The Laboratory Report
Summer 2020
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Welcome to the Summer 2020 Houston Methodist Hospital Department of Pathology and Genomic Medicine Newsletter: The Laboratory Report. If you have contributions or feedback for upcoming newsletters, please
email us
.
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In this issue:
- Faculty Accomplishments
- COVID-19 Updates
- Laboratory News
- Trainee News
- New Faculty
- Faculty Appointments & Promotions
- Office of Academic Development News
- Featured Publications
- Faculty Publications
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Dr. Bertholf Recognized for Outstanding Contributions
to Education in Clinical Chemistry
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Roger L. Bertholf, PhD,
has been selected to receive the American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC)’s award for Outstanding Contributions to Education in Clinical Chemistry. This award is given annually in recognition of an individual who has dedicated significant time and professional effort to enhancing the practice of clinical chemistry through education. Dr. Bertholf joined our Department in 2017. He serves as Medical Director of Clinical Chemistry for HMH, is the Program Director of our Clinical Chemistry Fellowship, and is a Professor of Clinical Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute and Professor of Clinical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College. He is the current President of the Academy of the AACC and serves on the AACC Board of Directors. With over 74 educational workshops and presentations given for organizations including the AACC and the American Society for Clinical Pathology, Dr. Bertholf’s dedication to educational endeavors in his field speaks for itself. Due to the current pandemic, Dr. Bertholf anticipates receiving his award at the December meeting of the AACC in Chicago.
Congratulations, Dr. Bertholf!
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Department Members Receive HMH Graduate
Medical Education Awards
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Members of our department’s faculty were honored with Graduate Medical Education (GME) Teaching and Leadership Awards at the 2019-20 GME Graduation Ceremony. The awardees were selected by residents based on the faculty member’s teaching abilities and commitment to excellence in education.
Our department’s faculty were all recognized at the highest level as paragons of Exemplary Service. Each awardee received a certificate, marble-etched apple, and apple lapel pin.
Held via pre-recorded
YouTube video
on June 19 because of the pandemic, the graduation ceremony has been viewed over 1,900 times, making it the best-attended graduation in HMH GME history.
Our award-winning Exemplary Faculty for 2019-20 are:
Blythe Gorman, MD
(Cytopathology)
Ekene Okoye, MD
(Surgical Pathology)
Jae Ro, MD, PhD
(Anatomic and Clinical Pathology)
Mary Schwartz, MD
(Surgical Pathology)
Jessica S. Thomas, MD, PhD
(Molecular Genetic Pathology)
Arthur W. Zieske, MD
(Hematologic Pathology)
Congratulations to all of our award-winning faculty!
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From Randall J. Olsen, MD, PhD, Medical Director,
HMH Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory
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The Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory recently deployed yet another new assay to detect SARS-CoV-2. Spearheaded by
Dr.
Randy Olsen
and
Leah Stewart,
the Alinity m SARS-CoV-2 assay is a real-time reverse transcriptase PCR test that is approved under an FDA Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). Each of our two Abbott Alinity m instruments is capable of performing more than 1,000 tests per day. The automated system requires less than one minute of hands-on time by a technician to prepare the sample and load the instrument. HMH is a priority site for the Alinity platform, and testing started on June 26. Complementing our other instrument platforms, the added capacity for test several thousand samples per day supports patient care across the Houston Methodist System.
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Debbie Walley, MD, Molecular Genetic Pathology Fellow, helps load samples on one of the HMH Alinity instruments.
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Houston Methodist Baytown Hospital has been closely monitoring the number of surgeries and procedures that require overnight stay in the hospital to ensure an availability of beds and staff to adequately care for patients.
In light of the rising trend in positive COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations throughout the greater Houston area, Houston Methodist Baytown Hospital will be modifying procedure and surgery schedules, and modifications have been made in the OR, ambulatory surgery center, catheterization lab, and endoscopy. These changes will ensure that the ICU and medical/surgical floors can be effectively staffed.
An additional COVID-19 testing site is now open for pre-procedure asymptomatic patients (EGD, TEE, prenatal, and bronchoscopy), surveillance, and symptomatic patients.
Like in the entire HMH system, inpatient visitation policies have been revised. Compassionate exceptions for visitors 18 years or older are in place, such as in maternity and postpartum cases, lifesaving care, patients with disabilities, end-of-life patients, and for the purpose of discharge education.
