Author Interviews, Cancer Research, Dermatology, Pediatrics / 16.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55386" align="alignleft" width="100"]Irene Lara-Corrales, MD Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Torontp Staff physician in Pediatric Dermatology Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada. Dr. Lara-Corrales[/caption] Irene Lara-Corrales, MD Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Toronto Staff physician in Pediatric Dermatology at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada She is a member of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology.   [caption id="attachment_55387" align="alignleft" width="100"]Christina Boull, MD Assistant Professor of Dermatology at the University of Minnesot Program Director for the Advanced Dermatology Medical Student Rotation and Fellowship Director for the Pediatric Dermatology Fellowship. Dr. Boull[/caption] Christina Boull, MD Assistant Professor of Dermatology at the University of Minnesota Program Director for the Advanced Dermatology Medical Student Rotation Fellowship Director for the Pediatric Dermatology Fellowship     MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We got involved in this project a couple of years ago when many members of the Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance's (PeDRA) Skin Tumors and Reactions to Cancer Therapies (STARC) group started seeing many patients with skin toxicities given by targeted therapies.  We recognized that this was a new and growing area of skin concerns that pediatric dermatologists were starting to see. Being such a new field, and with little known about these medications, we thought it would be important to put our cases together and describe what we were seeing.  
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Fertility, Technology / 16.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55400" align="alignleft" width="200"]Hadi Shafiee, PhD Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women's Hospital Department of Medicine Dr. Shafiee[/caption] Hadi Shafiee, PhD Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women's Hospital Department of Medicine MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are some of the characteristics that AI uses to identify blastocysts witha better chance of successful implantation?  Response: In-vitro fertilization (IVF), while a solution to many infertile couples is still extremely inefficient with a success rate of nearly 30% and is both mentally, physically, and economically taxing to patients. The IVF process involves the insemination of eggs and the culture of embryos externally in a fertility lab before transferring the developed embryo to the mother. A major challenge in the field is deciding on the embryos that need to be transferred during IVF, such that chances of a healthy birth are maximal and any complications for both mother and child are minimal. Currently, the tools available to embryologists when making such are extremely limited and expensive, and thus, most embryologists are required to make these life-altering decisions using only their observational skills and expertise. In such scenarios, their decision-making process is extremely subjective and tends to be variable.
Author Interviews / 14.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55396" align="alignleft" width="200"]Dr Mario Falchi Head of Bioinformatics for the School of Life Course Sciences Department of Twin Research & Genetic Epidemiology King’s College London Dr. Falchi[/caption] Dr Mario Falchi Head of Bioinformatics for the School of Life Course Sciences Department of Twin Research & Genetic Epidemiology King’s College London MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The relationship between sun exposure and health is a double-edged sword, on one side there is the beneficial effect of vitamin D production and on the other the increased risk of skin cancer, depending on length and frequency of exposure, and on the individual skin type. Despite public health campaigns, changing sun-seeking behaviour seems to be challenging for some people, even for those with a familial or personal history of skin cancer. Previous investigations have suggested that exposure to UV could be addictive. 
Author Interviews, CDC, HIV, JAMA, Sexual Health / 14.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Gordon Mansergh, PhD Senior Behavioral Scientist CDC Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention MedicalResearch.com: What would you say is the take home message from the study? Response: A small but notable subgroup of gay and bisexual men are sharing their PrEP medication with others. As PrEP continues to be more commonly used, it is important to better understand and address the context of PrEP sharing, and to emphasize messaging about provider monitoring of medication use over time for health and safety reasons.
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Smoking, Tobacco, Tobacco Research / 11.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55390" align="alignleft" width="200"]Irfan Rahman, Ph.D. Principal Investigator. Center for Inhalation and Flavoring Toxicological Research University of Rochester Dr. Rahman[/caption] Irfan Rahman, Ph.D. Principal Investigator. Center for Inhalation and Flavoring Toxicological Research University of Rochester MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Our study aimed to determine whether vaping and smoking affect Covid-19 proteins and genes and whether that effect changes depending on the age of the vaper/smoker. SARS-Cov-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, enters cells by interacting with ACE2 and TMPRSS2-Furin proteins. We found that both of these proteins increase with age and are also increased by smoking or vaping. This suggests that older adults, smokers and vapers may be more prone to infection with SARS-Cov-2 and may be more likely to have severe complications.
