Evaluation of the Effectiveness of a Bilingual Nutrition Education Program in Partnership with a Mobile Health Unit.

There are limited reports of community-based nutrition education with culinary instruction that measure biomarkers, particularly in low-income and underrepresented minority populations. Teaching kitchens have been proposed as a strategy to address social determinants of health, combining nutrition education, culinary demonstration, and skill building. The purpose of this paper is to report on the development, implementation, and evaluation of Journey to Health, a program designed for community implementation using the RE-AIM planning and evaluation framework. Reach and effectiveness were the primary outcomes. Regarding reach, 507 individuals registered for the program, 310 participants attended at least one nutrition class, 110 participants completed at least two biometric screens, and 96 participants attended at least two health coaching appointments. Participants who engaged in Journey to Health realized significant improvements in body mass index, blood pressure, and triglycerides. For higher risk participants, we additionally saw significant improvements in total and LDL cholesterol. Regarding dietary intake, we observed a significant increase in cups of fruit and a decrease in sugar sweetened beverages consumed per day. Our findings suggest that Journey to Health may improve selected biometrics and health behaviors in low-income and underrepresented minority participants.

Natural history of intraosseous low-grade chondroid lesions of the proximal humerus.

Introduction: Enchondromas and grade 1 chondrosarcomas are commonly encountered low-grade chondroid tumors in the proximal humerus. While there is a concern for malignant transformation, few studies have evaluated the natural history of these lesions. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the natural history of proximal humerus low-grade chondroid lesions managed both conservatively and surgically, and to define management criteria using clinical and radiographic findings for these low-grade chondroid lesions. Methods: The patient population included 90 patients intended for conservative treatment and 22 patients proceeding directly to surgery. Data collection was based on a combination of chart review and patient imaging and descriptive statistics were calculated for each group. Results: No malignant transformations were noted amongst any group. In the conservative treatment group, 7 of 64 (11%) progressed to surgery after an average of 20.3 months of conservative treatment due to persistent pain unexplained by other shoulder pathology. Importantly, 71% experienced continued pain at a mean of 53.1 months post-operatively. The group that went directly to surgery also demonstrated pain in 41% at an average follow-up of 57.3 months. Discussion: Low-grade cartilaginous lesions of the proximal humerus without concerning imaging findings can be managed with conservative treatment and the risk of malignant transformation is very low. Patients with a clear source of their shoulder pain unrelated to their tumor and without concerning characteristics on imaging can be managed with serial annual radiographic imaging. Patients undergoing surgery for these indolent tumors are likely to experience persistent pain even after surgery.

Barriers to Healthy Family Dinners and Preventing Child Obesity: Focus Group Discussions with Parents of 5-to-8-Year-Old Children.

BACKGROUND: Although numerous physical and mental health benefits for children have been linked to family dinners, many families still do not have regular family meals together. This study sought to identify the barriers that keep families from having dinners together. METHODS: We interviewed 42 parents of 5-to-8-year-old children in small focus groups to identify barriers and challenges that keep families from having healthy and consistent dinners together. RESULTS: Parents reported the main barriers were time (e.g., time strain and overscheduling, mismatched schedules, long work hours, etc.), lack of meal planning or failure to follow plans, lack of skills (e.g., cooking skills or nutritional awareness), external factors (e.g., daycare, schools, or extended family, and competing with advertising), and food-related challenges (e.g., picky eating, food allergies). Parents also suggested potential solutions to overcome these barriers. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, parents had a desire to have family dinners with their children, but they felt that there are many barriers keeping them from establishing or maintaining consistent family mealtimes. Future research, as well as child obesity prevention and intervention efforts, should consider these barriers and suggested solutions in efforts to promote healthy and consistent family meals as a means of lowering the prevalence of childhood obesity.

Stress and Health Outcomes in Midwestern Latinx Youth: The Moderating Role of Ethnic Pride.

