Newsroom Stories

The 21st Century Cures Act, sweeping mental health legislation passed this week by the U.S. Senate, will provide necessary funding to help those with mental illnesses if signed by President Obama, but should focus more on mental health outcomes of those suffering right now, says a mental health expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Surgery can restore vision in patients who have suffered hemorrhaging in the eye after a traumatic brain injury, even if the operation doesn’t occur until several months after the injury, according to a small study from vision researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Greater stress and anxiety resulting from economic insecurity may be at least partly to blame for the U.S. death rate that the government announced Dec. 8 has increased for the first time in a decade, says an expert on poverty and inequality at Washington University in St. Louis.

Despite promises made before Donald Trump’s inauguration, the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare, will be as difficult to outright repeal as it was to pass, says a health economist at Washington University in St. Louis.

While a particular metabolic pathway shows potential to slow down the aging process, new research indicates a downside: That same pathway may drive brain cancer. The pathway, known as the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) pathway, is overactive in a deadly form of brain cancer known as glioblastoma, according to a study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Kimberly G. Walker, chief investment officer at Washington University Investment Management Company (WUIMC), will step down from her position effective Dec. 31, according to David W. Kemper, chairman of the board of directors of WUIMC.

Washington University in St. Louis’ Olin Business School took the top spot in a new ranking of U.S. undergraduate business programs unveiled Dec. 5.

On behalf of the university, Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton has joined other presidents and chancellors in urging federal elected and government officials to preserve — and even expand — the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. We will be a strong advocate for the continuation of DACA, should any proposals or changes to existing policy move forward.

The Dec. 2 Board of Trustees meeting focused on undergraduate education, according to Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton. The board also elected a new trustee, alumnus Joseph F. Wayland, AB ‘79, executive vice president and general counsel of Chubb Limited.

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are launching a study aimed at identifying effective treatment methods for seniors with depression that does not respond to standard medications.