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Houston Methodist Baytown lab members,nurses, and physicians show support for the community.
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From David Alrahwan, MD, Medical Director,
Houston Methodist Clear Lake Hospital (HMCL)
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HMCL’s outpatient COVID collections have transitioned from Friendswood Primary Care to our campus. Our symptomatic outpatients are now being collected in our drive-through located at our ED’s former ambulance bay. This location was chosen so as to not allow symptomatic patients to mingle in our outpatient lab with non-symptomatic patients. Our drive-through is currently collecting 90-100 specimens per day. Pre-op and surveillance COVID specimens are being collected in our PAT Department. OB and expectant dad specimens are being collected in our Child Birth Center.
Including inpatient, outpatient, pre-op, and surveillance, HMCL has collected 898 COVID specimens in the past seven days. Our hospital census is currently comprised of an average of 25-30% COVID-positive patients and PUIs.
With the latest patient surge, we have witnessed tremendous teamwork from our entire hospital staff—a wonderful example of I CARE Values. Thanks to our HMH system laboratory’s efficient COVID testing, and to the many heroes in lab coats, we are enabling clinicians to make rapid diagnosis of patients to fight the battle against COVID-19.
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From Seema Mullick, MD, Medical Director,
Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital (HMSL)
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COVID cases continue to increase at HMSL after a dip in mid-May. Initially, the case numbers were fairly low and constant, but post-Memorial Day there has been a steep peak in both case testing and hospital admissions.
At HMSL, most case testing is originating from the ED, pre-surgery patients, and outpatients, with a few inpatient cases. Our testing case numbers have steadily increased from 30-40 per day in May to over 250 per day in early July. In the latest surge, admitted COVID patients have increased to a current total of about 90 inpatients. The hospital is able to handle the load; however, a further increase in admissions will impact patient bed availability and our ability to take care of non-COVID patients, including both elective and necessary surgeries.
The HMSL Laboratory has been instrumental, and is playing a key role in streamlining the testing process. We have instituted additional courier runs throughout the day and night, batched the specimens by location and urgency, and worked closely with the HMH Molecular Laboratory to expedite results. These measures have resulted in bringing the turnaround time of COVID results from over 24 hours to 14-16 hours, with patients in labor having their tests results in 4-6 hours! This is only possible because of the tremendous efforts of our HMH molecular lab in bringing in additional instruments and providing 24/7 service.
We are cautiously optimistic that the current spike can be blunted soon so we can continue to do what we do best—take care of all our patients.
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From Hazel Awalt, MD, Medical Director,
Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital (HMTW)
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Over the last several months since the Houston Methodist Hospital System began COVID-19 testing, HMTW Laboratory has been able to go from testing approximately 30 specimens per day (limited to symptomatic hospital patients) to being able to currently test over 150 samples per day on hospital patients, as well as outpatients, and also physicians and employees undergoing surveillance testing.
In anticipation of being able to perform more than 250 tests per day shortly, we have hired four new employees and plan to hire an additional three employees. This has required great teamwork with other departments such as nursing and employee health, an on your toes think outside-of-the-box mentality, and a positive thinking determination to get the job done.
Kudos to all involved!
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From Thu Ngo, MD, Medical Director,
Houston Methodist West Hospital
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In mid-April, a new COVID-19 collection center was created on the first floor of the Medical Office Building (MOB) immediately adjacent to the hospital to facilitate increased testing as well as added convenience.
Four rooms with appropriate distancing and workflow were created in MOB1. Two assigned parking spaces directly outside of the testing center entrance were created with good signage and clear directions.
The check-in and collection process is working well, and a typical visit length is about 5 minutes. Our volume has increased from 40 patients per day to 120 patients. All tests are scheduled, and our hours of operation are from 0800-1700 M-F.
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From Byron Moore, MD, Medical Director,
Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital (HMWB)
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HMWB has added two COVID collection sites for symptomatic patients with the capacity to collect 200+ specimens daily M-F.
Our volume of arterial blood gas, ferritin, CRP, and ESR testing has markedly increased because of COVID-19. ABG has increased by 50% and ferritin has increased by 80%. Blood gas evaluation is part of routine testing in many COVID-19 patients. Ferritin along with CRP and ESR has been found to increase as part of the cytokine storm that may be associated with COVID-19. A recent publication suggests that ferritin may correlate with disease severity.
