Dartmouth Medical School Digest
November 2008

News for our community

In this issue

Lung Disease Collaboration
New Hampshire scientists have been awarded $10.5 million from the National Institutes of Health to extend a Dartmouth-led collaboration to prevent and cure cystic fibrosis, lung cancer and other respiratory illnesses. The five-year award renews support through a federal program for biomedical excellence to strengthen innovative research and expertise. The program, directed by DMS professor Dr. Bruce Stanton, will help establish a Center for Lung Biology and nurture promising young investigators.

Allergy hit list
Children and adults referred for allergy patch testing appear equally likely to have allergic skin reactions (contact dermatitis), although they react to different allergy-causing substances (allergens), reports a Dartmouth dermatologist and colleagues. The multi-center study, published in the October Archives of Dermatology, helps provide a useful guide to an allergen "hit list" for children, says the team, led by Dr. Kathryn A. Zug.

Drug risks confirmed
Use of the recalled painkiller Vioxx increased the chance of stroke and heart attack, reports a new study. The findings, based on follow-up of patients in a colon cancer prevention trial, highlight the need to balance potential and perils when considering non-steroidal anti-in$DFammatory drugs. The results were published online Oct. 14 in the Lancet by DMS lead author Dr. John Baron and colleagues.

Disaster mental health
The National Center for Disaster Mental Health Research undertakes its first mission: to study the impact of September's Hurricane Ike in the Galveston, Texas. The NIH-funded center is a six-member consortium directed by Dartmouth psychiatry researcher Dr. Fran Norris. It aims to investigate long-term recovery from disasters, focusing on helping people cope with mental health and disaster-related stress.

Common Good Day Serves Local Agencies
Dartmouth medical students fanned out to Upper Valley agencies for the fourth annual Common Good Day Oct. 21. Under the aegis of Dartmouth Medical School's Community Service Committee and the DMS 2008-09 Schweitzer Fellows, over 100 medical students volunteered their time and energy for an array of area organizations and activities.

Arsenic and mercury
Support for Dartmouth's interdisciplinary toxic metals research group studying the health impact arsenic and mercury exposure has been renewed. DMS and college scientists were awarded a $14.5 million dollar grant through the Superfund Basic Research Program of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to continue their investigations of the two chemicals, among the most hazardous to humans.

Education dean recognized
A DMS dean has won the 2008 Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award, one of the nation's highest medical student education accolades. Dr. David W. Nierenberg received award for outstanding medical student teaching at the Association of American Medical Colleges meeting Nov. 1.

Outcomes pioneer honored
A DMS professor received the 2008 Gustav O. Lienhard Award for his work to reshape the US health care system. Dr. John Wennberg, known for his pioneering research on health care outcomes and patient-directed care, was presented the award, funded through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, at the Institute of Medicine meeting Oct. 14.

Informed choice head
A DMS surgeon is director of the Center for Informed Choice at the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice. Dr. E. Dale Collins, a breast cancer expert recognized for integrating shared decision making and coordinated care into patient treatment, was named to lead the center, effective Oct. 1.


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