Obesity, oxidative DNA damage and vitamin D as predictors of genomic instability in children and adolescents.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Epidemiological evidence indicates obesity in childhood and adolescence to be an independent risk factor for cancer and premature mortality in adulthood. Pathological implications from excess adiposity may begin early in life. Obesity is concurrent with a state of chronic inflammation, a well-known aetiological factor for DNA damage. In addition, obesity has been associated with micro-nutritional deficiencies. Vitamin D has attracted attention for its anti-inflammatory properties and role in genomic integrity and stability. The aim of this study was to determine a novel approach for predicting genomic instability via the combined assessment of adiposity, DNA damage, systemic inflammation, and vitamin D status. SUBJECTS/METHODS: We carried out a cross-sectional study with 132 participants, aged 10-18, recruited from schools and paediatric obesity clinics in London. Anthropometric assessments included BMI Z-score, waist and hip circumference, and body fat percentage via bioelectrical impedance. Inflammation and vitamin D levels in saliva were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Oxidative DNA damage was determined via quantification of 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine in urine. Exfoliated cells from the oral cavity were scored for genomic instability via the buccal cytome assay. RESULTS: As expected, comparisons between participants with obesity and normal range BMI showed significant differences in anthropometric measures (p < 0.001). Significant differences were also observed in some measures of genomic instability (p < 0.001). When examining relationships between variables for all participants, markers of adiposity positively correlated with acquired oxidative DNA damage (p < 0.01) and genomic instability (p < 0.001), and negatively correlated with vitamin D (p < 0.01). Multiple regression analyses identified obesity (p < 0.001), vitamin D (p < 0.001), and oxidative DNA damage (p < 0.05) as the three significant predictors of genomic instability. CONCLUSIONS: Obesity, oxidative DNA damage, and vitamin D deficiency are significant predictors of genomic instability. Non-invasive biomonitoring and predictive modelling of genomic instability in young patients with obesity may contribute to the prioritisation and severity of clinical intervention measures.

Randomized Trial of Telegenetics vs. In-Person Cancer Genetic Counseling: Cost, Patient Satisfaction and Attendance.

Telegenetics-genetic counseling via live videoconferencing-can improve access to cancer genetic counseling (CGC) in underserved areas, but studies on cancer telegenetics have not applied randomized methodology or assessed cost. We report cost, patient satisfaction and CGC attendance from a randomized trial comparing telegenetics with in-person CGC among individuals referred to CGC in four rural oncology clinics. Participants (n = 162) were randomized to receive CGC at their local oncology clinic in-person or via telegenetics. Cost analyses included telegenetics system; mileage; and personnel costs for genetic counselor, IT specialist, and clinic personnel. CGC attendance was tracked via study database. Patient satisfaction was assessed 1 week post-CGC via telephone survey using validated scales. Total costs were $106 per telegenetics patient and $244 per in-person patient. Patient satisfaction did not differ by group on either satisfaction scale. In-person patients were significantly more likely to attend CGC than telegenetics patients (89 vs. 79 %, p = 0.03), with bivariate analyses showing an association between lesser computer comfort and lower attendance rate (Chi-square = 5.49, p = 0.02). Our randomized trial of telegenetics vs. in-person counseling found that telegenetics cost less than in-person counseling, with high satisfaction among those who attended. This study provides support for future randomized trials comparing multiple service delivery models on longer-term psychosocial and behavioral outcomes.

Learning from colleagues about healthcare IT implementation and optimization: lessons from a medical informatics listserv.

Communication among medical informatics communities can suffer from fragmentation across multiple forums, disciplines, and subdisciplines; variation among journals, vocabularies and ontologies; cost and distance. Online communities help overcome these obstacles, but may become onerous when listservs are flooded with cross-postings. Rich and relevant content may be ignored. The American Medical Informatics Association successfully addressed these problems when it created a virtual meeting place by merging the membership of four working groups into a single listserv known as the "Implementation and Optimization Forum." A communication explosion ensued, with thousands of interchanges, hundreds of topics, commentaries from "notables," neophytes, and students--many from different disciplines, countries, traditions. We discuss the listserv's creation, illustrate its benefits, and examine its lessons for others. We use examples from the lively, creative, deep, and occasionally conflicting discussions of user experiences--interchanges about medication reconciliation, open source strategies, nursing, ethics, system integration, and patient photos in the EMR--all enhancing knowledge, collegiality, and collaboration.

