Research and Grants

An important resource for students, faculty, and staff, the Office of Research and Scholarly Activity provides support and guidance for research activities, such as statistical consulting, an intramural grant program, and a searchable database of extramural grant opportunities. Congratulations to all faculty and students with scholarly achievements! Please continue to communicate any achievements to Dr. Amanda Brooks, Director of Research and Scholarly Activity

Benjamin Brooks, PhD, Assistant Director for the MSBS Program, published a manuscript, entitled, “Characterizing Epitope Binding Regions of Entire Antibody Panels by Combining Experimental and Computational Analysis of Antibody: Antigen Binding Competition" as part of the special issue "Computational Approaches: Drug Discovery and Design in Medicinal Chemistry and Bioinformatics" in the journal Molecules. The manuscript proposes a process to use computational and experimental data to identify the epitope for monoclonal antibodies to improve drug and vaccine discovery.

Dr. Brooks also completed a study and published a manuscript entitled “Localization of the interaction site of herpes simplex virus glycoprotein D (gD) on the membrane fusion regulator, gH/gL" in the Journal of Virology. The manuscript details how herpes simplex virus fusion protein interface at the molecular level.

We would like to congratulate Dr. Ben Brooks for his service on two National Institute of Health special emphasis panels for COVID-19 R01/R21 and Small Business (SBIR) grants.

Susan Carter, MD, FACOG, FACS, Director of the Office of Simulation in Medicine and Surgery, was a speaker at the American College of Surgeons "Sim Centers' COVID-19 Responses on Inventive and Supporting Initiatives Implemented During Quarantines" webinar. Dr. Carter presented "The Move to Virtual and Mixed Reality at Rocky Vista University." She commented, "It was a great opportunity to highlight RVU's early and rapid adaptation universitywide." Read more on Page 11.

William (Tyler) Crawley, OMS IV, spoke at the International Association of Medical Science Educators Virtual Conference in June. He presented, "Diversity in Healthcare Education: How Confronting Biases Starts in the Classroom," in which he discussed ways to better integrate diversity into the education of medical professionals.

Patrick Flannery, OMS II, published research in ACS Chemical Neuroscience titled, "Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained: Regulations Cripple Potentially LifeSaving Research of Illicit Substances." This research discusses how the scientific community is unable to acquire illicit substances for research purposes, due to regulations of illicit substances. It posits that the reclassification of illicit substances would allow for extensive testing in research settings.

The work of a team of human factor and trauma experts including Anthony J. LaPorta, MD, FACS, Professor of Clinical Surgery and Military Medicine, and his students has culminated in Congressional approval for four "Expeditionary Medical Ships" that are a direct result of the last five years of their research. In addition, the team has also contributed new chapters in Trauma Team Dynamics, a training book.

Nena L. Mason, PhD, Associate Professor of Anatomy and Ultrasound, published research in BMC Medical Education titled, "Using Formalin Embalmed Cadavers to Teach Fracture Identification with Ultrasound." The objective of the study was to assess the utility of using formalin-embalmed human cadavers to teach first-year medical students to use ultrasound to identify skeletal fractures. Not only does ultrasound imaging decrease radiation exposure, but medical students were able to quickly learn to independently scan and identify fractures in ultrasound images.

Dr. Mason also published research in the Journal of Emergency Medicine called “A Narrative Review of Common Uses of Ophthalmic Ultrasound in Emergency Medicine”. This is a broad scope, yet detailed review of the common uses of ultrasound technology in assessing ocular emergencies in emergency department settings. The review is targeted at the practicing emergency physician to summarize current literature regarding ocular point-of-care ultrasound, and provide succinct descriptions of the techniques used to perform these exams.

Regan Stiegmann, DO '13, MPH, Co-Director of the Digital Health Track, published research in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine titled, "Inspiring Medical Students to Choose Primary Care Through Lifestyle Medicine Education." This research studies how the integration of lifestyle medicine into medical school curriculum has the potential to inspire medical students to choose a primary care specialty, as students become more adept at addressing and treating the root causes of chronic disease.

Bryan Beaty, OMS IV, and David Park, DO, FACOFP, FAAFP, Campus Dean of RVUCOM-SU, published research titled, "Diagnosis of Myocardial Infarction in a Patient with Left Bundle Branch Block and Negative Sgarbossa Criteria," in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association. The paper describes the case of an 84-year-old man experiencing acute cardiopulmonary symptoms who was negative for modified Sgarbossa criteria, but later had a confirmed diagnosis of MI on transfer to a cardiac center. This case illustrates the necessity of good clinical judgment and a high index of suspicion for atypical presentation alongside any diagnostic algorithm.

Juhyun "June" Lee, OMS IV, and Jing Gao, MD, Associate Professor and Director of Ultrasound, published research titled, "Effect of Hydration on Doppler Velocity of Renal Arteries," in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association. The paper examines the differences in arterial Doppler velocities of the normal adult kidney before and after hydration, as the effect of hydration on kidney hemodynamics has not been previously explored via Doppler sonography.

