Scholars@Duke
Maryellen Kelly

Maryellen Kelly

Assistant Research Professor in the School of Nursing
School of Nursing
maryellen.kelly@duke.edu
307 Trent Drive, Box 3322 DUMC, Durham, NC 27710
Office hours By appointment  

Selected Publications

Comparing binary & ordinal definitions of urinary & stool continence outcomes: Data from the National Spina Bifida Patient Registry.

Journal Article J Pediatr Urol · October 2024 INTRODUCTION: The National Spina Bifida Patient Registry (NSBPR) assesses bladder and bowel incontinence using ordinal categories, but prior NSBPR analyses employed binary classification. Our aims were to 1) perform the first NSBPR analysis of bladder and ... Full text Link to item Cite

Characterization of pediatric urinary microbiome at species-level resolution indicates variation due to sex, age, and urologic history.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · October 2024 BackgroundRecently, associations between recurrent urinary tract infections (UTI) and the urinary microbiome (urobiome) composition have been identified in adults. However, little is known about the urobiome in children. We aimed to characterize t ... Full text Cite

Synthesis of current pediatric urinary microbiome research.

Journal Article Frontiers in pediatrics · January 2024 The human urinary bladder hosts a complex microbial community of low biomass referred to as the urobiome. While the composition of the urobiome has been investigated in adults for over a decade now, only a few studies have considered the presence and compo ... Full text Cite

Pediatric neurogenic bowel dysfunction: ICCS review document.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · June 2023 IntroductionThe International Children's Continence Society (ICCS) aims to improve the quality of life in children with lower urinary tract dysfunction. A substantial portion of children also have problems with bowel dysfunction. There is a lack o ... Full text Cite

Neurodevelopmental Implications on Urological Self-management Among People Living With Spina Bifida: A Practical Guide for Urology Providers.

Journal Article Urology · March 2023 Although folic acid fortification and advances in prenatal repair have reduced Spina Bifida (SB) prevalence and the severity of comorbidities, individuals with SB remain at elevated risk for neurocognitive impairments that studies have shown can negatively ... Full text Cite

Establishing the first community-centered Spina Bifida research agenda.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · December 2022 IntroductionSpina bifida (SB) is the most common permanently disabling congenital defect. In 2016, the Spina Bifida Association (SBA) began updating the Guidelines for the Care of People with Spina Bifida (Guidelines). These Guidelines identified ... Full text Cite

COVID-19 vaccination in individuals with spina bifida: A national survey.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric rehabilitation medicine · January 2022 PurposeThis study aimed to conduct a national survey of individuals with spina bifida (SB) and their care partners to assess COVID-19 vaccination behaviors and vaccine uptake.MethodsA survey instrument was designed to assess current vacci ... Full text Cite

Utility estimation for neurogenic bowel dysfunction in the general population.

Journal Article J Pediatr Urol · June 2021 BACKGROUND: Neurogenic bowel dysfunction (NBD) affects over 80% of individuals with spina bifida causing bowel incontinence and/or constipation. NBD is also associated with decreased quality of life, depression, anxiety, and decreased employment/educationa ... Full text Link to item Cite

Who is managing the bowels? A survey of clinical practice patterns in spina bifida clinics.

Journal Article J Pediatr Rehabil Med · 2021 PURPOSE: Neurogenic bowel dysfunction (NBD) affects 80% of individuals with spina bifida. Performing and disseminating research on NBD to reach the appropriate audience is difficult given the variability among medical specialties managing NBD. This study a ... Full text Link to item Cite

Neurogenic bowel treatments and continence outcomes in children and adults with myelomeningocele.

Journal Article J Pediatr Rehabil Med · 2020 PURPOSE: Neurogenic bowel dysfunction (NBD) is a common comorbidity of myelomeningocele (MMC), the most common and severe form of spina bifida. The National Spina Bifida Patient Registry (NSBPR) is a research collaboration between the CDC and Spina Bifida ... Full text Link to item Cite

Randomized open-label trial comparing topical prescription triamcinolone to over-the-counter hydrocortisone for the treatment of phimosis.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · August 2019 BackgroundPhimosis is a common condition affecting most infant boys and generally resolves over time without symptoms. Severe cases of phimosis can lead to balanoposthitis, urinary tract infections, and urinary retention. Medical treatment for sym ... Full text Cite

Malone Antegrade Continence Enemas vs. Cecostomy vs. Transanal Irrigation-What Is New and How Do We Counsel Our Patients?

Journal Article Current urology reports · June 2019 Featured Publication Purpose of reviewNo gold standard exists for managing neurogenic bowel dysfunction, specifically in individuals with spina bifida. Since the International Children's Continence Society published its consensus document on neurogenic bowel treatment ... Full text Cite

Assessment of pediatric bowel and bladder dysfunction: a critical appraisal of the literature.

