Biomedical subjects

Mario Sims

Publications and source records attributed to Mario Sims.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2024

The expected polygenic risk score (ePRS) framework: an equitable metric for quantifying polygenetic risk via modeling of ancestral makeup.

Polygenic risk scores (PRSs) depend on genetic ancestry due to differences in allele frequencies between ancestral populations. This leads to implementation challenges in diverse populations. We propose a framework to calibrate PRS based on ancestral makeup. We define a metric called "expected PRS" (ePRS), the expected value of a PRS based on one's global or local admixture patterns. We further define the "residual PRS" (rPRS), measuring the deviation of the PRS from the ePRS. Simulation studies confirm that it suffices to adjust for ePRS to obtain nearly unbiased estimates of the PRS-outcome association without further adjusting for PCs. Using the TOPMed dataset, the estimated effect size of the rPRS adjusting for the ePRS is similar to the estimated effect of the PRS adjusting for genetic PCs. Similarly, we applied the ePRS framework to six cardiovascular-related traits in the All of Us dataset, and the results are consistent with those from the TOPMed analysis. The ePRS framework can protect from population stratification in association analysis and provide an equitable strategy to quantify genetic risk across diverse populations.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2005

Tobacco use among adolescents enrolled in Wisconsin Medicaid program.

PROBLEM: There has been very little study done on tobacco use and cessation among the adolescent Medicaid population. Study objectives included determining the prevalence of tobacco use among adolescents enrolled in Medicaid, and identifying subgroups within this population. METHODS: To determine tobacco use among adolescents enrolled in the Wisconsin Medicaid program, we analyzed data from a medical chart-audit of health care visits by 11-21 year olds from January 1997 to January 1999. RESULTS: Tobacco use status was noted in 55% of adolescent charts. Of these, 24% were current smokers, while 38% of adolescents in the general Wisconsin population were current smokers. Females had higher rates of tobacco use than males (28% versus 11%), and those from rural areas had higher rates than those from urban areas (41% versus 17%). Of pregnant adolescents with tobacco use status documented, 31.6% were current tobacco users. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the data reported, adolescents in the Wisconsin Medicaid program who were pregnant, female, or rural residents may benefit from targeted smoking prevention and cessation intervention by health care professionals, community coalitions, and state programs.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Factors associated with physician interventions to address adolescent smoking.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the percent of adolescent Medicaid patients with medical record documentation about tobacco use status and cessation assistance; and factors associated with providers documenting and intervening with adolescent smokers. DATA SOURCE: Secondary analysis of data collected in 1999 from medical records of Wisconsin Medicaid health maintenance organization (HMO) recipients 11 to 21 years old. STUDY DESIGN: Random reviews and data collection were related to visits from January 1997 to January 1999. Data collected included patient demographics, provider type, number of visits, and whether smoking status and cessation interventions were documented. DATA EXTRACTION METHODS: Medical charts were reviewed and a database was created using a data abstraction tool developed and approved by a committee to address tobacco use in Medicaid managed care participants. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Among adolescents seen by a physician from 1997 to 1999, tobacco use status was documented in 55 percent of patient charts. Most often tobacco use status was documented on history and physical or prenatal forms. Of identified adolescent smokers, 50 percent were advised to quit, 42 percent assisted, and 16 percent followed for smoking cessation. Pregnant patients were more likely to have tobacco use documented than nonpregnant patients (OR=10.8, 95 percent CI=4.9 to 24). The odds of documentation increased 21 percent for every one-year increase in patient age. CONCLUSIONS: Providers miss opportunities to intervene with adolescents who may be using tobacco. Medical record prompts, similar to the tobacco use question on prenatal forms and the tobacco use vital sign stamp, are essential for reminding providers to consistently document and address tobacco use among adolescents.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Urban poverty and infant-health disparities among African Americans and whites in Milwaukee.

This study examined neighborhood and infant health disparities between African-American and white mothers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Census-block data were used for 1990 and Vital Statistics data were used for 1992 through 1994. African-American mothers lived in less desirable, more segregated neighborhoods than white mothers did in 1990. African-American infant and neonatal mortality rates were twice those of whites (2.3 and 2.0, respectively), while African-American postneonatal mortality rates were three times that of whites (3.0). African-American low and very low birth weight rates were more than twice those of whites (2.5 and 2.6, respectively). All African-American mothers were nearly eight times as likely as all white mothers to have inadequate prenatal care, whereas poor African-American mothers were three times as likely to have inadequate prenatal care as were poor white mothers. Public health experts and practitioners may want to consider the communities of minority patients to devise interventions suitable for addressing health disparities.

Black or African American↗