Melatonin may slow disease progression in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Findings from the Pooled Resource Open-Access ALS Clinic Trials database.

Introduction: We utilized the Pooled Resource Open-Access Clinical Trials (PRO-ACT) database to investigate whether melatonin use among patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) was associated with slower disease progression and prolonged survival.

Methods: This retrospective analysis of the PRO-ACT database addresses the impact of melatonin on progression and overall survival of ALS. A Cox proportional hazards ratio model was performed to investigate the effect that melatonin had on time to death.

Development and Pilot of a REDCap Electronic Informed Consent Form for Research: An Example from the ROPE Study.

A study that describes the development of an electronic informed consent, using the REDCap platform, and the results of a pilot study to assess participants' understanding and acceptance of that electronic informed consent for use in a research study.

A Predictive Model for Primary Care Providers to Identify Children at Greatest Risk for Early Childhood Caries.

The purpose of this study was to create an early childhood caries (ECC) risk-screening tool that fits into the primary care provider (PCP) well-child workflow. Integrated health records were employed to develop a predictive model for infants/toddlers at ECC risk; 2,009 patients with 12-, 15-, or 18-month well-child visits and at least one dental visit were used to develop a predictive model for ECC risk at the first dental visit. Independent model validation used 880 18- to 48-month-olds at their first dental appointment after at least one well-child visit.

Creating a Blueprint for the Future: Lessons Learned From Public Health Laboratories in the COVID-19 Response.

Public health laboratories have played a central role in the US response to COVID-19. Since the earliest days, myriad issues have impeded the laboratory community's ability to keep pace with the overwhelming demand for effective tests. In this article, the Association of Public Health Laboratories and a subset of its members examine the response to date and evaluate lessons learned from 4 main categories: testing surges, supplies, staffing, and regulations and policy.

Patient Adherence to Screening for Lung Cancer in the US: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Importance: To be effective in reducing deaths from lung cancer among high-risk current and former smokers, screening with low-dose computed tomography must be performed periodically.

Objective: To examine lung cancer screening (LCS) adherence rates reported in the US, patient characteristics associated with adherence, and diagnostic testing rates after screening.

Data Sources: Five electronic databases (MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, CINAHL, and Web of Science) were searched for articles published in the English language from January 1, 2011, through February 28, 2020.

Special Issue: Juvenile Onset Huntington's Disease.

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Applying a Text-Search Algorithm to Radiology Reports Can Find More Patients With Pulmonary Nodules Than Radiology Coding Alone.

Introduction: Chest imaging often incidentally finds indeterminate nodules that need to be monitored to ensure early detection of lung cancers. Health care systems need effective approaches for identifying these lung nodules. We compared the diagnostic performance of 2 approaches for identifying patients with lung nodules on imaging studies (chest/abdomen): (1) relying on radiologists to code imaging studies with lung nodules; and (2) applying a text search algorithm to identify references to lung nodules in radiology reports.

Autonomic Changes in Juvenile-Onset Huntington's Disease.

Patients with adult-onset Huntington's Disease (AOHD) have been found to have dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system that is thought to be secondary to neurodegeneration causing dysfunction of the brain-heart axis. However, this relationship has not been investigated in patients with juvenile-onset HD (JOHD). The aim of this study was to compare simple physiologic measures between patients with JOHD ( = 27 participants with 64 visits) and participants without the gene expansion that causes HD (GNE group; = 259 participants with 395 visits).

The Association between CAG Repeat Length and Age of Onset of Juvenile-Onset Huntington's Disease.

There is a known negative association between cytosine-adenine-guanine (CAG) repeat length and the age of motor onset (AMO) in adult-onset Huntington's Disease (AOHD). This relationship is less clear in patients with juvenile-onset Huntington's disease (JOHD), however, given the rarity of this patient population. The aim of this study was to investigate this relationship amongst a relatively large group of patients with JOHD using data from the Kids-JOHD study.

Subcortical T1-Rho MRI Abnormalities in Juvenile-Onset Huntington's Disease.

Huntington's disease (HD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease caused by the expansion of cytosine-adenine-guanine (CAG) repeats in the gene. An increased CAG repeat length is associated with an earlier disease onset. About 5% of HD cases occur under the age of 21 years, which are classified as juvenile-onset Huntington's disease (JOHD).

Decreasing Nursing Student Workload and Stress: An Innovative Method to Reform Clinical Assignments Across the Curriculum.

