Health Sciences In The Media

Chronic stress among the elderly can make the problem worse, says Roberta Diaz Brinton, PhD, director of the Center for Innovation in Brain Science at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson. She says that elderly stress caused by everything from loneliness to finances to poor health can make mental decline worse.

Infants and children with poor nutrition and growth are more likely to suffer from a serious respiratory condition that has been linked to comorbidities and early mortality as adults, according to researchers at the University of Arizona Health Sciences. The study, published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, is the first to identify early-life risk factors for spirometric restriction in adult life.

John Galgiani, MD, director of the UArizona Valley Fever Center for Excellence, estimated a vaccine would cost $200 million to fully develop. Dr. Galgiani is currently testing a vaccine that will be used in dogs and hopes to deploy to veterinarians by 2023.

Conducting academic research can sometimes improve a medical school applicant's chances of admission, but research experience does not automatically lead to acceptance, according to physicians and medical school officials. Alex G. Little, MD, a clinical professor of surgery at the College of Medicine – Tucson, is quoted.

COVID-19 caseloads in Arizona are falling precipitously after reaching record highs last month, but experts say the state’s Omicron surge is not yet over. Joe Gerald, MD, PhD, associate professor of public health policy at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, is quoted.

Medical school students at the UArizona College of Medicine – Phoenix attend a celebration of appreciation for their cadaver and before that, they get creative with the school's Art in Medicine program. First year medical student Gillian Reynoso and local artist Monica Aissa Martinez discuss the connection between art, the humanities and medicine.

COVID-19 has inflicted a serious mental health toll on many U.S. workers. Patricia L. Haynes, PhD, an associate professor and clinical psychologist with an expertise in sleep psychology, depression, anxiety and intervention research, at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, provides five strategies companies can use to address workplace mental health.

Shad Marvasti, MD, associate professor of family and community medicine at the College of Medicine – Phoenix, discusses the Omicron variant and vaccine equity.

Researchers at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health are partnering with organizations across the state to implement interventions aimed at protecting Arizonans from heat hazards with $2 million in funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Arizona has seen daily case and hospitalization numbers decline, though deaths are still on the rise, climbing from an average of about 61 a day last week to almost 79 as of Tuesday. "We have reason to be hopeful, but we are by no means out of the woods," tweeted Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD, a professor of epidemiology at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health.