Faculty Bibliography

Up to two-thirds of adolescent girls report painful periods but few seek medical care for their dysmenorrhea. Dysmenorrhea is associated with multiple physical and psychological symptoms, and the delayed evaluation and treatment of dysmenorrhea contributes to a poor quality of life and can result in lifelong health problems, including chronic pelvic pain and infertility. It is recommended that an assessment of patients' menstrual cycles be performed regularly, as identification of abnormally painful menstrual cycles may reveal potential health problems, including pelvic diseases such as endometriosis and adenomyosis. Visits to primary care providers offer an opportunity to assess and educate adolescents and their families on normal menstrual physiology. The purpose of this article is to review the evaluation and management of dysmenorrhea. [Pediatr Ann. 2020;49(4):e176-e182.].

In 2015 the Resident Education Committee published the Long Curriculum in Resident Education to provide educators with a comprehensive document to be used in post-graduate medical education. The original curriculum was designed to meet the resident learning objectives for CREOG, RCPSC and ABP and to provide a more intensive, broader learning experience. This Committee Document is an updated version of the 2015 Long Curriculum.

Fertility awareness, or general knowledge about one's fertility, is low in adolescents and in adult women as well. Misconceptions about reproduction contribute to high rates of unplanned pregnancy in the United States, as well as delayed childbearing and infertility. Alhough primary care providers caring for adolescents have historically focused on contraception and reduction of sexually transmitted infections during their sexual and reproductive health conversations with adolescents and young adult women, fertility awareness counseling would help these women optimize their future fertility and make informed reproductive choices throughout their life. This is particularly true for adolescents with chronic medical conditions, certain gynecologic conditions, or a history of therapies that could potentially affect fertility, for whom preemptive conversations about fertility are needed, but often overlooked. [Pediatr Ann. 2019;48(2):e86-e91.].

STUDY OBJECTIVE/OBJECTIVE:Resident education in pediatric and adolescent gynecology (PAG) is challenging. It encompasses patients from neonates to young adults with different disorders involving multiple subspecialties. Residents have inadequate exposure to PAG topics and report lack of knowledge in this area. The objective of this study was to determine if the North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology (NASPAG) Short Curriculum improves self-reported knowledge in PAG among obstetrics and gynecology (ObGyn), family medicine, and pediatric residents. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, INTERVENTIONS, AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants were 47 US ObGyn, family medicine, and pediatric residency training programs across a 4-month study window, from September to December 2016. The NASPAG Short Curriculum was distributed to them with a request to complete a retrospective pre- and post-test survey. Primary outcome measure was improvement in self-perceived knowledge after exposure to the curriculum. RESULTS:Forty-eight programs responded to the study comprising a total of 1130 residents. One program was excluded because of logistical barriers to the distribution of study incentive. In total, 1080 residents were invited and 103 chose to participate (10% response rate); 68 residents completed all survey questions to be included in the final analysis. After completing the curriculum, self-reported knowledge improved in all 10 learning objectives, across all 3 specialties (47% [32/68] to 82% [56/68]; P < .01). Pre-test knowledge correlated with previous clinical exposure to PAG patients, but did not correlate with year of residency training, type of residency, or previous PAG lectures. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Significant deficiencies exist regarding self-reported knowledge of core PAG topics among ObGyn, family medicine, and pediatric residents. Use of the NASPAG Short Curriculum improves self-reported knowledge in PAG trainees across all 3 specialties.

The degree of exposure to pediatric and adolescent gynecology (PAG) varies across residency programs in obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics. Nevertheless, these programs are responsible for training residents and providing opportunities within their programs to fulfill PAG learning objectives. To that end, the North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology has taken a leadership role in PAG resident education by creating and systematically updating the Short Curriculum. This curriculum outlines specific learning objectives that are central to PAG education and lists essential resources for learners' reference. This updated curriculum replaces the previous 2014 publication with added content, resources, and updated references. Additionally, attention to the needs of learners in pediatrics and adolescent medicine is given greater emphasis in this revised North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology Short Curriculum 2.0.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES:Youth carry a disproportionate burden of new HIV infections. With our study, we aimed to characterize HIV testing experiences among adolescents and young adults admitted to a children's hospital that is located in a high HIV-prevalent community and implemented routine HIV testing for all patients ≥13 years of age. METHODS:A total of 120 patients aged 13 to 24 years old who were admitted to our hospital and had a documented offer of routine HIV testing on admission were invited to complete a self-administered survey that asked about sex, race and/or ethnicity, HIV risk behaviors, and attitudes toward routine HIV testing in the hospital. Date of birth, admission diagnosis, and verification of HIV testing and results were collected by chart review. RESULTS:< .01) being more likely to accept testing. A total of 96% of participants agreed that the hospital is a good place to offer HIV testing. CONCLUSIONS:Our findings support offering routine HIV testing to youth admitted to children's hospital. Given the high incidence of new and undiagnosed HIV infections among youth, additional venues for HIV testing are essential.