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Pediatrics / 10.09.2020

[caption id="attachment_55357" align="alignleft" width="200"]Burak Bahar, MD Children’s National Hospital Laboratory Medicine Division Washington DC Dr. Bahar[/caption] MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Burak Bahar, MD Children’s National Hospital Laboratory Medicine Division Washington DC MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Objective of this study was to help us better understand how long it takes pediatric patients with COVID-19 to clear it from their system, and at what point they start to make antibodies against the virus. Main findings of our study were 19.5 days being the median duration of viral positivity which is later than 18 days that is the median time for detecting antibodies in the circulation. We also found that kids aged 6 through 15 had a longer duration of viral positivity which was a median of 32 days.
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Hospital Acquired, Infections, JAMA / 10.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55346" align="alignleft" width="160"]Chanu Rhee Associate Hospital Epidemiologist Attending Physician, Infectious Diseases and Critical Care Medicine Assistant Professor of Medicine Brigham and Women's Hospital Dr. Rhee[/caption] Chanu Rhee MD MPH Associate Hospital Epidemiologist Attending Physician, Infectious Diseases and Critical Care Medicine Assistant Professor of Medicine Brigham and Women's Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?   Response: Many patients have been avoiding essential care during the COVID-19 pandemic due to fear of contracting SARS-CoV-2 in healthcare settings. Little is known, however about the adequacy of infection control practices in preventing nosocomial COVID-19 in U.S. acute care hospitals. We therefore conducted this observational study to determine the incidence of nosocomial COVID-19 in patients hospitalized at a large academic medical center in Boston (Brigham and Women’s Hospital) during the first 12 weeks of the surge in Massachusetts.   
Author Interviews, JAMA, Johns Hopkins, Tobacco Research / 10.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55319" align="alignleft" width="200"]Funmi (Abiru) Obisesan, MD, MPH Postdoctoral Fellow Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease Postdoctoral Fellow Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease Dr. Obisesan[/caption] Funmi (Abiru) Obisesan, MD, MPH Postdoctoral Fellow Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease Postdoctoral Fellow Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: E-cigarettes are conceived by many individuals to be less harmful than combustible cigarettes, resulting in their use among young individuals and other vulnerable subpopulations. The recent outbreak of EVALI (e-cigarette, or vaping, product-use associated lung injuries) which was directly associated with e-cigarette use, and the rapidly evolving e-cigarette market, as well as regulations concerning them necessitates the need for up-to-date analyses of e-cigarette use trends. 
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus / 09.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Claudia Alteri, PhD Assistant Professor (RTD-B) in Microbiology And Clinical Microbiology Department of Oncology and Hemato-Oncology University of Milano  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: In the context of SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis, laboratories play a critical role in confirming the initial clinical suspicion of this disease, as confirmation of SARS-CoV-2 presence is essential to ensure the prompt initiation of containment and treatment protocols. This is of utmost importance to avoid further spread of the pandemic, and to assure the best clinical and therapeutic management of the infected patients in the hospital setting. Unfortunately, currently used rtPCR assays lack of the necessary sensitivity to identify all cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection (20% of false negative results [Li D et all, Korean J Rad 2020; Zhao et all CID 2020]). Complementary laboratory assays are therefore strongly needed. Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR) is a highly sensitive assay for the direct detection and quantification of DNA and RNA targets. It has been increasingly used in infectious disease settings, especially thanks to its ability to consistently and reliably detect down to few copies of viral genomes. Standing the necessity of a limitation (as much as possible) of false negative results in COVID-19 diagnosis, the use of ddPCR could provide a critical support. In the context of COVID-19 diagnosis, two recent studies highlight the good performances of ddPCR in detecting low viral load samples (Suo T MedRxiv 2020; You F MedRxiv 2020) 
Author Interviews, ENT, JAMA, Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Sleep Disorders, Surgical Research / 09.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55334" align="alignleft" width="136"]Prof Stuart MacKay BSc (Med) MB BS (Hons) FRACS Honorary Clinical Professor Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Clinical Professor at University of Wollongong Graduate School of Medicine Adjunct Professor Faculty of Health Sciences University of Adelaide Prof. MacKay[/caption]   Prof Stuart MacKay BSc (Med) MB BS (Hons) FRACS Honorary Clinical Professor Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Clinical Professor at University of Wollongong Graduate School of Medicine Adjunct Professor Faculty of Health Sciences   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
  1. Sleep Apnea is common and impairs daytime function and carries health risk.
  2. Many patients have difficulty with CPAP, the main treatment.
  3. Surgery offers an alternative, and we tested this at a very high level in this clinical study.
MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings? 
