Omofolasade Kosoko-Lasaki

What the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Missed in Its Prostate Cancer Screening Recommendation

This commentary discusses the USPSTF recommendation against PSA-based screening for men of any age. The commentators believe that the Task Force has underestimated the benefits and overestimated th...

Screening for familial and hereditary prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer (PC) has the highest degree of genetic transmission of any form of malignancy. In some families, the hereditary pattern is so strong as to mimic an autosomal dominance trait. We reviewed the known predisposing genetic markers to assess possible strategies for screening of families at risk. We carried out a systematic literature search using the Pubmed service of the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) and several gene libraries, including the NCBI SNP Library, the Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man® Catalog of Human Genes and Genetic Disorders (OMIM) and SNPedia to obtain known gene loci, SNPs and satellite markers associated with PC. We further cross referenced information on identified loci comparing data from different articles and gene reference sites. Whenever possible, we recorded the odds ratio (OR) for the allele associated with PC.

African American health disparities: glaucoma as a case study.

Despite the overall improvement of health in the American population, studies have shown that there are disparities in the health of certain racial groups. In identifying these disparities, it is important to raise the question of why they exist and which ones indicate poor quality care. Disparities in health care have been documented repeatedly over the last few decades across a broad range of medical conditions. For example, studies indicate that blacks and Hispanics are less likely to receive bypass surgery when medically indicated, are less likely to receive adequate pain management, and are less likely than white men or white women to receive life-saving therapies for heart attacks. Thus, members of minority groups are more likely to receive lower-quality care than their white counterparts, even when insurance status and income levels are adjusted for. A recent study by the Institute of Medicine finds that disparities do exist “across a range of medical conditions and health care services, are associated with worse health outcomes, and occur independently of insurance status, income and education.” Other studies have shown that among Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in managed-care plans, blacks were less likely than whites to receive the following: follow-up care after a hospitalization for eye examinations if they were diabetic (43.6 vs. 50.4% [p = 0.02]); follow-up after hospitalization for mental illness (33.2 vs. 54.0% [p < .001]); beta-blocker medication after a myocardial infarction (64.1 vs. 73.8% [p < .005]); and breast cancer screening (62.9 vs. 70.2% [p < .001]). Glaucoma has been ranked third by the World Health Organization as causing approximately 13% of all cases of blindness. Approximately 5

Creighton collaborative health professions partnership.

Creighton University School of Medicine, a private Jesuit institution in Omaha, has included Health Professions Partnership Initiative (HPPI), herein referred to as Creighton Collaborative Health Professions Partnership (CCHPP), as part of its long-term effort to increase the pool of qualified applicants by identifying students early and encouraging their progress through elementary, middle, and high schools and college and professional schools. The program’s principal investigators are both African–American physicians passionately committed to increasing the enrollment of underrepresented minorities into the health sciences.

The Value of Mobile Ultrasound Services in Rural Communities in South-South Nigeria

AIM This paper examines the activities of mobile services units including ultrasound services in rural and urban communities in the Calabar region of South-South, Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS Consenting individuals were invited and attended five medical outreach activities in rural and urban areas of the Calabar region between January and June 2016. Abdomino-pelvic scans were done. Subsequently the results were analyzed. RESULTS Five hundred and seventy-four (574) individuals had Abdomino-pelvic scans done, using a curvilinear probe to assess the abdomino-pelvic organs. The female to male ratio was 1.46:1. The age ranged from 1-78 years with a mean of 40.63 (standard deviation of 17.5). The commonest sonographic finding was uterine fibroids, 21 (8.1%). Fifty-four percent of the scans were normal. The commonest sonographic finding in men was prostatic enlargement. CONCLUSION Medical outreach activities provided by mobile units provide much needed ultrasound services in poor resource settings in Nigeria. Significant clinical pathologies were identified at fairly high rates.