Calling for collaboration: piloting smartphones to discover differences between users and devices.

BACKGROUND: Healthcare technologies and patient care have evolved rapidly. Healthcare communication techniques and technologies have lagged. PURPOSES: This pilot study was conducted at Duke University Hospital to investigate the benefits of using smartphones among healthcare team members to promote efficient and effective patient care. METHODS: This study used a pre-post implementation survey with an educational intervention. Teams (physicians, patient resource managers, physician assistants, and nurses) from medicine and surgery were randomly assigned a smartphone. A validated 28-question survey was used to assess user experience (7-point Likert scale, with 7 indicating more reliable, strongly agree, and faster). Participants were encouraged to attend focus groups to provide feedback on survey content and overall experience. Facilitators used guiding questions and transcripts were used for qualitative analysis. RESULTS: Eighty-nine matched pre- and postsurveys were analyzed. Postimplementation data results declined for a majority of items, although remained favorable. This suggests the reality of smartphone use did not live up to expectations but was still considered an improvement over the current paging system. Differences by device and user were found, such as the iPhone being easier to use and the BlackBerry more professional; nonphysicians were more concerned about training and the sterility of the device. Themes elicited from focus groups included challenges of the current paging system, text message content, device ease of use and utility, service coverage, and professionalism. CONCLUSIONS: Participants in this study recognized the benefit of using smartphones to reach team members in a timely and convenient manner while having access to beneficial applications. Lessons were learned for future implementations with more favorable experiences for participants. Perhaps most striking was the shared acknowledgment that the current system doesn't work well and an understanding of why.

Bone health following paediatric and adolescent bariatric surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Childhood obesity is a pressing health crisis of epidemic proportions. Bariatric surgery (BS) is an effective weight loss solution however its role in the paediatric population is contentious owing to the paucity of weight specific and generalised health outcomes. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess the impact of paediatric BS on bone health. Methods: This prospectively registered systematic review (PROSPERO ID: CRD42023432035) was performed in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. We searched MEDLINE (1946-1928 September 2023), EMBASE (1947-1928 September 2023) via the Ovid platform, and the Cochrane Review Library to identify scientific publications reporting bone outcome measures in patients under the age of 18 years who underwent BS. Meta-analysis was undertaken on post-operative weight and bone parameters in paediatric patients following BS. Outcomes were reported as weighted or standardized mean difference with 95 percent confidence intervals. Subgroup analysis by intervention, quality scoring and risk of bias were assessed. Findings: Twelve studies with 681 patients across 5 countries (mean age 17 ± 0.57 years) were included. The quality of included studies was rated as high and there was substantial between-study heterogeneity for most factors included in the meta-analysis (I2 from 0% to 99.1%). Patients underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB, n = 216), sleeve gastrectomy (SG, n = 257), gastric band (n = 184) or intragastric balloon placement (n = 24). BS was associated with significant weight reduction, body mass index (BMI) -12.7 kg/m2 (95% CI -14.5 to -10.9, p < 0.001), with RYGB being most effective, BMI -16.58 kg/m2 (95% CI -19.6 to -13.6, p < 0.001). Patients who underwent SG or RYGB had significantly lower lumbar bone mineral density, -0.96 g/cm2 (95% CI -0.1 to -0.03, p < 0.001), Z score, -1.132 (95% CI -1.8 to -0.45, p < 0.001) and subtotal body bone mineral density, -0.7 g/cm2 (95% CI -1.2 to -0.2, p < 0.001) following surgery. This was accompanied with higher markers of bone resorption, C-terminal telopeptide of type 1 collagen 0.22 ng/ml (95% CI 0.12-0.32, p < 0.001) and osteocalcin, 10.83 ng/ml (95% CI 6.01-15.67, p < 0.001). There was a significant reduction in calcium levels following BS, -3.78 mg/dl (95% CI -6.1 to -1.5, p < 0.001) but no difference in 25-hydroxyvitamin D, phosphate, bone alkaline phosphatase, procollagen type 1 N propeptide or parathyroid hormone. Interpretation: BS effectively reduces weight in paediatric patients, but RYGB and SG may have adverse effects on bone health in the medium term. It is crucial to monitor and support bone health through appropriate nutritional supplementation and judicious follow-up. Long-term data is needed to fully understand the clinical implications of these findings on bone outcomes. Funding: Medical Research Council (MRC), United Kingdom.