  1. Surgery creates marked improvement in stoppages (apnea) and droppages (hypopnea) in airflow.
  2. Surgery significantly improves patient reports of daytime sleepiness.
  3. Many other outcomes related to quality of life, snoring and general well being improve with surgery.
Annals Internal Medicine, Author Interviews, CDC, COVID -19 Coronavirus / 09.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55322" align="alignleft" width="200"]Dr. Nathan Furukawa, MD, MPH Medical officer, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention CDC  Dr. Furukawa[/caption] Dr. Nathan Furukawa, MD, MPH Medical officer, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention CDC MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The cost of the PrEP medication is the largest driver of the cost of providing PrEP care. Most patients need insurance or help from a medication assistance program to cover the large costs of the PrEP medication. We wanted to describe how these costs were paid by patients (out-of-pocket payments) and insurers (third-party payments) nationally.    MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings? Response: The study found that the cost for a month of the PrEP medication tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine increased from $1350 to $1638 from 2014 to 2018, an average annual increase of 5%. Out-of-pocket costs increased faster from $54 to $94, an average annual increase of 14.9%. In 2018, at least $2 billion was spent paying for the PrEP medication, and this covered 18% of people that had an indication for PrEP. 
Author Interviews, Health Care Systems, JAMA / 09.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55315" align="alignleft" width="116"]Kenton J. Johnston, PhD Associate Professor Dept of Health Management & Policy Dept of Health & Clinical Outcomes Research Saint Louis University Dr. Johnston[/caption] Kenton J. Johnston, PhD Associate Professor Dept of Health Management & Policy Dept of Health & Clinical Outcomes Research Saint Louis University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Consolidation of physician practices into larger health systems comprised of hospitals and other group practices has been occurring rapidly in the U.S. market over the past 10 years. During this same period, Medicare has been gradually increasing the use of “pay for performance,” or “value-based payment” programs. 2019 was the first year that nearly all physicians in the U.S. were paid under Medicare’s new mandatory Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). We conducted a study to see whether physicians who were affiliated with health systems performed better under the MIPS than those not affiliated with health systems.
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Cancer Research, Dermatology / 09.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55366" align="alignleft" width="150"]Dr. Jennifer Huang Dr. Huang[/caption] Jennifer Huang, MD  Dr. Huang is a pediatric dermatologist at Boston Children’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. She is an Associate Professor of Dermatology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Huang is a member of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology. [caption id="attachment_55369" align="alignleft" width="100"]Dr-Connie Zhong Dr. Zhong[/caption] Connie Zhong, MD, MSc Dr. Zhong is an intern at Brigham and Women’s Hospital She will be doing her dermatology residency at the Harvard Combined Dermatology Program. She is a member of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology.  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Pediatric nonmelanoma skin cancers (NMSC) are rare and when they do occur, are often associated with genetic/predisposing skin conditions or iatrogenic risk factors. There are some pediatric patients who develop NMSCs who do not have identifiable risk factors. The objective of our study was to describe the demographic and clinical features of these children without identifiable risk factors and compare them with those who have either genetic or iatrogenic risk factors. We conducted a retrospective study at 11 tertiary care institutions across North America through the Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance (PeDRA)
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, JAMA, Pediatrics / 08.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Xiaoyan Song, PhD, MBBS, CIC Director, Office of Infection Control/Epidemiology Children's National Hospital Professor of Pediatrics George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Science Washington, D.C. 20010 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: As soon as SARS-COV-2 virus began spreading in early January and raising concerns for a potential pandemic, both the public and healthcare providers have wondered how this new virus is compared to influenza, a virus that human has known for a century and has become much more familiar with its spread pattern, disease characteristics, and treatment. In contrast, we have very little knowledge about SARS-COV-2 and are still getting to know it little by little.  At Children’s National, we always maintain high vigilance on emerging infectious diseases and have excellent surveillance programs for influenza and other respiratory viral diseases.  Therefore, driven by 1) Our curiosity to know if SARS-COV-2 is indeed similar or different from influenza, and 2) Availability of both SARS-COV-2 and influenza data, we conducted this retrospective study.
