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Volume 6 - Number 1
- Winter 2007
We hope
that you'll enjoy these quick highlights from the MCV Campus.
Please forward
this newsletter to friends who might like to learn more
about the
School of Medicine!
Proving His Doubters Wrong, Day by Day
The AAMC has
featured second-year student Olakunle Idowu in its new
campaign to increase diversity in medicine. You can read
about Kunle's
inspiring story at the AAMC's Web site.
Fulbright Scholars to Study in Jordan
Fourth-year
student Sohaib Mohiuddin and his wife Sana Malik
departed in December for a nine-month stay in Jordan.
Remarkably, both Mohuiddin and Malik were selected for
prestigious Fulbright Scholarships. Mohiuddin will
concentrate his research on the prevalence,
presentations and risk factors of Alzheimer's in the
Jordanian population. Read more about the
couple's experience.
A Week in the Life
Have you wondered what it's
like to go to medical school in 2007? Get
a glimpse into the busy schedule of second-year
medical student Kevin Lee. Like many of our students,
Kevin's experience has been shaped in part by the
generosity of alumni and friends whose gifts of time and
talents support courses like Foundations of Clinical
Medicine as well as the Annual Fund and student
scholarships.
Relief from Moderate-to-Severe
PMS
"Our study is
the first to evaluate the use of low-dose antidepressant
medication for women who have moderate-to-severe PMS,
and the first placebo-controlled study to include the
novel dosing strategy of 'symptom-onset dosing,'" said
lead author Susan G. Kornstein, M.D., a professor of
psychiatry and obstetrics and gynecology. Read more
about who may benefit from treatment
with low doses of anti-depressant medication.
Novel
Mechanism of Action of a Potential New MS Drug
Sarah Spiegel,
Ph.D., professor and chair in the Department of
Biochemistry, reports that the immunosuppressant drug
FTY720, or Fingolimod, inhibits the activity of a key
enzyme called cPLA2. This unique action can shut down
the entire inflammatory pathway, possibly without the
side-effects caused by medications such as Vioxx. Read
more about the article that was pre-published
as a First Edition Paper in Blood.
Association Between
Neuroticism and Depression Risk may be
Genetic
Using
twin modeling, researchers have determined that a
substantial proportion of the genetic vulnerability to
depression is shared with neuroticism. "The personality
trait of neuroticism - perhaps better understood as
"negative emotionality" -- is a strong risk factor of
major depression," said lead author Kenneth S. Kendler,
M.D., a professor of psychiatry and human genetics. Read
more about the study that was published
in the Archives of General Psychiatry.
Antibiotics Prescribed Unnecessarily for
Acute Bronchitis
For years, physicians have prescribed antibiotics
for the treatment of acute bronchitis. But a review of
research studies and clinical trials has concluded there
is no evidence in current literature to support
prescribing antibiotics for the treatment of short-term
bronchitis, because almost all the causes of such
infections are viral and they don't respond to the
therapy. Read more about the
review published in the New England Journal of
Medicine.
Medical Teams Are Key to Patient Safety
A New England
Journal of Medicine editorial proposes that medical
teams - not individuals - are vital to the prevention of
catheter-related bloodstream infections, as well as for
the overall health and safety of patients. The editorial
accompanies a study that "is the most important paper
published in infection control in the last decade,"
according to Michael B. Edmond, M.D., acting chair in
the Division of Infectious Diseases. Read
more about the editorial co-authored by Dr. Edmond
and Richard P. Wenzel, M.D., professor and chair in the
Department of Internal Medicine and president of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases.
Nation-Wide Campaign for
Pulmonary-Hypertension
It can attack at any time, targeting any age,
ethnicity or gender. And it is difficult to diagnose.
Wally Smith, M.D., co-director of the Adult Sickle Cell
Program, and Paul Fairman, M.D., director of the lung
transplant program, are part of a nationwide campaign to
create public awareness about pulmonary
hypertension. Read more about pulmonary
hypertension, which is often associated with sickle cell
disease.
Medical Society of Virginia Salutes MCV Alum
and Current Student
For their commitment to community service,
Clarence "Clancy" A. Holland, M'62, and second-year
student David C. Buxton recently were honored during the
Medical Society of Virginia Foundation's fifth annual
Presidents' Gala at Kingsmill in Williamsburg. Read more
about their
outstanding efforts.
Ronaoke and Lynchburg
pics
Dean of
Medicine Jerry Strauss recently hosted receptions for
alumni of the Roanoke and Lynchburg areas. Take a look
at photos from the Roanoke
and Lynchburg
events.
If you're from San Francisco, go online to give
us your latest
contact information so that we can send you
invitations for an upcoming alumni gathering in
February.
Reunion Weekend 2007
Alumni from class years
ending in '7s and '2s should mark their calendars for
Reunion Weekend April 27 - 29! If you graduated with
these classes but did not receive information on making
hotel reservations and updating addresses with the
Alumni Association, please call (800) 628-7799 or (804)
828-3900.
Reunion Weekend will kick off with a day-long CME
course on Friday. Offering up to 6.75 credit hours, the
course will feature stellar faculty covering a range of
topics from Parkinson's disease and drug-resistant
infections to prostate cancer. Additional information
and registration will be available online later this
winter. Plan to start Reunion Weekend a day early, or
even make a special trip to Richmond - the course is
open to all alumni, even those not celebrating a Reunion
year.
Pediatrics at the Beach
The
29th Annual Pediatric Primary Care Conference will take
place July 20-22 at the Hilton Oceanfront Hotel in
Virginia Beach. Three half-day sessions include topics
in Emergency Medicine, Primary Care and Developmental
and Behavioral Pediatrics. This CME course is designed
for physicians and other health-care professionals who
deliver primary care to children and adolescents. For
registration information please contact Natasha Williams
at (804) 828-3640. A brochure and online registration
will be available February 1 at http://www.cmeregistration.som.vcu.edu/.
Charitable IRA Rollovers
A limited-time provision
for charitable contributions from Individual Retirement
Accounts could give you an unprecedented opportunity to
help the medical school. Between now and December 31,
2007, individuals aged 70 ½ and older may transfer up to
$100,000 per year. The charitable distribution counts
toward Minimum Required Distribution requirements and
may be made in addition to any other charitable giving
you may have planned. The provision does include some
limitations, and we recommend you seek the advice of
your tax and/or legal counsel before deciding on a
course of action. If you would like more information
about your options under this unique provision, please
contact Tom Holland, Associate Dean for Development at
(800) 332-8813, (804) 828-3800 or mailto:tehollan@vcu.ed.
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Update
Your Contact Info and provide the Alumni and
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Annual
Fund dollars support scholarships and student
interest groups as well as milestone events in the
medical school. You can give
online via the MCV Foundation's secure eGiving page.
Check out the
upcoming CME
offerings from the medical school's Office of
Continuing Physician Professional Development &
Evaluation Studies including conferences in Pediatrics,
Neurophysiology, Hepatology and Gastroenterology.
Past issues of SOM eNews are online.
For More Information:
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Foundation
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