Topp Gilbert (brakeroad05)
Background We describe the utilization of telemedicine visits (video or telephone) across the type 1 diabetes (T1D) Exchange Quality Improvement Collaborative (T1DX-QI) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Metrics, site-level survey results, and examples of interventions conducted to support telemedicine in T1D are shown. Materials and Methods Thirteen clinics (11 pediatric, 2 adult) provided monthly telemedicine metrics between December 2019 and August 2020 and 21 clinics completed a survey about their telemedicine practices. Results The proportion of telemedicine visits in T1DX-QI before the pandemic was less then 1%, rising to an average of 95.2% in April 2020 (range 52.3%-99.5%). Three sites initially used mostly telephone visits before converting to video visits. find more By August 2020, the proportion of telemedicine visits decreased to an average of 45% across T1DX-QI (range 10%-86.6%). The majority of clinics (62%) performed both video and telephone visits; Zoom was the most popular video platform used. Over 95% of clinics reported using CareLink™, Clarity®, Glooko™, and/or tconnect® to view device data, with only one center reporting automated data upload into the electronic medical record. The majority of centers had multidisciplinary teams participating in the video visits. All sites reported reimbursement for video visits, and 95% of sites reported coverage for telephone visits early on in the pandemic. Conclusions There was rapid adoption of telemedicine in T1DX-QI during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future insurance reimbursement for telemedicine visits and the ideal ratio of telemedicine to in-person visits in T1D care remain to be determined.Aim Chagas disease is a serious public health problem, endemic in 21 countries in Latin America. A future vaccine can contribute to decreasing the number of cases and its complications. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with residents of the northern region of Brazil, on the willingness to pay for a hypothetical vaccine against Chagas disease (effective protection of 80%). Results We interviewed 619 individuals and seven were excluded from the analysis and the value of willingness to pay was US$23.77 (100.00 BRL). Conclusion The Northern region of Brazil is one of the largest markets for this vaccine, due to its epidemiological relevance, so economic studies with this vaccine will be important to assist in the assessment of technologies. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), organophosphate esters (OPEs), and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are hormone-disrupting chemicals that migrate from building materials into air and dust. We aimed to quantify the hormonal activities of 46 dust samples and identify chemicals driving the observed activities. We evaluated associations between hormonal activities of extracted dust in five cell-based luciferase reporter assays and dust concentrations of 42 measured PFAS, OPEs, and PBDEs, transformed as either raw or potency-weighted concentrations based on Tox21 high-throughput screening data. All dust samples were hormonally active, showing antagonistic activity toward peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ( PPAR γ 2 ) (100%; 46 of 46 samples), thyroid hormone receptor ( TR β ) (89%; 41 samples), and androgen receptor (AR) (87%; 40 samples); agonist activity on estrogen receptor ( ER mixtures that building occupants are exposed to. https//doi.org/10.1289/EHP8054. All indoor dust samples exhibited hormonal activities, which were associated with PFAS, PBDE, and OPE levels. Reporter gene cell-based assays are relatively inexpensive, health-relevant evaluations of toxic loads of chemical mixtures that building occupants are exposed to. https//doi.org/10.1289/EHP8054.Microbial me