Allergies, Author Interviews, Genetic Research, Hepatitis - Liver Disease / 08.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55352" align="alignleft" width="200"]Takanori Takebe MD Director for Commercial Innovation, Center for Stem Cell and Organoid Research and Medicine (CuSTOM) Assistant Professor, University Cincinnati Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children’s Professor, Institute of Research Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Japan Dr. Takebe[/caption] Takanori Takebe MD Director for Commercial Innovation, Center for Stem Cell and Organoid Research and Medicine (CuSTOM) Assistant Professor, University Cincinnati Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children’s Professor, Institute of Research Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Japan  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?  What are the main findings? Response: Drug induced liver injury (DILI) is rare yet highly unpredictable disorder that oftentimes causes drug failure withdrawn from the market during clinical trial even at a very rare incidence of DILI (1/10,000). Indeed, one particular drug TAK875 (Fasigliam) was the case despite promising efficacy. This not only disappoints patient but impact significant financial risk to pharmaceuticals. In collaboration with DILI genomics consortium at US, EU and UK, we’ve found +20,000 genetic make up (variants) defines potential risk of developing Drug induced liver injury thru amplifying cellular stress signal cascades that were investigated by human cell, organoid and patient datasets.
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus / 08.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55349" align="alignleft" width="128"]Dr Gadi Segal Dr. Segal[/caption] Dr. Gadi Segal Director of the Internal Medicine Department Sheba Medical Center MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: The background is the need to learn about COVID-19 pathophysiology in order to better stratify patients according to current and future severity. Such classification will enable better triage in times of pandemic and health-care-system over-load.
Author Interviews, Infections, JAMA / 08.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Yaa-Hui Dong PhD Faculty of Pharmacy National Yang-Ming University Taipei, Taiwan MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Previous observational studies found that fluoroquinolones may be associated with more than 2-fold increased risk of aortic aneurysm or aortic dissection (AA/AD). However, these studies might not well address the influence of concurrent infection, which is also a suggested risk factor for AA. Moreover, most of these studies compared fluoroquinolone use versus no fluoroquinolone use, which might overestimate the risk with fluoroquinolones as patients on fluoroquinolones may have more severe infection versus those not on fluoroquinolones.
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Inflammation, Pediatrics / 04.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55330" align="alignleft" width="169"]Alvaro Moreira, MD Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics Co-Director Neonatal Nutrition and Bone Institute UT Health San Antonio Dr. Moreira[/caption] Alvaro Moreira, MD Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics Co-Director Neonatal Nutrition and Bone Institute UT Health San Antonio MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), also known as pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome, is a new dangerous childhood disease that is temporally associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We conducted a systematic review to communicate the typical presentation and outcomes of children diagnosed with this hyperinflammatory condition. 
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, Education, Pediatrics / 04.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55326" align="alignleft" width="133"]Katherine A. S. Auger, MD, MSc Division of Hospital Medicine James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine Pediatric Research in Inpatient Settings Network Cincinnati, Ohio Dr. Auger[/caption] Katherine A. S. Auger, MD, MSc Division of Hospital Medicine James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine Pediatric Research in Inpatient Settings Network Cincinnati, Ohio MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: All states closed schools in the spring of 2020 to try to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Our study demonstrated a large, significant association between school closure and fewer COVID-19 cases and deaths even when accounting for other state policies.
Author Interviews, Cannabis, Cognitive Issues, Memory, Pediatrics / 04.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55310" align="alignleft" width="168"]MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jarrod Ellingson PhD Assistant Professor Department of Psychiatry Anschutz Medical Campus University of Colorado Denver  Dr. Ellingson[/caption] Jarrod Ellingson PhD Assistant Professor Department of Psychiatry Anschutz Medical Campus University of Colorado Denver  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: We know that cannabis use is associated with many negative outcomes, but there could be many of reasons for that. For example, socioeconomic factors and peer influences both affect adolescent cannabis use and poorer cognitive functioning. To account for some of those risk factors, we studied nearly 600 sibling pairs with moderate to heavy cannabis use. We found that, as a person uses more cannabis than their sibling, they tend to have worse memory recall than their sibling.
