Recent News

November 15, 2006 Contact: Alan Cubbage at 847/491-4886 ora-cubbage@northwestern.edu Jameson Named Dean of the Feinberg School of Medicine CHICAGO—J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, has been named vice president for medical affairs and dean of the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University effective July 1, 2007. His appointment was announced November 15 by University President[…]

Contact: Charles R. Loebbaka at 847/491-4887 or atc-loebbaka@northwestern.edu Landsberg to Step Down as Dean of Feinberg School of Medicine and Vice President For Medical Affairs at Northwestern CHICAGO—Lewis Landsberg, MD, has announced that he will step down as dean of the Feinberg School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs at Northwestern University effective[…]

November 8, 2006 Contact: Pat Vaughan Tremmel at 847/491-4892 or atp-tremmel@northwestern.edu New Center Bridges Disciplines to Take 21st Century Look at Health Disparities A group of researchers gathered last summer (and gave blood samples) at the first annual Summer Biomarker Institute hosted by Cells to Society. The social scientist didn’t flinch when a fellow social[…]

November 14, 2006 Contact: Marla Paul at (312) 503-8928 or atmarla-paul@northwestern.edu Drug Treats ‘Water Intoxication’ Faster, More Effectively CHICAGO—Results of the two largest studies on hyponatremia, SALT-1 and SALT-2, presented November 14 at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions in Chicago, found that the investigational drug tolvaptan treated hyponatremia—water intoxication—faster and more effectively than available[…]

Pilates Offers Path for Physical Therapist Physical therapist Sharon Gawin works with a patient in one of her two studios where she uses the Pilates method of exercise for rehabilitation. For Sharon L. Gawin, MPT ’96, a desire to spend more one-on-one time with her patients and the discovery of the Pilates method of exercise[…]

October 31, 2006Contact: Marla Paul at 312/503-8928 or atmarla-paul@northwestern.edu Landmark Study to Assess Hispanic Risk Factors, Health Needs in Chicago Area CHICAGO—Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine is the recipient of a $9.6 million dollar, 6½-year contract from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to participate in the largest study of health and disease in[…]

Fitness Pioneer Remains Active Medical school alumnus and fitness researcher Dr. Ralph Paffenbarger remains involved in the College Alumni Health Study he began in 1960. Today few people question the health benefits of regular physical activity, but there was a time when this sentiment wasn’t entirely embraced by physicians and other health care professionals let[…]

October 31 Contact: Pat Vaughan Tremmel at 847-491-4892 orp-tremmel@northwestern.edu Adults Who Go To Bed Lonely Get Stress Hormone Boost Next Morning Dr. Emma K. Adam EVANSTON, Ill.—A new study that takes a rare look at the physiological, social, and emotional dynamics of day-to-day experiences in real-life settings shows that when older adults go to bed[…]

New Students Welcomed at Founders’ Day Before a full house at Thorne Auditorium, Dean Lewis Landsberg, MD, welcomed the Feinberg School’s newest students—the 174 members of the Class of 2010—during the Founders’ Day Convocation on August 25. “We are delighted and thrilled that you have decided to enter the profession of medicine at Northwestern University’s[…]

August 22, 2006 Study Explores Congenital Limb, Heart Malformations CHICAGO—New research published in the August issue of the Journal of Cell Biology explains for the first time why congenital heart defects so often occur with limb deformities. In their research into the molecular mechanisms that control embryonic limb and heart development, Northwestern University researcher Hans-Georg[…]

August 7, 2006 Contact: Charles R. Loebbaka at 847/491-4887 or atc-loebbaka@northwestern.edu Study Warns of Looming Crisis in Cook County Health System Kevin Weiss, MD [video: Dr. Kevin Weiss discusses the current issues facing the Cook County Healthcare System] CHICAGO—The Cook County health care system is facing a crisis that will require a comprehensive effort to[…]

August 16, 2006 Contact: Megan Fellman at (847) 491-3115 or atfellman@northwestern.edu Northwestern Receives Gates Grant for Medical Diagnostics David Kelso, PhD EVANSTON, Ill.—Northwestern University has received a four-year, $4.9 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop and produce affordable diagnostic devices for infectious diseases plaguing developing countries. The grant is part[…]

In Memoriam (Sang Chae Nam & Mi Ra An Nam) Sang Chae Nam, DVM, former visiting professor of physiology, and his wife, Mi Ra An Nam, PhD, former research staff member/visiting scholar in the endocrinology division, died August 3 in a head-on automobile crash near Bozeman, Montana. The couple was traveling with son Abraham, 10,[…]

August 1, 2006 Identifying Medical Proxy Should Be Part of Routine Care CHICAGO—One-third of married individuals choose someone other than their spouse as a surrogate for medical decision-making. And more often than not, when adult patients chose a parent, sibling, or child, they prefer their mothers, sisters, and daughters to serve as medical proxies over[…]

In Memoriam (George Sisson Sr.)George A. Sisson Sr., MD, emeritus professor of otolaryngology—head and neck surgery, died August 6 after a long illness. Dr. Sisson grew up in Jamestown, New York, and earned his MD degree from Syracuse University, where he served as a residency program director before joining Northwestern as professor and chair of[…]

Thinking Twice is Good Advice Before Tattooing or Piercing Having a butterfly tattooed above the buttocks or “I love Serena” on the upper arm may be just perfect now, but is it something you want 20 or 30 years from now? This was among many questions raised on August 2 by Anne E. Laumann, MBChB,[…]

Malaria Parasite, Potato Famine Pathogen Share Trait CHICAGO—The malaria parasite that infects humans and the Irish potato famine pathogen use the same strategy to inject disease-causing proteins into the cells of their respective hosts. That’s what researchers from Northwestern University and Ohio State University reported in the May 31 issue of the journal PLoS Pathogens.[…]

July 11, 2006 Physical Activity Extends Life of Patients with Peripheral Artery Disease CHICAGO—Patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) who are physically active have death rates less than one third of those in PAD patients who are inactive, according to research reported in the July issue of the journal Circulation. “We found that a survival[…]