For the week of May 11, 2008

May 14 - Dr. Eitzman on TV nationwide

Earlier this year, Daniel Eitzman, M.D., and his team from Cardiovascular Medicine published a study linking "belly" fat directly to inflammation and atherosclerosis, an important milestone in understanding why fat in certain areas of the body is associated with higher risk of cardiovascular disease. The ScienCentral news service, which is funded by the National Science Foundation, has just prepared a story on this research, and has distributed it to TV stations nationwide. The story has already appeared on stations in Portland, OR, Seattle and Salt Lake City, and on the Spanish-language Univision network. Watch the story online here and read the press release on the study here.

May 13 - Dr. Lichter in New York Times

Paul R. Lichter, M.D., glaucoma specialist and Chair, Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, is quoted in today's New York Times on the detection and treatment of eye diseases that commonly affect the general population. Glaucoma, for example, affects 2.2 million people, and requires surgical or medical treatment to avoid permanent loss of vision. Dr. Lichter also comments on advances in cataract surgery and on the need to monitor the vision of patients with age-related macular degeneration.  Treatments are emerging for wet AMD, while dry AMD is more difficult to treat, but is the focus of intense research.  Learn more about eye diseases and treatment here.  Read about research on visual development and disease at Kellogg's Web site.

May 13 - Dr. Worden in New York Times

Francis Worden, M.D., Cancer Center/Internal Medicine, is quoted in today's New York Times in a story about new research from the Cancer Center's Head and Neck Oncology Program. The researchers found a series of markers that indicate which patients are more likely to survive cancers of the base of the tongue and tonsils. Most notably, they found that cancers linked to HPV, or human papillomavirus, are the most responsive to current chemotherapy and radiation treatments. In addition to the New York Times, an article appears in Web MD quoting study author Thomas Carey, Ph.D., Cancer Center/Otolaryngology. Read more about the research from the UMHS press release.

May 11 - Stroke survivor on Ch. 4, in Free Press

Kristy deCastro of Canton is just 39, but she's already a stroke survivor - and a new mom! She survived her stroke with the help of advanced emergency treatment from the U-M Stroke Program, and had her baby a year later with the help of the U-M Obstetrics & Gynecology team. Now, she's sharing her story with the public through stories in Sunday's Detroit Free Press, and on Channel 4 WDIV-TV Detroit. Read the Free Press story here and a text version of the Ch. 4 story here.

May 9 - Dr Zubieta in the news

A new depression study by a team led by Jon-Kar Zubieta, M.D., Ph.D., Psychiatry/MBNI, is getting attention in the news media this week. The study results show that depressed people's brains have fewer receptors for certain "feel good" neurotransmitters than the brains of non-depressed people, and that there's variation among depressed people too. What's more, that variation among depressed people appears to be linked to how severe their symptoms are and whether they respond to treatment. The study has already been covered by the HealthDay newswire, the Canadian CTV network and WWJ-AM in Detroit, among others. Read the UMHS press release on the study.

May 6 - Howard Markel in the New York Times

In an essay in today's New York Times, Howard Markel, M.D., Ph.D., Center for the History of Medicine, discusses the impact of court-ordered monitoring devices on people struggling with substance abuse, and the implications for true recovery.

May 5 - Dr. Carmen Green in Time magazine

People in households earning less than $30,000 a year are in pain 20 percent of the time, compared with just 8 percent in households earning more than $100,000. An article in Time magazine focuses on this disparity, and quotes Carmen R. Green, M.D., about a 2005 study she led. That study found that minorities and poor people have less access to pain medications because pharmacies in their neighborhoods do not have adequate supplies of oxycodone, morphine and other drugs. "I have patients who have to drive 30 miles or more just to get their pain medications," says Green, associate professor of anesthesiology and director of the Pain Research Division.

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