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Cancer Research, Dermatology / 03.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Yin Zhang MD Research Fellow in Medicine Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Among modern hair dyes, permanent hair dye is the most popular type, and is the most aggressive and extensively used type that has posed the greatest potential concern about cancer risk. Monitoring and investigating the carcinogenic hazard to people from personal use of permanent hair dyes has major public health implications. In 2008, the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer, after comprehensive reviewed prior evidence, classified occupational exposure to hair dyes as a probable carcinogen to humans (group 2A), whereas personal use of hair dyes was not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity to humans (Group 3). Data on hair dye safety has also been continuously monitored by the USFDA. Prior epidemiological evidence may have been influenced by not discriminating between personal and occupational exposure, an inability to distinguish types and colors of hair dyes used, imprecise assessment of several critical domains of exposure history (duration, frequency and cumulative dose), and inadequate control for potential confounding.
Author Interviews / 03.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55301" align="alignleft" width="200"]Kyla Fergason Graduate Student Kyla Fergason[/caption] Kyla Fergason Senior Undergraduate Student Michael K. Scullin, Ph.D. Principal Investigator Baylor University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: There’s a fairly sizable literature suggesting that religious affiliation and religious engagement are associated with positive health outcomes. Therefore, we were surprised to find that agnostic/atheist individuals reported better sleep health than Christian individuals in the Baylor Religion Survey (BRS-5). 73% of agnostic/atheist individuals reported sleeping 7-9 hours/night whereas only 63% of Christian individuals met these consensus sleep guidelines. The most affected Christian denominations were Baptists (54.6%) and Catholics (62.3%). These results stood even after adjusting for age and gender. We predicted the opposite pattern. And, it wasn’t just about longer sleep durations. Agnostic/atheist individuals even reported greater ease falling asleep compared to Christian individuals.   
Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus / 03.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55298" align="alignleft" width="130"]Benjamin Glicksberg, PhD Assistant Professor of Genetics and Genomic Sciences Member of the Mount Sinai COVID Informatics Center Member of the Hasso Plattner Institute for Digital Healt Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Dr. Glicksberg[/caption] Benjamin Glicksberg, PhD Assistant Professor of Genetics and Genomic Sciences Member of the Mount Sinai COVID Informatics Center Member of the Hasso Plattner Institute for Digital Healt Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Reports from health systems that detailed the clinical characteristics and outcomes of their COVID-19 patients were instrumental in helping other health systems rapidly adapt and know what to expect. There are few studies, however, that assess what happens to these patients after they were discharged from the hospital. In our work, we address this gap by determining both how many individuals re-present to the hospital within 14 days, and what clinical characteristics of these patients differ from those who do not. Such information is critical in order to continue to refine optimal treatment plans and discharge decisions for patients of all backgrounds and clinical profiles. To provide more context to the question, we also determined if and how these factors changed between initial presentation and readmission to the hospital.
Author Interviews, BMJ, COVID -19 Coronavirus / 03.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: corona virus-Covid19Dr. Francesco Venturelli Servizio di Epidemiologia Direzione Sanitaria - Azienda USL-IRCCS di Reggio Emilia Padiglione Ziccardi, Via Amendola MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Contact tracing and isolation for people testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 are two of the main strategies to limit the viral spread and contain the current pandemic. Long persistence of viral RNA detected by RT-PCR on nasopharyngeal swabs is commonly reported, while its correlation to virus viability is still debated. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings?  Response: The study showed that in people with COVID-19, the median time between symptoms onset and viral clearance at RT-PCR was 36 days. Moreover, an overall 20% risk of “false negative” results at RT-PCR was observed, decreasing with time from diagnosis.    
Author Interviews, ESMO, Immunotherapy, Melanoma, NEJM / 03.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55278" align="alignleft" width="133"]Reinhard Dummer, Prof. Dr. med. Stv. Klinikdirektor Universitätsspital Zürich, Dermatologische Klinik Zürich Prof. Dummer[/caption] Reinhard Dummer, Prof. Dr. med. Stv. Klinikdirektor Universitätsspital Zürich, Dermatologische Klinik Zürich MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Based on molecular biology analysis, a substantial proportion of melanomas are driven by mutations of BRAF resulting in an ongoing growth activating signal. Based on the key role of BRAF several multiple kinase molecules have been developed in order to target this crucial pathway. These medications have shown to improve progression free survival and overall survival in advanced metastatic melanoma. Because there is a tendency for improved outcome in patients with low tumor burden, combined targeted therapy using Dabrafenib and Trametinib have been investigated in the adjuvant (after complete surgical resection) setting in stage III melanoma. And the 5 year data are now available in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Genetic Research, Immunotherapy, Melanoma, Surgical Research / 03.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55291" align="alignleft" width="200"] Dr. Bartlett[/caption] Edmund K Bartlett, M.D. Department of Surgery/Division of Surgical Oncology Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center New York, New York   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Indications for adjuvant therapy for resected, high-risk melanoma is a controversial and rapidly-evolving topic in melanoma treatment. Immunotherapy treatments targeting PD-1 have significantly improved survival in advanced-stage disease, but the magnitude of survival benefit in stage III disease--particularly stage IIIA--remains unclear. Recently, 31-GEP (a gene expression profiling assay) has been studied as a risk-stratifying tool to identify patients who are at higher risk for systemic recurrence. Ideally such a tool could identify patients most likely to benefit from immunotherapy treatment in the adjuvant setting (when all visible disease has been removed).
