1,040 results on '"Meredith A"'
Search Results
52. Changes in clinical markers observed from pharmacist-managed cardiovascular risk reduction clinics in federally qualified health centers: A retrospective cohort study
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Gonzalvo, Jasmine D., primary, Meredith, Ashley H., additional, Pastakia, Sonak D., additional, Peters, Michael, additional, Eberle, Madilyn, additional, Schmelz, Andrew N., additional, Pence, Lauren, additional, Triboletti, Jessica S., additional, and Walroth, Todd A., additional
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- 2023
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53. Cancer and diabetes co-occurrence: A national study with 44 million person-years of follow-up
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Gurney, Jason, primary, Stanley, James, additional, Teng, Andrea, additional, Krebs, Jeremy, additional, Koea, Jonathan, additional, Lao, Chunhuan, additional, Lawrenson, Ross, additional, Meredith, Ineke, additional, Sika-Paotonu, Dianne, additional, and Sarfati, Diana, additional
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- 2022
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54. Risk stratification with explainable machine learning for 30-day procedure-related mortality and 30-day unplanned readmission in patients with peripheral arterial disease
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Cox, Meredith, primary, Panagides, J. C., additional, Tabari, Azadeh, additional, Kalva, Sanjeeva, additional, Kalpathy-Cramer, Jayashree, additional, and Daye, Dania, additional
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- 2022
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55. It’s just that uncertainty that eats away at people: Antarctic expeditioners’ lived experiences of COVID-19
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Nash, Meredith, primary, Leane, Elizabeth, additional, and Norris, Kimberley, additional
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- 2022
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
56. A marine isotope stage 11 coastal Acheulian workshop with associated wood at Amanzi Springs Area 1, South Africa
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Herries, Andy I. R., primary, Arnold, Lee J., additional, Boschian, Giovanni, additional, Blackwood, Alexander F., additional, Wilson, Coen, additional, Mallett, Tom, additional, Armstrong, Brian, additional, Demuro, Martina, additional, Petchey, Fiona, additional, Meredith-Williams, Matthew, additional, Penzo-Kajewski, Paul, additional, and Caruana, Matthew V., additional
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- 2022
- Full Text
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57. Randomized, placebo controlled phase I trial of the safety, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and acceptability of a 90 day tenofovir plus levonorgestrel vaginal ring used continuously or cyclically in women: The CONRAD 138 study
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Thurman, Andrea R., primary, Brache, Vivian, additional, Cochon, Leila, additional, Ouattara, Louise A., additional, Chandra, Neelima, additional, Jacot, Terry, additional, Yousefieh, Nazita, additional, Clark, Meredith R., additional, Peet, Melissa, additional, Hanif, Homaira, additional, Schwartz, Jill L., additional, Ju, Susan, additional, Marzinke, Mark A., additional, Erikson, David W., additional, Parikh, Urvi, additional, Herold, Betsy C., additional, Fichorova, Raina N., additional, Tolley, Elizabeth, additional, and Doncel, Gustavo F., additional
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- 2022
- Full Text
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58. Cancer and diabetes co-occurrence: A national study with 44 million person-years of follow-up
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Jason Gurney, James Stanley, Andrea Teng, Jeremy Krebs, Jonathan Koea, Chunhuan Lao, Ross Lawrenson, Ineke Meredith, Dianne Sika-Paotonu, and Diana Sarfati
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Multidisciplinary ,Receptors, Chimeric Antigen ,Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin ,Liver Neoplasms ,Diabetes Mellitus ,Humans ,Follow-Up Studies - Abstract
The number of new cases of cancer is increasing each year, and rates of diabetes mellitus are also increasing dramatically over time. It is not an unusual occurrence for an individual to have both cancer and diabetes at the same time, given they are both individually common, and that one condition can increase the risk of the other. In this manuscript, we use national-level diabetes (Virtual Diabetes Register) and cancer (New Zealand Cancer Registry) data on nearly five million individuals over 44 million person-years of follow-up to examine the occurrence of cancer amongst a national prevalent cohort of patients with diabetes. We completed this analysis separately by cancer for the 24 most commonly diagnosed cancers in Aotearoa New Zealand, and then compared the occurrence of cancer among those with diabetes to those without diabetes. We found that the rate of cancer was highest amongst those with diabetes for 21 of the 24 most common cancers diagnosed over our study period, with excess risk among those with diabetes ranging between 11% (non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma) and 236% (liver cancer). The cancers with the greatest difference in incidence between those with diabetes and those without diabetes tended to be within the endocrine or gastrointestinal system, and/or had a strong relationship with obesity. However, in an absolute sense, due to the volume of breast, colorectal and lung cancers, prevention of the more modest excess cancer risk among those with diabetes (16%, 22% and 48%, respectively) would lead to a substantial overall reduction in the total burden of cancer in the population. Our findings reinforce the fact that diabetes prevention activities are also cancer prevention activities, and must therefore be prioritised and resourced in tandem.
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- 2022
59. Assessment of Tennessee’s county-level vulnerability to hepatitis C virus and HIV outbreaks using socioeconomic, healthcare, and substance use indicators
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Vakili, Jessica, primary, Sizemore, Lindsey, additional, Rebeiro, Peter F., additional, Tyndall, Ben, additional, Talley, Pamela, additional, Whaley, Kristyn, additional, and Brantley, Meredith, additional
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- 2022
- Full Text
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60. Implementation outcomes and strategies for delivering evidence-based hypertension interventions in lower-middle-income countries: Evidence from a multi-country consortium for hypertension control
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Joyce Gyamfi, Juliet Iwelunmor, Shivani Patel, Vilma Irazola, Angela Aifah, Ashlin Rakhra, Mark Butler, Rajesh Vedanthan, Giang Nguyen Hoang, Monicah Nyambura, Hoa Nguyen, Cuc Nguyen, Kwaku Poku Asante, Solomon Nyame, Kwame Adjei, John Amoah, Kingsley Apusiga, Kezia Gladys Amaning Adjei, Manuel Ramierz-Zea, Diego Hernandez, Meredith Fort, Hanspria Sharma, Prashant Jarhyan, Emmanuel Peprah, and Gbenga Ogedegbe
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Multidisciplinary - Abstract
Guidance on contextually tailored implementation strategies for the prevention, treatment, and control of hypertension is limited in lower-middle income countries (Lower-MIC). To address this limitation, we compiled implementation strategies and accompanying outcomes of evidence-based hypertension interventions currently being implemented in five Lower-MIC. The Global Research on Implementation and Translation Science (GRIT) Coordinating Center (CC) (GRIT-CC) engaged its global network sites at Ghana, Guatemala, India, Kenya, and Vietnam. Purposively sampled implementation science experts completed an electronic survey assessing implementation outcomes, in addition to implementation strategies used in their ongoing hypertension interventions from among 73 strategies within the Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC). Experts rated the strategies based on highest priority to their interventions. We analyzed the data by sorting implementation strategies utilized by sites into one of the nine domains in ERIC and summarized the data using frequencies, proportions, and means. Seventeen implementation experts (52.9% men) participated in the exercise. Of Proctor’s implementation outcomes identified across sites, all outcomes except for appropriateness were broadly assessed by three or more countries. Overall, 59 out of 73 (81%) strategies were being utilized in the five countries. The highest priority implementation strategies utilized across all five countries focused on evaluative and iterative strategies (e.g., identification of context specific barriers and facilitators) to delivery of patient- and community-level interventions, while the lowest priority was use of financial and infrastructure change strategies. More capacity building strategies (developing stakeholder interrelationships, training and educating stakeholders, and supporting clinicians) were incorporated into interventions implemented in India and Vietnam than Ghana, Kenya, and Guatemala. Although robust implementation strategies are being used in Lower -MICs, there is minimum use of financial and infrastructure change strategies. Our study contributes to the growing literature that demonstrates the use of Expert Recommendations for Implementing Change (ERIC) implementation strategies to deliver evidence-based hypertension interventions in Lower-MICs and will inform future cross-country data harmonization activities in resource-constrained settings.
