UT Southwestern in the News — June 2010
June 2010
KXAS-TV (NBC 5) – Just what is the itch scale? (June 28, 2010)
Imagine an itch that just won't go away, and scratching does not relieve the feeling. This is why researchers at UT Southwestern developed an itch scale, so they can treat the condition. "Most of the time with a deep burn, it destroys the normal sweat and oil glands in the skin. As a result, the burn scars are very dry and itchy," says Dr. Vincent Gabriel, a burn rehab specialist at UT Southwestern, comments. Watch Video
Daily Mail (UK) – University student, 21, eats every 15 mins but weighs the same as an eight-year-old (June 28, 2010)
Lizzie Velasquez weighs just four stone and has almost zero per cent body fat, but she'll be the first to tell you she's not anorexic. The 21-year-old from Austin, Texas, actually eats every 15 minutes just to stay healthy. Lizzie's case has fascinated doctors all over the world, and she is part of a genetic study run by Professor Abhimanyu Garg, M.D., at
UT Southwestern. Professor Garg and his team now believe Lizzie may have a form of Neonatal Progeroid Syndrome (NPS), which causes accelerated aging, fat loss from the face and body, and tissue degeneration. Read More
KXAS-TV (NBC 5) – Virus could be behind appendicitis (June 25, 2010)
Doctors in Dallas have discovered that a virus may be the cause of appendicitis and are saying that the routine surgical procedure may not be the best way to get rid of it. For years, an inflamed appendix has always been treated with surgery. But groundbreaking research done by Dr. Edward Livingston at UT Southwestern questions whether emergency surgery is necessary. "We are proposing there are certain types of patients who don't need surgery," he said. "And we are about to embark on a clinical trial here to take patients who would otherwise get surgery and treat them with antibiotics alone and see how they do." Watch Video
KTVT-TV (CBS 11) – DFW patients benefit from new generation CT scanners (June 14, 2010)
A new generation of CT scanners allows doctors to 'image' an entire organ in less than a second and they can do it with less radiation exposure to patients. UT Southwestern is the first site in North Texas to launch the new scanners. "I guess the one thing I can take away from all this [is] I am one very fortunate guy," said Dr. Bob Kramer, who is also a cancer patient. UT Southwestern Cardiovascular Surgeon Dr. Michael Jessen also comments. Read More
Reuters – On the ice, checking may triple preteen injuries (June 9, 2010)
Preteen hockey players are more than three times as likely to get hurt if body checking is allowed, researchers from Canada said Tuesday, and the smallest kids take the hardest hits. While the findings might not come as a huge surprise, Canada is split on whether or not to permit 11- and 12-year-olds, the so-called Pee Wees, to use the technique, in which players use their bodies to knock over opponents. Dr. Robert Dimeff, a sports medicine physician at UT Southwestern, comments. Read More
KXAS-TV (NBC 5) – Study: Uninterrupted chest compressions key to CPR (June 9, 2010)
Quick, consistent and uninterrupted chest compressions; researchers in Dallas say focusing on chest compressions during Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is key to a patient's survival. Researchers say 40 lives were saved in 2009 in the 12 cities participating in the Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium (ROC) study. "We learned there were too many interruptions in chest compressions during CPR," explains Ahamed Idris, M.D., professor of surgery and emergency medicine at UT Southwestern. "By doing vigorous chest compressions, without interruption, a person can actually produce reasonable circulation to help that person stay alive until a professional arrives," says Idris. Read More
Dalton (Ga.) Daily Citizen – From success to significance (June 9, 2010)
Many children dream of becoming doctors, lawyers, firefighters, astronauts or movie stars. As an 8-year-old growing up in Dalton in the 1950s, David Johnson was no different. Donning a white doctor’s coat and helping others topped his list of goals. Johnson credits many Dalton teachers and area physicians who encouraged him to follow his chosen path. Effective July 1, Johnson will become the chairman of the department of internal medicine at UT Southwestern. He may be nearing retirement age, but Johnson believes he has lots more to contribute. Read More
Dallas Morning News – 8 cool ways to beat the summer heat (June 8, 2010)