Alzheimer's - Dementia, Author Interviews, Infections / 01.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55285" align="alignleft" width="153"]Hariom Yadav, PhD Assistant Professor, Molecular Medicine Wake Forest School of Medicine Dr. Yadav[/caption] Hariom Yadav, PhD Assistant Professor, Molecular Medicine Wake Forest School of Medicine  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: As gut microbiota is linked with all kind of known human diseases, however, commonly studied microorganisms are bacteria. Our study is first-of-its kind to discover the role of fungi living in our gut to influence our brain health like Alzheimer’s disease pathology in humans. It also describes that a Mediterranean ketogenic diet can beneficially change fungi and bacteria populations to improve brain health. 
Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Emergency Care, JAMA, Surgical Research / 01.09.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55282" align="alignleft" width="200"]Sarabeth Spitzer, MD Co-Chair of Board, Scrubs Addressing the Firearm Epidemic (SAFE) Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital Dr. Spitzer[/caption] Sarabeth Spitzer, MD Co-Chair of Board, Scrubs Addressing the Firearm Epidemic (SAFE) Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Firearm injury is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, resulting in almost 40,000 deaths annually in the United States, but very little is known about the epidemiology of nonfatal firearm injuries. Nonfatal firearm injuries can have significant long-term morbidity and are associated with significant cost. We found that there were over 81,000 nonfatal firearm injuries in California over the study period. Over the period, there was a decrease in nonfatal firearm injuries by 38.1%, driven primarily by a decrease in assault injuries.  
Author Interviews, Autism, Environmental Risks, JAMA, Pediatrics / 31.08.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_55258" align="alignleft" width="150"]Jessica Shoaff, MPH, PhD Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr. Shoaff[/caption] Jessica Shoaff, MPH, PhD Postdoctoral Research Fellow and [caption id="attachment_55259" align="alignleft" width="150"]Susan A. Korrick, MD Pulmonary and Critical Care Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Health Dr. Korrick[/caption] Susan A. Korrick, MD Pulmonary and Critical Care Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Health Harvard Medical School · Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health Brigham and Women's Hospital Channing Laboratory Boston, MA 02115   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Our study posed the question:  Do teenagers’ exposures to chemicals that are often found in consumer products increase behaviors that are common among individuals diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)? Our results suggest that teenagers exposed to chemicals often found in consumer products (particularly phthalates) may have increased behaviors that are common among individuals diagnosed with ADHD.  However, we did not study the diagnosis of ADHD (most of our study teens did not have ADHD).  This means our results cannot answer the question of whether these chemical exposures increase the likelihood of being diagnosed with ADHD. Also, in our study design, chemical exposures and ADHD-related behaviors were measured at the same time, so it is not possible to know with certainty whether the chemical exposures altered behavior or behavior altered chemical exposures. 
Author Interviews / 30.08.2020

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Elena B. Hawryluk, MD, PhD Board-certified Dermatologist and Pediatric Dermatologist Assistant Professor of Dermatology Harvard Medical School Faculty Director of Pediatric Dermatology Harvard Combined Dermatology Residency Program. Dr. Hawryluk sees patients at Massachusetts General Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital, and has a clinical interest in pigmented lesions and melanoma in the pediatric population. Dr. Hawryluk is a member of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Melanoma is exceptionally rare and challenging to diagnose in the pediatric population.  The most important and clearly defined patients with melanoma are those with an aggressive fatal course, so this study was pursued to evaluate fatal presentations to help physicians to recognize those patients at highest risk.  Due to the rarity of fatal pediatric melanoma, in order to study a big enough group, our research team included pediatric dermatologists who collaborated from major institutions across the US and Canada, through the Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance (PeDRA).