We have completed our self-inspection required by the College of American Pathologists. We try to be thorough and meticulous in order to strive for excellence.
Shari Ali, ASCP, and Antonette Buco, ASCP, were part of a multispecialty team who received an Executive Leadership Excellence in Quality and Patient Safety Award for their work in improving workflow in our outpatient infusion center. Previously, chemotherapy patients experienced a delay in receiving their chemotherapy. Absolute neutrophil count is used to determine if the patient can receive chemotherapy. By identifying and prioritizing chemotherapy patient specimens in the lab, the team has been able to decrease the wait time by 45 minutes for each patient, which has improved patient satisfaction and throughput.
Congratulations to Shari Ali and Antonette Buco, as well as the other Inter-professional Kaizen team members! We appreciate your hard work!
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Lab Team Continues to Support Nora's Home During Pandemic
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Department of Pathology and Genomic Medicine members have been providing and serving dinner every other Wednesday to transplant patients and their families at Nora’s Home for the past six years. The pandemic has not kept the team from providing meals during this difficult time. A team of volunteers (
Claire Haueter from Anatomic Pathology, Dr. Randall Olsen’s family,
and
Pat Cernoch, manager of the Microbiology Laboratory
) have been dropping off casseroles, desserts, and bread on regularly scheduled days; the staff at Nora’s Home helps by heating the food and serving it. Nora’s has not been allowing visitors at the house, though all are very much looking forward to being able to go back to seeing the families and visiting them while meals are served.
Nora’s Home is a home for transplant patients and their families while they await organ transplant or after transplant. It was started by Drs. Lillian and Osama Gaber in memory of their daughter, Nora. The department chose Nora’s Home as its charity six years ago, as every aspect of the laboratory touches transplant patients. Many friendships have developed over the years between employees and patients and families. The Department has never missed a Wednesday in six years! For more information on how to become part of the team that provides meals, please contact
Pat Cernoch
. For more information about Nora’s Home, please visit their website,
https://norashome.org
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HM Labs Experience Unprecedented Surge
in Testing and Productivity
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HMH Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory Medical Director
Randall Olsen, MD, PhD,
reports that an average of 1,850 PCR SARS-CoV-2 tests per day were performed at HMH the week of July 6–10. To date, more than 77,000 tests have been performed. The enormity of the tests performed has increased workloads for all of the lab staff, but there is always a team member ready to step in to assist.
Houston Methodist laboratories are experiencing record sequencing demands as the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic continues.
Matthew Ojeda Saavedra
reports:
"Our research team is very proud of participating in the fight agains the SARS-CoV2 virus. Starting in March, we began expanding the laboratory capabilities to process the myriad of incoming samples and sequence the viral genome. This expansion included the acquisition of two Beckman Coulter Biomek i7 automated liquid handlers and a second Oxford Nanopore Technologies Gridion sequencer. These tools have greatly enhanced the team’s productivity. Currently, a record average of 576 genomes are being sequenced per week.
The molecular epidemiology data being produced will elucidate the prevalence and evolution of clades and subclades in the Houston greater metropolitan area, as well as temporal and geospatial relationships among COVID-19 cases."
Many thanks to all for your incredible efforts!
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Lab Manager Manuel Hinojosa with all hands on deck.
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Matthew Ojeda Saavedra, Prasanti Yerramilli, and Layne
Pruitt
(left to right) in the lab.
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Lab coordinator Connie Cantu.
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Welcome, Class of 2020–21 Residents and Fellows!