Protocol for a feasibility study and process evaluation of a psychosocially modelled diabetes education programme for young people with type 1 diabetes: the Youth Empowerment Skills (YES) programme.

INTRODUCTION: Adolescence is a challenging period for young people with type 1 diabetes, associated with worsening glycaemia and care disengagement. Educational interventions in this period tend to focus on diabetes-specific skills, with less emphasis on the psychosocial challenges associated with diabetes experienced by young people. To address this limitation, we codesigned with young people a psychosocially modelled programme of diabetes education, named 'Youth Empowerment Skills' (YES). The programme aims to facilitate a positive adaptation to life with diabetes and engagement with diabetes care through peer-based learning, immersive simulations and support from an outreach youth worker. Here, we present a protocol for a feasibility study of the YES programme. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The study was designed following the Medical Research Council Complex Intervention Evaluation Framework to: test the feasibility (acceptance, implementability, recruitment and completion) of the YES programme; and estimate its efficacy in relation to metabolic and psychosocial outcomes. The study will take place in diabetes centres serving socioculturally diverse populations. We will conduct a feasibility randomised controlled trial (waiting-list design) with integrated process evaluation. Fifty young people with type 1 diabetes (aged 14-19 years) will be randomly allocated to either the YES intervention or a waiting-list control. Randomisation acceptability will be assessed with provision for a preference allocation. Outcomes will be evaluated at 6 months, at which point the waiting list participants will be exposed to the YES programme with further follow-up to 12 months. A simultaneous process evaluation will use a mixed-methods approach collecting qualitative and quantitative data. Study findings will be used to optimise the intervention components, outcome measures and recruitment methods to inform a subsequent definitive trial. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The protocol has ethical approval from the UK Health Research Authority (approval IRAS project ID: 279877). Findings will be disseminated in multiple formats for lay and professional audiences. PROTOCOL DATE AND VERSION: 7 April 2021, V.1.1. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT04670198.

The impact of the National Patient Safety Agency intravenous fluid alert on iatrogenic hyponatraemia in children.

In March 2007, the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) issued an alert regarding intravenous fluid (IVF) prescription to hospitalised infants and children, to be implemented in UK hospitals by September 2007. Previously, the most commonly used IVF (0.18% saline/4% dextrose) has been associated with iatrogenic hyponatraemia, resulting in four deaths and one near miss since 2000. The alert recommended 0.45% (or 0.9%) saline/5% dextrose as maintenance IVF and banned 0.18% saline/4% dextrose. We audited practice and outcome in children receiving maintenance IVF in June 2007 (before guideline implementation) and June 2008 (after guideline implementation). In June 2007, 44 (30%) children were prescribed IVF, six received IVF not recommended by NPSA alert 22 and one became hyponatraemic. In June 2008, 56 (30%) children received IVF; one received IVF not recommended by NPSA alert 22 and became hyponatraemic. The median change in serum sodium levels for all children who received IVF not recommended by NPSA alert 22 [-5 (-15 to 0) mmol/l] was significantly greater than those who received IVF recommended by NPSA alert 22 [0 (-13 to +7) mmol/l, p = 0.002]. In addition, there was a significant (p = 0.04) reduction in the number of children who had electrolytes checked while on IVF after implementation of the guideline. Implementation of a new IVF guideline has been associated with less use of IVF not recommended by NPSA alert 22, resulting in less serum sodium level reduction. The only children who became hyponatraemic received IVF not recommended by NPSA alert 22. Despite the NPSA alert and guideline implementation, less children had electrolyte levels checked while receiving IVF.

