Health Sciences In The Media

Spine surgeon Ali Baaj, MD, is the inaugural chief of spine surgery at the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix and Banner-University Medical Center Phoenix. As spine surgery chief, Dr. Baaj will build a new academic spine program at UArizona-Banner.

A potential COVID-19 vaccine breakthrough after big pharma giant Pfizer said Monday its vaccine is 90 percent effective. "It's incredibly encouraging that the Pfizer vaccine worked," Connick, a professor at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, said. "I think it bodes well for all the vaccines that they may all be successful which will be successful."

Last month, 200,000 children across much of the country were infected with COVID-19, according to a report by the Academy of Pediatrics. While severe illness among kids appears to be rare, researchers don’t know much about the possible long-term effects. Saskia Popescu, an epidemiologist at the University of Arizona's College of Public Health, is interviewed.

Traditional healers, who once played critical roles in governance and health care in the Navajo Nation, are dwindling in number and influence, experts and community leaders say, even as a deadly coronavirus assaults the tribe. Michelle Kahn-John, a professor of nursing at the University of Arizona and secretary of the Diné Hataalii Association, is quoted. This article was first published by the syndicated Cronkite News service on 11/10/20.

Despite news on Nov. 9 that a COVID-19 vaccine is 90% effective, it is important to note that it still could be several more months until it's widely available, and there are some potential issues that come with it. "The challenges with this vaccine is it has to be stored at -94 degree," said Dr. Shad Marvasti, Director of Public Health at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. "Most vaccines are stored at 35°F to 45°F, in a standard refrigerator."

Researchers at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson have developed a method of using ketamine in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. The university has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Pharmather Inc., a subsidiary of Newscope Capital Corporation, for the development and commercialization of the method.

On Monday, pharmaceutical maker Pfizer reported it’s COVID-19 vaccine appears to be 90% effective. Dr. Shad Marvasti, with the University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix, is cautiously optimistic about the news. “We still want to look at the details to verify this, but it definitely sounds very promising and it’s good to hear,” Marvasti said. However, Marvasti cautions that adhering to mitigation efforts like wearing a mask and social distancing is critical even if the vaccine is approved.

As coronavirus cases grow in Arizona, the state could reach a “crisis point” after Thanksgiving, one expert recently warned. “I don’t see us reaching any particular crisis point before Thanksgiving,” Dr. Joe Gerald, an associate professor with the University of Arizona’s Zuckerman College of Public Health, told the Arizona Daily Star. “But once we hit Thanksgiving and move towards Christmas and New Year’s, I think we will eventually reach a crisis point.”

To figure out how holiday gatherings can be adapted so that possible transmission of COVID-19 is less likely, the Arizona Republic spoke with Dr. Kelly Reynolds, an expert on disease transmission and professor at UA’s Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health.

As coronavirus cases grow in Arizona, the state could reach a “crisis point” after Thanksgiving, one expert recently warned. “I don’t see us reaching any particular crisis point before Thanksgiving,” Dr. Joe Gerald, an associate professor with the University of Arizona’s Zuckerman College of Public Health, told the Arizona Daily Star.