Accidents & Violence, Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Emory, JAMA, Race/Ethnic Diversity / 29.11.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Chris A. Rees, MD, MPH Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine Research Director, Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellowship Emory University School of Medicine Attending Physician, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Pediatric Research Scientist, CHAMPS, U.S. Program Office  and Eric W. Fleegler, MD, MPH, FAAP Associate in Pediatrics, Division of Emergency Medicine Director Sedation Service Boston Children’s Hospital Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine Harvard Medical School MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Rates of firearm fatalities in the United States have reached a 28-year high. Yet, an understanding of the specific demographic groups who have been most affected, and where in the United States these fatalities have occurred, has not been clearly described in the past.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Sleep Disorders, USPSTF / 23.11.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_58144" align="alignleft" width="150"]Martha Kubik Dr. Kubik[/caption] Martha Kubik, Ph.D., R.N. Professor, School of Nursing College of Health and Human Services George Mason University Member, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Obstructive sleep apnea is a health condition in which part or all of a person’s airway gets blocked during sleep, causing their breathing to stop and restart many times. Untreated sleep apnea is associated with heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. However, there is currently very limited evidence on screening people who don’t have signs or symptoms like snoring and excessive daytime sleepiness.
Aging, Author Interviews, JAMA, Menopause, USPSTF / 09.11.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59720" align="alignleft" width="150"]James Stevermer, M.D., M.S.P.H. Vice chair for clinical affairs Professor of family and community medicine University of Missouri Medical director of MU Health Care Family Medicine–Callaway Physicians Dr. Stevermer[/caption] James Stevermer, M.D., M.S.P.H. Vice chair for clinical affairs Professor of family and community medicine University of Missouri Medical director of MU Health Care Family Medicine–Callaway Physicians, Dr. Stevermer joined the U.S. Preventive Service Task Force in January 2021. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: As people get older, they are more at risk for many chronic conditions like heart disease, osteoporosis, cancer, and diabetes. It’s unclear how much menopause—which typically occurs around age 50—contributes to this risk. Although we all want to stay healthy as we age, the Task Force does not recommend that people who have already gone through menopause use hormone therapy to prevent chronic health problems.
Author Interviews, Biomarkers, JAMA, Tobacco Research / 09.11.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59717" align="alignleft" width="230"]Dr. Daisy Dai Dr. Dai[/caption] Dr. Hongying Daisy Dai, PhD Professor and Associate Dean of Research The College of Public Health University of Nebraska Medical Center. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Tobacco use landscape has been changing in the United States with fewer combustible cigarette smokers and more e-cigarette and other emerging tobacco users. Nicotine concentration level is a key product characteristic of modern e-cigarette products and high-nicotine vaping devices have recently become available. This study seeks to examine whether biomarkers of exposure to tobacco-related toxicants have changed since 2013 among adult nicotine e-cigarette users, non-nicotine e-cigarette users, and cigarette smokers.
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, JAMA, Nutrition, Occupational Health, Sleep Disorders / 09.11.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59713" align="alignleft" width="136"]Zhilei Shan, MD, PhD Postdoctoral fellow on Nutritional Epidemiology Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Dr. Shan[/caption] Zhilei Shan, MD, PhD Postdoctoral fellow on Nutritional Epidemiology Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Unhealthy sleep behaviors and sleep disturbances are associated with higher risk of multiple diseases and mortality. The current profiles of sleep habits and disturbances, particularly the differences between workdays and free days, are unknown in the contemporary US. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings? Response: In this nationally representative cross-sectional analysis with 9004 adults aged 20 years or older, differences in sleep patterns between workdays and free days were observed. The mean sleep duration was 7.59 hours on workdays and 8.24 hours on free days (difference, 0.65 hour). The mean sleep and wake times were at 11:02 PM and 6:41 AM, respectively, on workdays and 11:25 PM and 7:41 AM, respectively, on free days (differences, 0.23 hour for sleep time and 1.00 hour for wake time). With regard to sleep disturbances, 30.5% of adults experienced 1 hour or more of sleep debt,46.5% experienced 1 hour or more of social jet lag, 29.8% had trouble sleeping, and 27.2% experienced daytime sleepiness.