BACKGROUND: Stress has been linked to numerous health outcomes, including internalizing and externalizing behaviors, self-esteem, and physical health. Culture has also been linked to stress and health. This study examined the links between stress and health, and the potential moderating role of Latinx ethnic pride (LEP). METHODS: The sample consisted of 119 Latinx youth from the Midwestern U.S. Mothers and youth completed surveys. Variables included the Multicultural Events Scale for Adolescents (MESA), parent and home stressors/risks (PHSR), LEP, depressive symptoms, aggression, frustration, and self-esteem. Research assistants measured child heights and weights and calculated BMI percentiles. RESULTS: LEP was negatively related to MESA, depressive symptoms, aggression, and frustration, and positively related to self-esteem. MESA and PHSR were associated with depressive symptoms, aggression, frustration, and self-esteem, but not with BMI percentile. In adjusted regression analyses, LEP moderated the effects MESA had on frustration and self-esteem, marginally moderated the link between MESA and depressive symptoms, and was not related to aggression or BMI percentile. LEP did not moderate the relationship between PHSR with any health outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Stressors were generally related to child mental health. LEP may play an important role in protecting against some of the effects of stressful events on mental health outcomes.

Hybrid Synthetic and Computational Study of an Optimized, Solvent-Free Approach to Curcuminoids.

A green and optimized protocol has been developed for the preparation of symmetric 1,7-bis(aryl)-1,6-heptadiene-3,5-diones and asymmetric 2-aryl-6-arylidenecyclohexanones with modified substrate scope and good functional group tolerance. Syntheses proceed smoothly under solvent-free conditions, providing moderate to excellent product yields with a minimal workup procedure. Control experiments, spectroscopic, and computational studies support a mechanism involving the boron-assisted in situ generation of imine intermediates. Crystal structures of three curcuminoids and isolated mechanistic intermediates are reported. The data provide insight for the further development of solvent-free protocols toward diverse curcumin derivatives in the fields of pharmaceutical and synthetic chemistries.

Remdesivir and Mortality in Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019.

BACKGROUND: The impact of remdesivir (RDV) on mortality rates in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is controversial, and the mortality effect in subgroups of baseline disease severity has been incompletely explored. The purpose of this study was to assess the association of RDV with mortality rates in patients with COVID-19. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study we compared persons receiving RDV with those receiving best supportive care (BSC). Patients hospitalized between 28 February and 28 May 2020 with laboratory-confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection were included with the development of COVID-19 pneumonia on chest radiography and hypoxia requiring supplemental oxygen or oxygen saturation ≤94% with room air. The primary outcome was overall survival, assessed with time-dependent Cox proportional hazards regression and multivariable adjustment, including calendar time, baseline patient characteristics, corticosteroid use, and random effects for hospital. RESULTS: A total of 1138 patients were enrolled, including 286 who received RDV and 852 treated with BSC, 400 of whom received hydroxychloroquine. Corticosteroids were used in 20.4% of the cohort (12.6% in RDV and 23% in BSC). Comparing persons receiving RDV with those receiving BSC, the hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) for death was 0.46 (.31-.69) in the univariate model (P < .001) and 0.60 (.40-.90) in the risk-adjusted model (P = .01). In the subgroup of persons with baseline use of low-flow oxygen, the hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) for death in RDV compared with BSC was 0.63 (.39-1.00; P = .049). CONCLUSION: Treatment with RDV was associated with lower mortality rates than BSC. These findings remain the same in the subgroup with baseline use of low-flow oxygen.

Lateral Tibial Posterior Slope Is Increased in Patients With Early Graft Failure After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

BACKGROUND: The lateral tibial posterior slope (LTPS) has been reported in multiple studies to correlate with an increased risk for native anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tearing. To date, no study has examined the effect of an increased LTPS as measured on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) on the likelihood of ACL graft failure. HYPOTHESIS: An increased LTPS as measured on MRI would correlate with an increased risk for ACL graft failure. STUDY DESIGN: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. METHODS: Fifty-eight patients were initially identified who experienced graft failure after primary ACL reconstruction and underwent revision between 1998 and 2009. Exclusion criteria were clinical follow-up of less than 4 years, graft failure occurring greater than 2 years after primary surgery, skeletal immaturity, deep infection, lack of available preoperative MRI, and history of trauma to the proximal tibia. This left 35 patients with early (within 2 years) failure of primary ACL reconstruction. These patients were matched to 35 control participants who had undergone ACL reconstruction with a minimum of 4 years of clinical follow-up and no evidence of graft failure. Patients were matched by age, sex, date of primary surgery, and graft type. The LTPS was then determined on MRI in a blinded fashion. RESULTS: The mean time to failure in patients in the study group was 1 year (range, 0.6-1.4 years). The mean follow-up of those in the matched control group was 6.9 years (range, 4.0-13.9 years). The mean LTPS in the early ACL failure group was found to be 8.4°, which was significantly larger than that in the control group at 6.5° (P = .012). The odds ratio for graft failure considering a 2° increase in the LTPS was 1.6 (95% CI, 1.1-2.2) and continued to increase to 2.4 (95% CI, 1.2-5.0) and 3.8 (95% CI, 1.3-11.3) with 4° and 6° increases in the LTPS, respectively. No significant association was identified between graft type and graft failure. CONCLUSION: An increased LTPS is associated with an increased risk for early ACL graft failure, regardless of graft type. Orthopaedic surgeons should consider measuring the LTPS as part of the preoperative assessment of ACL-injured patients.