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- 2023
61. Parents of children with hearing loss: Impact and exposure of COVID-19 on mental health
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Ivette Cejas, Chrisanda Sanchez, Meredith Holcomb, and Jennifer Coto
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Multidisciplinary - Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact and exposure of COVID-19 on parent mental health (e.g., depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for parents of children with hearing loss. The survey was distributed via an electronic survey to families subscribed to a pediatric program listserv as part of a university medical center. Fifty-five percent of parents reported elevated symptoms of anxiety, while 16% scored in the clinically significant range for depression. In addition, 20% of parents reported elevated symptoms of PTSD. Liner regressions found that impact of COVID-19 predicted anxiety symptoms, while both impact and exposure predicted depression and PTSD symptoms. In addition, both impact and exposure predicted COVID related parental distress. Exposure and impact of COVID-19 has had negative consequences on parents of children with hearing loss. Although exposure influenced parental mental health, impact uniquely affected depression and PTSD. Results highlight the need for mental health screening, as well implementation of psychological interventions using telehealth or in-person consultations. Future work should focus on post-pandemic challenges, including long-term psychological functioning due to the established relationship between parental mental health and pediatric outcomes.
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- 2023
62. Rare CIDEC coding variants enriched in age-related macular degeneration patients with small low-luminance deficit cause lipid droplet and fat storage defects
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Sehyun Kim, Amy Stockwell, Han Qin, Simon S. Gao, Meredith Sagolla, Ivaylo Stoilov, Arthur Wuster, Phillip Lai, Brian L. Yaspan, and Marion Jeanne
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Multidisciplinary - Abstract
Background The basis of Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) genetic risk has been well documented; however, few studies have looked at genetic biomarkers of disease progression or treatment response within advanced AMD patients. Here we report the first genome-wide analysis of genetic determinants of low-luminance vision deficit (LLD), which is seen as predictive of visual acuity loss and anti-VEGF treatment response in neovascular AMD patients. Methods AMD patients were separated into small- and large-LLD groups for comparison and whole genome sequencing was performed. Genetic determinants of LLD were assessed by common and rare variant genetic analysis. Follow-up functional analysis of rare coding variants identified by the burden test was then performed in vitro. Results We identified four coding variants in the CIDEC gene. These rare variants were only present in patients with a small LLD, which has been previously shown to indicate better prognosis and better anti-VEGF treatment response. Our in vitro functional characterization of these CIDEC alleles revealed that all decrease the binding affinity between CIDEC and the lipid droplet fusion effectors PLIN1, RAB8A and AS160. The rare CIDEC alleles all cause a hypomorphic defect in lipid droplet fusion and enlargement, resulting in a decreased fat storage capability in adipocytes. Conclusions As we did not detect CIDEC expression in the ocular tissue affected by AMD, our results suggest that the CIDEC variants do not play a direct role in the eye and influence low-luminance vision deficit via an indirect and systemic effect related to fat storage capacity.
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- 2023
63. Analytical validation of a multi-cancer early detection test with cancer signal origin using a cell-free DNA–based targeted methylation assay
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Gregory E. Alexander, Wendy Lin, Fabian E. Ortega, Madhuvanthi Ramaiah, Byoungsok Jung, Lijuan Ji, Ekaterina Revenkova, Payal Shah, Christian Croisetiere, Jennifer R. Berman, Lane Eubank, Gunjan Naik, Jacqueline Brooks, Andrea Mich, Seyedmehdi Shojaee, Neda Ronaghi, Hemanshi Chawla, Xinyi Hou, Qinwen Liu, Christopher-James A. V. Yakym, Patriss Wais Moradi, Meredith Halks-Miller, Alexander M. Aravanis, Sonya Parpart-Li, and Nathan Hunkapiller
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Multidisciplinary - Abstract
The analytical validation is reported for a targeted methylation-based cell-free DNA multi-cancer early detection test designed to detect cancer and predict the cancer signal origin (tissue of origin). A machine-learning classifier was used to analyze the methylation patterns of >105 genomic targets covering >1 million methylation sites. Analytical sensitivity (limit of detection [95% probability]) was characterized with respect to tumor content by expected variant allele frequency and was determined to be 0.07%-0.17% across five tumor cases and 0.51% for the lymphoid neoplasm case. Test specificity was 99.3% (95% confidence interval, 98.6–99.7%). In the reproducibility and repeatability study, results were consistent in 31/34 (91.2%) pairs with cancer and 17/17 (100%) pairs without cancer; between runs, results were concordant for 129/133 (97.0%) cancer and 37/37 (100%) non-cancer sample pairs. Across 3- to 100-ng input levels of cell-free DNA, cancer was detected in 157/182 (86.3%) cancer samples but not in any of the 62 non-cancer samples. In input titration tests, cancer signal origin was correctly predicted in all tumor samples detected as cancer. No cross-contamination events were observed. No potential interferent (hemoglobin, bilirubin, triglycerides, genomic DNA) affected performance. The results of this analytical validation study support continued clinical development of a targeted methylation cell-free DNA multi-cancer early detection test.
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- 2023
64. It's just that uncertainty that eats away at people: Antarctic expeditioners' lived experiences of COVID-19
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Meredith Nash, Elizabeth Leane, and Kimberley Norris
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Multidisciplinary ,Uncertainty ,Australia ,Humans ,COVID-19 ,Antarctic Regions ,Pandemics - Abstract
With Antarctic expeditioners popularly portrayed in the media during the pandemic as both heroic stalwarts better equipped than any other people to deal with the rigours of isolation and, paradoxically, the only people untouched by the virus, it was all too easy to ignore the actual experiences of those working in the continent. Drawing on the experiences of expeditioners in the Australian Antarctic Program from 2019–21, this article provides a counter to popular media perspective by exploring how COVID-19 protocols–including quarantine and social distancing–affected expeditioners’ individual well-being and their experiences of the social environment. We argue that Antarctic life during COVID-19 has not been as detached from the rest of the world nor as heroic as the popular media has suggested, but nonetheless provides important insights for survival in isolated, confined, and extreme environments (ICE) and non-ICE environments at a time of pandemic.
