2010 Press Releases
August 27, 2010
Diabetes impairs but does not halt sex among older adults
Many middle-aged and older adults with diabetes are sexually active according to a study of nearly 2,000 people aged 57 to 85 presented in the September 2010 issue of the journal Diabetes Care. Almost 70 percent of partnered men with diabetes and 62 percent of partnered women with diabetes engaged in sexual activity two or three times a month, comparable to those without diabetes, the study showed.
August 25, 2010
Expensive immunotherapy shows no advantage over placebo for recurrent miscarriage patients
The University of Chicago Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Program (RPL) recently completed a comprehensive study examining the use of immunotherapy to help couples that had experienced recurrent miscarriages for unexplained reasons achieve a successful pregnancy.
August 16, 2010
Studies pinpoint key targets for MRSA vaccine
Two recent studies provide evidence for a new approach to vaccines to prevent infections caused by drug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus -- better known as MRSA – the leading cause of skin and soft tissue, bloodstream and lung infections in the United States. One demonstrates a way to counteract the bacteria's knack for evading the immune system. The other shows how to disrupt the germ's tissue-damaging mechanism.
August 16, 2010
Unique breast oncology and plastic surgery offer superior outcomes
While physicians and researchers strive for the day when drugs, radiation and even ultrasound will be used to obliterate tumors, surgical removal of breast cancer remains the standard treatment.
August 10, 2010
$22.5 million grant funds international study of membrane proteins
The outer surface of cells is a factory floor of machines with varied functions: exchanging materials in and out, receiving signals, and generating energy. Studying these machines, called membrane proteins, is one of the greatest challenges of science, crucial for understanding cellular biology and developing new drugs to fight disease.
July 29, 2010
Renowned diabetes specialist to head biosciences, medical school and Medical Center at the University of Chicago
Kenneth S. Polonsky, MD, a prominent diabetes researcher, physician and educator, has been appointed Dean of the Division of the Biological Sciences and the Pritzker School of Medicine and Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University of Chicago, effective October 1, 2010.
July 15, 2010
National survey names University of Chicago Medical Center as one of the best U.S. hospitals
In its annual "Best Hospitals" survey, U.S.News & World Report selected the University of Chicago Medical Center as one of the finest hospitals in the United States.
July 2, 2010
Families with rare forms of diabetes gather to celebrate progress
Twenty-five families who have overcome diabetes caused by a defect in a single gene will gather at "Celebrating the Miracles," a University of Chicago symposium for patients, parents and physicians. The first Monogenic Diabetes Forum is designed to review scientific studies, celebrate treatment successes, stress the importance of a genetic diagnosis for children diagnosed before age one, and exchange tips on how to make the most of a new concept--life without insulin injections.
July 1, 2010
University of Chicago federal relations office adds health policy advocate
William A. Garner, DRPH, joined the University of Chicago's Office of Federal Relations on June 1 as a Director of Federal Relations, a new position focusing on federal issues impacting academic medicine, biomedical research, the training of health professionals, the delivery of health care to Chicago's South Side, and the University of Chicago Medical Center.
June 28, 2010
University of Chicago physician named White House Fellow
Emergency medicine specialist Thomas Fisher, MD, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Chicago and a 2001 graduate of the University's Pritzker School of Medicine, and Pat Basu, MD, an attending radiologist at Stanford University and a 2005 graduate of both Pritzker and the University's Graduate School of Business, have been selected as two of the 13 White House Fellows for 2010-11.
June 22, 2010
Deadly effect of arsenic in drinking water measured in massive study
More than 20 percent of deaths in a study of 12,000 Bangladeshis were attributable to arsenic exposure from contaminated drinking water, new research reports.
June 18, 2010
Anesthesiologist and airway expert Andranik Ovassapian, MD, 1936-2010
An anesthesiologist who developed some of the tools and techniques used to control breathing during surgery for patients with a "difficult" airway, Andranik (Andy) Ovassapian, MD, professor of anesthesia and critical care at the University of Chicago, died June 17 following a major stroke at a hospital in Helsinki, Finland, where he was attending the annual meeting of the European Society of Anesthesiology. He was 74.
