February 22, 2024

A patient singing during brain surgery, the first Alaskapox death, better ICU alarms, and other news stories with VUMC sources

Stacie Dusetzina, PhD, Professor of Health Policy, was quoted by KFF Health News and ABC News about patients beginning to see savings from President Biden’s efforts to reduce drug prices.

William Schaffner, MD, professor of Preventive Medicine, continues to be one of the most in-demand sources about infectious disease in the news. Among the news outlets he has spoken to recently: Popular Science (“First Alaskapox death reported: what you should know about the virus”), CBS News, Self, Healthline, WebMD, Everyday Health, STAT, NBC News, USA Today, HealthDay and AARP.

NBC News reporter Linda Carroll interviewed Amanda Doran, MD, PhD, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, for a story about a study linking excess niacin (vitamin B recommended to lower cholesterol) to heart disease. HealthDay also published an article quoting Doran.

NBC News quoted John Graves, PhD, professor of Health Policy, in a story about how the upcoming presidential election may threaten health coverage for millions of Americans.

The New York Post via Fox News covered the story of VUMC employee and patient Jayden Zientara singing the 50 states song while having her brain tumor removed.

Holly Westervelt, PhD, associate professor of Clinical Neurology, was quoted by Verywell Health in a story about screening people with dementia for liver disease.

John Martin, MD, associate professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, was quoted by Medpage Today in a piece headlined, “Study: Let’s revisit extended antibiotic prophylaxis in joint replacement.”

Sara Horst, MPH, MD, associate professor of Medicine, was quoted by Medscape in a story about the price of the drug Infliximab being driven down by the availability of biosimilar drugs.

Scientific American reporter Rachel Berkowitz interviewed Joseph Schlesinger, MD, professor, Anesthesiology Critical Care Medicine, for a story about his study on improving auditory alarms in the ICU.

WebMD reporter Liz Scherer interviewed Heidi Silver, RD, MS, PhD, research professor of Medicine and director of Vanderbilt Diet, Body Composition, and Human Metabolism Core, for a story about her Nutrients study on nut ingestion and effective on metabolic risk.

Marc Feeley, MD, assistant professor of Clinical Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, was quoted by Medical News Today in a story about a biological mechanism for hearing loss caused by loud noise.

Jessica Castilho, MD, MPH, assistant professor of Medicine, was quoted by Healio in a story about a survey showing that only half of women with HIV recall discussing contraceptives with a health care provider.

Keipp Talbot, MD, associate professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases, was mentioned in a STAT piece headlined, HHS fills key vaccine advisory panel slots.”

WKRN News 2, and WSMV Channel 4 News, interviewed Kelsey Gastineau, MD, assistant professor of Pediatrics about the long-term effects of non-fatal gun injuries in children.

WTVF NewsChannel 5 reporter Nikki Hauser interviewed Al Powers, MD, director of the Division of Diabetes and Endocrinology, for a story about the high price of insulin for families with diabetes and efforts to curb pricing.

Nashville Business Journal covered the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association study from Siru Liu, PhD, assistant professor of Biomedical Informatics, that demonstrates the promise of artificial intelligence to help refine and target the myriad computerized alerts intended to assist doctors and other team members in day-to-day clinical decision-making.