Author Interviews, Immunotherapy, JAMA, Melanoma / 03.11.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Olivier van Not Scientific Bureau, Dutch Institute for Clinical Auditing Leiden, the Netherlands Department of Medical Oncology University Medical Centre Utrecht Utrecht, the Netherlands MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has significantly improved the survival of advanced melanoma patients. Treatment with these ICIs can lead to immune-related adverse events, also known as toxicity. This toxicity is graded from 1 (mild) to 5 (fatal) and examples of these toxicities are hepatitis and colitis. Since these toxicities can be life threatening and become chronic, they require treatment with immunosuppressants such as corticosteroids or anti-TNF. In a previous study of melanoma patients treated with different types of immune checkpoint inhibitors [Verheijden et al, Clin Cancer Research 2020] we found survival to be better for patients experiencing immune-related toxicity, which is in line with many other studies in several cancer types and a recent meta-analysis.
Author Interviews, HPV, JAMA, Vaccine Studies / 01.11.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59684" align="alignleft" width="150"]Dr. Didem Egemen PhD Statistician, Division of Cancer Epidemiology & Genetics National Cancer Institute Dr. Egemen[/caption] Dr. Didem Egemen PhD Statistician, Division of Cancer Epidemiology & Genetics National Cancer Institute MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Persistent infection with human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted disease, is the cause of virtually all cervical cancers. Various studies have reported high effectiveness of HPV vaccination in preventing HPV infection and cervical cancer, particularly when administered at early ages. In this study, we looked at the proportion of females eligible for vaccination (<26 years of age in 2006 when the vaccine was FDA approved) who were unvaccinated, vaccinated against HPV before sexual debut, and vaccinated after debut. Then we estimated the prevalence of HPV 16 and 18, the two HPV genotypes that cause most cervical cancers, in each subset.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Mental Health Research, Pediatrics, USPSTF / 20.10.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_58144" align="alignleft" width="150"]Martha Kubik Dr. Kubik[/caption] Martha Kubik, Ph.D., R.N. Professor, School of Nursing College of Health and Human Services George Mason University Member, U.S. Preventive Services Task Force MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Too many children and teens in the United States experience mental health conditions including anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts or behaviors. There is a critical need to address the mental health of children and adolescents in primary care so that they can get the support they need to thrive.
Addiction, Alcohol, Author Interviews, Cannabis, Education, JAMA, Pediatrics, Social Issues, UCLA / 06.10.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59623" align="alignleft" width="150"]Mitchell Wong, MD PhD Professor of Medicine Executive Vice Chair for Research Training, Department of Medicine Executive Co-Director, Specialty Training and Advanced Research (STAR) Program Director, UCLA CTSI KL2 Program UCLA Division of General Internal Medicine and Health Services Research Los Angeles, CA 90024 Dr. Wong[/caption] Mitchell Wong, MD PhD Professor of Medicine Executive Vice Chair for Research Training Department of Medicine Executive Co-Director, Specialty Training and Advanced Research (STAR) Program Director, UCLA CTSI KL2 Program UCLA Division of General Internal Medicine and Health Services Research Los Angeles, CA 90024 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: It is estimated that social factors like poverty, education, and housing have a large impact on health. Yet, there are few interventions that exist to directly address those issues.  Schools are a promising solution since society already invests heavily in education and schools are an everyday part of most children’s lives.