June 11, 2010
Cardiologist, mentor and physician-scientist Morton Arnsdorf, MD, 1940-2010
A nationally renowned cardiologist, best known for his basic research on abnormal heart rhythms and the molecular structure of drugs to treat them, and a pioneer in applying nanotechnology to the study of biomedical problems, Morton F. Arnsdorf, MD, professor emeritus and associate vice chair of medicine and former section chief of cardiology at the University of Chicago, died in a motor vehicle accident in Indiana on June 9, 2010, on his way home from work. He was 69 years old.
June 8, 2010
Epigenetic gene silencing may hold key to fatal lung vascular disease
A rare but fatal disease of blood vessels in the lung may be caused in part by aberrant silencing of genes rather than genetic mutation, new research reports.
June 3, 2010
Comer Children's Hospital at the University of Chicago named among 'America's Best' by U.S.News & World Report
Comer Children's Hospital at the University of Chicago has again been ranked among the best children's hospitals in the United States, according to the 2010 edition of America's Best Children's Hospitals, to be published by U.S.News & World Report.
June 3, 2010
Neuroscientist Philip S. Ulinski, PhD, 1943 – 2010
An expert in the field of neuroanatomy and the architect of one of the country's first graduate training programs in computational neuroscience, Philip S. Ulinski, PhD, Professor Emeritus and former chair of the Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, and the Committee on Computational Neuroscience, died May 25, 2010 at the age of 67. The cause of death was heart disease.
June 1, 2010
University of Chicago collaborates on national research to understand care, outcomes of young women with heart disease
A multi-center research project studying the role of gender in how young people recover from heart attacks is examining why young women who have heart attacks are about twice as likely to die in the hospital as men of the same age.
May 28, 2010
Actress Marcia Wallace to speak at University of Chicago Medical Center's 20th annual Cancer Survivors Day
Marcia Wallace, best known for her Emmy-winning role as Mrs. Edna Krabappel on The Simpsons, as Carol Kester on the Bob Newhart Show, as Murphy Brown's secretary, and as a panelist on hundreds of television talk and game shows and 50 commercials, will be the keynote speaker for the 20th annual Cancer Survivors Day celebration, sponsored by the University of Chicago Medical Center.
May 27, 2010
University of Chicago cardiologist Michael Davidson, MD, named president of National Lipid Association
The National Lipid Association, a multidisciplinary non-profit membership association that serves healthcare professionals who manage patients with lipid disorders and cardiovascular disease, installed Michael H. Davidson, MD, professor of medicine and director of preventive cardiology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, as national president for the organization at the Annual Scientific Sessions in Chicago on May 15, 2010.
May 26, 2010
Blocking tumor's "death switch" paradoxically stops tumor growth
Every cell contains machinery for self-destruction, used to induce death when damaged or sick. But according to a new research study, a receptor thought to mediate cell suicide in normal cells may actually be responsible for the unrestrained growth of cancerous tumors.
May 19, 2010
University of Chicago cardiologist Stephen Archer named president-elect of American Heart Association's Chicago board of directors
Stephen L. Archer, MD, the Harold Hines Jr. Professor of Medicine and chief of cardiology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, has been named president-elect of the American Heart Association's Metro Chicago board of directors. His one-year term as president will begin in the fall.
May 18, 2010
National Geographic names University of Chicago researcher an "Emerging Explorer for 2010"
Herpetologist and toxinologist Zoltan Takacs, PhD, a research associate and assistant professor at the University of Chicago, has been named to the 2010 class of National Geographic Emerging Explorers.
May 18, 2010
Study confirms performance of new defibrillator with no heart leads
Results from clinical trials performed in Europe and New Zealand, published online in the New England Journal of Medicine, demonstrate the effectiveness of a new less-invasive, subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) for sudden cardiac arrest, a potentially fatal electrical malfunction of the heart.
May 17, 2010
Prehistoric fish extinction paved the way for modern vertebrates
A mass extinction of fish 360 million years ago hit the reset button on Earth's life, setting the stage for modern vertebrate biodiversity, a new study reports.
May 12, 2010
Monitoring and control can limit side effects of promising cancer drugs
A new class of cancer drugs can be used effectively while minimizing hypertensive side effects if patients' blood pressure is closely monitored and controlled, a clinical panel has determined.
May 7, 2010
Celiac disease researcher nabs top international prize
Bana Jabri, MD, PhD, co-director, University of Chicago Digestive Disease Research Core Center, and an internationally renowned celiac disease researcher, was recently awarded the coveted Warren Prize for Excellence in Celiac Disease Research.