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Julieta D’Ardis, MD
Universidad de Buenos Aires
PGY 1 Resident
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Caroline Hussey, MD
McGovern Medical School
UT Health Science Center at Houston
PGY 1 Resident
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Sylvia Jang, MD
College of Medicine
Medical University of South Carolina
PGY 1 Resident
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Jacob Kinsey, MD
Morsani College of Medicine
University of South Florida
PGY 1 Resident
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Daniel Taylor, MD
Saint Louis University School of Medicine
PGY 1 Resident
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Michelle Lin, MD
Breast-Gynecological Pathology Fellow
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Parsa Hodjat, MD
Clinical Informatics Fellow
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Chiraag Gangahar, MD
Cytopathology Fellow
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Kent Swimley, MD
Cytopathology Fellow
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Harmanjot Singh, MD
Genitourinary Medical Kidney Fellow
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Jessica Tomsula, MD
Hematopathology Fellow
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Debbie Walley, MD
Molecular Genetic
Pathology Fellow
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Ashley Holloman, MD
Neuropathology Fellow
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Ziad El-Zaatari, MD
Surgical Pathology Fellow
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Ashley Garcia, DO
Surgical Pathology Fellow
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Do Hwan Kim, MD
Surgical Pathology Fellow
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Don Le, DO
Surgical Pathology Fellow
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Paloma Monroig-Bosque, MD, PhD
Surgical Pathology Fellow
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Congratulations to our 2019–20 Residency
and Fellowship Graduates!
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Anatomic Pathology Residency
Paulyann Maclayton, MD
Anatomic and Clinical Pathology Residency
Paloma Monroig-Bosque, MD, PhD
Charlotte Kim, MD
Kent Swimley, MD
Jessica Tomsula, MD
Breast-Gyn Pathology Fellowship
Shima Mousavi, MD
Clinical Informatics Fellowship
Paul Christensen, MD
Completed 1 year of Clinical Informatics Fellowship
Ghazaleh Eskandari, MD
Cytopathology Fellowship
Tiffany Sheu, MD
Liye Suo, MD, PhD
GU-Medical Kidney Fellowship (First Program Graduate)
Ziad El-Zaatari, MD
Hematologic Pathology Fellowship
Jacob Armstrong, MD
Fadi Alakeel, MD
Hematopathology Fellowship
Andreia Barbieri, MD
Shujuan Liu, MD, PhD
Molecular Genetic Pathology Fellowship
Joseph Annunziata, MD
Neuropathology Fellowship
Sahara Cathcart, MD
Darshan Trivedi, MD, PhD
Surgical Pathology Fellowship
Jeffrey Conyers, MD
Daniel Duhon, MD
V. Lakshmi Gali, MD
Henning Gertz, MD
Daphne Massey, MD
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First Years Celebrate Conclusion of 2019–20 Academic Year!
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To celebrate the last day of teaching for the 2019–20 academic year, our first years presented Dr. Ro with a cake thanking him for his teaching throughout the past year. Dr. Ro's conference is an integral part of the HMH residency program experience, and his dedication to teaching is appreciated by all!
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Dr. Ro's cake of gratitude.
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2019–20 PGY 1 Residents Dyron Allen, Renee Eng, Karen Thomas, Guy Williams, John Rogers, and Fernando Zazueta (
left to right) with Dr. Ro (
center).
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Members of the 2019-20 class of residents and fellows shared their experiences as trainees during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.
From Moon Joo Kim, MD, 2019-20 PGY2 Resident
COVID-19 has tremendously affected the Department of Pathology and Genomic Medicine at Houston Methodist Hospital for the past couple of months.
The molecular lab has become one of the busiest labs during the COVID-19 outbreak because the diagnostic test for COVID-19 is a PCR test. All the in-house oncology specimens had to be sent out to a reference lab and we have dedicated our lab to COVID-19 testing. During my molecular rotation, I was able to learn the whole process of the new assays and new platforms regarding the COVID-19 test. This included finding testing options by attending virtual meetings with company sales reps, doing variation and verification, writing an SOP, and finally processing interphase with the IT team. There are some interesting assays, such as ABI 7500 with Lyra Direct SARS-CoV-2 assay, which added a heating process, and the Panther TMA assay.
Despite the hard work put into finding the tests, not every assay or platform was accepted for use in our molecular lab due to pending Emergency Use Authorization or due to low accuracy or precision. During this rotation, I was impressed by all the molecular team members dedicated to finding the best, quickest, and most efficient assays to provide quality patient care and prepare for a potential future second outbreak. I truly appreciate their hard work.
From Michelle Lin, MD, 2019-20 PGY2 Resident
Rotating in the molecular laboratory during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic was a unique and memorable experience. Each morning, we met with Dr. Thomas and received our assignments for the day to oversee different areas of the molecular laboratory with different SARS-CoV-2 testing platforms.
