WHSC News Releases for March 1998

Mar 20 '98	PUBLIC HEALTH CYBER-STYLE: Internet-Based Courses Let CDC Staff -- and Others -- Pursue Emory Masters of Public Health from Afar "Educational and computer systems experts at the Rollins School of Public Health of Emory University have collaborated with their colleagues in Health Education to take on-line distance learning to a new level." More
Mar 20 '98	EMORY DOCTORS USE QUICK, PAINLESS PROCEDURE TO REDUCE HABITUAL SNORING "Using a painless new procedure performed in 10 minutes in their clinic offices, Emory otolaryngologists (ENT specialists) Todd Kingdom, M.D. and John DelGaudio, M.D. are restoring a restful night's sleep to habitual snorers and their loved ones. The unique procedure, called Somnoplasty, reduces excess tissue under the soft palate by using a small electrode that emits very low levels of radiofrequency to heat the tissue without burning it." More
Mar 20 '98	CALENDAR LISTING: PERSONS WITH TYPE II (ADULT-ONSET) DIABETES NEEDED FOR NEW 24-HOUR INSULIN ANALOGUE STUDY "Men and women ages 40-80 who have Type II (adult onset) diabetes and are insulin dependent are being recruited by endocrinology researchers at the Emory University School of Medicine. The study will test a new drug with 24-hour insulin-like activity." More
Mar 20 '98	FROM EMORY TO THE DEVELOPING WORLD: ONE PROFESSOR'S MISSION "Seeing is believing -- and in medicine, "seeing" can mean the difference between life and death. X-rays and all sorts of other imaging vehicles are allowing doctors to "see" more clearly and diagnose more accurately what ails within." More
Mar 20 '98	TRANSFERRING TECHNOLOGY AT EMORY: NEW FINANCING FOR RESEARCH "In the 1995 survey published by the Association of Technology Transfer, Emory University ranked 19th among American universities in technology transfer, with the vast majority of products coming from the Emory School of Medicine in the fields of biomedicine and bioengineering. Like many universities nationally, Emory now actively encourages its researchers to patent their ideas and pursue marketing opportunities. More
Mar 11 '98 previously embargoed	PNEUMONIA IS INCREASINGLY RESISTANT TO AVAILABLE ANTIBIOTICS, RESEARCHERS FIND "A seven-state survey of pneumococcal infections from July 1996 to June 1997 has identified substantial numbers of samples that were resistant to one or more of the most commonly used antibiotics. Significant increases were noted in resistance to erythromycin and in multi-drug resistance, the survey found. The laboratory surveillance was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Emerging Infections Programs at a number of universities and state health departments. The findings were presented at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases in Atlanta on March 11." More
Mar 11 '98 previously embargoed	AGE OF BACTERIAL MENINGITIS PATIENTS AND SUBTYPES OF DISEASE HAVE CHANGED SUBSTANTIALLY WITHIN PAST DECADE "Although the incidence of sporadic outbreaks of bacterial meningitis in the United States has remained steady over the last three decades, a recent survey of bacterial meningitis cases in the metro Atlanta area and in Georgia has revealed a marked shift in the last eight years in both the age-specific incidence and in the specific subgroups of the disease. Results of the survey were presented on March 10 at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases in Atlanta." More
Mar 10 '98	EMORY UNIVERSITY EXPANDS INCOMING CLASS OF MD/PHD STUDENTS BY 40 PERCENT "In a strong expression of support for combined medical and graduate education at Emory University, Thomas J. Lawley, M.D., dean of the School of Medicine, has expanded the number of entering M.D./Ph.D. students from five to seven new students." More
Mar 10 '98	A NEW CONCEPT IN HIGHER EDUCATION: EMORY AND GEORGIA TECH CREATE JOINT DEPARTMENT OF BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING "Atlanta recently grew one step closer to making its bid to join Silicon Valley, Route 128, and the Research Triangle as a research and economic powerhouse with the announcement of a joint biomedical engineering department between Emory University and the Georgia Institute of Technology." More