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- 2022
65. Barriers to accessing and engaging in healthcare as potential modifiers in the association between polyvictimization and mental health among Black transgender women
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Sherman, Athena D. F., primary, Balthazar, Monique S., additional, Daniel, Gaea, additional, Bonds Johnson, Kalisha, additional, Klepper, Meredith, additional, Clark, Kristen D., additional, Baguso, Glenda N., additional, Cicero, Ethan, additional, Allure, Kisha, additional, Wharton, Whitney, additional, and Poteat, Tonia, additional
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- 2022
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66. Manure management strategies are interconnected with complexity across U.S. dairy farms
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Niles, Meredith T., primary, Wiltshire, Serge, additional, Lombard, Jason, additional, Branan, Matthew, additional, Vuolo, Matthew, additional, Chintala, Rajesh, additional, and Tricarico, Juan, additional
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- 2022
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67. Using ethics of care as the theoretical lens to understand lived experiences of caregivers of older adults experiencing functional difficulties
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Awuviry-Newton, Kofi, primary, Tavener, Meredith, additional, Wales, Kylie, additional, and Byles, Julie, additional
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- 2022
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68. The role of collegiality in academic review, promotion, and tenure
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Dawson, Diane (DeDe), primary, Morales, Esteban, additional, McKiernan, Erin C., additional, Schimanski, Lesley A., additional, Niles, Meredith T., additional, and Alperin, Juan Pablo, additional
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- 2022
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69. Changes in clinical markers observed from pharmacist-managed cardiovascular risk reduction clinics in federally qualified health centers: A retrospective cohort study
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Jasmine D. Gonzalvo, Ashley H. Meredith, Sonak D. Pastakia, Michael Peters, Madilyn Eberle, Andrew N. Schmelz, Lauren Pence, Jessica S. Triboletti, and Todd A. Walroth
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Multidisciplinary - Abstract
Background Reductions in hemoglobin A1c (HbA1C) have been associated with improved cardiovascular outcomes and savings in medical expenditures. One public health approach has involved pharmacists within primary care settings. The objective was to assess change in HbA1C from baseline after 3–5 months of follow up in pharmacist-managed cardiovascular risk reduction (CVRR) clinics. Methods This retrospective cohort chart review occurred in eight pharmacist-managed CVRR federally qualified health clinics (FQHC) in Indiana, United States. Data were collected from patients seen by a CVRR pharmacist within the timeframe of January 1, 2015 through February 28, 2020. Data collected include: demographic characteristics and clinical markers between baseline and follow-up. HbA1C from baseline after 3 to 5 months was assessed with pared t-tests analysis. Other clinical variables were assessed and additional analysis were performed at 6–8 months. Additional results are reported between 9 months and 36 months of follow up. Results The primary outcome evaluation included 445 patients. Over 36 months of evaluation, 3,803 encounters were described. Compared to baseline, HbA1C was reduced by 1.6% (95%CI -1.8, -1.4, pp Conclusions Our study augments the existing literature by demonstrating the health improvement of pharmacist-managed CVRR clinics. The great proportion of loss to follow-up is a limitation of this study to be considered. Additional studies exploring the expansion of similar models may amplify the public health impact of pharmacist-managed CVRR services in primary care sites.
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- 2023
70. 'I got a bunch of weed to help me through the withdrawals': Naturalistic cannabis use reported in online opioid and opioid recovery community discussion forums
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Meredith C. Meacham, Alicia L. Nobles, D. Andrew Tompkins, Johannes Thrul, and Troup, Lucy J
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Narcotics ,Drug Abuse (NIDA Only) ,Marijuana Abuse ,General Science & Technology ,Science ,170199 Psychology not elsewhere classified ,Marijuana Smoking ,Opioid ,Medical Marijuana ,Humans ,Cannabis ,Cannabinoid Receptor Agonists ,Analgesics ,Multidisciplinary ,Cannabinoids ,Substance Abuse ,Social Support ,Opioid-Related Disorders ,Substance Withdrawal Syndrome ,Analgesics, Opioid ,FOS: Psychology ,Medicine ,Mental health ,Social Media - Abstract
A growing body of research has reported on the potential opioid-sparing effects of cannabis and cannabinoids, but less is known about specific mechanisms. The present research examines cannabis-related posts in two large online communities on the Reddit platform (“subreddits”) to compare mentions of naturalistic cannabis use by persons self-identifying as actively using opioids versus persons in recovery. We extracted all posts mentioning cannabis-related keywords (e.g., “weed”, “cannabis”, “marijuana”) from December 2015 through August 2019 from an opioid use subreddit and an opioid recovery subreddit. To investigate how cannabis is discussed at-scale, we identified and compared the most frequent phrases in cannabis-related posts in each subreddit using term-frequency-inverse document frequency (TF-IDF) weighting. To contextualize these findings, we also conducted a qualitative content analysis of 200 random posts (100 from each subreddit). Cannabis-related posts were about twice as prevalent in the recovery subreddit (n = 908; 5.4% of 16,791 posts) than in the active opioid use subreddit (n = 4,224; 2.6% of 159,994 posts, p < .001). The most frequent phrases from the recovery subreddit referred to time without using opioids and the possibility of using cannabis as a “treatment.” The most frequent phrases from the opioid subreddit referred to concurrent use of cannabis and opioids. The most common motivations for using cannabis were to manage opioid withdrawal symptoms in the recovery subreddit, often in conjunction with anti-anxiety and GI-distress “comfort meds,” and to enhance the “high” when used in combination with opioids in the opioid subreddit. Despite limitations in generalizability from pseudonymous online posts, this examination of reports of naturalistic cannabis use in relation to opioid use identified withdrawal symptom management as a common motivation. Future research is warranted with more structured assessments that examines the role of cannabis and cannabinoids in addressing both somatic and affective symptoms of opioid withdrawal.
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- 2022
71. Combining viral genomics and clinical data to assess risk factors for severe COVID-19 (mortality, ICU admission, or intubation) amongst hospital patients in a large acute UK NHS hospital Trust.
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Foxley-Marrable, Max, D'Cruz, Leon, Meredith, Paul, Glaysher, Sharon, Beckett, Angela H., Goudarzi, Salman, Fearn, Christopher, Cook, Kate F., Loveson, Katie F., Dent, Hannah, Paul, Hannah, Elliott, Scott, Wyllie, Sarah, Lloyd, Allyson, Bicknell, Kelly, Lumley, Sally, McNicholas, James, Prytherch, David, Lundgren, Andrew, and Graur, Or
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TRUST ,GENOMICS ,HOSPITAL patients ,EARLY warning score ,HUMAN genetics ,COMORBIDITY ,COVID-19 ,PLANT viruses - Abstract
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, valuable datasets have been collected on the effects of the virus SARS-CoV-2. In this study, we combined whole genome sequencing data with clinical data (including clinical outcomes, demographics, comorbidity, treatment information) for 929 patient cases seen at a large UK hospital Trust between March 2020 and May 2021. We identified associations between acute physiological status and three measures of disease severity; admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), requirement for intubation, and mortality. Whilst the maximum National Early Warning Score (NEWS2) was moderately associated with severe COVID-19 (A = 0.48), the admission NEWS2 was only weakly associated (A = 0.17), suggesting it is ineffective as an early predictor of severity. Patient outcome was weakly associated with myriad factors linked to acute physiological status and human genetics, including age, sex and pre-existing conditions. Overall, we found no significant links between viral genomics and severe outcomes, but saw evidence that variant subtype may impact relative risk for certain sub-populations. Specific mutations of SARS-CoV-2 appear to have little impact on overall severity risk in these data, suggesting that emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants do not result in more severe patient outcomes. However, our results show that determining a causal relationship between mutations and severe COVID-19 in the viral genome is challenging. Whilst improved understanding of the evolution of SARS-CoV-2 has been achieved through genomics, few studies on how these evolutionary changes impact on clinical outcomes have been seen due to complexities associated with data linkage. By combining viral genomics with patient records in a large acute UK hospital, this study represents a significant resource for understanding risk factors associated with COVID-19 severity. However, further understanding will likely arise from studies of the role of host genetics on disease progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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- 2023
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72. Ethical, regulatory, and practical barriers to COVID-19 research: A stakeholder-informed inventory of concerns
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Sisk, Bryan A., primary, Baldwin, Kari, additional, Parsons, Meredith, additional, and DuBois, James M., additional
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- 2022
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73. Mapping local hot spots with routine tuberculosis data: A pragmatic approach to identify spatial variability
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Brooks, Meredith B., primary, Millones, Ana Karina, additional, Puma, Daniela, additional, Contreras, Carmen, additional, Jimenez, Judith, additional, Tzelios, Christine, additional, Jenkins, Helen E., additional, Yuen, Courtney M., additional, Keshavjee, Salmaan, additional, Lecca, Leonid, additional, and Becerra, Mercedes C., additional
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- 2022
