Perioperative antibiotics for prevention of acute endophthalmitis after cataract surgery

Endophthalmitis is a severe inflammation of the anterior or posterior (or both) chambers of the eye that may be sterile or associated with infection. It is a potentially vision-threatening complication of cataract surgery. Prophylactic measures for endophthalmitis are targeted against various sources of infection

Low knowledge about hepatitis B prevention among pregnant women in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

Infants infected perinatally with hepatitis B (HBV) are at the highest risk of developing chronic hepatitis and associated sequelae. Prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HBV requires improved screening and awareness of the disease. This study evaluated existing HBV knowledge among pregnant mothers (n = 280) enrolled in two HBV studies in urban maternity centers in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. All mothers responded to three knowledge questions upon study enrollment. Baseline levels of knowledge related to HBV transmission, treatment, prevention, and symptoms were low across all participants: 68.8% did not know how HBV was transmitted, 70.7% did not know how to prevent or treat HBV MTCT, and 79.6% did not know signs and symptoms of HBV. Over half of participants responded “I don’t know” to all questions. HBV-positive women who participated in both studies (n = 46) were asked the same questions during both studies and showed improved knowledge after screening and treatment, despite no formal educational component in either study (p < 0.001). These findings highlight the need for intensified education initiatives in highly endemic areas to improve PMTCT efforts

Enrollment questionnaire assessing knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs of pregnant women in the DRC.

This questionnaire was used upon enrollment of both the AVERT and BDI trials. Denoted “incorrect” or “correct” in italics for the purposes of this manuscript (not included in the original knowledge questionnaire). (DOCX)</p

Distribution of knowledge scores at baseline and follow-up among 46 HBV-positive women who participated in both studies.

Average score at baseline was 2.8 (range 0–6) and average score at follow-up was 3.7 (range 0–7) (p < 0.001).</p

Demographic characteristics of enrolled women in the overall cohort and stratified by HBV knowledge category.

Participants in the “any HBV knowledge” category scored > 0 on the HBV knowledge assessment and participants in the “no HBV knowledge” category scored 0 points on the HBV knowledge assessment.</p

Distribution of HBV knowledge scores at baseline.

Score reflects the number of correct responses to 9 statements about HBV symptoms, transmission, and prevention. The average knowledge score was 1.06.</p

Participants responses to the question “in your opinion, how serious a disease is hepatitis B?” among women with no HBV knowledge (score of 0 on HBV knowledge assessment) and women with any HBV knowledge (score > 0 on HBV knowledge assessment).

Participants responses to the question “in your opinion, how serious a disease is hepatitis B?” among women with no HBV knowledge (score of 0 on HBV knowledge assessment) and women with any HBV knowledge (score > 0 on HBV knowledge assessment).</p

Distribution of responses to the three questions assessing Hepatitis B knowledge among all enrolled women.

280 total participants responded to each question. Because participants could choose multiple answers to each question, percent of participants who chose each answer sums to greater than 100% for each question. The percent of participants who chose each answer was calculated using total number of participants as the denominator, not total number of answers chosen.</p

Schematic depicting activities in the AVERT and BDI studies, including the point at which enrollment questionnaires were conducted.

Schematic depicting activities in the AVERT and BDI studies, including the point at which enrollment questionnaires were conducted.</p

Identification of Novel Gene Targets and Putative Regulators of Arsenic-Associated DNA Methylation in Human Urothelial Cells and Bladder Cancer

There is strong epidemiologic evidence linking chronic exposure to inorganic arsenic (iAs) to myriad adverse health effects, including cancer of the bladder. We set out to identify DNA methylation patterns associated with arsenic and its metabolites in exfoliated urothelial cells (EUCs) that originate primarily from the urinary bladder, one of the targets of arsenic-induced carcinogenesis. Genome-wide, gene-specific promoter DNA methylation levels were assessed in EUCs from 46 residents of Chihuahua, Mexico, and the relationship was examined between promoter methylation profiles and the intracellular concentrations of total arsenic and arsenic species. A set of 49 differentially methylated genes was identified with increased promoter methylation associated with EUC tAs, iAs, and/or monomethylated As (MMAs) enriched for their roles in metabolic disease and cancer. Notably, no genes had differential methylation associated with EUC dimethylated As (DMAs), suggesting that DMAs may influence DNA methylation-mediated urothelial cell responses to a lesser extent than iAs or MMAs. Further analysis showed that 22 of the 49 arsenic-associated genes (45%) are also differentially methylated in bladder cancer tissue identified using The Cancer Genome Atlas repository. Both the arsenic- and cancer-associated genes are enriched for the binding sites of common transcription factors known to play roles in carcinogenesis, demonstrating a novel potential mechanistic link between iAs exposure and bladder cancer