UA Health News

The UA's Dr. David Labiner has offered quarterly neurology clinics at Indian Health Service and health-care facilities on the Navajo and Hopi reservations for about 15 years and bimonthly ones in Flagstaff for 20 years. Common consultations include treating patients for epilepsy, Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease, stroke recovery, headaches and neuropathy.

Life-saving CPR has been a foundation of emergency medicine for more than a half-century. But UA researchers are continuing to refine the procedure, with a new study concluding that improving the quality and effectiveness of CPR can have a dramatic impact on survival from a cardiac arrest.

Fifty UA College of Medicine-Phoenix students were conferred with their medical degrees at ceremonies on May 8 in the third graduation for the downtown Phoenix medical school. The college, which has graduated 114 physicians in three years toward addressing Arizona's doctor shortage, opened in 2007.

UA plant scientists are studying a novel approach at halting the leading cause of death in premature infants, adding a particular protein to soybeans that can be used in formula as a preventative measure. About 10 percent of infants in the United States are born premature and among the greatest risks those babies face is Necrotizing Entercolitis, an infection and inflammation that causes destruction of the intestine.

The UA College of Nursing on May 9 will honor 64 graduates at its spring convocation. In all, the college has 588 students and ranks among the top 10 percent of graduate nursing programs in the United States. The college is recognized for excellence in nursing and health-care education, research and practice, as well as for leading-edge online access to learning.

Using a DNA sequencing technique capable of deciphering all human genes at the same time, UA researchers have discovered genetic mutations underlying seizure disorders in previously undiagnosed children. Efforts are under way to establish a genomics diagnostic center at the UA and extend the capabilities to other areas such as cardiology, immunology and gastroenterology.

A new UA study, published in the journal Neurology, suggests a possible link between elevated blood sugar levels and risk for developing Alzheimer's disease. Through three-dimensional brain imaging, researchers found an association between elevated blood sugar levels and reduced metabolism in vulnerable regions of the brain.

The UA spin-off company Cancer Prevention Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is building on systematic basic research by UA researchers that explored molecular mechanisms underlying tumor growth. The company is embarking on a clinical trial to prevent the occurrence of colorectal cancer or high-risk polyps in colon cancer survivors.

The UA has partnered with Pima County and South Tucson to create the Garden Kitchen, a seed-to-table health education program that demonstrates how to grow, buy, store and cook nutritious food. Funded in large part by a federal grant to battle obesity, the program is open to all and draws heavily from South Tucson neighborhoods.

Two UA anthropologists are working on tobacco cessation efforts in India and Indonesia, which have some of the highest tobacco-use rates in the world. Mark and Mimi Nichter and their colleagues started Project Quit Tobacco International, which includes, among its ongoing efforts, a smoke-free homes initiative designed to reduce women and children's exposure to secondhand smoke by urging men not to smoke inside their homes.

The UA's Dr. Katri Typpo has received a two-year grant to investigate the best way to feed children during critical illness. Typpo anticipates enrolling approximately 40 patients over the next two years, with the goal to expand the study to additional pediatric medical centers throughout the United States.

First-year medical students at the UA College of Medicine-Phoenix are putting their knowledge to the test in the Arizona Center for Simulation and Experiential Learning, the simulation lab on the downtown campus. The center gives students real-life medical experience by allowing them to "treat" mechanically controlled mannequins.

Arizona parents tend to rely on a "patchwork" of child-care arrangements while many are looking for new options, and many of them struggle to pay for child care, according to a UA-led study. Results indicate that more financial support is needed for parents so their children can access early childhood education programs.

The world's first and second robot-assisted extrapleural pneumonectomy for the treatment of mesothelioma have been performed by Dr. Farid Gharagozloo, professor and section chief of thoracic surgery, robotic cardiothoracic surgery and esophageal surgery with the UA department of surgery. Mesothelioma is a highly invasive cancer, often linked to exposure to asbestos.

Decision-making centers in the brains of insects and mammals share too many similarities to have evolved independently, according to comparative studies led by UA neuroscientist Nick Strausfeld. Recognizing such similarities may help scientists better understand and treat diseases such as Parkinson's.

The UA's Ann Mastergeorge is leading a statewide effort to educate parents, health-care providers and other professionals about how to identify the signs of autism in very young children and how early intervention can help. One in 50 school-aged children in the United States is diagnosed with autism, according to statistics recently released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. Marie Olson, a third-year pediatric resident in the UA College of Medicine, recently traveled to Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala to volunteer her medical skills and work on her Spanish for a month at Hospitalito Atitlán. Olson believes international work teaches residents valuable life lessons: "Working in another country allows you to question your values and attitudes."

UA researchers have identified a clue to explain the reversible memory loss sometimes caused by the use of statins, one of the most widely prescribed medications. Unusual swellings within neurons, which the team has termed the "beads-on-a-string" effect, may be linked to the cognitive decline some patients experience while taking the cholesterol-lowering drugs.

Dr. Mitchell Cordover, a graduate of the UA College of Medicine-Tucson, is working in Antarctica for six months, treating scientists working at a biological research station. The technological capabilities of the site allow for easy and effective telemedicine. Cordover is able to get specialists to help evaluate medical tests, images or video in real time and consultations to assist with treatment decisions within hours.

The UA has established a new School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences that will bring together teaching, research and extension resources from across the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to focus on animal health, growth, nutrition and disease, and human health challenges facing Arizona and the global community. The new school likely will host the proposed Arizona Veterinary Medical Education program.