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74. Effects of word familiarity and receptive vocabulary size on speech-in-noise recognition among young adults with normal hearing
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Braza, Meredith D., primary, Porter, Heather L., additional, Buss, Emily, additional, Calandruccio, Lauren, additional, McCreery, Ryan W., additional, and Leibold, Lori J., additional
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- 2022
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75. Individual, community, and structural factors associated with linkage to HIV care among people diagnosed with HIV in Tennessee
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Ahonkhai, Aima A., primary, Rebeiro, Peter F., additional, Jenkins, Cathy A., additional, Rickles, Michael, additional, Cook, Mekeila, additional, Conserve, Donaldson F., additional, Pierce, Leslie J., additional, Shepherd, Bryan E., additional, Brantley, Meredith, additional, and Wester, Carolyn, additional
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- 2022
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76. Age-specific effectiveness of a tuberculosis screening intervention in children
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Brooks, Meredith B., primary, Dubois, Melanie M., additional, Malik, Amyn A., additional, Ahmed, Junaid F., additional, Siddiqui, Sara, additional, Khan, Salman, additional, Brohi, Manzoor, additional, Das Valecha, Teerath, additional, Amanullah, Farhana, additional, Becerra, Mercedes C., additional, and Hussain, Hamidah, additional
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- 2022
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77. The role of collegiality in academic review, promotion, and tenure
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Diane (DeDe) Dawson, Esteban Morales, Erin C. McKiernan, Lesley A. Schimanski, Meredith T. Niles, and Juan Pablo Alperin
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Publishing ,Canada ,Multidisciplinary ,Policy ,Universities ,Humans ,Faculty ,United States - Abstract
Review, promotion, and tenure (RPT) processes at universities typically assess candidates along three dimensions: research, teaching, and service. In recent years, some have argued for the inclusion of a controversial fourth criterion: collegiality. While collegiality plays a role in the morale and effectiveness of academic departments, it is amorphic and difficult to assess, and could be misused to stifle dissent or enforce homogeneity. Despite this, some institutions have opted to include this additional element in their RPT documents and processes, but it is unknown the extent of this practice and how it varies across institution type and disciplinary units. This study is based on two sets of data: survey data collected as part of a project that explored the publishing decisions of faculty and how these related to perceived importance in RPT processes, and 864 RPT documents collected from 129 universities from the United States and Canada. We analysed these RPT documents to determine the degree to which collegiality and related terms are mentioned, if they are defined, and if and how they may be assessed during the RPT process. Results show that when collegiality and related terms appear in these documents they are most often just brieflymentioned. It is less common for collegiality and related terms to bedefinedorassessedin RPT documents. Although the terms are mentioned across all types of institutions, there is a statistically significant difference in how prevalent they are at each. Collegiality is more commonly mentioned in the documents of doctoral research-focused universities (60%), than of master’s universities and colleges (31%) or baccalaureate colleges (15%). Results from the accompanying survey of faculty also support this finding: individuals from R-Types were more likely to perceive collegiality to be a factor in their RPT processes. We conclude that collegiality likely plays an important role in RPT processes, whether it is explicitly acknowledged in policies and guidelines or not, and point to several strategies in how it might be best incorporated in the assessment of academic careers.
- Published
- 2021
78. Assessment of Tennessee's county-level vulnerability to hepatitis C virus and HIV outbreaks using socioeconomic, healthcare, and substance use indicators
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Jessica Vakili, Lindsey Sizemore, Peter F. Rebeiro, Ben Tyndall, Pamela Talley, Kristyn Whaley, and Meredith Brantley
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Analgesics, Opioid ,Drug Users ,Multidisciplinary ,Adolescent ,Socioeconomic Factors ,Humans ,HIV Infections ,Hepacivirus ,Substance Abuse, Intravenous ,Delivery of Health Care ,Hepatitis C ,Tennessee ,Disease Outbreaks - Abstract
Background Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and injection drug use are syndemic in the central Appalachian states. In Tennessee (TN), declines in HIV among persons who inject drugs (PWID) stalled, and HCV infection rates increased significantly from 2013–2017. To better target strategies to address the syndemic, county-level socioeconomic, opioid use, access to healthcare, and health factors were modeled to identify indicators predictive of vulnerability to an HIV/HCV outbreak among PWID in TN. Methods Newly reported chronic HCV cases among persons aged 13–39 years in 2016–2017 were used as a proxy for county-level HIV/HCV vulnerability among TN’s 95 counties. Seventy-five publicly available county-level measures from 2016–2017 were collected and reduced through multiple dimension reduction techniques. Negative binomial regression identified indicators associated with HCV which were used to calculate county-level vulnerability to a local HIV/HCV outbreak. Results Thirteen county-level indicators were identified as strongly predictive of HIV/HCV vulnerability with the statistically significant indicators being percentage of the population aged 20–44 years, per capita income, teen birth rate, percentage of clients in TDMHSAS-funded opioid treatment and recovery, syphilis case rate, and percentage of homes with at least one vehicle. Based on the 13 indicators, we identified the distribution of vulnerability to an HIV/HCV outbreak among TN’s counties. Eleven high vulnerability counties were identified, with the preponderance located in east and middle TN. Conclusion This analysis identified the county-level factors most associated with vulnerability to an HIV/HCV outbreak among PWID in TN. These results, alongside routine surveillance, will guide targeted prevention and linkage to care efforts for the most vulnerable communities.
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- 2021
79. Risk stratification with explainable machine learning for 30-day procedure-related mortality and 30-day unplanned readmission in patients with peripheral arterial disease
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Meredith Cox, J. C. Panagides, Azadeh Tabari, Sanjeeva Kalva, Jayashree Kalpathy-Cramer, and Dania Daye
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Male ,Machine Learning ,Peripheral Arterial Disease ,Multidisciplinary ,Risk Factors ,Humans ,Female ,Patient Readmission ,Risk Assessment ,Aged - Abstract
Predicting 30-day procedure-related mortality risk and 30-day unplanned readmission in patients undergoing lower extremity endovascular interventions for peripheral artery disease (PAD) may assist in improving patient outcomes. Risk prediction of 30-day mortality can help clinicians identify treatment plans to reduce the risk of death, and prediction of 30-day unplanned readmission may improve outcomes by identifying patients who may benefit from readmission prevention strategies. The goal of this study is to develop machine learning models to stratify risk of 30-day procedure-related mortality and 30-day unplanned readmission in patients undergoing lower extremity infra-inguinal endovascular interventions. We used a cohort of 14,444 cases from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database. For each outcome, we developed and evaluated multiple machine learning models, including Support Vector Machines, Multilayer Perceptrons, and Gradient Boosting Machines, and selected a random forest as the best-performing model for both outcomes. Our 30-day procedure-related mortality model achieved an AUC of 0.75 (95% CI: 0.71–0.79) and our 30-day unplanned readmission model achieved an AUC of 0.68 (95% CI: 0.67–0.71). Stratification of the test set by race (white and non-white), sex (male and female), and age (≥65 years and
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- 2022
80. A marine isotope stage 11 coastal Acheulian workshop with associated wood at Amanzi Springs Area 1, South Africa
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Andy I. R. Herries, Lee J. Arnold, Giovanni Boschian, Alexander F. Blackwood, Coen Wilson, Tom Mallett, Brian Armstrong, Martina Demuro, Fiona Petchey, Matthew Meredith-Williams, Paul Penzo-Kajewski, and Matthew V. Caruana
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FOS: History and archaeology ,South Africa ,Multidisciplinary ,Rivers ,Isotopes ,Archaeology ,Fossils ,40699 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience not elsewhere classified ,Geology ,FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences ,Wood ,210103 Archaeology of Asia, Africa and the Americas - Abstract
Amanzi Springs is a series of inactive thermal springs located near Kariega in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Excavations in the 1960s exposed rare, stratified Acheulian-bearing deposits that were not further investigated over the next 50 years. Reanalysis of the site and its legacy collection has led to a redefined stratigraphic context for the archaeology, a confirmed direct association between Acheulian artefacts and wood, as well as the first reliable age estimates for the site. Thermally transferred optically stimulated luminescence and post-infrared infrared stimulated luminescence dating indicates that the Acheulian deposits from the Amanzi Springs Area 1 spring eye formed during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11 at ~ 404–390 ka. At this time, higher sea levels of ~13-14m would have placed Amanzi Springs around 7 km from a ria that would have formed along what is today the Swartkops River, and which likely led to spring reactivation. This makes the Amanzi Springs Area 1 assemblage an unusual occurrence of a verified late occurring, seaward, open-air Acheulian occupation. The Acheulian levels do not contain any Middle Stone Age (MSA) elements such as blades and points that have been documented in the interior of South Africa at this time. However, a small number of stone tools from the upper layers of the artefact zone, and originally thought of as intrusive, have been dated to ~190 ka, at the transition between MIS 7 to 6, and represent the first potential MSA identified at the site.
