Characterization of an Open-Access Medical News Platform's Readership During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Retrospective Observational Study.

BACKGROUND: There are many alternatives to direct journal access, such as podcasts, blogs, and news sites, that allow physicians and the general public to stay up to date with medical literature. However, there is a scarcity of literature that investigates the readership characteristics of open-access medical news sites and how these characteristics may have shifted during the COVID-19 pandemic. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess readership and survey data to characterize open-access medical news readership trends related to the COVID-19 pandemic and overall readership trends regarding pandemic-related information delivery. METHODS: Anonymous, aggregate readership data were obtained from 2 Minute Medicine, an open-access, physician-run medical news organization that has published over 8000 original, physician-written texts and visual summaries of new medical research since 2013. In this retrospective observational study, the average number of article views, number of actions (defined as the sum of the number of views, shares, and outbound link clicks), read times, and bounce rates (probability of leaving a page in <30 s) were compared between COVID-19 articles published from January 1 to May 31, 2020 (n=40) and non-COVID-19 articles (n=145) published in the same time period. A voluntary survey was also sent to subscribed 2 Minute Medicine readers to further characterize readership demographics and preferences, which were scored on a Likert scale. RESULTS: COVID-19 articles had a significantly higher median number of views than non-COVID-19 articles (296 vs 110; U=748.5; P<.001). There were no significant differences in average read times (P=.12) or bounce rates (P=.12). Non-COVID-19 articles had a higher median number of actions than COVID-19 articles (2.9 vs 2.5; U=2070.5; P=.02). On a Likert scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree), our survey data revealed that 65.5% (78/119) of readers agreed or strongly agreed that they preferred staying up to date with emerging literature about COVID-19 by using sources such as 2 Minute Medicine instead of journals. A greater proportion of survey respondents also indicated that open-access news sources were one of their primary sources for staying informed (86/120, 71.7%) compared to the proportion who preferred direct journal article access (61/120, 50.8%). The proportion of readers indicating they were reading one or less full-length medical studies a month were lower following introduction to 2 Minute Medicine compared to prior (21/120, 17.5% vs 38/120, 31.6%; P=.005). CONCLUSIONS: The readership significantly increased for one open-access medical literature platform during the pandemic. This reinforces the idea that open-access, physician-written sources of medical news represent an important alternative to direct journal access for readers who want to stay up to date with medical literature.

Analysis of the sacral neural crest cell contribution to the hindgut enteric nervous system in the mouse embryo.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The majority of the enteric nervous system is derived from the vagal neural crest, with a second contribution, which is restricted to the post-umbilical gut, originating from the sacral neural crest. In mammals, although sacral neural crest cells (NCCs) have been shown to enter the hindgut, information on their development and role remains scant. Our aim was to determine the migratory routes of sacral NCCs to the hindgut, their timing and site of entry into the gut, and their migratory behaviors and differentiation within the hindgut. METHODS: We used in situ cell labeling, whole embryo culture, immunofluorescence, organotypic culture, and time-lapse live-cell imaging in mouse embryos. RESULTS: Sacral NCCs emigrated from the neural tube at embryonic day 9.5, accumulated bilateral to the hindgut to form prospective pelvic ganglia at embryonic day 11.5, and from there entered the distal hindgut through its ventrolateral side at embryonic day 13.5. They then migrated along nerve fibers extending from the pelvic ganglia toward the proximal hindgut, intermingling with rostrocaudally migrating vagal NCCs to differentiate into neurons and glia. In organotypic culture, genetically labeled sacral and vagal NCCs displayed different capabilities of entering the hindgut, implying differences in their intrinsic migratory properties. Time-lapse live-cell imaging on explants ex vivo showed that sacral NCCs migrated along nerve fibers and exhibited different migratory behaviors from vagal NCCs. CONCLUSIONS: Murine sacral NCCs are a distinct group of cells that migrate along defined pathways from neural tube to hindgut. They exhibit discrete migratory behaviors within the gut mesenchyme and contribute neurons and glial cells to the hindgut enteric nervous system.

Human parainfluenza virus 4 outbreak and the role of diagnostic tests.

Owing to the difficulties in isolating the virus and the lack of routine surveillance, the clinical significance of human parainfluenza virus 4 (HPIV-4) is less well defined than that of the other human parainfluenza viruses. We describe the first outbreak of HPIV-4 infection in a developmental disabilities unit, involving 38 institutionalized children and three staff members, during a 3-week period in autumn 2004. Most subjects had upper respiratory tract infections (URTI), while lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) occurred in three children (7%), one complicated by respiratory failure requiring ventilation support. All patients recovered. Nasopharyngeal aspirates tested for HPIV-4 were positive by reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) in all 41 cases (100%), by direct immunofluorescence in 29 of 39 tested cases (74%), and by cell cultures in 6 of 37 cases (16%), and serum was positive for antibodies against HPIV-4 in all 35 cases (100%) with serum samples available. In addition, RT-PCR detected HPIV-4 in four children (three LRTI and one URTI) out of 115 patients with community-acquired respiratory tract infection. Molecular analysis of the 1,198-bp phosphoprotein sequences showed that HPIV-4 isolates among the cases were genetically similar, whereas the community controls were more genetically distant, supporting nosocomial transmission of a single HPIV-4 genotype during the outbreak. Moreover, the HPIV-4 causing the outbreak is more closely related to HPIV-4A than HPIV-4B. HPIV-4 may be an important cause of more severe respiratory illness in children. The present RT-PCR assay is a sensitive, specific, and rapid method for the diagnosing HPIV-4 infection. To better define the epidemiology and clinical spectrum of disease of HPIV-4 infections, HPIV-4 should be included in the routine panels of respiratory virus detection on respiratory specimens.