Journal Article J Pediatr Urol · December 2018 Featured Publication OBJECTIVE: Bowel and bladder dysfunction (BBD) is a clinical syndrome defined by the coexistence of constipation and lower urinary tract symptoms. Although BBD is a common condition in pediatric urology and can cause significant stress to patients/parents, ... Full text Link to item Cite

Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms in Older Children With and Without Diabetes Mellitus.

Journal Article Clin Pediatr (Phila) · November 2018 Featured Publication Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) are an underrecognized complication of diabetes mellitus (DM) in adults and have undergone limited investigation in children. We estimated the prevalence of LUTS in 120 older children (11-17 years) with and without DM an ... Full text Link to item Cite

Evaluation of spina bifida transitional care practices in the United States.

Journal Article J Pediatr Rehabil Med · December 11, 2017 Featured Publication PURPOSE: Recent studies have revealed that the lack of continuity in preparing patients with spina bifida to transition into adult-centered care may have detrimental health consequences. We sought to describe current practices of transitional care services ... Full text Link to item Cite

Home Urodynamic Pressures and Volume Measurement for the Neurogenic Bladder: Initial Validation Study.

Journal Article The Journal of urology · December 2017 PurposeWe evaluated the ability of a bladder pressure/volume diary to identify patients at risk for increased intravesical pressures.Materials and methodsPatients dependent on clean intermittent catheterization used ruler based manometry ... Full text Cite

Prospective evaluation of Peristeen® transanal irrigation system with the validated neurogenic bowel dysfunction score sheet in the pediatric population.

Journal Article Neurourology and urodynamics · March 2017 AimsTo determine the ability of Peristeen® transanal irrigation system to reduce symptoms of neurogenic bowel dysfunction (NBD) in patients using the validated neurogenic bowel dysfunction scoring system for the pediatric population.Methods Full text Cite

Kelly procedure for exstrophy or epispadias patients: Anatomical description of the pudendal neurovasculature.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · June 2016 IntroductionAdequate penile length in males with bladder exstrophy or epispadias is a major challenge. Kelly previously described a surgical technique of a single stage reconstruction for patients with exstrophy or epispadias that potentially achi ... Full text Cite

Endoscopic correction of vesicoureteral reflux simulator curriculum as an effective teaching tool: Pilot study.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · February 2016 IntroductionIt has been well recognized that simulators are effective tools to teach and evaluate technical skills in laparoscopic surgery. Endoscopic injection for the correction of vesicourteral reflux has a definite learning curve. Surgeon expe ... Full text Cite

Development, reliability and validation of a neurogenic bowel dysfunction score in pediatric patients with spina bifida.

Journal Article Neurourology and urodynamics · February 2016 Featured Publication ObjectiveTo develop a reliable and valid questionnaire to monitor neurogenic bowel symptoms in children.PatientsThirty-four children aged 6-18 with neurogenic bowel and their caregivers. Eighteen control patients.MethodsAn expert ... Full text Cite

Predicting the Risk of Breakthrough Urinary Tract Infections: Primary Vesicoureteral Reflux.

Journal Article The Journal of urology · November 2015 Featured Publication PurposeWe constructed a risk prediction instrument stratifying patients with primary vesicoureteral reflux into groups according to their 2-year probability of breakthrough urinary tract infection.Materials and methodsDemographic and clin ... Full text Cite

Aerosol transfer of bladder urothelial and smooth muscle cells onto demucosalized colonic segments for bladder augmentation: in vivo, long term, and functional pilot study.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · October 2015 BackgroundBladder augmentation technique has changed over the years and the current practice has significant adverse health effects and long-term sequelae. Previously, we reported a novel cell transfer technology for covering demucosalized colonic ... Full text Cite

Application of continuous incisional infusion of local anesthetic after major pediatric urological surgery: prospective randomized controlled trial.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric surgery · March 2015 Featured Publication PurposeThe aim of the study was to determine efficacy of continuous incisional infusion of local anesthetic, ON-Q® pain relief system (Kimberly-Clark, Georgia), in improving postoperative pain, reducing narcotic requirement, and shortening recover ... Full text Cite

Application of continuous incisional infusion of local anesthetic after major pediatric urological surgery.

Journal Article Journal of pediatric urology · December 2013 ObjectivesTo determine the efficacy of the locally infused anesthetic, ON-Q(®) pain relief system (Kimberly-Clarke, GA-USA), in improving postoperative pain, reducing narcotic requirement, and shortening recovery time after major pediatric urologi ... Full text Cite

Is the appearance of the dextranomer/hyaluronic acid mound predictive of reflux resolution?

Journal Article The Journal of urology · May 2013 PurposeAfter endoscopic correction of vesicoureteral reflux, we correlated the appearance of the Deflux® mound with the outcome.Material and methodsWe created an online survey based on 11 primary vesicoureteral reflux cases, including 6 f ... Full text Cite