May 7, 2010
First living-donor liver transplant recipient graduates from college May 9
On Sunday, May 9 (Mothers Day), Alyssa Smith, the recipient of the first living-donor liver transplant in the United States--using tissue donated to her by her mother--will graduate magna cum laude from Meredith College in Raleigh, NC, with a bachelor's degree in social work.
May 6, 2010
Book provides simple checklist for health at every age
Can a young doctor's advice to his mother save 100,000 lives a year? Shantanu Nundy, MD, a second-year resident in internal medicine at the University of Chicago Medical Center may soon find out. Driven by his mother's health questions and the difficulty of providing simple, reliable answers, Nundy collected all of the "generally accepted truths" about preventing disease, organized them into checklists based on age, and persuaded the Johns Hopkins University Press to publish them as Stay Healthy at Every Age: What Your Doctor Wants you to Know.
April 30, 2010
Rodney L. Goldstein named Chair of University of Chicago Medical Center Board of Trustees
Rodney L. Goldstein, an accomplished Chicago business executive and longtime leader in the University community, has been appointed as Chair of the University of Chicago Medical Center Board of Trustees.
April 28, 2010
Focused heat treatment appears to reduce asthma symptoms
On April 27, 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first medical device that uses heat, produced by radiofrequency energy, to treat severe asthma. The Alair Bronchial Thermoplasty System is intended for patients 18 and older whose severe and persistent asthma is not well-controlled with inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting beta-agonist medications.
April 23, 2010
Toy Story 3 screening to support programs at Comer Children's Hospital at the University of Chicago
Comer Children's Hospital at the University of Chicago is partnering with Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios to hold a preview screening of Disney*Pixar's Toy Story 3 on May 15, 2010, at the new Kerasotes Showplace ICON Theatre and Lobby Lounge at 150 W. Roosevelt, Chicago.
April 21, 2010
DaVita to purchase Medical Center dialysis centers
DaVita, Inc., one of the largest companies in the United States providing dialysis services for patients with chronic kidney disease, will assume ownership, including administrative and financial management, of the University of Chicago Medical Center's three off-site dialysis centers and its home dialysis program on August 1, 2010.
April 15, 2010
University of Chicago biology and medicine rise in graduate rankings
The University of Chicago's graduate programs in the biological sciences and the Pritzker School were both ranked 13th in the United States in U.S. News & World Report's annual "Best Graduate Schools" issue, on newsstands April 27, 2010.
April 14, 2010
University of Chicago celebrates career of surgeon Edwin Kaplan
Endocrine surgeons from around the world will join with dozens of Chicago physicians this Friday, April 16, to celebrate the long, illustrious and ongoing medical career of Edwin Kaplan, MD, professor of surgery at the University of Chicago, who joined the faculty in 1968.
April 13, 2010
Janet D. Rowley, MD, receives AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research
Janet D. Rowley, MD, the Blum-Riese distinguished service professor in the departments of medicine, molecular genetics and cell biology, and human genetics at the University of Chicago, will receive the seventh annual American Association for Cancer Research Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research at the AACR 101st Annual Meeting in Washington, DC, during the opening ceremony on Sunday, April 18.
April 7, 2010
University of Chicago physician named to Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues
Daniel Sulmasy, MD, PhD, the Kilbride-Clinton Professor of Medicine and Ethics in the Department of Medicine and the Divinity School, and Associate Director of the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at the University of Chicago, has been appointed to the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues.
March 23, 2010
University of Chicago medical teams return from Haitian relief efforts
After the January 12 earthquake devastated much of Haiti, more than 40 health care providers from the University of Chicago Medical Center were selected from hundreds of volunteers to spend one to six weeks working hot, dusty, 18-hour days contributing to medical-relief efforts there or across the border in the Dominican Republic. Another team is preparing to fly into Port-au-Prince April 8.
March 15, 2010
Communication often fumbled during patient hand-offs in hospital
As shifts change in a hospital, outgoing physicians must "hand off" important information to their replacements in a brief meeting. But a new study of this hand-off process finds that the most important information is not fully conveyed in a majority of cases, even as physicians rate their communication as successful.
March 10, 2010
Life is shorter for men, but sexually active life expectancy is longer
At age 55, men can expect another 15 years of sexual activity, but women that age should expect less than 11 years, according to a study by University of Chicago researchers published early online March 10 by the British Medical Journal. Men in good or excellent health at 55 can add 5 to 7 years to that number. Equally healthy women gain slightly less, 3 to 6 years.
