Improved Diagnostic Sensitivity of Bowel Disease of Prematurity on Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound

Bowel diseases of prematurity, including necrotizing enterocolitis, are dreaded ailments of neonates. Early diagnosis is difficult, with clinical and radiographic findings often inconclusive. We present a novel use of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in detection of pediatric bowel disease. Early identification of compromised blood flow or an at-risk bowel can be quantitatively detected and monitored. This ability has implications for guidance of emerging therapies, allowing targeting of inflammation. These findings represent an advancement in detection of bowel disease in neonates.     

Predicting Renal Function Outcomes After Partial and Radical Nephrectomy

Background

Partial nephrectomy (PN) is generally favored for cT1 tumors over radical nephrectomy (RN) when technically feasible. However, it can be unclear whether the additional risks of PN are worth the magnitude of renal function benefit.

Developing a Point-of-Sale Health Communication Campaign for Cigarillos and Waterpipe Tobacco

ABSTRACT

Adolescents and young adults smoke waterpipe tobacco (WT) and cigarillos, at least in part, based on erroneous beliefs that these products are safer than cigarettes. To address this challenge, we used a systematic, three-phase process to develop a health communication campaign to discourage WT and cigarillo smoking among at-risk (tobacco users and susceptible non-users) 16- to 25-year-olds. In Phase 1, we used a national phone survey (N = 896) to determine salient message beliefs. Participants reported constituents (i.e., harmful chemicals) emitted by the products were worrisome. In Phase 2, we developed and evaluated four message executions, with varying imagery, tone, and unappealing products with the same constituents, using focus groups (N = 38). Participants rated one execution highly, resulting in our development of a campaign where each message: (1) identified a tobacco product and constituent in the smoke; (2) included an image of an unappealing product containing the constituent (e.g., pesticides, gasoline) to grab attention; and (3) used a humorous sarcastic tone. In Phase 3, we tested the campaign messages (17 intervention and six control) with a nationally representative online survey (N = 1,636). Participants rated intervention and control messages highly with few differences between them. Exposure to messages resulted in significant increases in all risk beliefs from pre to post (p < 0.05). For WT, intervention messages increased beliefs about addiction more than control messages (p < 0.05). This systematic, iterative approach resulted in messages that show promise for discouraging WT and cigarillo use.