Department of Biomedical Informatics Archive — Page 4 of 26

Peter Embí, MD, MS, stands in an office wearing glasses, a blue shirt, patterned tie, and dark windowpane suit, with one hand resting on a wooden desk.
April 29, 2025

Peter Embí, Department of Biomedical Informatics chair, to step down

DBMI is one of the nation’s largest departments of its kind in academic medicine and consists of more than 130 faculty who focus on different aspects of biomedical informatics.

By John Howser
Jill Simmons, MD, and John Shelley found that adding a genetic measure of height to the evaluation of children with short stature might improve diagnosis and clinical outcomes. (photo by Erin O. Smith)
April 25, 2025

Polygenic score for height could improve diagnosis for children with short stature: study

Even after comprehensive testing, about 30% of children with short stature — height below the third percentile on a growth chart — do not have a definitive diagnosis, leading to extended surveillance, testing and anxiety.

By Leigh MacMillan
Conceptual digital illustration of a polygonal human profile connected to a network of medical hexagons containing icons for healthcare, artificial intelligence, diagnostics, medicine, laboratory science, and body organs.
March 17, 2025

Where are all the Alzheimer’s drugs?

A new study will use innovative methods developed at VUMC to look for drugs already approved for other uses that could potentially be repurposed to treat Alzheimer’s.

By Paul Govern
Newborn baby lying in a hospital bassinet, yawning with one hand near the mouth and a medical tube visible on the arm.
March 5, 2025

Team finds a better way to identify newborns at risk for opioid withdrawal

By 2017, on the back of the opioid crisis, the rate of neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome in the U.S. was estimated to have reached 7.3 per 1000 deliveries. Meanwhile, many newborns exposed to opioids in utero never develop the syndrome and must undergo needless monitoring in the hospital after birth.

By Paul Govern
Stylized side-profile illustration of a human head with the skull rendered translucent to reveal a network resembling brain blood vessels, dissolving into particles against a peach background.
February 17, 2025

Weight-loss surgery associated with reduced dementia

An observational study found that bariatric surgery was associated with 63% reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

By Paul Govern
ResearchMatch logo with stylized teal and gold lowercase letters above the word “researchmatch.”
February 13, 2025

How researchers are enlisting volunteers to help shape clinical trials

Through a new tool offered by ResearchMatch, researchers planning trials can quickly survey potential participants about topics ranging from participant compensation to protocol design.

By Paul Govern