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- 2022
81. Randomized, placebo controlled phase I trial of the safety, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and acceptability of a 90 day tenofovir plus levonorgestrel vaginal ring used continuously or cyclically in women: The CONRAD 138 study
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Andrea R. Thurman, Vivian Brache, Leila Cochon, Louise A. Ouattara, Neelima Chandra, Terry Jacot, Nazita Yousefieh, Meredith R. Clark, Melissa Peet, Homaira Hanif, Jill L. Schwartz, Susan Ju, Mark A. Marzinke, David W. Erikson, Urvi Parikh, Betsy C. Herold, Raina N. Fichorova, Elizabeth Tolley, and Gustavo F. Doncel
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Male ,Multidisciplinary ,HIV Core Protein p24 ,Contraceptive Devices, Female ,HIV Infections ,Levonorgestrel ,Antiviral Agents ,Diphosphates ,Contraceptive Agents ,Semen ,Humans ,Female ,Tenofovir ,Anovulation - Abstract
Multipurpose prevention technologies (MPTs), which prevent sexually transmitted infection(s) and unintended pregnancy, are highly desirable to women. In this randomized, placebo-controlled, phase I study, women used a placebo or tenofovir (TFV) and levonorgestrel (LNG) intravaginal ring (IVR), either continuously or cyclically (three, 28-day cycles with a 3 day interruption in between each cycle), for 90 days. Sixty-eight women were screened; 47 were randomized to 4 arms: TFV/LNG or placebo IVRs used continuously or cyclically (4:4:1:1). Safety was assessed by adverse events and changes from baseline in mucosal histology and immune mediators. TFV concentrations were evaluated in multiple compartments. LNG concentration was determined in serum. Modeled TFV pharmacodynamic antiviral activity was evaluated in vaginal and rectal fluids and cervicovaginal tissue ex vivo. LNG pharmacodynamics was assessed with cervical mucus quality and anovulation. All IVRs were safe with no serious adverse events nor significant changes in genital tract histology, immune cell density or secreted soluble proteins from baseline. Median vaginal fluid TFV concentrations were >500 ng/mg throughout 90d. TFV-diphosphate tissue concentrations exceeded 1,000 fmol/mg within 72hrs of IVR insertion. Mean serum LNG concentrations exceeded 200 pg/mL within 2h of TFV/LNG use, decreasing quickly after IVR removal. Vaginal fluid of women using TFV-containing IVRs had significantly greater inhibitory activity (87–98% versus 10% at baseline; pin vitro. There was a >10-fold reduction in HIV p24 antigen production from ectocervical tissues after TFV/LNG exposure. TFV/LNG IVR users had significantly higher rates of anovulation, lower Insler scores and poorer/abnormal cervical mucus sperm penetration. Most TFV/LNG IVR users reported no change in menstrual cycles or fewer days of and/or lighter bleeding. All IVRs were safe. Active rings delivered high TFV concentrations locally. LNG caused changes in cervical mucus, sperm penetration, and ovulation compatible with contraceptive efficacy. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov #NCT03279120.
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- 2022
82. Barriers and facilitators to qualitative data sharing in the United States: A survey of qualitative researchers
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Mozersky, Jessica, primary, McIntosh, Tristan, additional, Walsh, Heidi A., additional, Parsons, Meredith V., additional, Goodman, Melody, additional, and DuBois, James M., additional
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- 2021
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83. Diagnostic value of symptoms for pediatric SARS-CoV-2 infection in a primary care setting
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Weng, Chien-Hsiang, primary, Butt, Wesley Wing Wah, additional, Brooks, Meredith B., additional, Clarke, Claudia, additional, Jenkins, Helen E., additional, Holland, Sabina D., additional, and Chiang, Silvia S., additional
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- 2021
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84. Countering the advert effects of lung cancer on the anticancer potential of dendritic cell populations reinstates sensitivity to anti-PD-1 therapy
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Brassard, Julyanne, primary, Gill, Meredith Elizabeth, additional, Bernatchez, Emilie, additional, Desjardins, Véronique, additional, Roy, Joanny, additional, Joubert, Philippe, additional, Marsolais, David, additional, and Blanchet, Marie-Renée, additional
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- 2021
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85. How faculty define quality, prestige, and impact of academic journals
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Morales, Esteban, primary, McKiernan, Erin C., additional, Niles, Meredith T., additional, Schimanski, Lesley, additional, and Alperin, Juan Pablo, additional
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- 2021
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86. Utilizing the SEIPS model to guide hand hygiene interventions at a tertiary hospital in Ethiopia
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Berman, Leigh, primary, Kavalier, Meredith, additional, Gelana, Beshea, additional, Tesfaw, Getnet, additional, Siraj, Dawd, additional, Shirley, Daniel, additional, and Yilma, Daniel, additional
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- 2021
- Full Text
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87. The impact of the COVID-19 response on the provision of other public health services in the U.S.: A cross sectional study
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Kintziger, Kristina W., primary, Stone, Kahler W., additional, Jagger, Meredith A., additional, and Horney, Jennifer A., additional
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- 2021
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88. Manure management strategies are interconnected with complexity across U.S. dairy farms
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Meredith T. Niles, Serge Wiltshire, Jason Lombard, Matthew Branan, Matthew Vuolo, Rajesh Chintala, and Juan Tricarico
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Manure ,Dairying ,Multidisciplinary ,Farms ,Milk ,Animals ,Agriculture ,United States - Abstract
Among one of the key challenges in dairy production is the management of manure in a way that is beneficial for agricultural production, with minimal environmental and public health impacts. Manure management systems (MMS)—the entire system of handling, storage, and application of manure—are diverse in countries with developed dairy industries such as the United States, enabled by a number of different technologies. The ways in which dairy farmers manage manure is driven by varying tradeoffs, including economic, social, and environmental; however, existing research has not examined the relationships between components of MMS. Here we use data from the National Animal Health Monitoring System’s Dairy 2014 study to explore the ways in which manure handling, storage, and application are related, using a series of logistic regression models and network associations. We found significant associations between how manure is handled, stored, and applied, especially driven by the consistency of manure. For solid manure, we found highly heterogeneous systems, where farmers may have a suite of alternative manure management strategies available to them, and substitution is viable. Conversely, farms using liquid manure systems have very few substitutes in their MMS, suggesting greater investment in certain infrastructures, which are not easily changed. Such findings have important implications for shifting farmers towards management practices with minimal environmental and public health impacts, demonstrating that not all farm systems are easily changed. We highlight these results in light of current policies, which may not fully capture the relationships across the MMS, and suggest that greater financing may be necessary to shift MMS on some farms. Furthermore, we suggest that different MMS have varying tradeoffs across environmental, social, and economic aspects, which demonstrates that MMS are highly individualized to a given farm’s goals and priorities.
