An Assessment of Presentation Slide Quality at a National Hand Surgery Meeting.

BACKGROUND: Effective information transfer relies on the proper use of educational tools. Evaluating the quality of presentations permits us to improve educational materials in plastic surgery. Our specific aims were to assess the quality of presentations at a national hand surgery meeting using a checklist of presentation standards from the literature and to identify areas of improvement. METHODS: Our sample included presentations from the Clinical Papers Sessions at the 2020 American Society for Surgery of the Hand (ASSH) Annual Meeting. A modified checklist based on the literature was used to assess the presentations. Two members of the research team extracted data from the included presentations and disagreements were reviewed collaboratively. RESULTS: A total of 96 presentations were included in this sample. The mean number of deficiencies per slide set was approximately nine. Misused graphics, ambiguous content (undefined abbreviations, undefined symbols, etc.), and overdetermined slides were the most common deficiencies identified in our sample. One-way ANOVA analysis of presenter role found a significant difference in the mean number of deficiencies (F (2, 93) = 7.36, p = 0.001) among different types of presenters with surgeon presenters exhibiting more deficiencies than students and other healthcare professionals. CONCLUSION: The use of a checklist to evaluate a presentation helps in cultivating more effective presentations in national meetings. A collaborative peer-review process incorporating feedback from multiple trainees, audience members, and colleagues facilitates effective information transfer through presentations.

Dissemination of Plastic Surgery Research: An Analysis of PRS and PRS-GO.

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (PRS) recently developed an open access counterpart, PRS Global Open (PRS-GO), to increase dissemination of research in an efficient and widespread manner. We aimed to (1) examine the differences in the dissemination of research published in PRS and PRS-GO, and (2) identify differences in the authorship between the journals. Methods: We extracted data on Altmetric Attention Scores, article mentions, citations, and author characteristics using the Altmetric Explorer Database from January 1, 2018, to January 1, 2020. We stratified research outputs into traditional dissemination and social media dissemination. Additionally, multivariable linear regression models were used to examine differences in dissemination between the journals. Results: A total of 1798 articles were included in the analysis (PRS = 1031, PRS-GO = 767). The average Altmetric Attention Score was higher for PRS compared with PRS-GO (PRS = 15.2, PRS-GO = 8.1). Articles in PRS had a greater Altmetric Attention Score (ß-coefficient: 7.50, P < 0.001), higher measures of traditional dissemination (ß-coefficient: 3.11, P < 0.001), and higher measures of social media dissemination than articles in PRS-GO (ß-coefficient: 4.38, P = 0.73). Conclusions: Despite being an open access journal, PRS-GO had significantly fewer measures of social media and traditional dissemination compared with PRS. Given that numerous factors may influence the dissemination of scientific literature, it is imperative that publications identify specific ways to provide a fair advantage for both researchers and readers. Additional initiatives to engage readership for open access may include creative campaigns targeting an appropriate audience.

Current Approaches to Yoga in U.S. Medical Schools: Scoping Review of the Literature.

Background: Yoga is described as a system of physical and mental practices originating from India that connects mind, body, and spirit with techniques such as physical exercises, breathing, and meditation to promote health and well-being. Medical students experience an immense amount of stress that unfortunately continues throughout their residency and careers. Yoga represents a tool to reduce stress and support medical student resilience. Objective: This study aims to evaluate the current approaches to yoga in U.S. medical schools. Methods: A scoping literature review was conducted using search terms such as "medical school," "medical student," "medical education," "yoga," "asana," "pranayama," and "mindfulness." The primary aim of the review was to examine if U.S. medical schools offer accessible yoga to medical students and the characteristics of those yoga programs. Results: The search yielded 1313 primary articles. All titles and abstracts were screened for eligibility. Duplicate articles were removed, and 156 articles were reviewed independently by two authors. A total of eight articles met all the criteria. Yoga is offered in medical schools through three main models: recreational, research, and educational. All of the studies indicated various positive effects on medical students from these yoga programs, including in psychological states, perceived stress, and scores on medical knowledge assessments. Conclusions: Yoga aligns well with the objectives of medical education by combining physician resiliency, mindfulness, and education that can ultimately serve patients. Greater opportunities should be created to engage medical students in yoga through the length of their entire undergraduate and graduate medical training.

Antimicrobial Activity and Toxicity of Analogs of Wasp Venom EMP Peptides. Potential Influence of Oxidized Methionine.

The antibiotic and toxic properties for four synthetic analogs of eumenine mastoparan peptides (EMP) have been tested. These properties were compared to two natural peptides found in the venom of solitary wasps Anterhynchium flavomarginatum micado (natural peptide EMP-AF) and Eumenes rubrofemoratus (natural peptide EMP-ER), respectively. Only EMP-AF-OR showed concentration-dependent growth inhibition against all bacterial species tested. Gram positive species had MIC values of 10 µg/mL for B. subtilis and 25 µg/mL for S. aureus. Gram negative species had MIC values of 25 µg/mL for E. coli and 200 µg/mL for P. aeruginosa. Of the other tested peptides, EMP-ER-D2K2 also showed activity and inhibited growth of Bacillus subtilis in a concentration-dependent manner at 200 µg/mL. Peptide EMP-ER-OR reduced the final density of Escherichia coli and B. subtilis cultures but did not impact their growth kinetics. Peptides EMP-AF-OR, EMP-ER-OR, and EMP-ER-D2K2 showed limited antifungal activity against Candida albicans or Histoplasma capsulatum. The hemolytic activity of the analogs were moderated though reports of the natural peptides, especially EMP-AF-OR, already showed low toxicity against erythrocytes. These results are discussed in the context of the potential influence of oxidized methionine on EMP activity.