Author Interviews, JAMA, NYU/NYMC, STD, USPSTF / 30.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_56129" align="alignleft" width="133"]Gbenga Ogedegbe, MD, MPH Dr. Adolph & Margaret Berger Professor of Population Health Director, Division of Health & Behavior Director Center for Healthful Behavior Change Department of Population Health NYU Langone Health NYU School of Medicine Dr. Ogedegbe[/caption] Gbenga Ogedegbe, MD, MPH Dr. Adolph & Margaret Berger Professor of Population Health Director, Division of Health & Behavior Director Center for Healthful Behavior Change Department of Population Health NYU Langone Health NYU School of Medicine Member of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force   MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Syphilis has become more common over the past 20 years, after reaching a record low in 2000. The Task Force found that screening people who are at increased risk for syphilis can identify the infection early so it can be treated before problems develop. For that reason, the Task Force recommends screening people who are at increased risk for syphilis infection.
Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, COVID -19 Coronavirus, JAMA / 26.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:

Allison Witman PhD Assistant Professor of Economics Economics & Finance Cameron School of Business University of North Carolina, Wilmington

Yu Wang PhD Assistant Professor Congdon School of Supply Chain, Business Analytics, & Information Systems Cameron School of Business University of North Carolina Wilmington David Cho PhD Assistant Professor of Management California State University, Fullerton

MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The COVID-19 pandemic placed tremendous financial pressure on hospitals. Beginning in March of 2020, hospitals cancelled outpatient and elective procedures to accommodate surges in demand from COVID-19 patients. As these procedures account for more than 60% of an average hospital’s revenue, cancellation posed serious challenges to the financial health of hospitals. Revenue from COVID-19 patients may have partially offset these effects, but the American Hospital Association estimated a total loss of $202.6 billion by American hospitals between March and June 2020. In response, the U.S. government created large federal assistance programs aimed to stabilize hospitals’ financial situation as their ability to maintain operations was critical to the health of the nation. Due to differences in hospital characteristics, certain hospitals such as rural hospitals and those serving a higher share of Medicaid and uninsured patients (e.g., safety net hospitals) may have been more financially susceptible to the effects of the pandemic. These hospitals that serve vulnerable patient populations historically have had lower profit margins and were candidates for targeted COVID relief funding (e.g., Safety Net Hospitals Payments, a $10 billion component of the Provider Relief Fund).
Aging, Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Frailty, Geriatrics, JAMA / 22.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59544" align="alignleft" width="150"]Ariela Orkaby, MD, MPH Geriatrics & Preventive Cardiology Associate Epidemiologist Division of Aging, Brigham and Women's Hospital  Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Dr. Orkaby[/caption] Ariela Orkaby, MD, MPH Geriatrics & Preventive Cardiology Associate Epidemiologist Division of Aging, Brigham and Women's Hospital Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: As the population is living longer, there is increased risk of frailty and vulnerability. Frailty is defined as reduced physiological reserve and decreased ability to cope with even an acute stress. Up to half of adults over the age of 85 are living with frailty and preventative measures are greatly needed. We tested the effect of vitamin D and marine omega-3 fatty acid supplementation on the risk of developing frailty in healthy older adults in the US enrolled in the VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL) trial.
Author Interviews, Diabetes, JAMA, Pediatrics / 20.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59555" align="alignleft" width="150"]Michael Cabana, M.D., M.A., M.P.H Professor of Pediatrics Albert Einstein College of Medicine Physician-in-chief at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Cabana joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2019 Dr. Cabana[/caption] Michael Cabana, M.D., M.A., M.P.H Professor of Pediatrics Albert Einstein College of Medicine Physician-in-chief at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Cabana joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2019 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Prediabetes and type 2 diabetes have historically been far more common in adults, but the number of children and teens who have these conditions is rising. However, there is still very limited research on whether screening, early detection, and early treatment of diabetes will improve a child’s long-term health. Due to this lack of evidence, the Task Force was unable to assess the benefits and harms of screening, particularly in Black, Hispanic, American Indian, and Pacific Islander populations, who are at a significantly higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. We are calling for more research on this important topic.
