Health And Medicine

For colorectal surgery patients at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, the introduction last summer of a new patient care protocol, which includes intensive follow-up by anesthesiologists in the hospital, has led to an average 25 percent reduction in hospital length of stay after surgery — from four days to three — and 90 percent reduction in the use of opioids to treat post-operative pain. Read More

As health care organizations implement new strategies to improve quality and reduce costs, a physician researcher at VUMC is setting out to identify whether there could be unintended effects. Read More

With support from a three-year, $2 million research grant from Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), Vanderbilt University Medical Center and the American Heart Association are teaming up to study heart failure care in the Emergency Department. Read More

With the help of a computer program called “Rosetta,” researchers at Vanderbilt University have “redesigned” an antibody that has increased potency and can neutralize more strains of the AIDS-causing human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) than can any known natural antibody. Read More

In an especially underserved region of western Kenya, expectant mothers requiring cesarean section are the focus of a new $2.6 million grant to Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), Kenya’s AIC Kijabe Hospital and the Kenya-based Center for Public Health and Development. Read More

Using probiotics may help alleviate the symptoms of allergic rhinitis (AR), also known as seasonal or perennial allergies, according to a Vanderbilt study that reviewed 23 previous trials. Read More

The Vanderbilt-based Mid-South Clinical Data Research Network (CDRN) is among seven CDRNs that will collaboratively mount a three-year, $14 million randomized clinical trial to determine the best daily dose of aspirin for preventing heart attacks and strokes among people living with heart disease. Read More

The enzyme alkaline phosphatase may provide a new therapeutic option for women at high risk of pregnancy complications due to bacterial toxin exposure. Read More

The NetGestalt computing portal integrates vast amounts of data to aid users in finding biologically and clinically relevant information. Read More

A metabolic change in adult stem cells makes them less “fit” for regenerative heart therapies, suggesting that strategies to prevent this response may boost the therapeutic usefulness of the cells. Read More

Valerie Malyvanh Jansen, M.D., Ph.D., a third-year medical oncology fellow, recently received several national awards and grants, as well as a Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center fellowship, in recognition of her translational cancer research. Read More

A novel mechanism could point to new therapies for a group of inherited diseases that share pathological features. Read More

A research team at Vanderbilt University Medical Center has been approved for a $2.7 million funding award by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) to study idiopathic subglottic stenosis (iSGS), a rare condition that inexplicably causes middle-aged women to struggle to breathe. Read More

Surgically treating “tongue tie” in infants may be associated with improved breast-feeding and reduced nipple pain, as reported by mothers, but much more research is needed on best practices for treating the condition, according to a newly published systematic review. Read More

Vanderbilt University researchers have uncovered a surprising finding that could lead to the development of new, more effective therapies for schizophrenia, which affects more than 2 million Americans. Read More

The protein neurofibromin acts as a brake in a signaling pathway that is important in bone development, Vanderbilt researchers have discovered. Read More

Pediatric patients have a significantly higher incidence of transfusion reactions compared to adults, according to a study by Vanderbilt University researchers. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered a novel mechanism for the development of dendritic spines – sites of nerve cell communication. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered that profound defects exist in the integrity of structural RNA molecules in patients with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis. Read More

A nationwide study, “Uncovering Waste in U.S. Healthcare,” from authors at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, finds that spending on post-acute care in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) provides a key signal of inefficiency in the health care system, leading to higher spending and lower patient survival. Read More