Alcohol, tobacco, drug use far higher in severely mentally ill
Researchers at the School of Medicine and the University of Southern California have found that rates of smoking, drinking and drug use are significantly higher among those who have psychotic disorders than in the general population.
Among prescription painkillers, drug abusers prefer oxycodone
A nationwide survey of opioid drug abusers in rehab indicates that because of the high it produces, the prescription painkiller oxycodone is the most popular drug of choice. Hydrocodone, also prescribed to treat pain, is next in line. In all, some 75 percent of those surveyed rated one of these drugs as their favorite.
Washington People: Tamara Hershey
The brain uses more glucose than just about any other organ in the body, and Tamara Hershey, PhD, uses brain-imaging tools to study the effects of diabetes. She also studies Parkinson’s disease, obesity, Tourette syndrome and Wolfram syndrome, learning about how fluctuations in glucose levels can influence brain function.
School of Medicine celebrates launch of Taylor Family Institute
The Department of Psychiatry is hosting a celebration Tuesday, Oct. 1, to mark the official launch of the Taylor Family Institute for Innovative Psychiatric Research. The institute, dedicated to advancing the science underlying the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric illnesses, was created with a $20 million gift from Andy and Barbara Taylor and the Crawford Taylor Foundation. Pictured are institute investigators.
Nerve stimulation for severe depression changes brain function
For nearly a decade, doctors have used implanted electronic stimulators to treat severe depression in people who don’t respond to standard antidepressant treatments. Now, preliminary brain scan studies conducted by School of Medicine researchers are revealing that vagus nerve stimulation brings about changes in brain metabolism weeks or even months before patients begin to feel better.
Cloninger receives honorary doctorate
C. Robert Cloninger, MD, the Wallace Renard Professor of Psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, received an honorary doctorate at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden in a ceremony Oct. 17.
$20 million gift establishes Taylor Family Institute for Innovative Psychiatric Research
Andrew and Barbara Taylor and the Crawford Taylor Foundation, the charity of the entire Jack C. Taylor family, have committed $20 million to the Department of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine to advance the science underlying the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric illnesses. The gift creates the new Taylor Family Institute for Innovative Psychiatric Research.
Washington People: Kevin Black
Kevin Black’s family didn’t have any physicians in it. Well, one of his great-great-grandfathers had a medical license back in the late 1800s, but he had no formal training — and Black himself wasn’t planning on medical school. But during his first year of college, a teacher helped change his career plans.
Study of half siblings provides genetic clues to autism
When a child has autism, siblings are also at risk for the disorder. New research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis shows that the genetic reach of the disorder often extends to half siblings as well. The discovery is giving scientists new clues to how autism is inherited.
Autism affects motor skills, study indicates
Children with autism often have problems developing motor skills, such as running, throwing a ball or even learning how to write. But scientists have not known whether those difficulties run in families or are linked to autism. New research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis by Claudia List Hilton, PhD, points to autism as the culprit.
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