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- 2021
89. Age-specific effectiveness of a tuberculosis screening intervention in children
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Meredith B. Brooks, Melanie M. Dubois, Amyn A. Malik, Junaid F. Ahmed, Sara Siddiqui, Salman Khan, Manzoor Brohi, Teerath Das Valecha, Farhana Amanullah, Mercedes C. Becerra, and Hamidah Hussain
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Male ,Multidisciplinary ,Adolescent ,Child, Preschool ,Age Factors ,Humans ,Infant ,Mass Screening ,Tuberculosis ,Female ,Pakistan ,Child - Abstract
Objective To apply a cascade-of-care framework to evaluate the effectiveness—by age of the child—of an intensified tuberculosis patient-finding intervention. Design From a prospective screening program at four hospitals in Pakistan (2014–2016) we constructed a care cascade comprising six steps: screened, positive screen, evaluated, diagnosed, started treatment, and successful outcome. We evaluated the cascade by each year of age from 0 to 14 and report the age-specific mean proportion and standard deviation. Results On average across all ages, only 12.5% (standard deviation: 2.0%) of children with a positive screen were not evaluated. Among children who had a complete evaluation, the highest percentages of children diagnosed with tuberculosis were observed in children 0–4 (mean: 31.9%; standard deviation: 4.8%), followed by lower percentages in children 5–9 (mean: 22.4%; standard deviation: 2.2%), and 10–14 (mean: 26.0%; standard deviation:5.4%). Nearly all children diagnosed with tuberculosis initiated treatment, and an average of 93.3% (standard deviation: 3.3%) across all ages had successful treatment outcomes. Conclusions This intervention was highly effective across ages 0–14 years. Our study illustrates the utility of applying operational analyses of age-stratified cascades to identify age-specific gaps in pediatric tuberculosis care that can guide future, novel interventions to close these gaps.
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- 2021
90. Barriers to accessing and engaging in healthcare as potential modifiers in the association between polyvictimization and mental health among Black transgender women
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Athena D. F. Sherman, Monique S. Balthazar, Gaea Daniel, Kalisha Bonds Johnson, Meredith Klepper, Kristen D. Clark, Glenda N. Baguso, Ethan Cicero, Kisha Allure, Whitney Wharton, and Tonia Poteat
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Multidisciplinary ,Mental Health ,Adolescent ,Black People ,Humans ,Female ,Delivery of Health Care ,Transgender Persons ,Transsexualism - Abstract
Background Black transgender women endure pervasive polyvictimization (experiencing multiple forms of violence throughout the lifespan). Polyvictimization is associated with poor mental health. Black transgender women also face barriers in access to healthcare, but the extent that such barriers modify the association between polyvictimization and poor mental health has not been described using convergent mixed-methods analysis. Methods This convergent mixed-methods secondary analysis employs an intersectional lens and integrates two inter-related datasets to describe barriers to healthcare and the extent that such barriers modify the association between polyvictimization and mental health among Black transgender women. Investigators used survey data (n = 151 participants) and qualitative interview data (n = 19 participants) collected from Black transgender women (age 18 years and older) in Baltimore, MD and Washington, DC between 2016 and 2018. Analyses include thematic content analysis, bivariate analysis, joint display, and multivariate linear regression analysis examining mediation and moderation. Results Joint display illuminated three domains to describe how barriers to healthcare present among Black transgender women–Affordability, Accessibility, and Rapport and Continuity. Independent t-tests revealed significantly higher polyvictimization, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and depression scores among participants who reported at least one barrier to healthcare (BHI) compared to those who reported no barriers. BHI significantly moderated and partially mediated the association between polyvictimization and PTSD symptom severity and BHI fully mediated the association between polyvictimization and depressive symptom severity–when accounting for age and location. Discussion Findings highlight the importance of access to healthcare in modifying the association between polyvictimization and PTSD and depression symptom severity among Black transgender women. Findings call for immediate interventions aimed at reducing barriers to healthcare and improved training for clinical providers serving Black transgender women.
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- 2021
91. Associations of circulating dimethylarginines with the metabolic syndrome in the Framingham Offspring study
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Rainer H. Böger, Meredith S Duncan, Carlee Moser, Dorothee Atzler, Renke Maas, Juliane Hannemann, Vanessa Xanthakis, Edzard Schwedhelm, Ramachandran S. Vasan, and Ibrahim Musa Yola
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Male ,Physiology ,Blood Pressure ,Biochemistry ,Vascular Medicine ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,Medical Conditions ,Endocrinology ,Tandem Mass Spectrometry ,Prevalence ,Medicine and Health Sciences ,Prospective Studies ,Metabolic Syndrome ,Multidisciplinary ,Framingham Risk Score ,Organic Compounds ,Monosaccharides ,Neurochemistry ,Middle Aged ,Lipids ,Type 2 Diabetes ,Chemistry ,Cholesterol ,Physiological Parameters ,Physical Sciences ,Medicine ,Female ,Neurochemicals ,Type 2 Diabetes Risk ,Research Article ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Waist ,Offspring ,Endocrine Disorders ,Science ,Carbohydrates ,Arginine ,Nitric Oxide ,Internal medicine ,medicine ,Diabetes Mellitus ,Humans ,ddc:610 ,Obesity ,business.industry ,Organic Chemistry ,Body Weight ,Chemical Compounds ,Biology and Life Sciences ,Odds ratio ,medicine.disease ,Blood pressure ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Glucose ,chemistry ,Metabolic Disorders ,Metabolic syndrome ,Asymmetric dimethylarginine ,business ,Biomarkers ,Neuroscience - Abstract
Background Circulating levels of the endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase, asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), are positively associated with the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in cross-sectional investigations. It is unclear if circulating ADMA and other methylarginines are associated with incident MetS prospectively. Methods We related circulating ADMA, symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA), L-arginine (ARG) concentrations (measured with a validated tandem mass spectrometry assay) and the ARG/ADMA ratio to MetS and its components in 2914 (cross-sectional analysis, logistic regression; mean age 58 years, 55% women) and 1656 (prospective analysis, Cox regression; mean age 56 years, 59% women) individuals from the Framingham Offspring Study who attended a routine examination. Results Adjusting for age, sex, smoking, and eGFR, we observed significant associations of ADMA (direct) and ARG/ADMA (inverse) with odds of MetS (N = 1461 prevalent cases; Odds Ratio [OR] per SD increment 1.13, 95%CI 1.04–1.22; and 0.89, 95%CI 0.82–0.97 for ADMA and ARG/ADMA, respectively). Upon further adjustment for waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, glucose, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides, we observed a positive relation between SDMA and MetS (OR per SD increment 1.15, 95% CI 1.01–1.30) but the other associations were rendered statistically non-significant. We did not observe statistically significant associations between any of the methylarginines and the risk of new-onset MetS (752 incident events) over a median follow-up of 11 years. Conclusion It is unclear whether dimethylarginines play an important role in the incidence of cardiometabolic risk in the community, notwithstanding cross-sectional associations. Further studies of larger samples are needed to replicate our findings.