Aging, Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Frailty, Geriatrics, JAMA, Medical Research Centers, Supplements / 15.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59545" align="alignleft" width="150"]Ariela Orkaby, MD, MPH Geriatrics & Preventive Cardiology Associate Epidemiologist Division of Aging, Brigham and Women's Hospital  Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Dr. Orkaby[/caption] Ariela Orkaby, MD, MPH Geriatrics & Preventive Cardiology Associate Epidemiologist Division of Aging, Brigham and Women's Hospital Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: As the population is living longer, there is increased risk of frailty and vulnerability. Frailty is defined as reduced physiological reserve and decreased ability to cope with even an acute stress. Up to half of adults over the age of 85 are living with frailty and preventative measures are greatly needed. We tested the effect of vitamin D and marine omega-3 fatty acid supplementation on the risk of developing frailty in healthy older adults in the US enrolled in the VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL) trial.
Author Interviews, Geriatrics, JAMA / 15.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59532" align="alignleft" width="150"]Jing Li, PhD Assistant Professor of Health Economics The Comparative Health Outcomes, Policy and Economics (CHOICE) Institute University of Washington School of Pharmacy Dr. Jing Li[/caption] Jing Li, PhD Assistant Professor of Health Economics The Comparative Health Outcomes, Policy and Economics (CHOICE) Institute University of Washington School of Pharmacy MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Dementia and other cognitive impairment are highly prevalent among older adults in the U.S. and globally, and have been linked to deficiencies in decision-making, especially financial decision-making. However, little is known about the extent to which older adults with cognitive impairment manage their own finances and the characteristics of the assets they manage.
Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, Dermatology, JAMA / 08.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59485" align="alignleft" width="150"]Jane M. Zhu, M.D., M.P.P., M.S.H.P. Assistant Professor of Medicine Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics School of Medicine Oregon Health & Science University Portland, Oregon Dr. Zhu[/caption] Jane M. Zhu, M.D., M.P.P., M.S.H.P. Assistant Professor of Medicine Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics School of Medicine Oregon Health & Science University Portland, Oregon MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Private equity (PE) acquisitions of physician practices are accelerating across many specialties, but there is still little robust evidence on the effects of these acquisitions. Concerns about PE involvement is predicated on the fact that these firms expect high annual returns, which require either reducing costs or increasing revenue, or both. Using PE acquisition data from 2016-2020, linked to commercial claims data, we sought to understand what common mechanisms of revenue generation were being adopted after private equity acquisition of physician practices.
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Cancer Research, JAMA, Lancet, Lung Cancer, Medical Imaging, Technology / 07.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59510" align="alignleft" width="200"]Raymond H. Mak, MD Radiation Oncology Disease Center Leader for Thoracic Oncology Director of Patient Safety and QualityDirector of Clinical Innovation Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School Cancer - Radiation Oncology, Radiation Oncology Department of Radiation Oncology Brigham and Women's Hospital Dr. Mak[/caption] Raymond H. Mak, MD Radiation Oncology Disease Center Leader for Thoracic Oncology Director of Patient Safety and QualityDirector of Clinical Innovation Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School Cancer - Radiation Oncology, Radiation Oncology Department of Radiation Oncology Brigham and Women's Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What is the algorithm detecting? Response: Lung cancer, the most common cancer worldwide is highly lethal, but can be treated and cured in some cases with radiation therapy.  Nearly half of lung cancer patients will eventually require some form of radiation therapy, but the planning for a course of radiation therapy currently entails manual, time-consuming, and resource-intensive work by highly trained physicians to segment (target) the cancerous tumors in the lungs and adjacent lymph nodes on three-dimensional images (CT scans). Prior studies have shown substantial variation in how expert clinicians delineate these targets, which can negatively impact outcomes and there is a projected shortage of skilled medical staff to perform these tasks worldwide as cancer rates increase. To address this critical gap, our team developed deep learning algorithms that can automatically target lung cancer in the lungs and adjacent lymph nodes from CT scans that are used for radiation therapy planning, and can be deployed in seconds. We trained these artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms using expert-segmented targets from over 700 cases and validated the performance in over 1300 patients in external datasets (including publicly available data from a national trial), benchmarked its performance against expert clinicians, and then further validated the clinical usefulness of the algorithm in human-AI collaboration experiments that measured accuracy, task speed, and end-user satisfaction.