Our duties included working with the laboratory directors and managers to track workflow and reagent supply, participating in analysis of RT-PCR results, and troubleshooting various technical and interpretative issues with the assays. In addition, trainees participated in conducting literature reviews and investigating other SARS-CoV-2 testing protocols, and in drafting validation and verification plans for new testing platforms acquired by the laboratory.
Overall, it was extraordinary to witness and participate in the complete restructuring of a laboratory for the sole dedication to one single assay.
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Our Department welcomed
Paul Christensen, MD,
as a staff pathologist at HMH. Dr. Christensen earned his MD in 2014 from the University of Texas McGovern Medical School. He completed his AP/CP residency and fellowships in Clinical Informatics and Clinical Chemistry, all at HMH. Dr. Christensen was part of the teams that developed the Houston Methodist Respiratory Pathogen Snapshot, the Houston Methodist Variant Viewer, and most recently, the HM COVID-19 Patient Dashboard. Dr. Christensen’s interests include skiing and photography, and he is thrilled to be joining the faculty of the Department.
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Our Department welcomed
Megan Ketcham, MD,
as a staff pathologist at HMH. Dr. Ketcham earned her MD in 2014 from the University of Texas McGovern Medical School. She completed her AP/CP residency at HMH, as well as fellowships in Hematopathology at the University of Washington and in Dermatopathology at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Ketcham’s interests include skin lymphomas and baking, and she is elated to join the faculty of the Department.
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Our Department welcomed
Reka Szigeti, MD, PhD,
to HMH as a staff pathologist. Following her AP/CP pathology residency and hematopathology fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), Dr. Szigeti joined BCM pathology. Her areas of interest include lymph node pathology and flow cytometric immunophenotyping. She also enjoys the teaching and mentoring of medical students, residents, and fellows. Dr. Szigeti was an associate professor at BCM and joined us from Ben Taub General Hospital in the Harris Health System, where she served as Deputy Chief of Pathology for Clinical Pathology. Dr. Szigeti is thrilled to join the outstanding team at Houston Methodist.
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Welcome to all of our newest faculty members!
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Faculty Appointments & Promotions
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Rose Anton, MD,
was promoted to Professor of Clinical Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI). Dr. Anton joined our Department in 2000 as an Assistant Professor at Baylor College of Medicine, and she has served on the faculty of Texas A&M Health Science Center as an adjunct professor since 2018. Dr. Anton’s clinical focus is in cytopathology. Dr. Anton is a regular presenter at our residents’ cytology conferences, and she is active in one-on-one clinical teaching of our medical students, residents, and fellows.
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Donna Coffey, MD
, was promoted to Associate Professor of Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI). Dr. Coffey joined our Department in January 2003 as an Assistant Professor of Pathology at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Coffey provides both anatomic pathology and cytopathology services at HMH, and she has performed extensive research in the area of ovarian cancer. Dr. Coffey is a regular participant in the College of American Pathologists’ “See, Test, and Treat” program, and she has served as both lead pathologist and lead cytopathologist for “See, Test, and Treat” events.
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Jian Chen, BM, PhD,
received faculty appointments as Associate Professor of Clinical Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI) and Associate Clinical Member at the Houston Methodist Research Institute (HMRI). Dr. Chen joined our Department in September 2019, and he currently serves as a Co-Director of Transfusion Medicine Service. Dr. Chen’s areas of interest include hematopoietic stem cell mobilization and collection, therapeutic apheresis, transfusion complications, and coagulation and thrombosis.
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S. Wesley Long, MD, PhD
, was promoted to Associate Professor of Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI) and Associate Clinical Member at the Houston Methodist Research Institute (HMRI). Dr. Long joined our Department in July 2011, and he currently serves as Medical Director of Pathology Informatics, Medical Director of the Diagnostic Microbiology Laboratory at HMH, and Program Director of our Clinical Informatics fellowship. Dr. Long has recently been involved in multiple ongoing studies into SARS-CoV-2, including the genomic sequencing of strains recovered from COVID-19 patients in the Houston area. Dr. Long has been featured prominently in media coverage of the current COVID-19 pandemic, and he was a recipient of the System Quality and Patient Safety Award for Teamwork in Infection Prevention and Control in 2019.
