a new reality to which regional public health systems must adapt. One of its significant impacts is the increased transmission of infectious diseases, such as dengue fever, which is endemic in the region, and the presence of the mosquito vector responsible for transmitting the disease. (1) Methods: To assess the association between climatic factors and human dengue virus infections in the Caribbean, we conducted a systematic review of published studies on MEDLINE and Web of Science databases according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria.

Evidence for Horizontal Transmission and Recirculation of Shiga Toxin-Producing in the Beef Production Chain in South Africa Using Whole Genome Sequencing.

We used whole genome sequencing (WGS) as an epidemiologic surveillance tool to elucidate the transmission dynamics of Shiga toxin-producing (STEC) strains along the beef production chain in South Africa. Isolates were obtained from a cattle farm, abattoirs and retail outlets. Isolates were analysed using WGS on a MiSeq platform (Illumina, San Diego, CA, USA) and phylogenetic analysis was carried out.

Adaptation of WHO COVID-19 guidelines by Caribbean countries and territories.

The normative role of the World Health Organization (WHO) involves creating evidence-based, principled guidelines to guide its Member States in making well-informed public health decisions. While these guidelines often need to be adapted to ensure contextual relevance, foster better implementation and adherence, adapting existing guidelines is more efficient than creating new ones. Here we describe the adaptation of the WHO coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) living guideline on pharmacological interventions for the Caribbean using the grading of recommendations, assessment, development and evaluation (GRADE)-ADOLOPMENT method.

The Impact of Environmental Health Determinants in Surgical Oncology.

Environmental determinants of health refer to external factors in our surroundings that influence health outcomes. It is estimated that healthier environments could prevent almost one-quarter of the global burden of disease. Additionally, environmental factors, including lifestyle factors, air pollution, chemical exposures, and natural exposures, are responsible for a significant incidence of cancers and premature cancer deaths.

"Unveiling the genetic symphony: Diversity and expression of chicken genes in Aseel and Kadaknath breeds".

In this investigation, single nucleotide variants (SNVs) within the chicken interferon-inducible transmembrane protein () genes were explored in Aseel and Kadaknath breeds. Comparative analysis with the GRCg6a reference genome revealed 9 and 16 SNVs in the locus for Aseel and Kadaknath breeds, respectively. When referencing the Genome Reference Consortium GRCg7b, Kadaknath exhibited 10 variants, contrasting with none in Aseel.

The impact of COVID-19 restrictions on crime and its implications for public health: a case study from a small developing country.

Background: Crime has been described as a public health issue in Trinidad and Tobago, a small developing nation. COVID-19 restrictions, aimed at maintaining public health safety by limiting disease spread, may have negatively impacted crime rates due to an alteration of social and economic conditions. This study evaluates the implications of these restrictions on crime dynamics and hence their impacts on overall public health.

A Systematic Review of Follicular Psoriasis: A Unique but Under-Recognized Entity.

Background: Follicular psoriasis (FP) is a rare and under-recognized subtype of psoriasis that affects hair follicles and can be frequently misdiagnosed due to its unique presentation.

Objective: We aimed to analyze the frequently reported clinical, histological, and dermatoscopic features of FP, as well as their treatment options.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review of the PubMed/MEDLINE database using the search terms "follicular" and "psoriasis.

The influence of recipe disaggregation in dietary assessment: results from the national food consumption survey in Saint Kitts and Nevis.

It is not always the case that recipe disaggregation is performed in dietary surveys. This investigation aimed to assess the influence of recipe disaggregation in the 2020-2021 national dietary survey in Saint Kitts and Nevis, and provide recommendations for future assessments. A total of 1,004 individuals provided information on their food consumption obtained using 24-h dietary recalls, and 442 recipes were reported.