Author Interviews, Cancer Research, JAMA / 06.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59506" align="alignleft" width="130"]Samir Parekh, MBBS Hematology-Oncology, Cancer Director of Translational Research in Myeloma and Co-leader of the Cancer Clinical Investigation program The Tisch Cancer Institute Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Dr. Parekh[/caption] Samir Parekh, MBBS Hematology-Oncology, Cancer Director of Translational Research in Myeloma and Co-leader of the Cancer Clinical Investigation program The Tisch Cancer Institute Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Clinical outcomes for myeloma patients patients have improved significantly over the past decade with the introduction and success of newer immunomodulatory treatments such as CART cell therapy and bispecific antibodies. Strategies are needed to determine the best treatment options for patients relapsing or unresponsive to initial courses of these types of therapies. We analyzed the outcomes of patients relapsing after bispecific antibody therapy for myeloma. Our data shows that sequencing of bispecific antibodies or CART after initial bispecific failure can effectively salvage patients and lead to excellent outcomes in myeloma. This provides the foundation for future studies combining this new class of immunotherapy with CART or additional bispecific antibodies to improve outcomes in myeloma.
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Primary Care, Stroke, USPSTF / 06.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59503" align="alignleft" width="150"]Katrina E. Donahue, M.D., M.P.H. Professor and Vice Chair of Research Chapel Hill Department of Family Medicine University of North Carolina Dr. Donahue joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2020. Dr. Donahue[/caption] Katrina E. Donahue, M.D., M.P.H. Professor and Vice Chair of Research Chapel Hill Department of Family Medicine University of North Carolina Dr. Donahue joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2020. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death in the U.S. The Task Force found that people who are 40 to 75 years old and at high risk for heart disease should take a statin to help protect their health. People in this age group who are at increased risk but not high risk should make an individual decision with their healthcare professional about whether taking a statin is right for them. There is not enough research to determine whether statins are beneficial for people 76 years and older.
Author Interviews, Cost of Health Care, JAMA, Pharmaceutical Companies / 31.08.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59466" align="alignleft" width="200"]Prof. Katharina Blankart, PhD Faculty of Economics and Business Administration University of Duisburg-Essen Essen, Germany Prof. Blankart[/caption] Prof. Katharina Blankart, PhD Faculty of Economics and Business Administration University of Duisburg-Essen Essen, Germany MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Given the high drug prices and policy discussions, we were interested whether the US may miss opportunities from medical innovation in availability of medicines compared to Germany. Since 2011, Germany has a unique way to determine value of new medicines after regulatory approval and to negotiate prices. We aimed to find out differences in availability of medicines in these two countries and timing of availability. We evaluated the differences in timing of availability and to characterize medicines not available to one of the two countries.
Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Lifestyle & Health, USPSTF / 05.08.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:

[caption id="attachment_59414" align="alignleft" width="150"]Lori Pbert, Ph.D Professor, Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences Associate chief of the Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine Founder and director of the Center for Tobacco Treatment Research and Training University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School Dr. Pbert joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2019 Dr. Pbert[/caption]

Lori Pbert, Ph.D Professor, Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences Associate chief of the Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine Founder and director of the Center for Tobacco Treatment Research and Training University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School Dr. Pbert joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2019

MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?

 

Response: Heart attacks and strokes are the number one killer of adults in the United States. Based on the evidence we reviewed, the Task Force found that some people would benefit from counseling interventions to support their cardiovascular health, however the overall benefits are small. For that reason, we continue to recommend that healthcare professionals decide together with their patients who do not have cardiovascular disease risk factors whether counseling interventions on healthy diet and physical activity might help them prevent heart attacks and strokes. This is a C grade recommendation.

