Do you think it's possible for you to live into your 90's in relatively good health? That's the premise behind a new National Geographic Book, The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest. UTMB's Dr. James Goodwin, director of the Sealy Center on Aging, talks about the prospect at Forbes.com, saying "Skepticism aside, it makes some sense that certain populations would live longer than others… Studies show, for example, that residents of rural communities tend to live longer than those based in urban areas; married couples live longer than single or divorced people; and women regularly outlive men by about six years (though the gap is getting smaller due to advances in awareness and the treatment of heart disease)."
Click here to unlock the secrets!
Don’t let asthma limit summer fun
With summer in full swing, children may be looking forward to sleep-away camp, bike riding and baseball. However, for parents of kids with asthma, increased time outdoors means more worry, often forcing kids to sit out the fun indoors. According to UTMB’s Dr. Edward Brooks, director of the Children’s Asthma Program, understanding lesser-known asthma triggers and warning signs of a pending asthma attack can help parents and their children better manage the disease, which may lead to more carefree summer days outside than they thought was possible.
Click here for tips to help parents manage asthma triggers for their kids
Unique skin cancer treatment being evaluated at UTMB
Researchers at UTMB are taking part in a clinical study evaluating a new drug delivery system to treat metastases from malignant melanoma, a type of liver cancer. Malignant melanoma is a skin cancer that is very difficult to treat once it spreads to the liver. Dr. Orhan S. Ozkan, associate professor of radiology, is the principal investigator for a method developed by Delcath Systems that allows physicians to deliver significantly higher amounts of anti-cancer drugs directly to the diseased area. UTMB will be the only place where the treatment will be available in a region that includes Texas. Read more in Newsroom...
Summer registration is under way
for Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
Enrollment is open for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute’s Summer
School 2008 at UTMB. Free seminars will be conducted in July and August
at several Galveston-area locations. Classes are open to anyone 55 and
older. Membership in OLLI is required to enroll in classes; the annual
fee is $25. The seminars are free but registration is required. OLLI
offers college-level courses to seniors regardless of previous
education in a wide and interesting range of topics. There are no prerequisites for the seminars and no grades or
tests are given.
See the schedule and offerings...
UTMB surgeons assist children in four-day marathon
It
was an orthopedic surgery marathon - 55 complex surgeries in four days
performed on 45 children and 10 adults - in two tiny operating rooms in
Machala, Ecuador. And, still, the UTMB surgeons, Jay Rapley and Kelly
Carmichael, say they’d leap at the chance to do it again. As
participants in an Operation Rainbow-sponsored medical mission, the duo
spent 12-15 hours each day repairing club feet, femur breaks, dislocated
hips, and doing other procedures such as tendon releases for eight
children with cerebral palsy.
Read more... University Eye Center launches new
patient-focused web site
The
UTMB University Eye Center has launched a new web site focusing on the
needs and interests of current and prospective patients. It provides the
latest news about treatment advancements at the eye centers,
easy-to-find information about appointments, a list of UTMB doctors, and
much more. With convenient locations in Galveston and Friendswood
(opening soon), the
UTMB University Eye Center is committed to quality service,
compassionate care and medical excellence.
Visit the site now…
UTMB researchers produce West Nile and Japanese encephalitis vaccines
UTMB
researchers have developed new vaccines to protect against West
Nile and Japanese encephalitis viruses. The investigators
created the vaccines using an innovative technique that they
believe could also enable the development of new vaccines
against other diseases, such as yellow fever and dengue fever,
which are caused by similar viruses. Peter Mason of the UTMB
departments of pathology and microbiology and immunology, and
colleagues reported their findings in back-to-back papers
published in the current issue of the journal
Vaccine.
Read more in the UTMB Newsroom... Tips for managing summer's stings
What
do gas prices, insects and jellyfish have in common? They all
can sting beachgoers and warm-weather revelers throughout the
summer. As the sun and fun season approaches, Jon Thompson,
director of the Southeast Texas Poison Center at UTMB, suggests
several ways to lessen the burn of stings from jellyfish and
insects. Thompson, who has more than 28 years of experience with
insect and jellyfish stings, says common household products
combined with some quick and smart thinking can go a long way to
provide relief. Read more in the
UTMB Newsroom
Regents approve plan for mainland specialty care center
The
UT System Board of Regents has approved UTMB’s proposal to build
a $61 million medical specialty care center on a 35-acre site
near the intersection of Interstate 45 and FM 646. Construction
on the 110,000-square-foot specialty center is scheduled to
begin later this summer, and the completed facility will feature
advanced imaging services, pediatric and adult clinics,
outpatient surgery and pediatric urgent care.
Read more about center.
Read the May 16 Daily News article.
After-hours pediatric urgent care clinic
now open in League
City
Starting
Monday, May 19, residents in and around League City are able
to go to an after-hours pediatric urgent care clinic located at
3023 Marina Bay Dr., Suite 101, in League City. The UTMB clinic
is staffed with pediatricians from UTMB Children’s Health
who can readily address a child’s urgent care needs. The
conditions treated include falls, cuts, scrapes, coughs, colds,
earaches, abdominal pain, dehydration, fever, minor sports
injuries, vomiting, diarrhea and sore throat. The clinic also
provides X-rays and on-site laboratory tests. The clinic is
open evenings, weekends and holidays. For more information,
see the
flyer or call 281-334-6578.