A fatty diet that helps control epileptic seizures may do so by triggering a chemical change in the brain, a discovery that could lead to new treatments, according to an HMS study. HMS professor of neurology Gary Yellen and HMS assistant professor of cell biology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Nika Danial are quoted. Harvard Catalyst is mentioned.
Physicians who use social networks to share clinical experiences risk violating patient privacy. A niche industry of private social network providers has cropped up to address the desire to communicate. Bradley Crotty, HMS instructor and chief medical resident at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is quoted.
Malpractice claims against U.S. doctors are often dismissed, and when they go to trial, the verdict is usually in the doctor’s favor, according to a new study. But even when a case is dismissed, the road is typically long for both doctors and the patients suing, researchers said. Anupam B. Jena of the Massachusetts General Hospital is quoted.
Researchers from HMS and Oxford University report that obesity is just as common among the homeless as it is among the general population. Katherine Koh, a student at HMS, is the lead author of the study.
The proliferation of mobile and electronic technologies, both in the United States and overseas, has changed the way medicine is practiced, affecting both physicians and medical students. Mobile health at HMS is featured.
Jordan Smoller, HMS associate professor of psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital participated in a Q&A about his new book, “The Other Side of Normal.”
Researchers try to make sense of our darker impulses, and may just help save us from ourselves. Joseph Gonzalez-Heydrich, HMS assistant professor of psychiatry at Boston Children’sHospital, is mentioned for his research on anger.
The number of teens in the U.S. with diabetes or prediabetes has skyrocketed in the last decade, jumping from 9 to 23 percent, new data finds. Lori Laffel, HMS associate professor of pediatrics at Joslin Diabetes Center, is quoted.
Some studies have linked dietary fat to the development of dementia later in life. A new study suggests that the risk may depend on the type of fat consumed. Olivia I. Okereke, HMS assistant professor of psychiatry at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, is the lead author of the study.
