School of Medicine

The Dean of the School of Medicine is looking for a few good staff members for his service award.

School of Medicine scientists found genes that will help scientists to develop therapies for smokers who just can’t seem to quit.

School of Medicine researchers think altering vagal nerve activity could provide a novel approach for treating diabetes and high blood pressure in humans.

Photo by Robert BostonSchool of Medicine researchers found that patients with Parkinson’s disease improve their balance and walking by learning the tango.

A memorial service will be held for Michael and Irene Karl Feb. 23 in the Connor Auditorium at the Farrell Learning and Teaching Center.

Evan D. Kharasch, M.D., Ph.D., has been named the Russell D. and Mary B. Shelden Professor of Anesthesiology.

Listed below are this month’s featured news stories. • Blocking nerves to stop diabetes (week of Feb. 7) • Intelligence gene (week of Feb. 14) • Diet supplements and eye disease (week of Feb. 21) • Testosterone replacement therapy (week of Feb. 28)

Surgery is the only treatment for an abdominal aortic aneurysm, a weak spot in the body’s main artery that dilates dangerously over time. If the vessel ruptures suddenly before surgery to repair it, a quick death is virtually certain. Now, scientists say they have identified a key enzyme that triggers chronic inflammation in the aorta and promotes the growth of aneurysms. Their finding raises hopes for developing a drug that could prevent small aneurysms from enlarging to the point where surgery is necessary.

DamianoPhysicians have an effective new option for treating atrial fibrillation, a common irregular heart rhythm that can cause stroke. WUSM heart surgeons under the direction of Ralph Damiano have developed and tested a device that radically shortens and simplifies a complex surgical procedure that has had the best long-term cure rate for persistent atrial fibrillation. The simplified procedure is termed Cox-maze IV, and the surgeons believe it can replace the older “cut and sew” Cox-maze III.

If you wanted to start today to reduce your chances of getting cancer, what would you have to do? Lose excess weight, get more exercise, eat a healthy diet and quit smoking. Those basic behavior changes would have a tremendous impact on the incidence of the most prevalent types of cancer — lung, breast, prostate and colon cancer — says Graham Colditz, associate director of Prevention and Control at the Siteman Cancer Center at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.