Alcohol Use Among Middle School Children in Vermont

Alcohol and drug education classes have reduced alcohol use in Vermont middle schools to approximately 20%, however currently no screening or intervention programs are available for the aforementioned 20%. Experts agree that early alcohol use significantly increases the risk of myriad psychosocial problems later in life, therefore early screening and intervention is paramount. The focus of this project is to raise awareness for the need of early screening/intervention regarding alcohol use in Vermont middle schools.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/fmclerk/1081/thumbnail.jp

Healthcare Barriers of Residents at a Subsidized Housing Community

Introduction: Despite expanded healthcare programs, the low income and elderly lack coverage of vision, hearing, and dental services. Community services are often asked to fill these gaps. To evaluate the situation in Burlington, VT, we surveyed staff and residents in Burlington Housing Authority (BHA) subsidized housing to (1) identify gaps in healthcare coverage and (2) assess barriers to accessing those services in this population.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/comphp_gallery/1207/thumbnail.jp

It Is Just a Blood Patch: Considerations for Patients with Preexisting Intracranial Hypertension

Epidural blood patches are routine procedures interventional pain physicians perform for postdural puncture headaches (PDPH), whether it be due to the inadvertent wet tap from an epidural or a diagnostic lumbar puncture. Typically, these patients are relatively healthy and an epidural is relatively straightforward. However, there are cases complicated by a neurologic history such as benign intracranial hypertension. Here, we present a case of a patient with benign intracranial hypertension (BIH) that suffered a postdural puncture headache after a diagnostic lumbar puncture, with no documented opening pressure, continued on acetazolamide. There have only been a small number of documented cases of BIH complicated by PDPH. We discuss the medical management of BIH, how it can exacerbate a postdural puncture headache, our definitive management with an epidural blood patch, and our concerns of rebound intracranial hypertension. We demonstrate that treatment of PDPH in BIH is best managed with image-guided blood patches, with smaller volume of autologous blood, and at a slower rate