Scholars@Duke
Sharla Marie Rent

Sharla Marie Rent

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics
Pediatrics, Neonatology
sharla.rent@duke.edu
DUMC 102509, Durham, NC 27710
2400 Pratt Street, 8th Floor, Durham, NC 27705

Selected Publications

Discussion of Spirituality in Family Conferences of Infants With Neurologic Conditions.

Journal Article J Pain Symptom Manage · September 24, 2024 INTRODUCTION: Spirituality serves as a mechanism to understand and cope with serious illness, yet little is known about how families and clinicians incorporate spirituality in pediatric family conferences. OBJECTIVES: We sought to characterize the frequenc ... Full text Link to item Cite

Neonatal Resuscitation and Delivery Room Care: A Changing Global Landscape.

Journal Article Neoreviews · September 1, 2024 With 98% of neonatal deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), leading health organizations continue to focus on global reduction of neonatal mortality. The presence of a skilled clinician at delivery has been shown to decrease mortalit ... Full text Link to item Cite

Nutrition and the gut-brain axis in neonatal brain injury and development.

Journal Article Semin Perinatol · August 2024 Early nutritional exposures, including during embryogenesis and the immediate postnatal period, affect offspring outcomes in both the short- and long-term. Alterations of these modifiable exposures shape the developing gut microbiome, intestinal developmen ... Full text Link to item Cite

A national virtual job search series for neonatal-perinatal medicine fellows.

Journal Article BMC Med Educ · June 6, 2024 BACKGROUND: A standardized approach to prepare trainees for the job search has not been described. The objective of this study was to describe and evaluate an educational series on the job search for Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine (NPM) fellows and identify p ... Full text Link to item Cite

Promoting a neuropalliative care approach in fetal neurology.

Journal Article Semin Fetal Neonatal Med · February 2024 Full text Link to item Cite

"When a man drinks alcohol it's cool but when a woman drinks she is a hoe": A qualitative exploration of alcohol, gender, stigma, and sexual assault in Moshi, Tanzania.

Journal Article PLOS Glob Public Health · 2024 Alcohol's ever-increasing global use poses a distinct threat to human well-being, with intake and associated burdens rising especially quickly in low- and middle-income countries like Tanzania. Prior research has shown alcohol use and related consequences ... Full text Link to item Cite

Perinatal loss in Tanzania: Perspectives of maternal-child healthcare providers.

Journal Article PLOS Glob Public Health · 2024 Over 98% of stillbirths and neonatal deaths occur in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, such as Tanzania. Despite the profound burden of perinatal loss in these regions, access to facility or community-based palliative and psychosocial care is poor and unde ... Full text Link to item Cite

Diagnostic Utility of Cerebrospinal Fluid White Blood Cell Components for the Identification of Bacterial Meningitis in Infants.

Journal Article J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc · December 26, 2023 BACKGROUND: To evaluate the diagnostic and predictive utility of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) white blood cell (WBC) components in the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis in infants discharged from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). METHODS: We identified ... Full text Link to item Cite

The Impact of Time, Region, and Income Level on Stillbirth and Neonatal Mortality in Brazil, 2000-2019.

Journal Article J Pediatr · November 2023 OBJECTIVE: To describe trends in perinatal loss across Brazil, a country that transitioned in 2006 from a lower-middle income to an upper-middle income country, from 2000 to 2019 and analyze the effect of municipal wealth status on perinatal outcomes. STUD ... Full text Link to item Cite

The Role of Perinatal Palliative Care in Fetal Neurology.

Journal Article Am J Perinatol · September 2023 OBJECTIVES: Many serious or life-threatening neurologic conditions are first diagnosed during the fetal period, often following a routine ultrasound or sonographic evaluation after an abnormal aneuploidy screen. Such conditions represent a worrisome or une ... Full text Link to item Cite

Malaria in Pregnancy: Key Points for the Neonatologist.

Journal Article Neoreviews · September 1, 2023 In malaria-endemic regions, infection with the malaria parasite Plasmodium during pregnancy has been identified as a key modifiable factor in preterm birth, the delivery of low-birthweight infants, and stillbirth. Compared with their nonpregnant peers, pre ... Full text Link to item Cite

A Mixed-Methods Comparison of Gender Differences in Alcohol Consumption and Drinking Characteristics among Patients in Moshi, Tanzania.

Journal Article medRxiv · May 18, 2023 BACKGROUND: Excessive alcohol use stands as a serious threat to individual and community well-being, having been linked to a wide array of physical, social, mental, and economic harms. Alcohol consumption differs by gender, a trend seen both globally and i ... Full text Link to item Cite

Provider Perceptions on Bereavement Following Newborn Death: A Qualitative Study from Ethiopia and Ghana.

Journal Article J Pediatr · March 2023 OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to explore how clinicians in low- and middle-income countries engage and support parents following newborn death. STUDY DESIGN: Qualitative interviews of 40 neonatal clinicians with diverse training were conducted ... Full text Link to item Cite

Neonatal neuropalliative care.

Journal Article Handb Clin Neurol · 2023 Neonatal neuropalliative care is directed toward patients and families impacted by serious, life limiting, or debilitating neurologic illness in the antenatal and newborn period. This chapter will outline key considerations for clinicians hoping to provide ... Full text Link to item Cite

Perinatal palliative care in sub-Saharan Africa: recommendations for practice, future research, and guideline development.