This innovative change to clinical written assignments for prelicensure nursing students is intended to decrease student workload and stress. Student stress and mental health issues are becoming more apparent in nursing programs. Guided by change theories and a modified SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis, a BSN subcommittee evaluated methods of written assignments and publisher products.

The Nurse-Patient Outcome Content Validation Method.

Purpose: To describe a new method of validating nursing outcomes and indicators that incorporates nurses' and patients' perspectives.

Methods: The Nurse-Patient Outcome Content Validation Method was developed in light of the experience of conducting the content validation of the nursing outcome Knowledge: Heart Failure Management (1835). It was developed based on Fehring's content validation model used for the validation of NANDA International nursing diagnoses.

Community Use Of Face Masks And COVID-19: Evidence From A Natural Experiment Of State Mandates In The US.

State policies mandating public or community use of face masks or covers in mitigating the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are hotly contested. This study provides evidence from a natural experiment on the effects of state government mandates for face mask use in public issued by fifteen states plus Washington, D.C.

Leadership training programs in graduate medical education: a systematic review.

Background: With the increasing recognition that leadership skills can be acquired, there is a heightened focus on incorporating leadership training as a part of graduate medical education. However, there is considerable lack of agreement regarding how to facilitate acquisition of these skills to resident, chief resident, and fellow physicians.

Methods: Articles were identified through a search of Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, ERIC, PsycNet, Cochrane Systemic Reviews, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from 1948 to 2019.

NIH funding trends to US medical schools from 2009 to 2018.

Total NIH funding dollars have increased from 2009-2018. We questioned whether this growth has occurred proportionately around the country and throughout allopathic medical schools. Therefore, we compared the trend in NIH grant funding from 2009 to 2018 for United States allopathic medical schools among historically top-funded schools, private and public schools, and by region of the country.

Scholarly Productivity and Occupational Stress Among Physician Assistant Educators.

Purpose: Academic scholarship continues to challenge physician assistant (PA) educators in the United States, who typically enter academia with little experience in research or publication. Consequently, difficulty with navigating the promotion process might be expected to impact both job satisfaction and retention of PA faculty. Providing reasonable benchmarks for scholarship is one focus of this project, along with exploration of relationships among publication success, gender, job stressors, program support, and intent to leave academia.

Risk of Patient Harm Related to Unnecessary Dilution of Ready-to-Administer Prefilled Syringes: A Literature Review.

Unnecessary dilution of ready-to-administer (RTA) syringes could increase the risk of patient harm attributed to errors related to incorrect dose, improper labeling, and the potential for microbial contamination. Although published guidelines endorse the use of commercially available RTA syringes, recent surveys indicate that best practices are not always implemented. The purpose of this article is to review the existing literature and to assess the incidence and nature of errors related to the unnecessary dilution of RTA intravenous (IV) push medications in the inpatient clinical setting.

Prazosin Outcomes in Older Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Even at relatively high dosages, prazosin was well tolerated and significantly improved posttraumatic stress disorder severity and related nightmares in an older patient population.

A critical review on the potential impacts of neonicotinoid insecticide use: current knowledge of environmental fate, toxicity, and implications for human health.

Neonicotinoid insecticides are widely used in both urban and agricultural settings around the world. Historically, neonicotinoid insecticides have been viewed as ideal replacements for more toxic compounds, like organophosphates, due in part to their perceived limited potential to affect the environment and human health. This critical review investigates the environmental fate and toxicity of neonicotinoids and their metabolites and the potential risks associated with exposure.

Models to Predict Future Permanent Tooth Caries Incidence in Children Using Primary Teeth Caries Experience.

To assess permanent tooth caries incidence (ΔDMFS) among a cohort of African American children using the presence of any caries experience(decayed, missing, and filled surfaces-dmfs) in primary teeth and the presence of untreated primary tooth caries (ds) in two separate models. Data from a prospective study was used to apply two models with different clinical for predicting DMFS from ages six through 12 years. The first model used dmfs, and the second model used ds as predictors (both at age six years).

Posterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy After Extensive Spine Surgery: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Postoperative vision loss (POVL) after spine surgery is a rare but devastating complication. Because of its rarity (incidence < 0.2%), POVL might not be considered for inclusion in an informed consent by surgeons and anesthesia providers.

A Reticular Rash on the Leg.

A man presented with a nontender, flat rash with pigmentary alteration ranging from light brown to dark brown on his left leg. How would you treat this patient?