Don't avoid spicy foods in the summer. Yes, they'll make you sweat, but you're sweating already. When all that sweat evaporates, you're cooler. "When you eat something spicy like a hot pepper, your blood vessels open to allow blood to flow more freely," says Lona Sandon, spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association and assistant professor of clinical nutrition at UT Southwestern. "You might feel flushed. What it does is bring body water from surface closest to skin. You might sweat a little more. Then it evaporates off and helps the body to feel cool." Read More
KXAS-TV (NBC5) – North Texas records first 100-degree day (June 6, 2010)
On Saturday, North Texas saw its first 100-degree day of 2010. The temperature at the National Weather Service's official record-keeping station, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, hit 100 degrees Saturday. Doctors say triple-digit temperatures can be too hot to handle, especially for people out under the blazing sun. "Even though the ones who are most at risk are the very young and the very elderly because they don't know they're getting into trouble and they can't fend for themselves, the people who are really getting into trouble the most are the young, healthy people who think they can go out and work hard in the sun," said Dr. Paul Pepe, chief of emergency medicine at UT Southwestern and Parkland Memorial Hospital. Read More
Business Week – Kids with Down syndrome might get help learning (June 5, 2010)
Researchers say they improved the learning capacity of mice afflicted with a disease similar to Down syndrome by interfering with the production of a specific protein. The "beta-amyloid" protein is found in mice and people, and is thought to play a role in the cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer's and Down syndrome. The study, reported online in the journal PLoS One, was conducted using 4-month-old mice that had a genetic anomaly that caused them to display learning disabilities similar to those in children with Down syndrome. This preliminary study raises the intriguing possibility that drugs that lower beta-amyloid levels might offer some benefit to children with Down syndrome, study co-author Dr. Craig Powell, an assistant professor of neurology at UT Southwestern, said. Read More
KXAS-TV (NBC 5) – How to stay hydrated in the hot, hot heat (June 4, 2010)
If you're exercising in triple-digit heat, salt and sugar should be a heat ritual. "Even if you're not sweating profusely, you're still losing salt through your sweat, and you become salt-depleted," says Dr. Robert Dimeff, the medical director of sports medicine at
UT Southwestern. He says if you don't have sports drinks handy, there's a proven solution used by the World Health Organization and Unicef: one teaspoon of salt, eight teaspoons of sugar, a quart of water and 4 ounces of orange juice, and the colder the better. Watch Video
New Scientist – Cancer guardian found playing a role in sex (June 4, 2010)
Don't be fooled by p53's humdrum name. Dubbed the "guardian of the genome" for its role in keeping our cells from turning cancerous, protein 53 may also be necessary for sex. The protein flits into action when cells in fruit flies, mice and probably humans replicate and divide their DNA in order to create new eggs and sperm — a process called meiosis. John Abrams, a molecular biologist at UT Southwestern, comments. Read More
CNN.com – Lady Gaga's 'borderline positive' comment sheds light on lupus (June 4, 2010)
Addressing rumors that have circulated about her health, Lady Gaga told CNN's Larry King this week that she doesn't have lupus, but has tested "borderline positive" for the condition. It may sound contradictory, but doctors say this can occur with lupus. "People with a family history can test positive, but never get it," said Dr. Scott Zashin, clinical assistant professor of internal medicine at UT Southwestern. "There is a little higher risk of developing lupus because of family history, but it's possible to never get it." Watch Video
Dallas Morning News – Strategies for persuading men to go to the doctor (June 1, 2010)
Mari Madison's father wouldn't go to the doctor. "He was an engineer, so he did not need a doctor to tell him what he already knew," she says. When he finally had to go — he needed stitches — the doctor sent him straight to Baylor for quadruple-bypass surgery. It saved his life. That's an extreme example of what you already knew: Men don't go to the doctor. Dr. Claus Roehrborn, chairman of urology at UT Southwestern, comments. Read More