Two self-management interventions to improve hypertension control: a randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: Fewer than 40% of persons with hypertension in the United States have adequate blood pressure (BP) control. OBJECTIVE: To compare 2 self-management interventions for improving BP control among hypertensive patients. DESIGN: A 2 x 2 randomized trial, stratified by enrollment site and patient health literacy status, with 2-year follow-up. (ClinicalTrials.gov registration number: NCT00123058). SETTING: 2 university-affiliated primary care clinics. PATIENTS: 636 hypertensive patients. INTERVENTION: A centralized, blinded, and stratified randomization algorithm was used to randomly assign eligible patients to receive usual care, a behavioral intervention (bimonthly tailored, nurse-administered telephone intervention targeting hypertension-related behaviors), home BP monitoring 3 times weekly, or the behavioral intervention plus home BP monitoring. MEASUREMENTS: The primary outcome was BP control at 6-month intervals over 24 months. RESULTS: 475 patients (75%) completed the 24-month BP follow-up. At 24 months, improvements in the proportion of patients with BP control relative to the usual care group were 4.3% (95% CI, -4.5% to 12.9%) in the behavioral intervention group, 7.6% (CI, -1.9% to 17.0%) in the home BP monitoring group, and 11.0% (CI, 1.9%, 19.8%) in the combined intervention group. Relative to usual care, the 24-month difference in systolic BP was 0.6 mm Hg (CI, -2.2 to 3.4 mm Hg) for the behavioral intervention group, -0.6 mm Hg (CI, -3.6 to 2.3 mm Hg) for the BP monitoring group, and -3.9 mm Hg (CI, -6.9 to -0.9 mm Hg) for the combined intervention group; patterns were similar for diastolic BP. LIMITATION: Changes in medication use and diet were monitored only in intervention participants; 24-month outcome data were missing for 25% of participants, BP control was adequate at baseline in 73% of participants, and the study setting was an academic health center. CONCLUSION: Combined home BP monitoring and tailored behavioral telephone intervention improved BP control, systolic BP, and diastolic BP at 24 months relative to usual care. .

A novel heterozygous mutation in the insulin receptor gene presenting with type A severe insulin resistance syndrome.

Background Inherited severe insulin resistance syndromes (SIRS) are rare and can be caused by mutations in the insulin receptor gene (INSR). Case presentation A 12-year-old Jamaican girl with a BMI of 24.4 kg/m2 presented with polyuria and polydipsia. A diagnosis of T1DM was made in view of hyperglycaemia (18 mmol/l), and elevated Hba1C (9.9%), and insulin therapy was initiated. Over the next 2 years, she developed hirsutism and acanthosis nigricans, and had minimal insulin requirements with frequent post-prandial hypoglycaemia. In view of this, and her strong family history suggestive of a dominantly inherited type of diabetes, the diagnosis was revisited. Targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS) of the patient's monogenic diabetes genes was performed. What is new? NGS revealed a novel heterozygous missense INSR variant, NM_000208.3:c.3471T>G, p.(His1157Gln), confirming a diagnosis of Type A SIRS. Conclusions Type A SIRS can be difficult to differentially diagnose due to the variable phenotype. Features of insulin resistance may be absent at initial presentation and may develop later during pubertal progress. Awareness of the clinical features and comprehensive genetic testing are essential to identify the condition.