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Ekene Okoye, MD,
was promoted to Associate Professor of Clinical Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI). Dr. Okoye joined our Department in May 2013, and also serves on the faculties of Weill Cornell Medical College and Texas A&M University College of Medicine. Dr. Okoye is the Associate Director of the Women’s Health (Breast and Gynecological) Pathology Fellowship, and her clinical focus is in the areas of surgical pathology and gynecological pathology. Dr. Okoye served as co-editor for the recently-published
Atlas of Surgical Pathology Grossing
. Dr. Okoye was the recipient of a 2019-20 Graduate Medical Education Exemplary Faculty Teaching Award.
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Randall Olsen, MD, PhD,
was promoted to Professor of Clinical Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI) and Full Clinical Member at the Houston Methodist Research Institute (HMRI). Dr. Olsen joined our Department in July 2007, and he serves as Medical Director of the Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory and Medical Co-Director of the Diagnostic Microbiology Laboratory at HMH. Dr. Olsen has recently authored papers in high-impact journals including
Nature Genetics
, the
Journal of Clinical Investigation
, and the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
, and he was the winner in 2019 of the Award for Excellence in a Peer-Reviewed Publication from the HMAI.
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Michael Thrall, MD,
was promoted to Professor of Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI) and Full Clinical Member at the Houston Methodist Research Institute (HMRI). Dr. Thrall joined our Department in September 2008 with a clinical focus in cytopathology. Dr. Thrall has served as the Director of Digital Pathology since 2010 and the Cytopathology Fellowship Director since 2017. His academic work includes numerous articles in the fields of cytopathology and informatics. He also served as co-editor of the textbook
Diagnostic Pathology: Cytopathology
,
2
nd
Edition
. Dr. Thrall was a 2018 recipient of the Houston Methodist Faculty Teaching Award for Cytopathology and he has served as a mentor for numerous residents and fellows at HMH.
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Rebecca (Bekra) Yorke, MD,
received faculty appointments as Assistant Professor of Clinical Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute (HMAI) and Assistant Professor of Clinical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC). Dr. Yorke joined our Department in May 2019, after a 15-year tenure with Richard J. Hausner and Associates. Dr. Yorke was previously on the faculty of Baylor College of Medicine as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pathology. She was president of the Texas Society of Pathologists (TSP), as well as an unprecedented four-time recipient of the TSP’s Presidential Award for excellence in the field of pathology.
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Luchang Zhu, PhD,
received faculty appointments as Assistant Research Professor of Pathology and Genomic Medicine at the Houston Methodist Academic Institute, Assistant Research Member at the Houston Methodist Research Institute, and Assistant Professor of Research in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College. Dr. Zhu received his PhD in Pathobiology in 2013 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Zhu’s research has focused on the fitness and virulence of group A and group B streptococcus. Dr. Zhu recently submitted an R21 to the NIH, and he serves as a reviewer for journals such as
Frontiers in Immunology
,
Journal of Microbiology
, and
Veterinary Research
.
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Office of Academic Development News
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The Office of Academic Development (OAD) in the pathology department is available and fully staffed during the current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic to assist department members with editing manuscripts, grants, posters, and presentations. Please contact Sasha Pejerrey at
spejerrey@houstonmethodist.org
or 713.441.5889; Adrienne Winston at
awinston@houstonmethodist.org
or 713.441.3395; or Heather McConnell at
hmcconnell@houstonmethodist.org
0r 346.238.4346. There is no charge for the OAD’s services, and no project is too big or too small!
If you need help reducing percent overlap within a document for a specific journal requirement, please let us know! We have access to iThenticate and expertise in reducing overlap to whatever percent a particular journal may require.
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Salazar E,
Perez KK, Ashraf M,
Chen J, Castillo B, Christensen PA,
Eubank T,
Bernard DW, Eagar TN, Long SW, Subedi S, Olsen RJ, Leveque C, Schwartz MR,
Dey M,
Chavez-East C, Rogers J, Shehabeldin A,
Joseph D, Williams G,
Thomas K,
Masud F, Talley C, Dlouhy KG, Lopez BV, Hampton C, Lavinder J,
Gollihar JD,
Maranhao AC,
Ippolito GC,
Saavedra MO, Cantu CC,
Yerramilli P, Pruitt L, Musser JM
. Treatment of COVID-19 Patients with Convalescent Plasma.
