Tech & Health Archive

Adding steps offsets risk of chronic disease: Study

Using Fitbits, researchers set out to discover how many additional steps patients need to reduce risks of chronic disease.

By Matt Batcheldor

AI finds drug safety signals in clinical notes

Large language models were tested on cancer patient notes from two academic medical centers and seven drug trials.

Multi-institutional team pioneers retinal test for early Alzheimer’s disease

The potential for a retinal screening test was bolstered by a recent discovery that clearance of amyloid-beta oligomers by immune cells in retinal blood vessels was disrupted in donor eyes from individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, compared to age-matched, healthy control eyes.

2026 REDCap Fest recordings available online

Videos and slides from REDCap Fest 2026, held online March 4-6, are available for viewing by members of the Vanderbilt and Meharry Medical College community.

Brock Innovator of the Year lecture: Daniel Fabbri wants to speed research and patient care

The Brock Family Center for Applied Innovation sponsors campus lectures to celebrate award winners.

New support for the Department of Biostatistics

The Berry Family Foundation has pledged $1.5 million to the Department of Biostatistics to support improvements to REDCap, a web-based software platform for managing surveys and databases.

March 20, 2026

Study shows AI-assisted risk model for lung nodules is cost-effective

Risk prediction software using artificial intelligence can help determine whether pulmonary nodules detected during lung cancer screening need to be biopsied.

By Tom Wilemon

March 18, 2026

Vanderbilt Health uses novel robotic device to place central lines in FDA trial

A Chattanooga patient says she’s feeling great after becoming the first to receive the robotic‑assisted central line in Nashville.

By Matt Batcheldor

March 10, 2026

Loneliness is a critical step on the road to suicide: Study

Mental health treatment is often out of reach. A person-centered approach to reducing loneliness that helps people engage with others might be more feasible.

By Bill Snyder

March 3, 2026

Vanderbilt Health and Bertis establish collaboration for cancer drug discovery

The collaboration will integrate Vanderbilt Health’s Molecular AI Initiative capabilities with Bertis’ deep proteomics and AI-enabled technologies to identify novel therapeutic targets and predictive biomarkers.

February 24, 2026

Study identifies medical conditions that could predict future Alzheimer’s disease

The findings could suggest ways to intervene before clinical symptoms of memory and cognitive impairment become apparent.

By Leigh MacMillan

February 20, 2026

Adam Wright invited to National Academy of Medicine Emerging Leaders Forum

Attendees will explore some of the most pressing challenges in health and medicine, with the aim of considering and stimulating collaborative interdisciplinary solutions.

By Paul Govern

February 9, 2026

AI finds patient-level statin barriers in clinical notes

A novel AI framework found documented intolerance to statins in 6.4% of all adult patients, contraindications in 0.7%, and statin deferral in 2.9%.

By Paul Govern