Office of Medical Communications

(MAY 10, 2023) A federal health task force now recommends that all women with an average risk of breast cancer start screening every other year beginning at age 40 — rather than at age 50, as was recommended in the previous update in 2016, WCAX-TV reported. Brian Sprague, Ph.D., professor of surgery and biochemistry, hopes this will reverse the decline in screening that UVM Cancer Center research has shown for the past several years. “I’m hoping this will help,” he says.

(MAY 10, 2023) Natasha Withers, D.O., clinical assistant professor of family medicine, will soon start treating depression with a mind-altering drug that’s shown promise in helping people who don’t respond to traditional medicine — despite lingering questions about the drug’s long-term safety and effectiveness — Seven Days reported.

(MAY 10, 2023) With the COVID-19 public health emergency expiring on the national level, WCAX-TV interviewed Vermont Health Commissioner Mark Levine, M.D., associate dean for graduate medical education and professor of medicine, and Jan Carney, M.D., M.P.H., associate dean of public health and health policy and professor of medicine, about what changes Vermonters can expect.

(MAY 5, 2023) Whether or not the COVID-19 pandemic is over, the mental health crisis for young people that spiked over the past two years continues, child psychiatrist Andrew Rosenfeld, M.D., associate professor of psychiatry and pediatrics, told WCAX-TV.

(MAY 3, 2023) Vermont has become one of the only states in the nation to grant out-of-staters the right to exercise medical aid-in-dying. Palliative medicine specialist Diana Barnard, M.D., associate professor of family medicine — the Middlebury doctor who’s credited with helping to change the law — says it’s a victory for equal access to health care, WCAX-TV reported. (Click on headline for more.)

(MAY 3, 2023) Judith Shaw, Ed.D., M.P.H., RN, FAAP, professor emerita of pediatrics, told Healio that the annual Pediatric Academic Societies Meeting, held April 28–May 1 in Washington, D.C., “highlights a broad issue of interest across the full spectrum of pediatric research, science, and education.” Shaw served as program chair for the 2023 conference.

Stephen Higgins, PhD, Director of the VCBH, and Sarah Heil, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Associate Director of UVM TCORS, have each been honored with 2023 UVM Faculty Recognition Awards for their accomplishments in scholarship, teaching, and advising. Dr. Higgins is a recipient of the University Distinguished Professor Award, and Dr. Heil has earned the University Scholars Award.

(MAY 2, 2023) Jan Carney, M.D., M.P.H., associate dean for public health and health policy, professor of medicine, and director of the graduate public health program at Larner, was interviewed by WalletHub about the future of the nursing profession and how recent graduates can find success.

Research led by Leslie Young, M.D., demonstrates that the "Eat, Sleep, Console” care approach (ESC) for newborns exposed to opioids in the womb results in shorter hospital stays and decreased need for medication. National Institutes of Health funded the study. The findings are published in New England Journal of Medicine.

(APRIL 30, 2023) According to Medical Dialogues, a new study by pulmonologist Anne Dixon, B.M.B.Ch., professor and interim chair of medicine, and colleagues has found that people with asthma and obesity have significant dysfunction in the distal airways at baseline that worsens with methacholine.

(APRIL 30, 2023) New research led by neonatologist Leslie Young, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, shows that babies exposed to opioids in the womb have shorter hospital stays when care includes more parent involvement and a quieter environment, the Associated Press reported.

An expanded partnership between University of Vermont physician-founded THINKMD and global children’s health leader Save the Children aims to have a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of children in vulnerable communities across the globe.

(APRIL 26, 2023) Health care professionals play a critical role in promoting safe firearm storage, Associate Professor of Pediatrics Thomas Delaney, Ph.D., — who does suicide prevention work at the Larner College of Medicine — told Vox.

(APRIL 26, 2023) CBS3 reported that Vermont legislators are contemplating a proposal to ban menthol and flavored tobacco products, including vapes, something medical experts say is crucial to preventing problems later in life. “It’s not a clear risk or outcome when you start smoking or vaping when you’re 16-17 years old. These are things that start to cause problems when you’re 40, 50, 60 years old,” said cardiologist Prospero Gogo, M.D., professor of medicine.

(APRIL 25, 2023) Mary Cushman, M.D., M.Sc., professor of medicine and of pathology & laboratory medicine, is a co-author of a study on COVID-19 vaccines and their alleged risk of causing blood clots that was highlighted in World Today News.

(APRIL 21, 2023) An internal memo obtained by VTDigger, dated April 20 and signed by Health Commissioner and Larner Professor of Medicine Mark Levine, M.D., laid out a plan to stockpile a two-year supply of mifepristone, one of two pills taken in tandem to induce an abortion.

Undergraduate students from groups under-represented in medicine often overlook pediatric medicine as a career choice. Larner medical students hosted an event to increase pediatrician diversity and support undergrads who feel apprehensive about medical school.

(APRIL 20, 2023) Kae Ravichandran ’25 won the newly created nonbinary division at the 2023 Boston Marathon on April 17 with a time of 2 hours and 38 minutes, NBC5 and numerous other media outlets reported.