Dartmouth Medicine Winter 2000
Dear Reporter, Editor, or News Director:
Inside the Winter 2000 issue of Dartmouth Medicine, (to request a printed copy, call 603-653-0772 or e-mail dartmed@Dartmouth.edu), read about:
The prevalence of arsenic in drinking water: As many as one-fifth of New Hampshire's private wells may contain dangerous concentrations of arsenic. An interdisciplinary group of epidemiologists, biologists, and other experts is investigating the problem. See page 7.
A study showing that injured children are susceptible to PTSD: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has long been recognized as a problem for battle-scarred soldiers or survivors of natural disasters. But hospitalized children can suffer its effects, too, according to a recent Dartmouth study. See page 14.
Four new ways to find breast cancer: Researchers at Dartmouth Medical School and Dartmouth's Thayer School of Engineering are teaming up to test four cutting-edge new techniques to identify breast tumors. The new methods, which don't require compression of the breast tissue, may eventually replace mammography or may be used in conjunction with it. See page 15.
A new genetic disorder: In the span of barely a year from presentation to classification, a never-before-identified genetic metabolic disorder was recently pinpointed and characterized by clinicians and researchers at Dartmouth. See page 8.
The evolution in understanding heart failure: Is heart failure a pumping disorder? A problem of fluid accumulation? A disorder associated with molecular damage to the heart muscle? Or all of the above? A cardiologist on the Dartmouth faculty explores the changes over the years in our understanding of heart failure. See page 19.
What happens when the sound-bite mentality meets the complexity of science: Several members of the Dartmouth Medical School faculty, plus a Dartmouth Overseer who is the health-care correspondent for the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, share their thoughts on how and why doctors and scientists should communicate effectively with the media. See page 20.
The effect of AIDS on women in rural New Hampshire: The incidence of HIV among women is rising dramatically in the United States--including in rural New Hampshire. A recent photographic exhibit aimed to expose some of the disease's little-recognized effects. See page 5.
The complexities of the human genome: The president of Dartmouth College ruminates on the fact that not only has the Human Genome Project introduced many scientific complexities to the world of medicine, but it also poses dilemmas having to do with privacy, confidentiality, and access to care. Both society and academe must step up to those challenges, he avers. See page 36.
The rigors of pediatric intensive care: The medical director of Dartmouth-Hitchcock's Pediatric Intensive Care Unit was one of the pioneers in the demanding field of pediatric intensive care--tending to the needs of the littlest and sickest patients. See page 54.
If you'd like to pursue any of these stories, contact:
- Hali Wickner, communications coordinator for Dartmouth Medical School, at (603) 650-1520.
- The Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Office of Public Affairs, at (603) 650-7041.
Or feel free to give me a call; my direct line is (603) 650-4058.
Dana Cook Grossman,
Editor