Tickborne relapsing fever, Bitterroot Valley, Montana, USA.

In July 2013, a resident of the Bitterroot Valley in western Montana, USA, contracted tickborne relapsing fever caused by an infection with the spirochete Borrelia hermsii. The patient's travel history and activities before onset of illness indicated a possible exposure on his residential property on the eastern side of the valley. An onsite investigation of the potential exposure site found the vector, Ornithodoros hermsi ticks, and 1 chipmunk infected with spirochetes, which on the basis of multilocus sequence typing were identical to the spirochete isolated from the patient. Field studies in other locations found additional serologic evidence and an infected tick that demonstrated a wider distribution of spirochetes circulating among the small mammal populations. Our study demonstrates that this area of Montana represents a previously unrecognized focus of relapsing fever and poses a risk for persons of acquiring this tickborne disease.

Mycobacterium avium complex cervical lymphadenitis in an immunocompetent adult.

Nontuberculosis mycobacterial cervical lymphadenitis is a relatively common disease in immunocompetent children but a rare disease in immunocompetent adults. We report the diagnosis and treatment of Mycobacterium avium complex cervical lymphadenitis in an adult female. Our evaluation of immune competence, including gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) and interleukin-12 (IL-12) signaling, found no evidence of deficiency.

Implantable cardiac defibrillator pocket infection due to a previously undescribed Cupriavidus species.

The genus Cupriavidus consists of Gram-negative, nonfermenting bacteria most of which are environmental organisms, though some species have been associated with human disease. We report the recovery and identification of an isolate that represents a previously undescribed species of Cupriavidus from an implantable cardiac defibrillator pocket infection.

Epstein-Barr virus-mild acquired immune deficiency syndrome (EBV-MAIDS) in postsurgical sinusitis.

BACKGROUND: Functional endoscopic sinus surgery has remarkably improved the treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis patients. Computed tomography, endoscopic optical instrumentation, powered microdebriders, and computer-assisted surgery have surmounted the technical problems of obstructive sinusitis care. Most experienced practitioners achieve reported success rates of 85-95% among their surgical patients. However, the 5-15% refractory patients reported by all rhinologic surgeons leave an exasperating and perplexing group who, despite appropriate mechanical corrections, continue to experience debilitating rhinosinusitis episodes requiring repeated oral, nebulized, or intravenous antibiotics, and in some cases, antifungal therapy. METHODS: Recent studies have indicated that host immune response mechanisms may be altered in the paranasal sinus tissues of sinusitis patients. After years of observation, it was felt that these difficult patients may suffer from a common thread of significant partial immunocompromise. Drawing on military experience of treating immunoimmature populations prone to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infectious mononucleosis and the consequent postmononucleosis syndrome, it was sought to screen disabled refractory postsurgical sinusitis patients for this factor and treat them with long-standing military protocols for the immunoimmature populations dispatched to third-world combat conditions. RESULTS: Treatment of Epstein-Barr Virus-Mild Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome consisted of periodic intramuscular serum immune globulin injections (immunomodulator therapy), after obtaining their thorough written informed consent, which produced substantial and sustainable improvement in patient's quality of life. CONCLUSION: Detection of mild-to-moderate acquired immune deficiency among postsurgical rhinosinusitis patients can lead to successful treatment and an improved quality of life.