Penn Medicine News Blog Archive: Brain and Behavior

Penn Medicine faculty, staff, and students shared their love and knowledge of biomedical science with families, students, and the general public at a dozen events during the 2013 Philadelphia Science Festival.

“I want to put trauma doctors out of business.” Rhonda Holmstrom, Trauma Outpatient & Injury Prevention Coordinator, says this with a smile, knowing it’s not a realistic goal, but she –- and other members of the trauma team at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania -– are reaching out...

In an online video series, Florie Charles, a doctoral student at the University of California at San Francisco, and founder of Youreka Science, simply uses a white board and colored markers (and occasionally a small cut out mouse -- animal, not computer peripheral) to explain findings from recent papers in an accessible, fresh, and engaging way. One of her newest videos happens to feature a recent publication from the lab of Garret FitzGerald, MD, FRS, director of Penn Medicine's Institute of Translational Medicine and Therapeutics.

The recent events in Boston remind us how important it is to help people, children and families affected by such tragedies get the most effective mental health treatments out there. The good news is, over the years, evidence-based therapies (EBT), like prolonged exposure therapy, where patients with posttraumatic stress disorder...

In a previous post, I noted that most of my work as Digital Communications Editor takes place online, rarely expanding beyond the reaches of my keyboard. But that was five months ago, and six months since I got my first in-depth view of the whole Penn Medicine enterprise while shooting...

This year the Center for Brain Injury and Repair is reaching audiences of all stripes at the Philadelphia Science Festival, with their message of how to mind your brain from concussions with hand-on demos.

In early April, Penn Medicine hosted a fast-paced lightning round of presentations highlighting new and emerging technology being used inside and outside the Health System that may help patients and medical professionals alike. “Connected health” is about continuous sensing and monitoring to enable early detection, diagnosis and intervention, and improving outcomes at lower cost. Alternating between internal and external projects, the presenters brought their best ideas and applications to share, explaining how these new devices fit within the existing health care system and, in some cases, how they stretch the boundaries and may change the way healthcare is delivered.

Penn Medicine will play a starring role in the Philadelphia Science Festival again this year. The Festival is a citywide collaboration showcasing science and technology every April. This year it runs from April 19 - 28, 10 days to celebrate the region’s strengths in science and technology, bringing together more than 100 partners from academia to museums to restaurants.

The Center for Brain Injury and Repair will again participate in Science Day at the Ball Park, as part of the 2013 Philadelphia Science Festival

When most people think about ways to improve their heart health, they consider eating a healthier diet, getting some additional exercise, and possibly sipping a glass of red wine each night. But few people really consider the complex role that sleep – yes, sleep – plays in their overall cardiovascular...

Depression is one of the most common types of mental illness. Estimated to affect over 17 million people in the United States, it can afflict anyone at any time. Patients commonly report feelings of sadness, fear, hopelessness, and worthlessness, even if everything else in their lives seems to be going...

Roy Hamilton, MD, assistant professor of Neurology and director of Pipeline Initiatives for the Perelman School of Medicine's Council for Diversity and Inclusion, has cultivated a handful of education and outreach programs that extend from high school through medical school and residency. Through exposure, mentorship, and education, his efforts are helping to prepare students before they get to the next step, so they can anticipate and succeed along the way. For all his efforts to educate and help young people advance to next stage of their career , Dr. Hamilton recently was awarded the 2013 University's Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Award for Community Service.

To celebrate February as American Heart Month, the News Blog is highlighting some of the latest heart-centric news and stories from all areas of Penn Medicine. The mortality rate from both heart disease and stroke have decreased significantly in the past decade, but they still remain the #1 and #4...

Metformin, the most widely prescribed diabetes drug, has come full circle from a home remedy in the European medieval apothecary called goat’s rue to now being investigated for a host of modern chronic conditions.

The new year frequently brings with it resolutions to improve our lives. And the two goals topping most people’s lists are losing weight and getting more exercise. Every January, gyms suddenly become more crowded and weight-loss programs see significant increases in membership. Diet aid apps are downloaded by the thousands....

In December and early January, years of neurological research unfolded in a few weeks time as papers published the work of Penn researchers and were able to deepen our understanding of a variety of conditions, both rare and common, hopefully getting closer to refining or finding effective treatments as a result.

The new issue of Penn Medicine (Fall 2012) has a cover story on the work of David F. Dinges, PhD, with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The article’s hook is the recent completion of the Mars-500 experiment, a multinational effort to simulate a manned mission to Mars. Six...

Taking a look back, 2012 has been a year marked by breakthroughs in medical research, system-wide growth, and landmark philanthropic support for Penn Medicine. As we set our sights on the year ahead, we also celebrate the past year's accomplishments and give thanks to the outstanding faculty, staff, and students...

Steve Berkowitz, MD, director of the Penn Center for Youth and Family Trauma Response and Recovery, outlines some strategies for helping children and teens process their feelings in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting.

Despite their use in approximately 60,000 surgeries per day in the U.S. alone, medical researchers don’t know exactly how anesthetics cause unconsciousness – or what the true long-term impact of their use could be on the brain and the rest of the body. "The development of anesthetic drugs has been...