Sidra Bhuller, DO, and Cosmina Cristea, DO, Residents in the HealthOne Surgery Residency Program, received awards for their respective posters at the HCA Rocky Mountain Healthcare Symposium. Dr. Bhuller received 2nd place for her poster, "Obscure gastrointestinal bleeding localization using preoperative super selective mesenteric angiography and intraoperative methylene blue injection: A case report and literature review." Dr. Cristea received 3rd place for her poster, "Inferior Mesenteric Arteriovenous Fistula Presenting as Bowel Ischemia: Case Report."

Jing Gao, MD, Associate Professor and Director of Ultrasound, and David Park, DO, FACOFP, FAAFP, Campus Dean of RVUCOM-SU, published research titled, "Ultrasound Shear Wave Elastography to Assess Tissue Mechanical Properties in Somatic Dysfunction: A Feasibility Study," in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association. It discusses the challenge of subjectivity in the assessment of somatic dysfunction. However, the development and use of radiological imaging techniques to confirm or quantify muscle tissue stiffness associated with somatic dysfunction could be of benefit in osteopathic clinical practice, training, and further research.

Boris Joutovsky, OMS IV, Alexander Ortiz, OMS IV, Camille Bentley, DO, MPH, FACOFP, Chair of Department of Tracks and Special Programs, and Jing Gao, MD, Associate Professor and Director of Ultrasound , published research titled, "Portable Ultrasonography to Assess Adult Hepatosteatosis (HS) in Rural Ecuador," in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association. Their research focused on the incidence of HS in rural communities of the Ecuadorian Chimborazo region and aimed to validate portable US as an effective method of disease screening in rural settings.

Erin West, OMS IV, Rebecca Ryznar, PhD, Associate Professor of Molecular Biology, David Ross, DO, FACEP, Associate Professor of SIMS, and Anthony J. LaPorta, MD, FACS, Professor of Clinical Surgery, published research in the Journal of Surgical Education titled, "The Effect of HyperRealistic Trauma Training on Emotional Intelligence in Second Year Military Medical Students." The objective was to interpret emotional intelligence data before and after hyperrealistic immersion trauma training for military second-year medical students with a larger sample size than previously used.

Sameeha Husayn, OMS IV, Jeremy Brown, OMS IV, Colby Presley, OMS IV, Kelsey Boghean, OMS IV, and Jacquelyn Waller, PharmD, Assistant Professor of Pharmacology, published a review article, titled "Hydroxychloroquine Alternatives for Chronic Disease: Response to a Growing Shortage Amid the Global COVID-19 Pandemic," in the Journal of Pharmacy Practice. The publication considered how pharmacists and medical professionals can advocate for patients with chronic conditions that need access to hydroxychloroquine.

Several faculty members in the PA Program had been accepted to present at national and international conferences, which were subsequently canceled to due the pandemic. Note: only the first three authors are shown:

"Measuring Learner Progress during Pre-Clinical Training using a Competency-based Approach." AACOM annual education conference.

"Transcending The IPE Requirement: Collaborating To Support A Relationship-Centered IPE Program." AACOM annual education conference.

"Integrated Assessment in a Competency-based Didactic Curriculum." International Association of Medical Science Educators.

"Preparing Physician Assistant Learners to Interview Adolescent Patients Using Simulation." Physician Assistant Education Association national education forum and International Pediatric Simulation Symposia and Workshops.

"The Use of Rubrics to Assess Learner Progression in Clinical Skills in a Competency-based Curriculum." Physician Assistant Education Association national education forum.

"Milestones and Progress: the RoadMAP to Success." Physician Assistant Education Association national education forum.

See back cover for upcoming research events!

Every year, RVU's Military Medicine Program has a strong showing at the Military Health System Research Symposium with oral and poster presentations. However, with the cancellation of the MHSRS annual symposium, we want to recognize the students and faculty who had been accepted to present. Note: only the first three authors are shown:

Accepted for Poster Presentation:

"Expanding Clinical Experience in the COVID-19."

"First Responder Stress and Implementation of a Livestreaming Patient Data Platform in a Mass Casualty Incident Drill."

"The Effect of Race, Gender, and Marital Status on Emotional Quotient in HPSP Students."

"Assessment of Illuminance and Perception of Red/Green Polychromatic Light Compared Against White, Red, and Blue Light."

"Simple Hand Surgery in an Austere Environment."

"Warm Zone Care: Lessons Learned from Large-Scale Active Shooter Training Prior to the Stem School Shooting."

Accepted for Oral Presentation:

"The Effect of Immersion Trauma Training on Resiliency and Hardiness in Military Medical Personnel."

"Surgery at Sea: Trauma Support on Fast Littoral Troops Transports at High Sea Conditions."