American Journal of Pathology
. 2020 May 27. pii: S0002-9440(20)30257-1. [Epub ahead of print].
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajpath.2020.05.014
A large team of Department members published the first peer-reviewed paper in the nation on experiences with convalescent plasma treatment for COVID-19 patients. On March 28, HMH became the first academic medical center in the nation to be approved by the FDA to perform convalescent plasma therapy for seriously-ill COVID-19 patients under an emergency IND application. A subsequent IND for a clinical trial was approved on April 3. As described in the manuscript, 25 patients with severe or life-threatening COVID-19 were transfused with convalescent plasma from donors who had previously recovered from COVID-19. No major adverse events related to transfusion were noted. Within 14 days of transfusion, 76% of patients saw at least a one-point improvement in their clinical status and 11 patients were discharged from the hospital. The authors concluded that the data indicate that “the administration of convalescent plasma is a safe treatment option for those with severe COVID-19 disease.”
This paper represents the culmination of much hard work by a large team in the Department and across the Houston Methodist system.
Congratulations all, and thank you for your heroic efforts!
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Chévez-Barrios P,
Milman T, Grossniklaus HE, Folberg R, Salomão DR, Gombos D. Ocular Pathology Recommendations during COVID-19 from the American Association of Ophthalmic Oncologists and Pathologists (AAOOP).
Ocular Oncology and Pathology
. 2020 May 1;6(3):223-224.
https://doi.org/10.1159/000507735
Patricia Chévez-Barrios, MD
,
served as lead and corresponding author for a set of recommendations for ophthalmic pathologists from the American Association of Ophthalmic Oncologists and Pathologists (AAOOP) during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Published both as a letter to the editor in
Ocular Oncology and Pathology
and on the website of the AAOOP, the guidelines have been endorsed by the AAOOP Board of Directors and are intended as a resource for practitioners to ensure safety while handling ocular specimens from potentially COVID-19-positive patients.
Congratulations, Dr. Chévez-Barrios!
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Suo L, Liu S, Vega I, Thrall MJ
. Extramedullary multiple myeloma involving the liver and periportal lymph node, diagnosed by EUS-FNA in a patient with cirrhosis.
Diagnostic Cytopathology
. 2020 Jul 1;48(7):657-661.
https://doi.org/10.1002/dc.24416
Ali AB, Khan NA,
Nguyen DT,
Chihara R, Chan EY,
Graviss EA,
et al. Robotic and per-oral endoscopic myotomy have fewer technical complications compared to laparoscopic Heller myotomy.
Surgical Endoscopy
. 2020 Jul 1;34(7):3191-3196.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00464-019-07093-2
Singh VK, Mishra A,
Singh S, Kumar P, Singh M,
Jagannath C, Khan A
. Emerging Prevention and Treatment Strategies to Control COVID-19.
Pathogens
. 2020 Jun 23;9(6). pii: E501.
https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens9060501
Singh VK, Mishra A,
Bark S, Mani A, Subbian S,
Hunter RL, Jagannath C, Khan A
. Human Mesenchymal Stem Cell Based Intracellular Dormancy Model of Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Microbes and Infection
. 2020 Jun 17. pii: S1286-4579(20)30093-9. [Epub ahead of print].
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micinf.2020.05.015
Arora K,
El-Zaatari ZM, Schwartz MR, Ro JY
. Lesions of anogenital mammary-like glands: Four cases including novel pathologic and immunohistochemical observations.
Annals of Diagnostic Pathology
. 2020 Jun 17;47:151551. [Epub ahead of print].
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anndiagpath.2020.151551
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THE LABORATORY REPORT is a publication of the Houston Methodist Department of Pathology and Genomic Medicine
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Editors-in-Chief
Andrea Diaz De Vivar, MD
Mukul Divatia, MD
Editorial Committee
Hazel Awalt, MD
Byron Moore, MD
Seema Mullick, MD
Thu Ngo, MD
Steven Shen, MD, PhD
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Editorial Coordinators
Sasha M. Pejerrey, PhD
Adrienne Winston
Heather McConnell, PhD
Department Chair
James M. Musser, MD, PhD
Houston Methodist Hospital
Mark Vassallo, MSN, RN
Manual Hinojosa, MHA
James Cook, MBA, MT(AS-CP) DLM
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