Leveraging time and learning style, iPod vs. realtime attendance at a series of medicine residents conferences: a randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether participation in educational conferences utilising iPod technology enhances both medical knowledge and accessibility to educational content among medical residents in training. DESIGN/MEASUREMENTS: In May 2007, the authors led a randomised controlled study involving 30 internal medicine residents who volunteered either to attend five midday educational conferences or to use an iPod audio/video recording of the same conferences, each followed by a five-question competency quiz. Primary outcomes included quantitative assessment of knowledge acquisition and qualitative assessment of resident perception of ease of use. Secondary outcomes included resident perception of self-directed learning. RESULTS: At baseline, residents reported attendance at 50% of educational conferences. Of iPod participants, 46.7% previously used an iPod. During the study, 46-60% of conference attendees were paged out of each conference, of whom between 6 and 33% missed more than half of the conference. The quiz completion rate was 93%. Key findings were: 1) similar quiz scores were achieved by conference attendees, mean 60.7% (95% CI; 53.0-68.3%), compared to the iPod user group, mean 67.6% (95% CI; 61%-74.1%), and 2) the majority (10/15, 66.6%) of conference attendees stated they would probably benefit from the option to refer back to conferences for content review and educational purposes. CONCLUSIONS: Residency training programmes can optimise time management strategies with the integration of innovative learning resources into educational curricula. This study suggests that iPod capture of conferences is a reasonable resource to help meet the educational goals of residents and residency programs.

Take Control of Your Blood Pressure (TCYB) study: a multifactorial tailored behavioral and educational intervention for achieving blood pressure control.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluating a randomized controlled trial involving a tailored behavioral intervention conducted to improve blood pressure control. METHODS: Adults with hypertension from two outpatient primary care clinics were randomly allocated to receive a nurse-administered behavioral intervention or usual care. In this ongoing study, patients receive the tailored behavioral intervention bi-monthly for 2 years via telephone; the goal of the intervention is to promote medication adherence and improve hypertension-related health behaviors. Patient factors targeted in the tailored behavioral intervention include perceived risk of hypertension and knowledge, memory, medical and social support, patients' relationship with their health care provider, adverse effects of medication therapy, weight management, exercise, diet, stress, smoking, and alcohol use. RESULTS: The sample randomized to the behavioral intervention consisted of 319 adults with hypertension (average age=60.5 years; 47% African-American). A comparable sample of adults was assigned to usual care (n=317). We had a 96% retention rate for the overall sample for the first 6 months of the study (93% at 12 months). The average phone call has lasted 18min (range 2-51min). From baseline to 6 months, self-reported medication adherence increased by 9% in the behavioral group vs. 1% in the non-behavioral group. CONCLUSION: The intervention is easily implemented and is designed to enhance adherence with prescribed hypertension regimen. The study includes both general and patient-tailored information based upon need assessment. The study design ensures internal validity as well as the ability to generalize study findings to the clinic settings. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Despite knowledge of the risks and acceptable evidence, a large number of hypertensive adults still do not have their blood pressure under effective control. This study will be an important step in evaluating a tailored multibehavioral intervention focusing on improving blood pressure control.

The Take Control of Your Blood pressure (TCYB) study: study design and methodology.