Mar 9 '98 previously embargoed	LABORATORY SURVEY REVEALS GEOGRAPHIC AND RACIAL VARIATION IN GROUPS AT RISK FOR YERSINIA INFECTION "A year-long surveillance of clinical laboratories in five states, including Georgia, revealed considerable geographic and racial variation in the incidence of Yersinia Enterocolitica infection, an acute infection of the intestinal tract primarily affecting children. Y. enterocolitica (YE) is spread through contaminated food or water, particularly raw pork or pork products, or from infected people or animals. Results of the research were presented in Atlanta on March 9 at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases." More
Mar 9 '98	GEOSENTINEL NETWORK AND TRAVEL-RELATED INFECTIOUS DISEASES"Over the last 150 years the world's population has grown from less than one billion persons in 1850 to over 6 billion persons projected by the year 2000. In the same period, the time required to circumnavigate the globe has been reduced from 365 days to 72 hours (less than the incubation period for most infectious diseases). International travel has reached unprecedented proportions; commercial airlines now carry 1.4 million persons across international borders each day. The speed and volume of international travel is one of the principal factors contributing to the global emergence of infectious diseases." More
Mar 9 '98 previously embargoed	CAMPYLOBACTER IS MOST COMMONLY DIAGNOSED FOODBORNE PATHOGEN IN U.S., SURVEY REVEALS"A year-long surveillance of clinical laboratories in five states, including Georgia, identified Campylobacter as the most common foodborne pathogen, followed by Salmonella. Data on the foodborne infections was collected from five states within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet), part of the CDC's Emerging Infections Program. Results of the survey were presented in Atlanta on March 9 at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases." More
Mar 3 '98	FACE IT: VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR EMORY DERMATOLOGY STUDIES OF THREE FACIAL PROBLEMS "Facial hair in women, precancerous lesions on the face, and facial acne in females over 14 are the skin conditions being evaluated in three studies now underway in the Department of Dermatology at the Emory University School of Medicine." More
Mar 2 '98	HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY: QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS "A petering out of sex hormones as we age coincides with a number of the less desirable aspects of growing older, namely brittle bones, loss of the ol' sex drive and sagging muscles." More
Mar 2 '98	GERIATRICS CENTER OF EXCELLENCE DESIGNATION GOES TO JOINT EMORY-UAB PROGRAM "A collaborative venture between Emory University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is ensuring that as America's aging population grows, so will the number of physicians trained to care for older adults." More
Mar 2 '98	WOMEN DOCS ARE HEALTHY ROLE MODELS FOR AMERICAN WOMEN, EMORY STUDY SUGGESTS "Women physicians may be considered exemplary role models for making healthy choices, suggest Emory University researchers in this week's Archives of Internal Medicine." More
Mar 2 '98	CHICKEN POX VACCINATIONS "Each year in the winter and early spring, chicken pox shows its spotted face. Once considered a childhood rite of passage, chicken pox is now a preventable disease. Thanks to the March 1995 approval of Varivax, the "chicken pox shot," children no longer face an inevitable week of itching and an unsightly rash. However, the public's slow acceptance of this vaccine means that many children must still endure the illness." More
Mar 2 '98	GOOD HEALTH IS EVERYONE'S BUSINESS "In today's competitive business market, the health of a company isn't always judged by a profit and loss statement. EMORY HEALTHCARE is working to help employers identify ways to keep their employees and business healthy and productive through its Corporate Health Services." More
March 2 '98	BRAIN AWARENESS WEEK:EMORY AND GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY EXPERTS OFFER INSIGHTS INTO DRUG ABUSE "Some say the human brain is that which truly distinguishes man from other animals. Yet until recently, the nature of the human brain has remained elusive. In the past decade, however, scientists have unlocked more mysteries about the brain than had been achieved for centuries." More

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