Journal Article Front Pediatr · 2023 Worldwide, sub-Saharan Africa has the highest burden of global neonatal mortality (43%) and neonatal mortality rate (NMR): 27 deaths per 1,000 live births. The WHO recognizes palliative care (PC) as an integral, yet underutilized, component of perinatal ca ... Full text Link to item Cite

A mixed-methods comparison of gender differences in alcohol consumption and drinking characteristics among patients in Moshi, Tanzania.

Journal Article PLOS Glob Public Health · 2023 Excessive alcohol use stands as a serious threat to individual and community well-being, having been linked to a wide array of physical, social, mental, and economic harms. Alcohol consumption differs by gender, a trend seen both globally and in Moshi, Tan ... Full text Link to item Cite

Family caregiver perspectives on strengths and challenges in the care of pediatric injury patients at a tertiary referral hospital in Northern Tanzania.

Journal Article PLoS One · 2023 BACKGROUND: Pediatric injuries are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). It is important that injured children get quality care in order to improve their outcomes. Injured children are nearly always accompa ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Impact of socioeconomic factors and health determinants on preterm birth in Brazil: a register-based study.

Journal Article BMC Pregnancy Childbirth · November 24, 2022 BACKGROUND: More than 15 million children are born preterm annually. While preterm survival rates have increased in high-income countries. Low- and middle-income countries, like Brazil, continue to battle high neonatal mortality rates due to a lack of adeq ... Full text Link to item Cite

Fellows as Teachers: Supporting Future Educators.

Journal Article Neoreviews · July 1, 2022 Teaching is inherent to the practice of medicine, as physicians are relied on to educate those around them, including staff, trainees, colleagues, and the patients and families for whom they provide care. Neonatal-perinatal medicine fellows uniquely serve ... Full text Link to item Cite

Perspectives on Resuscitation Decisions at the Margin of Viability among Specialist Newborn Care Providers in Ghana and Ethiopia: A Qualitative Analysis.

Journal Article BMC Pediatr · February 17, 2022 BACKGROUND: In high income countries, guidelines exist recommending gestational age thresholds for offering and obligating neonatal resuscitation for extremely preterm infants. In low- and middle- income countries, this approach may be impractical due to l ... Full text Link to item Cite

Three delays model applied to pediatric injury care seeking in Northern Tanzania: A mixed methods study.

Journal Article PLOS Glob Public Health · 2022 Pediatric injuries are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in low-and middle-income countries. Timely presentation to care is key for favorable outcomes. The goal of this study was to identify and examine delays that children experience between inju ... Full text Link to item Cite

Global Health Education and Best Practices for Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Trainees.

Journal Article Neoreviews · December 1, 2021 Neonatal-perinatal medicine (NPM) trainees are expressing an increased interest in global health. NPM fellowship programs are tasked with ensuring that interested fellows receive appropriate training and mentorship to participate in the global health arena ... Full text Link to item Cite

Neuropalliative Care for Neonates.

Journal Article J Child Neurol · October 2021 Many childhood neurologic conditions are first diagnosed in the perinatal period and shorten or seriously alter the lives of affected infants. Neonatal neuropalliative care incorporates core practices and teachings of both neurology and palliative care and ... Full text Link to item Cite

Parental Stress and Mental Health Symptoms in the NICU: Recognition and Interventions.

Journal Article Neoreviews · August 2021 Parental experiences in the NICU are often characterized by psychological stress and anxiety following the birth of a critically ill or premature infant. Such stress can have a negative impact on parents and their vulnerable infants during NICU hospitaliza ... Full text Link to item Cite

Identifying neonatal early-onset sepsis test and treatment decision thresholds.

Journal Article J Perinatol · June 2021 OBJECTIVE: To derive testing and treatment thresholds for early-onset neonatal sepsis and compare them to thresholds used in the Kaiser-Permanente (KP) Sepsis Calculator. METHODS: Using surveys distributed in the United States, Brazil and Italy, decision t ... Full text Link to item Cite

Provider perspectives on Asram in Ghana.

Journal Article J Biosoc Sci · April 19, 2021 Neonatal mortality is one of the leading causes of under-five mortality globally, with the majority of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. In Ghana, there is a belief in an array of newborn conditions, called Asram, that are thought ... Full text Link to item Cite

Effect of a Low-Dose/High-Frequency Training in Introducing a Nurse-Led Neonatal Advanced Life Support Service in a Referral Hospital in Ethiopia.

Journal Article Front Pediatr · 2021 Background and Objective: In Ethiopia, birth asphyxia causes ~30% of all neonatal deaths and 11-31% of deaths among neonates delivered in healthcare facilities that have breathing difficulty at birth. This study aimed to examine the impact of low-dose, hig ... Full text Link to item Cite

Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Fellowship

Chapter · January 1, 2021 Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine (NPM) fellowship is a dynamic 3-year training program that incorporates clinical experiences and research training. Neonatology trainees are encouraged to choose scholarly work that aligns with their personal interests and caree ... Full text Cite

Global health training during neonatal fellowship: fellow and program director perspectives.

Journal Article J Perinatol · August 2020 OBJECTIVE: This study explored the availability and perception of Global Health (GH) training opportunities in US-based Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine (NPM) fellowship programs. STUDY DESIGN: Electronic surveys, containing discrete choice and open-ended quest ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite