Office of Medical Communications

(NOVEMBER 22, 2022) A study by Professor of Medicine Neil A. Zakai, M.D., Professor of Medicine Mary Cushman, M.D., and colleagues found that lower levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are associated with increased coronary heart disease (CHD) risk in White but not Black adults, and higher levels of HDL-C are not protective for either group, HealthDay News reported.

The Dean's Celebration of Excellence in Research is an annual three-day event highlighting the research being conducted by junior faculty, senior faculty, postdoctoral trainees, and graduate students at the University of Vermont and the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine.

The University of Vermont Cancer Center recently announced the names of the inaugural Juckett Scholars. The award program is part of the new Clinician Investigator Development Initiative and is supported by the Juckett Foundation.

(NOVEMBER 18, 2022) WVNY-TV interviewed Vermont Health Commissioner Mark Levine, M.D., professor of medicine and associate dean for graduate medical education, and Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, about a "triple threat" of serious viruses that could impact the upcoming holiday season, as the flu, Covid-19, and the respiratory virus RSV can spread easily in close contact. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 18, 2022) Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Christina Wojewoda, M.D., who is the director of clinical microbiology at the UVM Medical Center and chairs the Microbiology Committee for the College of American Pathologists, commented for a Georgia Public Broadcasting story on monkeypox in that state. (Click on headline for more.)

Located in a rural state with a population among the oldest in the nation, the Larner College of Medicine has long been committed to finding innovative ways to provide and improve access to health care for not only the elderly, but also all residents, regardless of location or socioeconomic status. Several research initiatives at the college focus on new approaches to help patients in these regions.

(NOVEMBER 17, 2022) Infectious disease specialist Louis Polish, M.D., associate professor of medicine, and Pamela Gibson, M.D., professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, were among the co-authors of a letter in the New England Journal of Medicine describing two human cases in Vermont of a rare parasitic disease, according to a HealthDay News story.

Stephen Higgins, PhD, Director of the VCBH, presented a plenary lecture at Brown University School of Public Health on November 4, 2022. The presentation, "Leveraging the Reinforcement Process to Improve Health," is now available for viewing on YouTube.

(NOVEMBER 16, 2022) Professor of Medicine David Kaminsky, M.D., was interviewed by WCAX-TV for a story about a Vermont family’s search for answers following the death of 27-year-old Charles Vallee, who suffered from so-called Long Covid. (Click on headline for more.)

J. Kathleen (Kate) Tracy, Ph.D., has been appointed as senior associate dean for research and professor of medicine at the Larner College of Medicine and director of research at the UVM Health Network. She will begin her new role in February 2023.

(NOVEMBER 15, 2022) In a USA Today article on a new study suggesting that smoking marijuana may do more damage to lungs than cigarettes, pulmonary and critical care physician David Kaminsky, M.D., professor of medicine (who is unaffiliated with the study), commented, “It’s no surprise to me. A burning leaf is a burning leaf ... the lung doesn’t know the difference if it’s tobacco or marijuana.”

(NOVEMBER 15, 2022) J. Kathleen (Kate) Tracy, Ph.D., has been appointed as senior associate dean for research at the Larner College of Medicine, effective in February 2023, Dean Richard L. Page, M.D., announced. Tracy will also serve as professor of medicine and director of research at the UVM Health Network, according to VermontBiz.

(NOVEMBER 14, 2022) UVMMC pediatric critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, urges new parents to limit visitors’ contact with their babies in light of surging RSV infections in children, NECN and NBC10 Boston reported.

(NOVEMBER 10, 2022) Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Margaret Doyle, Ph.D., was featured in a Vanderbilt University Medical Center VUMC Reporter article about a study she authored that showed an association between three types of CD4+ T helper cells and incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) among people with HIV infection.

(NOVEMBER 10, 2022) Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine Daniel Barkhuff, M.D., a Navy SEAL veteran and the founder and board president of Veterans for Responsible Leadership, was among veterans featured in a segment on Vermont Public's Vermont Edition program about deployment, return, and the transition to civilian life. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 10, 2022) Nataniel Lester-Coll, M.D., assistant professor of radiation oncology, spoke about the effects of cyberattacks on radiation oncology at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s 2022 Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, Medscape reported.

Assistant Professor of Surgery Mirabelle Sajisevi, M.D., and colleagues published a study in JAMA Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery regarding geographical variation in modes of detection for thyroid cancer, a disease that has risen dramatically in incidence since the 1990s.

(NOVEMBER 9, 2022) Vitamin D levels in patients with a deficiency and cystic fibrosis increased with a single high dose, according to a poster presented by Professor of Pediatrics Jillian S. Sullivan, M.D., and colleagues at the North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference held November 3-5 in Philadelphia, Healio News reported.