March 8, 2010
University of Chicago's Mitchell Posner named president of the Society of Surgical Oncology
An internationally recognized expert on cancers of the esophagus, pancreas, stomach, liver, colon and rectum, Mitchell Posner, MD, the Thomas D. Jones Professor and vice chairman of surgery and section chief of general and oncologic surgery at the University of Chicago Medical Center, was sworn in to a one-year term as president of the Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) on March 6, 2010, at the Society's annual business meeting in St Louis. SSO is the premier professional organization for the field.
March 5, 2010
University of Chicago and Ataxia Foundation team up for annual scientific and patient meetings
The National Ataxia Foundation (NAF), in conjunction with the University of Chicago program in pathobiology and translational neuroscience, will hold its third annual Ataxia Investigators Meeting March 9-11, 2010, at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare, in Rosemont, Ill. A three-day meeting for patients, caregivers and families will follow at the same location.
March 1, 2010
Ring Edges Out the Pill in Compliance Among College Women
According to a randomized, controlled trial published in the March issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology, female college and graduate students at Midwestern colleges and universities were more likely to have perfect short-term compliance using a contraceptive vaginal ring rather than those taking contraceptive pills.
March 1, 2010
Medical Physicist Maryellen Giger elected to National Academy of Engineering
Maryellen L. Giger, PhD, professor and vice chair in the Department of Radiology, has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Engineering (NAE), part of The National Academies.
February 25, 2010
Scientists map genetic regulatory elements for the heart
Scientists have devised a new computational model that can be used to reveal genetic regulatory elements responsible for development of the human heart and maintenance of its function.
February 24, 2010
Brain implant reveals the neural patterns of attention
A paralyzed patient implanted with a brain-computer interface device has allowed scientists to determine the relationship between brain waves and attention.
February 18, 2010
$16 million grant supports study of unexplained anemia in older adults
A $16 million grant from the National Institute on Aging will enable a team of national experts to study why unexplained anemia is so common in older adults and find better treatments. The Partnership for Anemia: Clinical and Translational Trials in the Elderly brings together specialists from seven leading centers to study older adults with unexplained anemia and to use the knowledge gained to develop improved therapies.
February 5, 2010
University of Chicago sending second round of medical teams for Haitian relief effort
Three more teams from the University of Chicago Medical Center -- a total of 22 people -- will fly to Santo Domingo Saturday, Sunday and Thursday to provide continued health care for the people of Haiti.
January 25, 2010
University of Chicago medical team in place for Haitian relief effort
A team of three physicians, two nurses and 1,100 pounds of medical, surgical and pharmaceutical supplies arrived in the Dominican Republic on Monday, January 25, on their way to the small mountain town of Jimani, on the border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, where they will help staff a hospital that has been overrun with refugees and displaced persons from the earthquake that devastated Haiti.
January 25, 2010
Illuminating protein networks in one step
A new assay capable of examining hundreds of proteins at once and enabling new experiments that could dramatically change our understanding of cancer and other diseases has been invented by a team of University of Chicago scientists.
January 25, 2010
As in humans, sleep solidifies a bird's memories
Sleeping is known to help humans stabilize information and tasks learned during the preceding day. Now, researchers have found that sleep has similar effects upon learning in starlings, a discovery that will open up future research into how the brain learns and preserves information.
January 21, 2010
National Academy of Sciences Honors Rowley
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) has recognized Janet D. Rowley, MD, as one of 17 individuals who have made extraordinary scientific achievements in the areas of biology, chemistry, geology, astronomy, and psychology. The award, consisting of a medal and a prize of $25,000, recognizes important contributions to the medical sciences. An awards ceremony for the recipients will take place on April 25 during the Academy's annual meeting.
January 8, 2010
Conrad Gilliam named Dean for Research at the University of Chicago Biological Sciences Division
Conrad Gilliam, PhD, has been named the Dean for Research and Graduate Education at the University of Chicago Biological Sciences Division, a new position, effective January 1, 2010.
January 6, 2010
Researchers revisit pulmonary arterial hypertension survival
Setting out to determine the survival of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), researchers at the University of Chicago Medical Center and their colleagues also discovered that an equation used for more than 20 years to predict survival is outdated. Accordingly, they developed and recently published a new survival prediction equation that will impact clinical practice and the drug development process.
