Dartmouth Medicine Fall 2002
Dear Reporter, Editor, or News Director:
Inside the Fall 2002 issue of Dartmouth Medicine (to request a printed copy, call 603-653-0772 or e-mail dartmed@Dartmouth.edu), read about:
Big decisions about smallpox: An infectious disease expert at Dartmouth chairs the committee that's charged with recommending national vaccine policy. That's put him in the public eye ever since the threat of bioterrorism placed smallpox on the country's public-health agenda. See page 58.
Geneticists ID a new photoreceptor: A team of Dartmouth geneticists has shed new light on a photoreceptor that's part of the biological clock. They've discovered that a single protein both perceives light and then turns on a key gene that controls circadian rhythms. See page 4.
When more isn't necessarily merrier: Two recent studies by Dartmouth pediatricians have cast doubt on the assumption that as the supply of neonatologists increases, the lives of more premature infants can be saved. See page 9.
A new look at the hyping of health information: A pair of Dartmouth faculty members just released two studies suggesting that scientists may bear part of the blame for the fact that medical research sometimes gets exaggerated in the lay press. See page 3.
Water, water everywhere . . . : Well, make that stories about water everywhere--stories, that is, about a review article by a Dartmouth kidney specialist who calls into question the dietary assertion that everyone should drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water every day. He came up dry when he looked for scientific support for the recommendation. And ever since, the press has been deluging him with interview requests and putting out stories awash with puns. See page 10.
When is the death of a cancer patient due to cancer?: Behind the published decline in mortality rates for cancer lies a disquieting fact recently revealed by two Dartmouth researchers--there is wide variation in whether the death of a cancer patient is attributed to the underlying cancer or to some other cause. Does that really matter? It sure does, they say. See page 16.
A thought-provoking documentary: A cross-campus collaboration between pediatricians and ethicists has resulted in a film about an issue that medicine has danced around for decades: What is the range of possible long-term outcomes for the tiniest premature babies? And even more importantly, what are the implications for those babies' parents? This cinema verite documentary doesn't profess to provide answers, but it does raise some important questions. See page 40.
An intimate visit with your doctor--and a dozen other patients as well: The concept of group medical visits is catching on all over the country. Dartmouth-Hitchcock has been working on refining the idea--which, it turns out, is not so new after all--since 1999. See page 18.
If you'd like to pursue any of these stories, you can contact:
- Hali Wickner, communications director for Dartmouth Medical School, at 603/650-1520.
- Deborah Kimbell, media relations manager for DHMC, at 603/653-1913.
Or feel free to give me a call; my direct line is 603/653-0770.
Dana Cook Grossman
Editor