Office of Primary Care and Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program

(DECEMBER 2, 2022) Clinical Professor of Psychiatry David Fassler, M.D., commented in a Washington Post article about a study showing that the stress of pandemic lockdowns prematurely aged the brains of teenagers by at least three years, and in ways similar to changes observed in children who have faced chronic stress and adversity.

(NOVEMBER 29, 2022) Assistant Professor of Medicine Timothy Plante, M.D., is a co-author of a new study comparing the effects of three different eating patterns on cardiovascular disease, according to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) News.

(NOVEMBER 23, 2022) Pediatric critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, has a message for people visiting infants over the holidays that is going to be difficult to hear: “Admire the baby from afar,” VTDigger reported.

(NOVEMBER 22, 2022) A study by Professor of Medicine Neil A. Zakai, M.D., Professor of Medicine Mary Cushman, M.D., and colleagues found that lower levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are associated with increased coronary heart disease (CHD) risk in White but not Black adults, and higher levels of HDL-C are not protective for either group, HealthDay News reported.

(NOVEMBER 18, 2022) Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Christina Wojewoda, M.D., who is the director of clinical microbiology at the UVM Medical Center and chairs the Microbiology Committee for the College of American Pathologists, commented for a Georgia Public Broadcasting story on monkeypox in that state. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 18, 2022) WVNY-TV interviewed Vermont Health Commissioner Mark Levine, M.D., professor of medicine and associate dean for graduate medical education, and Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, about a "triple threat" of serious viruses that could impact the upcoming holiday season, as the flu, Covid-19, and the respiratory virus RSV can spread easily in close contact. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 17, 2022) Infectious disease specialist Louis Polish, M.D., associate professor of medicine, and Pamela Gibson, M.D., professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, were among the co-authors of a letter in the New England Journal of Medicine describing two human cases in Vermont of a rare parasitic disease, according to a HealthDay News story.

(NOVEMBER 16, 2022) Professor of Medicine David Kaminsky, M.D., was interviewed by WCAX-TV for a story about a Vermont family’s search for answers following the death of 27-year-old Charles Vallee, who suffered from so-called Long Covid. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 15, 2022) In a USA Today article on a new study suggesting that smoking marijuana may do more damage to lungs than cigarettes, pulmonary and critical care physician David Kaminsky, M.D., professor of medicine (who is unaffiliated with the study), commented, “It’s no surprise to me. A burning leaf is a burning leaf ... the lung doesn’t know the difference if it’s tobacco or marijuana.”

(NOVEMBER 15, 2022) J. Kathleen (Kate) Tracy, Ph.D., has been appointed as senior associate dean for research at the Larner College of Medicine, effective in February 2023, Dean Richard L. Page, M.D., announced. Tracy will also serve as professor of medicine and director of research at the UVM Health Network, according to VermontBiz.

(NOVEMBER 14, 2022) UVMMC pediatric critical care physician Rebecca Bell, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics, urges new parents to limit visitors’ contact with their babies in light of surging RSV infections in children, NECN and NBC10 Boston reported.

(NOVEMBER 10, 2022) Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Margaret Doyle, Ph.D., was featured in a Vanderbilt University Medical Center VUMC Reporter article about a study she authored that showed an association between three types of CD4+ T helper cells and incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) among people with HIV infection.

(NOVEMBER 10, 2022) Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine Daniel Barkhuff, M.D., a Navy SEAL veteran and the founder and board president of Veterans for Responsible Leadership, was among veterans featured in a segment on Vermont Public's Vermont Edition program about deployment, return, and the transition to civilian life. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 10, 2022) Nataniel Lester-Coll, M.D., assistant professor of radiation oncology, spoke about the effects of cyberattacks on radiation oncology at the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s 2022 Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, Medscape reported.

(NOVEMBER 9, 2022) Vitamin D levels in patients with a deficiency and cystic fibrosis increased with a single high dose, according to a poster presented by Professor of Pediatrics Jillian S. Sullivan, M.D., and colleagues at the North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference held November 3-5 in Philadelphia, Healio News reported.

(NOVEMBER 8, 2022) Medical oncologist Kim Dittus, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of medicine and director of the UVM Cancer Center’s Steps to Wellness exercise program for cancer survivors, was interviewed for a story about the Cancer Center being named Health.com’s Innovative Hospital Award Winner for 2022. Also interviewed was cancer survivor Evelyn Sikorski, manager of UVMMC’s employee health and wellness and employee assistance programs.

(NOVEMBER 8, 2022) Research on autism spectrum disorder conducted by Neuroscience Graduate Program doctoral student Erin Cullen and Assistant Professor of Neurological Sciences Matthew Weston, Ph.D., in collaboration with researchers at Dartmouth’s medical school, was featured in Chip Chick. (Click on headline for more.)

(NOVEMBER 7, 2022) Stacey Sigmon, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry and director of the Center on Rural Addiction, was quoted in VTDigger discussing the increasing use of the animal sedative xylazine as a sought-after dilutant for opioids due to its effect of prolonging the “high” from using opioids.

(NOVEMBER 7, 2022) Associate Professor of Pediatrics Rebecca Bell, M.D., answered RSV-related questions during a Facebook Live event on November 3, the (Plattsburg) Press-Republican reported.

(NOVEMBER 4, 2022) Professor of Surgery and UVMMC vascular surgeon Daniel J. Bertges, M.D., presented a clinical trial on paclitaxel drug-coated balloons (DCBs) at the VIVA Foundation’s VIVA22 conference in Las Vegas, according to CardiovascularBusiness.com.