After long hours of studying as a graduate student, Saad Bhamla's eyes hurt. Contacts and intense visual focus just didn't go together. He resolved to …
Month: March 2016
Health policy advocates push for federal “Tobacco 21” law
Science and common sense tell us that the teenage brain is more vulnerable to peer pressure and susceptible to nicotine addiction than at any other …
Steroids protect preemies’ brains, Stanford study finds
Premature babies who receive steroids before birth benefit from a positive side effect of the treatment, a new Stanford study confirms. For decades, pregnant women …
Stanford brain scientist’s quest to personalize mental-health care
When Leanne Williams, PhD, started her career as a young psychotherapist just out of university, she was convinced that by understanding the psychology of human …
Stanford anesthesiologist’s book tackles common clinical research dilemmas
The path from a winning research idea to published paper is long and littered with ethical and logistical quandaries capable of stumping even the brightest …
New device improves contraceptive options for women in the developing world
Many women in the developing world say they don’t want to get pregnant in the 18 months after childbirth, but they don’t have access to …
Daedalus, or Icarus? A small set of nerve cells in the brain determines risk-preference settings
As Greek mythology has it, an ultra-smart tinkerer named Daedalus slapped together two sets of wings from wood and wax so he and his son, Icarus, could bust out …
It’s time to address medical education’s public perception problem
Stanford Medicine Unplugged (formerly SMS Unplugged) is a forum for students to chronicle their experiences in medical school. The student-penned entries appear on Scope once a …
Homing in on pancreatic cancer targets, Stanford researchers identify new culprit
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is one of the most lethal human cancers; despite intense efforts, there's just no real effective way to treat it in most …
The art of observation – and how it benefits clinicians and non-clinicians alike
Anne Kenner, a fellow in Stanford’s Distinguished Career Institute, was an assistant U.S. district attorney in New York and San Francisco for 14 years, and …
Countdown to Childx: Previewing the “epicenter of innovation” for expectant moms and children
Next month Stanford Medicine will host the second annual Childx conference, which will attract speakers and guests from across North America. I recently spoke with …
Cardiovascular disease burden traced to race and geography
Cardiovascular disease is increasingly common in the southern United States, a trend that is related to economic conditions, access to health care and race, according …
Finding the heart of precision health
When I first started working at Stanford Medicine last July, my new bosses explained that part of the reason I was hired was that they …
Genetic research now integrated into Stanford’s MyHeart Counts app
Stanford Medicine and 23andMe, the personal genetics company, have collaborated to add a new module for Stanford’s free MyHeart Counts app. The 23andMe module allows MyHeart Counts users who …
The envelope please: Stanford medical students open next chapter of their lives at Match Day
It’s not every day that you’re handed the next three to five years of your life in an envelope. Yet for thousands of medical students …
Federal government releases National Pain Strategy
The federal government’s Department of Health and Human Services today released a National Pain Strategy (link to .pdf) that makes a series of recommendations for improving …