A Hard Day at Work: An Analysis of Occupational Genitourinary Injuries in the United States Workforce.

OBJECTIVE: To use national data to identify risk factors for occupational genitourinary (GU) injuries and to expose potential workplace safety issues requiring national regulation. METHODS: The National Trauma Data Bank was queried to identify all adults who suffered a work-related GU injury from 2007-2016. Injury was stratified by individual organ and by organ type: intra-abdominopelvic (IAP) versus external genitalia (EG). Distinct multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine associations between prespecified risk factors and GU injury (organ and type) and to identify predictors of intensive care unit (ICU) and operating room (OR) transfer. RESULTS: 2139 patients (total of 2681 GU injuries), were included. A mean of 1.3 GU organ injuries and 7.6 total injuries were suffered per patient. 72% suffered an IAP GU injury, 23% an EG injury, and 5% suffered both. Patients working in agriculture/forestry/fishing, (OR 2.3, p=0.003), manufacturing (OR 1.9, p=0.05), and natural resources/mining (OR 2.3, p= 0.012) were at significantly increased risk of EG injury. The penis and urethra were particularly at-risk in agriculture/forestry/fishing (OR 4.0, p=0.005; OR 3.0, p=0.002) and the urethra in natural resources/mining (OR 3.4, p=0.004). IAP GU injury was a significant predictor of ICU transfer (OR 1.8, p \u3c 0.001), whereas EG injury was a significant predictor of OR transfer (OR 2.5, p \u3c 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Occupational GU injuries remain a major issue for blue-collar workers. External genitalia are particularly at-risk, and injuries often require emergent surgery. National occupational health agencies need to continue to enhance on-the-job safety for those at-risk

The Impact of Preoperative Oral Health on Buccal Mucosa Graft Histology.

PURPOSE: Previous studies have elucidated the unique macroscopic and histological properties of buccal mucosa that make it a viable and durable graft for urethral augmentation. However, no prior literature has directly investigated the impact of preoperative oral health on these features. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed all consenting patients who underwent buccal mucosal graft (BMG) urethroplasty at our institution from 2018 to 2020. Validated oral health surveys, the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) and the Kayser-Jones Brief Oral Health Status Examination (BOHSE) were completed preoperatively. A staff pathologist analyzed BMG histology and quantified oral mucositis using a modified Oral Mucosa Rating Scale. RESULTS: We analyzed 51 patients with a median age of 40 years (IQR 31-58). Mean BOHSE score was 1.1 and OHIP-14 score was 1.4. Median epithelial thickness was 530 μm and lamina propria thickness was 150 μm. On age-adjusted analysis, increasing BOHSE and OHIP-14 were associated with decreasing epithelial thickness (p values CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to demonstrate that oral health conditions impact graft histology and stretch. Although much remains to be learned, our findings shed light on the potential importance of optimizing oral health prior to BMG urethroplasty, and raise the question of if preoperative mucosal biopsy could help inform surgical decision making and discussions regarding surgical success

Is colorectal mucosa a reasonable graft alternative to buccal grafts for urethroplasty?: A comparison of graft histology and stretch.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the histological properties and stretch of colorectal mucosal grafts (CMG) and buccal mucosal grafts (BMG) and to evaluate the impact of age, medical comorbidity and tobacco use on these metrics. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Samples of BMGs from patients undergoing augmentation urethroplasty were sent for pathologic review. CMGs were collected from patients undergoing elective colectomy. CMGs were harvested fresh, at full thickness from normal rectum/sigmoid. Patients with inflammatory bowel disease, prior radiation, or chemotherapy were excluded. RESULTS: Seventy two BMGs and 53 CMGs were reviewed. While BMGs and CMGs were both histologically composed of mucosal (epithelium + lamina propria) and submucosal layers, the mucosal layer in CMG had crypts. The outer epithelial layers differed significantly in mean thickness (BMG 573μm vs. CMG 430μm, p=0.0001). Mean lamina propria thickness and submucosal layer thickness also differed significantly (BMG 135μm vs. CMG 400μm, p CONCLUSION: CMGs and BMGs significantly differ histologically in layer composition, width and architecture, as well as graft stretch. Given its elastic properties, CMG may be useful in covering large surface areas, but its thin epithelium, thick lamina propria and additional muscularis mucosal layer could impact graft take and contracture

Kernel composition, starch structure, and enzyme digestibility of opaque-2 maize and quality protein maize

Objectives of this study were to understand how opaque-2 (o2) mutation and quality protein maize (QPM) affect maize kernel composition and starch structure, property, and enzyme digestibility. Kernels of o2 maize contained less protein (9.6-12.5%) than those of the wild-type (WT) counterparts (12.7-13.3%). Kernels of a severe o2 mutant B46o2 also contained less starch (66.9%) than those of B46wt (73.0%). B46o2 and QPM starches contained less amylose (28.0 and 26.0%, respectively) than others (31.9-33.7%). The B46o2 starch also consisted of amylopectin with the fewest branch chains of DP 13-24. Thus, the B46o2 starch was the most susceptible to porcine pancreatic R-amylase (PPA) hydrolysis. Starches of the dry-ground o2 maize and QPM were hydrolyzed faster than that of the dry-ground WT maize, resulting from the reduced protein content of the o2-maize kernels and the reduced amylose content of the B46o2 and QPM starch. Starch in the dry-ground maize sample was hydrolyzed faster by PPA (85-91%) than was the isolated starch (62-71%), which could be attributed to the presence of mechanically damaged starch granules and endogenous amylases in the dry-ground maize samples. These results showed that o2 maize and QPM had highly digestible starch and could be desirable for feed and ethanol production

ISARIC-COVID-19 dataset: A Prospective, Standardized, Global Dataset of Patients Hospitalized with COVID-19

The International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infection Consortium (ISARIC) COVID-19 dataset is one of the largest international databases of prospectively collected clinical data on people hospitalized with COVID-19. This dataset was compiled during the COVID-19 pandemic by a network of hospitals that collect data using the ISARIC-World Health Organization Clinical Characterization Protocol and data tools. The database includes data from more than 705,000 patients, collected in more than 60 countries and 1,500 centres worldwide. Patient data are available from acute hospital admissions with COVID-19 and outpatient follow-ups. The data include signs and symptoms, pre-existing comorbidities, vital signs, chronic and acute treatments, complications, dates of hospitalization and discharge, mortality, viral strains, vaccination status, and other data. Here, we present the dataset characteristics, explain its architecture and how to gain access, and provide tools to facilitate its use