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- 2021
92. The impact of the COVID-19 response on the provision of other public health services in the U.S.: A cross sectional study
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Jennifer A. Horney, Kristina W. Kintziger, Meredith A. Jagger, and Kahler W Stone
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Program evaluation ,Adult ,Male ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Viral Diseases ,Adolescent ,Infectious Disease Control ,Epidemiology ,Science ,Staffing ,Disease Surveillance ,Surveys ,Research and Analysis Methods ,Disease Informatics ,Young Adult ,Medical Conditions ,medicine ,Medicine and Health Sciences ,Humans ,Public and Occupational Health ,Burnout, Professional ,Pandemics ,Multidisciplinary ,Survey Research ,Public health ,Professional development ,COVID-19 ,Covid 19 ,medicine.disease ,Substance abuse ,Health Care ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Infectious Diseases ,Research Design ,Preparedness ,Family medicine ,Infectious Disease Surveillance ,Workforce ,Medicine ,Health education ,Female ,Public Health ,Psychology ,Environmental Health ,Research Article - Abstract
Introduction Funding and staff formerly dedicated to routine public health tasks (e.g., responding to communicable and non-communicable diseases, investigating foodborne outbreaks, conducting routine surveillance) and services (e.g., environmental health, substance abuse, maternal-child health) may no longer be available in many public health departments due to the COVID-19 response. The objective of this study was to assess the extent to which staffing for essential public health services has been redirected to the COVID-19 response. Materials and methods This is a cross-sectional study using a survey distributed through the Qualtrics platform. Individuals (N = 298) working in public health across governmental and academic public health departments in the U.S. during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic response were surveyed. Survey items measured multiple domains including professional experience (i.e., training, years of experience, content expertise, job functions, hours worked), mental and physical health status (i.e., generalized anxiety, depression, burnout), and career plans (i.e., pre-pandemic vs. current career plans). Results The total number of content expertise areas and programmatic functions covered by individual public health workers increased between January and September of 2020, with 26% (73 of 282) of respondents reporting an increase in both. The total number of respondents working in infectious disease and preparedness remained constant, while declines were reported in program evaluation (-36%) and health education (-27%) and increases were reported in disease investigation (+35%). Conclusions The provision of many essential public health functions and tasks have been limited or eliminated while the U.S. public health workforce responds to the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings highlight opportunities for funding and professional development of public health systems, both during and after the COVID-19 response, to help ensure the continuity of essential public health services, staffing sustainability, and preparedness for future public health emergencies in the U.S.
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- 2021
93. Drivers of exit and outcomes for Thoroughbred racehorses participating in the 2017–2018 Australian racing season
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Shrestha, Kshitiz, primary, Gilkerson, James R., additional, Stevenson, Mark A., additional, and Flash, Meredith L., additional
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- 2021
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94. Associations of circulating dimethylarginines with the metabolic syndrome in the Framingham Offspring study
- Author
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Yola, Ibrahim Musa, primary, Moser, Carlee, additional, Duncan, Meredith S., additional, Schwedhelm, Edzard, additional, Atzler, Dorothee, additional, Maas, Renke, additional, Hannemann, Juliane, additional, Böger, Rainer H., additional, Vasan, Ramachandran S., additional, and Xanthakis, Vanessa, additional
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- 2021
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95. Reactive anti-predator behavioral strategy shaped by predator characteristics
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Palmer, Meredith S., primary and Packer, Craig, additional
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- 2021
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96. Mapping local hot spots with routine tuberculosis data: A pragmatic approach to identify spatial variability
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Meredith B. Brooks, Ana Karina Millones, Daniela Puma, Carmen Contreras, Judith Jimenez, Christine Tzelios, Helen E. Jenkins, Courtney M. Yuen, Salmaan Keshavjee, Leonid Lecca, and Mercedes C. Becerra
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,Spatial Analysis ,Young Adult ,Multidisciplinary ,Adolescent ,Peru ,Humans ,Tuberculosis ,Female - Abstract
Objective To use routinely collected data, with the addition of geographic information and census data, to identify local hot spots of rates of reported tuberculosis cases. Design Residential locations of tuberculosis cases identified from eight public health facilities in Lima, Peru (2013–2018) were linked to census data to calculate neighborhood-level annual case rates. Heat maps of tuberculosis case rates by neighborhood were created. Local indicators of spatial autocorrelation, Moran’s I, were used to identify where in the study area spatial clusters and outliers of tuberculosis case rates were occurring. Age- and sex-stratified case rates were also assessed. Results We identified reports of 1,295 TB cases across 74 neighborhoods during the five-year study period, for an average annual rate of 124.2 reported TB cases per 100,000 population. In evaluating case rates by individual neighborhood, we identified a median rate of reported cases of 123.6 and a range from 0 to 800 cases per 100,000 population. Individuals aged 15–44 years old and men had higher case rates than other age groups and women. Locations of both hot and cold spots overlapped across age- and gender-specific maps. Conclusions There is significant geographic heterogeneity in rates of reported TB cases and evident hot and cold spots within the study area. Characterization of the spatial distribution of these rates and local hot spots may be one practical tool to inform the work of local coalitions to target TB interventions in their zones.
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- 2021
97. Endangered predators and endangered prey: Seasonal diet of Southern Resident killer whales
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Robin W. Baird, Gregory S. Schorr, Mark F Sears, Donald M. Van Doornik, Linda K. Park, Kim M. Parsons, Candice K. Emmons, Michael J. Ford, Meredith V. Everett, M. Bradley Hanson, Jeffrey K Jacobsen, Lynne Barre, John G. Sneva, Maya S Sears, and Jennifer A. Hempelmann
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0106 biological sciences ,Chinook wind ,Range (biology) ,Endangered species ,Predation ,Marine and Aquatic Sciences ,01 natural sciences ,Feces ,Salmon ,Medicine and Health Sciences ,Mammals ,education.field_of_study ,Multidisciplinary ,biology ,Ecology ,Eukaryota ,High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing ,Killer Whales ,Trophic Interactions ,Spring ,Community Ecology ,Osteichthyes ,Vertebrates ,Medicine ,Oncorhynchus ,Seasons ,Salmonidae ,Research Article ,Freshwater Environments ,Washington ,Conservation of Natural Resources ,Science ,Population ,Marine Biology ,010603 evolutionary biology ,Rivers ,Surface Water ,biology.animal ,Animals ,education ,Marine Mammals ,Nutrition ,British Columbia ,Whale ,010604 marine biology & hydrobiology ,Ecology and Environmental Sciences ,Endangered Species ,Organisms ,Whales ,Species diversity ,Biology and Life Sciences ,Aquatic Environments ,Sequence Analysis, DNA ,Bodies of Water ,biology.organism_classification ,Animal Feed ,Diet ,Fishery ,Fish ,Predatory Behavior ,Amniotes ,Earth Sciences ,Whale, Killer ,Hydrology ,Zoology - Abstract
Understanding diet is critical for conservation of endangered predators. Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW) (Orcinus orca) are an endangered population occurring primarily along the outer coast and inland waters of Washington and British Columbia. Insufficient prey has been identified as a factor limiting their recovery, so a clear understanding of their seasonal diet is a high conservation priority. Previous studies have shown that their summer diet in inland waters consists primarily of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), despite that species’ rarity compared to some other salmonids. During other times of the year, when occurrence patterns include other portions of their range, their diet remains largely unknown. To address this data gap, we collected feces and prey remains from October to May 2004–2017 in both the Salish Sea and outer coast waters. Using visual and genetic species identification for prey remains and genetic approaches for fecal samples, we characterized the diet of the SRKWs in fall, winter, and spring. Chinook salmon were identified as an important prey item year-round, averaging ~50% of their diet in the fall, increasing to 70–80% in the mid-winter/early spring, and increasing to nearly 100% in the spring. Other salmon species and non-salmonid fishes, also made substantial dietary contributions. The relatively high species diversity in winter suggested a possible lack of Chinook salmon, probably due to seasonally lower densities, based on SRKW’s proclivity to selectively consume this species in other seasons. A wide diversity of Chinook salmon stocks were consumed, many of which are also at risk. Although outer coast Chinook samples included 14 stocks, four rivers systems accounted for over 90% of samples, predominantly the Columbia River. Increasing the abundance of Chinook salmon stocks that inhabit the whales’ winter range may be an effective conservation strategy for this population.