Author Interviews, COVID -19 Coronavirus, JAMA / 03.08.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59400" align="alignleft" width="150"]Lisa A. Cosimi, MD Division of Infectious Diseases Brigham and Women’s Hospital Boston, Massachusetts Dr. Cosimi[/caption] Lisa A. Cosimi, MD Division of Infectious Diseases Brigham and Women’s Hospital Boston, Massachusetts  MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?  Response: Response: Current CDC COVID-19 isolation guidance allows for ending isolation after day 5 for non-immunocompromised individuals if they are afebrile and with improving symptoms, or if the individual is asymptomatic from the start. It has been proposed that rapid antigen tests (RATs) may assist in determining when individuals are no longer infectious. Specifically, a negative test would be potentially reassuring for an individual not being transmissible, while a positive test could be suggestive of continued infectiousness.  However, there is little data about use of RATs in this particular setting and how they may correlate with ongoing risk of transmission as they were developed to be used during the initial diagnosis of infection, not in the later phase.
Author Interviews, Emergency Care, JAMA / 03.08.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59389" align="alignleft" width="150"]John A. Staples, MD, FRCPC, MPH Academic General Internist Vancouver General Hospital Clinical Assistant Professor at UBC Dr. Staples[/caption] John A. Staples, MD, FRCPC, MPH Academic General Internist Vancouver General Hospital Clinical Assistant Professor at UBC MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?    Response: As a hospital-based general internist, I often see patients in the emergency department after an episode of syncope. Syncope is a medical term for suddenly losing consciousness (the public generally knows this as “fainting”). As you can imagine, fainting out of the blue can be very unnerving. Patients and clinicians worry that it may happen again and wonder whether it’s safe to drive. The first time I was asked this question, I remember scouring the research literature for an answer and not finding any robust evidence to guide my advice to patients.
Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics, Weight Research / 28.07.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59343" align="alignleft" width="200"]Amanda Staiano, PhD Associate Professor Director, Pediatric Obesity and Health Behavior Laboratory Pennington Biomedical Research Center Baton Rouge, LA Dr. Staiano[/caption] Amanda Staiano, PhD Associate Professor Director, Pediatric Obesity and Health Behavior Laboratory Pennington Biomedical Research Center Baton Rouge, LA MedicalResearch.com:  What are the main findings? Response: The U.S. government funds the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which is an ongoing surveillance study on the health and nutritional status of people living in the U.S. What is special about NHANES is it’s designed to be nationally representative and it uses objective measurements, so we’re more confident that this accurately reflects the health of the country. For this paper, we looked at the most recently released data to see how many children in the U.S. have obesity, meaning they’re above the 95th percentile for height and weight based on their age and sex. We extracted data from 2011 to 2020, which includes nearly 15,000 children and adolescents and is the most recently available data prior to the March 2020 COVID-19 shutdown when NHANES paused.
Author Interviews, Education, JAMA, Race/Ethnic Diversity, Social Issues, Yale / 15.07.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59333" align="alignleft" width="92"]Mytien Nguyen, MS MD-PhD Program, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut Mytien Nguyen[/caption] Mytien Nguyen, MS MD-PhD Program, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?  Response: It is well-recognized that diversity in the medical workforce is critical to improve health care access and achieve equity for neglected communities. Despite increased efforts to recruit diverse medical trainees, there remains a large chasm between the racial/ethnic and socioeconomic composition of the patient population and that of the physician workforce.
Author Interviews, Health Care Systems, JAMA / 12.07.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Joanna JiangJoanna Jiang, PhD Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Rockville, Maryland MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?  What are the main findings? Response: Over the last decade we have seen two trends occurring to rural hospitals – closures and mergers. A hospital in financial distress could likely face closure. But if the hospital affiliates with a multihospital system, it may have access to resources from the system that help shelter the hospital from closure. That is exactly what we found in this study. System affiliation was associated with a lower risk of closure for financially distressed hospitals. However, among hospitals that were financially stable, system affiliation was associated with a higher risk of closure. This is somewhat puzzling and needs further study to better understand the reason for closure.