BACKGROUND: Among the 65 million Americans with hypertension, only approximately 31% have their blood pressure under control (<140/90 mm/Hg). Despite the damaging impact of hypertension and the availability of evidence-based target values for blood pressure, interventions to improve blood pressure control have had limited success. OBJECTIVES: A randomized controlled health services intervention trial with a two by two design is being conducted to improve blood pressure control. This five-year trial evaluates two patient-directed interventions designed to improve blood pressure control among patients diagnosed with hypertension in a community-based primary care setting. METHODS: Patients are randomized to one of four groups: usual care, home blood pressure monitoring, tailored behavioral self-management intervention that is administered via telephone by a nurse, or a combination of the home blood pressure monitoring and tailored behavioral intervention. Patients receiving the home blood pressure monitoring are trained in the use of an electronic blood pressure measurement device, are asked to measure their blood pressure 3 times/week, and send in two-month blood pressure recordings throughout the 24-month study duration. The behavioral intervention incorporates patients' need assessments and involves tailored behavioral and education modules to promote medication adherence and improve specific health behaviors. A nurse delivers all behavioral self-management modules over the telephone bi-monthly for 24 months. The primary outcome is the proportion of patients who achieve control of their blood pressure based on evidence-based guidelines (for patients without diabetes <140/90 mm/Hg, for patients with diabetes <130/80 mm/Hg) evaluated at six-month intervals over 24 months (five measurements) using a random-zero sphygmomanometer. CONCLUSION: Despite the known risk of poor blood pressure control, and the wide availability of effective treatment strategies, a majority of adults still do not have their blood pressure controlled. This study will be an important step in defining two explicit interventions to improve blood pressure control. To our knowledge, this study is the first to combine both a tailored behavioral self-management intervention and self-monitoring home blood pressure intervention to improve blood pressure control among patients in a primary care setting.

Utilization of the PICO framework to improve searching PubMed for clinical questions.

BACKGROUND: Supporting 21st century health care and the practice of evidence-based medicine (EBM) requires ubiquitous access to clinical information and to knowledge-based resources to answer clinical questions. Many questions go unanswered, however, due to lack of skills in formulating questions, crafting effective search strategies, and accessing databases to identify best levels of evidence. METHODS: This randomized trial was designed as a pilot study to measure the relevancy of search results using three different interfaces for the PubMed search system. Two of the search interfaces utilized a specific framework called PICO, which was designed to focus clinical questions and to prompt for publication type or type of question asked. The third interface was the standard PubMed interface readily available on the Web. Study subjects were recruited from interns and residents on an inpatient general medicine rotation at an academic medical center in the US. Thirty-one subjects were randomized to one of the three interfaces, given 3 clinical questions, and asked to search PubMed for a set of relevant articles that would provide an answer for each question. The success of the search results was determined by a precision score, which compared the number of relevant or gold standard articles retrieved in a result set to the total number of articles retrieved in that set. RESULTS: Participants using the PICO templates (Protocol A or Protocol B) had higher precision scores for each question than the participants who used Protocol C, the standard PubMed Web interface. (Question 1: A = 35%, B = 28%, C = 20%; Question 2: A = 5%, B = 6%, C = 4%; Question 3: A = 1%, B = 0%, C = 0%) 95% confidence intervals were calculated for the precision for each question using a lower boundary of zero. However, the 95% confidence limits were overlapping, suggesting no statistical difference between the groups. CONCLUSION: Due to the small number of searches for each arm, this pilot study could not demonstrate a statistically significant difference between the search protocols. However there was a trend towards higher precision that needs to be investigated in a larger study to determine if PICO can improve the relevancy of search results.

Weight loss surgery improves quality of life in pediatric patients with osteogenesis imperfecta.

BACKGROUND: Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is an inherited disorder, which causes brittle bones resulting in recurrent fractures. The associated poor mobility of children with OI increases susceptibility to obesity, and obesity further dramatically limits mobility and increases fracture risk. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this report is to describe outcomes of weight loss surgery (WLS) in 2 adolescents with severe obesity and OI. SETTING: Two University Hospitals (in the United Kingdom and in the United States). METHODS: Two cases of OI treated with WLS were identified. Pre- and postoperative anthropometric and biochemical data and clinical course were reviewed. RESULTS: In these 2 cases, preoperative Body Mass Index (BMI) values were 38 and 46 kg/m2. Following laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG), BMI decreased by 55% and 60% by 26 and 24 months, respectively. There were no surgical complications, and both patients experienced improvement in their mobility and ability to perform activities of daily living. CONCLUSION: WLS effectively treated severe obesity in 2 OI patients and substantially improved mobility and quality of life, theoretically reducing fracture risk.

Development of the Quality Data Collection Tool for Prospective Quality Assessment and Reporting in Palliative Care.