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- 2021
98. Improved transformation efficiency of group A Streptococcus by inactivation of a type I restriction modification system
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Kathryn M. Ramsey, Simon L. Dove, Hunter J. Tolliver, Michael R. Wessels, and Meredith B. Finn
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Models, Molecular ,Streptococcus pyogenes ,Science ,Mutant ,Gene Expression ,Biology ,medicine.disease_cause ,Microbiology ,Plasmid ,Transformation, Genetic ,Bacterial Proteins ,Streptococcal Infections ,Microbial Physiology ,medicine ,Genetics ,Humans ,Bacterial Genetics ,Point Mutation ,DNA Restriction-Modification Enzymes ,Bacterial Physiology ,Multidisciplinary ,Insertion Mutation ,Virulence ,Point mutation ,Wild type ,Microbial Genetics ,Biology and Life Sciences ,Bacteriology ,Nonsense Mutation ,Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial ,Mutant Strains ,Transformation (genetics) ,Deletion Mutation ,Genetic Loci ,Mutation ,Medicine ,Restriction modification system ,Transformation efficiency ,Research Article ,Restriction Modification Systems - Abstract
Streptococcus pyogenes or group A Streptococcus (GAS) is a leading cause of bacterial pharyngitis, skin and soft tissue infections, life-threatening invasive infections, and the post-infectious autoimmune syndromes of acute rheumatic fever and post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis. Genetic manipulation of this important pathogen is complicated by resistance of the organism to genetic transformation. Very low transformation efficiency is attributed to recognition and degradation of introduced foreign DNA by a type I restriction-modification system encoded by the hsdRSM locus. DNA sequence analysis of this locus in ten GAS strains that had been previously transformed with an unrelated plasmid revealed that six of the ten harbored a spontaneous mutation in hsdR, S, or M. The mutations were all different, and at least five of the six were predicted to result in loss of function of the respective hsd gene product. The unexpected occurrence of such mutations in previously transformed isolates suggested that the process of transformation selects for spontaneous inactivating mutations in the Hsd system. We investigated the possibility of exploiting the increased transformability of hsd mutants by constructing a deletion mutation in hsdM in GAS strain 854, a clinical isolate representative of the globally dominant M1T1 clonal group. Mutant strain 854ΔhsdM exhibited a 5-fold increase in electrotransformation efficiency compared to the wild type parent strain and no obvious change in growth or off-target gene expression. We conclude that genetic transformation of GAS selects for spontaneous mutants in the hsdRSM restriction modification system. We propose that use of a defined hsdM mutant as a parent strain for genetic manipulation of GAS will enhance transformation efficiency and reduce the likelihood of selecting spontaneous hsd mutants with uncharacterized genotypes.
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- 2021
99. Primary care providers as a critical access point to HIV information and services for African American and Latinx communities
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Brennan Woodward, Anita Ohmit, Meredith Short, Gregory Carter, and Andrew Gleissner
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RNA viruses ,Male ,Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ,Bisexuals ,Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) ,HIV Infections ,Surveys ,medicine.disease_cause ,Pathology and Laboratory Medicine ,0302 clinical medicine ,Immunodeficiency Viruses ,Health care ,Medicine and Health Sciences ,Ethnicities ,030212 general & internal medicine ,African American people ,Virus Testing ,African american ,Multidisciplinary ,Point (typography) ,HIV diagnosis and management ,Hispanic or Latino ,Population groupings ,Health Services ,Middle Aged ,Medical Microbiology ,Research Design ,Viral Pathogens ,Viruses ,Medicine ,Female ,Pathogens ,0305 other medical science ,Research Article ,Adult ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Adolescent ,Science ,Health Personnel ,HIV prevention ,MEDLINE ,Primary care ,Research and Analysis Methods ,Microbiology ,Access to Information ,03 medical and health sciences ,Young Adult ,Retroviruses ,medicine ,Humans ,Social media ,Microbial Pathogens ,Primary Care ,Preventive medicine ,030505 public health ,Survey Research ,Primary Health Care ,business.industry ,Lentivirus ,Organisms ,Biology and Life Sciences ,HIV ,Confidence interval ,Diagnostic medicine ,Health Care ,Black or African American ,Public and occupational health ,Family medicine ,People and places ,business ,Sexuality Groupings - Abstract
Purpose This study aimed to examine the association between confidence in accessing HIV services, primary sources of HIV information, and primary care provider status for African American and Latinx individuals in Indiana. Methods An online survey was disseminated to African American and Latinx individuals using snowball and social media recruitment methods, resulting in a final sample size of n = 308. A multivariable linear regression analysis was performed to examine the relationships between confidence accessing HIV services, primary care provider status, sexual identification, and sources of HIV information. Results Of the total respondents, 62.5% (n = 193) identified as male and 36.9% (n = 114) identified as female. Most identified as African American (72.5%, n = 224), followed by 27.2% (n = 84) who identified as Latinx. Participants who used their primary care providers as a primary source of obtaining HIV information had a significantly higher level of comfort with accessing HIV services. Those who identified family members as a primary source of HIV information and those who identified as bisexual demonstrated a lower level of confidence in accessing HIV services. Discussion This study's results enhance our understanding of marginalization within minority groups regarding sexual identification and accessing HIV services. These results also offer insight into the importance of healthcare access because having a primary care provider was a strong predictor of increased confidence in accessing HIV services.
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- 2021
100. Using ethics of care as the theoretical lens to understand lived experiences of caregivers of older adults experiencing functional difficulties
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Kofi Awuviry-Newton, Meredith Tavener, Kylie Wales, and Julie Byles
- Subjects
Multidisciplinary ,Caregivers ,Humans ,Ghana ,Aged - Abstract
The lived experiences of caregivers of older adults in Ghana are not well understood. The purpose of this study was to explore and discuss the lived experiences of these caregivers using the Ethics of Care as a theoretical lens and Interpretative phenomenological analysis as the methodological approach. Ten caregivers in receipt of social welfare services on behalf of older adults were recruited from the Social Welfare Unit at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in southern Ghana. The analysis identified five interrelated themes: 1) committing the Self to caregiving; 2) caregiving impacting the Self; 3) motivating factors to caregiving; 4) caregiving burdens, and 5) thinking about personal affairs. Their experiences demonstrate that caregivers value the caregiving relationship, as posited by Ethics of Care, and tend to care for their health and well-being. Caregivers’ expression of commitment to caring for older adults is mainly influenced by reciprocity, despite internal and external stressors, and desire to fulfil unmet personal needs. Ethics of care offers an understanding of the lived experiences of caregivers of older adults in Ghana. The findings draw attention to the state to develop specific programs to ensure the health, social and financial well-being of older adults’ caregivers.
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- 2021
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