Sleep quality plays a significant role in academic performance and student engagement in social activities. The COVID-related stay at home orders provide a unique opportunity to assess the impact of class synchronicity on individual students’ sleep quality, as a majority of undergraduate students attending the University of Washington in Fall 2020 did so via remote learning. Data gathered from undergraduate students who were unable to attend in-person classes, had a reduced social schedule, and may likely have been furloughed from employment, internship, and research positions could provide valuable insight regarding the effects of class scheduling on sleep quality. We examined the relationship between schedule flexibility and sleep quality using survey data and Acitwatch sleep data collected over two months from 20 UW students during the Fall 2020 quarter and analyzed the resulting data to test two competing hypotheses: (1) that a greater proportion of asynchronous classes would increase schedule irregularity, leading to poorer sleep quality; (2) that a greater proportion of asynchronous classes would allow students to optimize their time to meet sleep needs, resulting in higher sleep quality. Analyzing the proportion of asynchronous classes in relation to sleep efficiency, weekday sleep duration, weekday standard deviation, and social jetlag, we observed a greater degree of social jetlag in the group that had less than 25% of their classes held synchronously. These results supported the first hypothesis, suggesting students with more irregular schedules experienced poorer sleep quality. We additionally examine previous years’ data as a comparative control to examine the effect of a higher percentage of synchronicity of class schedule on sleep quality.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. Research shows that vulnerable populations, including low-income, uninsured, and racial and ethnic minority groups, disproportionately experience negative cancer outcomes. In Washington State, the Breast, Cervical, and Colon Health Program (BCCHP) aims to reduce cancer health disparities by providing free cancer screening to residents with low incomes or who either lack insurance or have a high deductible plan. However, clinics face challenges to enrolling eligible participants into BCCHP. The purpose of this ongoing study is to identify barriers and facilitators in the BCCHP enrollment workflow in order to optimize the BCCHP enrollment process, with the goal of increasing access to cancer screening among marginalized communities. In this qualitative study, we identified clinics within an urban health system and conducted interviews with key clinic staff involved in the BCCHP enrollment process. Key informants include the clinic’s BCCHP enrollment coordinator as well as other staff such as providers and medical assistants who participate in enrollment. We then analyzed interview transcripts using content analysis to determine characteristics of clinics associated with high and low performance in BCCHP enrollment. These results will inform preliminary recommendations to Public Health—Seattle & King County for overcoming workflow barriers and optimizing enrollment of eligible participants.

In this study, we investigate the relationship between alcohol consumption and sleep efficiency among a sample of University of Washington students. Alcohol consumption has been found to activate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, leading to an increase in cortisol levels. Elevated levels of cortisol are known to have adverse effects on sleep patterns. If the consumption of alcohol leads to elevated levels of cortisol which thus negatively affects sleep, we can predict that individuals who consume alcohol regularly will exhibit poorer sleep quality than individuals who do not consume alcohol at all. We hypothesize that individuals who consume alcohol regularly will exhibit poorer sleep quality than individuals who do not consume alcohol at all. To test this hypothesis we analyzed daily sleep data from 20 students collected from Actiwatches worn over two months. As a measure of sleep quality, we analyzed variation in sleep efficiency, defined as the percentage of time spent asleep while in bed. Participants reported alcohol usage in anonymous one-time surveys. We compared participants who drank on a weekly basis (between one to four or more times a week) versus participants who did not drink at all. Average sleep efficiency was calculated by the percentage of time spent asleep which gives an overall sense of how well an individual slept. The higher the percentage the higher the quality of sleep. Average sleep efficiency was significantly greater in participants who indicated they did not drink alcohol in comparison to those who did (85.16% vs. 73.02%, p = 0.01). It must be noted that the correlation between participants who do not drink and have higher average sleep efficiency cannot be stated as a causative relationship. Further research is suggested to determine whether weekly alcohol consumption directly affects sleep efficiency and if so, by what mechanisms.

Approximately 90% of women in the United States report physical or emotional changes prior to and during their period. These changes can include symptoms such as fatigue, cramps, reduced concentration and memory, sensitivity to noise and light, sadness, anxiety, irritability, mood swings, and sleeping too much or not enough. In the Fall Quarter of 2020, we collected sleep, mood, and menstruation data from 19 female university students over the course of 2 months. Participants wore Actiwatches to track sleep, light exposure, and activity. In addition, participants answered daily and one-time surveys about sleep, mood, and menstruation. We hypothesized that mood scores on menstruating days would be lower than scores on non-menstruating days. We analyzed differences in mean mood scores on menstruating days versus non-menstruating days. This mood score was on a scale from one to seven, with one indicating poor mood and seven indicating excellent mood. Since subjects reported significantly lower mood scores on menstruating days than on non-menstruating days, we aim to expand on research to uncover which variables impacted mood specifically. The t-test compared average scores for menstruating and non-menstruating per participant to allow us to compare results within and across all subjects. To test for other variables that may have contributed to lower mood, we will also examine how mood scores varied with participant birth control usage, activity, and natural light exposure. We hypothesize that additional variables such as natural light exposure and activity may have contributed to the statistically significant difference between mood reported on menstruating vs. non-menstruating days. Our work is important because while menstruation is extremely common, research on variables that impact mood during menstruation is often inconclusive or minimized by stigma.

Spinal osteoarthritis (OA) is a debilitating condition characterized by a deterioration of the cartilage discs and the development of osteophytes, bony growths, along the vertebrae. This study aims to examine the relationship between sex and spinal OA through a longitudinal approach in the rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta). This primate species has proven to be a reliable model of spinal conditions reflected in the human spine; however, sex differences as they relate to the onset and progression of the disease have not been investigated in a longitudinal study. Indications through preliminary testing appear that males tend to have more severe osteophyte growths. This is anticipated due to sexual dimorphism that occurs in which males tend to have a larger body mass than females. Two measures for assessing spinal OA are vertebral osteophytosis (OST) and disc space narrowing (DSN). OST and DSN were assessed based on an atlas scoring method (0-3 increasing severity) using five years of radiographic data for male and female macaques (N=47). For this study, OST measurements were taken based on the anteroposterior plane, examining all four corners of the thoracolumbar vertebrae, T9-L7. Due to limited costal visibility, DSN was assessed for discs from the mid-thoracic region (T8) through the lumbar region (L7). This study is intended to provide an improved understanding of osteoarthritic patterns that can be further investigated in biological anthropology.