Author Interviews, Environmental Risks, Hepatitis - Liver Disease, JAMA / 06.07.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59315" align="alignleft" width="150"]Vishal Midya, PhD, MStat Postdoctoral Researcher Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Dr. Midya[/caption] Dania Valvi, MD MPH PhD Assistant Professor Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health Co-Director, MS in Epidemiology Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Email: dania.valvi@mssm.edu MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?    Response: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common liver disease in children in the U.S., Europe and other world regions, currently affecting 1 in every 10 children, and 1 in every 3 children with obesity in the U.S. The rate of pediatric NAFLD has more than doubled in recent decades following the epidemic rates also noted for childhood obesity. There is increasing interest in the role that environmental chemical exposures may play in NAFLD etiology, since several animal studies have shown that prenatal exposures to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) cause liver injury and damage; but, until now, the potential effects of prenatal EDC mixture exposures in pediatric NAFLD had not been studied.
Author Interviews, Education, JAMA, Pharmaceutical Companies / 06.07.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59310" align="alignleft" width="125"]SooYoung VanDeMark, MBS Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine Scranton, Pennsylvania SooYoung VanDeMar[/caption] SooYoung VanDeMark, MBS Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine Scranton, Pennsylvania MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?   Response: Health care providers utilize subscription-based, point-of-care databases such as DynaMed and UpToDate to provide clinical care guidance and remain current on the latest evidence-based findings. Both of these websites maintain this content through a cadre of physician contributors who write and edit articles for these sites. These physician contributors are required to self-report any conflicts of interest (COI) as outlined by the respective policies on each website. However, prior COI research into similarly self-regulated areas, such as medical and pharmacology textbooks, and clinical practice guidelines, has found both appreciable potential COI and inconsistencies between self-reported and industry mandated disclosures (1-3). This study (4) explored the accuracy of physician contributors to DynaMed and UpToDate by comparing their self-reported disclosure status with the financial remunerations they received from the healthcare industry (e.g., pharmaceutical companies) as reported to the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Open Payments database. Physician contributors who reported “nothing to disclose” on their respective article topic but had an entry on Open Payments for having received money from industry, were classified as discordant and, thus, as having the potential for a COI. Additionally, total remuneration, gender, and payment category were investigated more in depth for each database.
Allergies, Author Interviews, JAMA, Pediatrics / 06.07.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_59303" align="alignleft" width="150"]Victoria Soriano PhD Research Assistant/Officer, Population Allergy University of Melbourne Dr. Soriano[/caption] Victoria Soriano PhD Research Assistant/Officer, Population Allergy University of Melbourne   MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?  Response: Peanut allergy is one of the most common childhood food allergies, and children rarely grow out of it. The only proven way to prevent peanut allergy is to give infants age-appropriate peanut products in the first year of life. We previously showed there was a dramatic increase in peanut introduction from 2007-11 to 2018-19, following changes to infant feeding guidelines. We wanted to know if earlier peanut introduction would reduce peanut allergy in the general population (in Melbourne, Australia).
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Heart Disease, JAMA, Lung Cancer, Supplements, USPSTF / 30.06.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_40206" align="alignleft" width="143"]Michael J. Barry, M.D., Task Force member Director of the Informed Medical Decisions Program Health Decision Sciences Center Massachusetts General Hospital. Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School and Physician at Massachusetts General Hospital Dr. Barry[/caption] Michael J. Barry, M.D Director of the Informed Medical Decisions Program Health Decision Sciences Center Massachusetts General Hospital. Professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School Dr. Barry was appointed as Vice Chair of USPSTF in March 2021. He previously served as a member from January 2017 through December 2020.   MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study?  What are the main findings? Response: The Task Force looked at the use of vitamin and mineral supplementation specifically for the prevention of heart disease, stroke, and cancer. We found that there is not enough evidence to recommend for or against taking multivitamin supplements, nor the use of single or paired nutrient supplements, to prevent these conditions. However, we do know that you should not take vitamin E or beta-carotene for this purpose.