BACKGROUND: Assessing and reporting the quality of care provided are increasingly important in palliative care, but we currently lack practical, efficient approaches for collection and reporting. OBJECTIVE: In response, the Global Palliative Care Quality Alliance ("Alliance") sought to create a Quality Data Collection Tool for Palliative Care (QDACT-PC). METHODS: We collaboratively and iteratively developed QDACT-PC, an electronic, point-of-care quality monitoring system for palliative care that supports prospective quality assessment and reporting in any clinical setting. QDACT-PC is the web-based data collection and reporting interface. Quality measures selected to be used in QDACT-PC were derived from a systematic review summarizing all published palliative care quality measure sets; Alliance clinical providers prioritized measures to be included in QDACT-PC to ensure maximal clinical relevance. Data elements and variables required to ascertain conformance to all selected quality measures were included in the QDACT-PC data dictionary. Whenever possible, variables collected in QDACT-PC align with validated surveys and/or nationally recognized common data elements. QDACT-PC data elements and software programmed business rules inform real-time assessments of conformance to selected quality measures. Data are deposited into a centralized registry for future analyses. RESULTS: QDACT-PC can be used to report on >80% of all published palliative care quality measures and 100% of high-priority measure. CONCLUSION: Electronic methods for collecting point-of-care quality monitoring data can be developed using collaborative partnerships between community and academic palliative care providers. Feasibility testing and creation of feedback reports are ongoing.

Does Academic Blogging Enhance Promotion and Tenure? A Survey of US and Canadian Medicine and Pediatric Department Chairs.

BACKGROUND: Electronic educational (e-learning) technology usage continues to grow. Many medical journals operate companion blogs (an application of e-learning technology) that enable rapid dissemination of scientific knowledge and discourse. Faculty members participating in promotion and tenure academic tracks spend valuable time and effort contributing, editing, and directing these medical journal blogs. OBJECTIVE: We sought to understand whether chairs of medicine and pediatric departments acknowledge blog authorship as academic achievement. METHODS: The authors surveyed 267 chairs of US and Canadian medicine and pediatric departments regarding their attitudes toward the role of faculty participation in e-learning and blogging in the promotion and tenure process. The survey completion rate was 22.8% (61/267). RESULTS: A majority of respondents (87%, 53/61) viewed educational scholarship as either important or very important for promotion. However, only 23% (14/61) perceived importance to faculty effort in producing content for journal-based blogs. If faculty were to participate in blog authorship, 72% (44/61) of surveyed chairs favored involvement in a journal-based versus a society-based or a personal (nonaffiliated) blog. We identified a "favorable group" of chairs (19/59, 32%), who rated leadership roles in e-learning tools as important or very important, and an "unfavorable group" of chairs (40/59, 68%), who rated leadership roles in e-learning tools as somewhat important or not important. The favorable group were more likely to be aware of faculty bloggers within their departments (58%, 11/19 vs 25%, 10/40), viewed serving on editorial boards of e-learning tools more favorably (79%, 15/19 vs 31%, 12/39), and were more likely to value effort spent contributing to journal-based blogs (53%, 10/19 vs 10%, 4/40). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate that although the majority of department chairs value educational scholarship, only a minority perceive value in faculty blogging effort.

Bariatric Surgery: A Potential Treatment for Type 2 Diabetes in Youth.

Type 2 diabetes, once referred to as "adult-onset" diabetes, has now emerged as a formidable threat to the health of obese adolescents. Although there is growing evidence regarding the epidemiology of type 2 diabetes in youth and its multisystem health consequences, treatment options have lagged and progression of disease occurs even with aggressive medical therapy. Increasing interest in the application of bariatric surgery for adolescents with type 2 diabetes has evolved in part because of the evidence demonstrating improvement or remission in many adults with diabetes after surgery. Here, we review the burden of type 2 diabetes in youth including its associated complications, discuss the outcomes and complications of bariatric surgery in adolescents with diabetes, and conclude with recommendations for future research and options for refinement of the use of bariatric surgery in this patient population.