News Archive for 2009

December 7, 2009
Sargent, colleagues target cinematic smoking
After four years of studying the way Mexican-American adolescents respond to movie scenes of characters smoking cigarettes, Dartmouth pediatrician James D. Sargent, M.D. and his fellow researchers are urging families and Hollywood to slap more than a "PG" on some cinematic offerings.
November 24, 2009
PTSD professionals laud DMS's Friedman, Schnurr
The International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS) recently honored Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) faculty members Matthew J. Friedman, M.D., Ph.D., and Paula P. Schnurr, Ph.D., for their work as co-founders of the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
November 4, 2009
Ethics Guide for Rural M.D.s
With an eye to small-town health professionals as well as to the people training students to practice medicine beyond metropolitan settings, Dartmouth's Department of Community and Family Medicine is unveiling the Handbook for Rural Health Care Ethics.
October 28, 2009
Geneticists Hunt for Scleroderma Triggers
At its most benign, the autoimmune disease scleroderma can discolor parts of the skin of its sufferers. At its most pernicious, it can thicken and harden their skin, their blood vessels, and their internal organs before, in many cases, killing them.
Freeman Named Surgery Chair
Richard B. Freeman, Jr., M.D., a veteran transplant surgeon and medical educator at Tufts, has just been named chair of the Department of Surgery at Dartmouth Medical School.
October 26, 2009
DMS Cites Rural Risk for Perforated Appendix
People who live in rural areas may run a greater risk of suffering a perforated appendix than those dwelling in suburbs and cities, according to a new study from Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) researchers.
October 21, 2009
Prescription: Better Labeling
Drug labels—the main way that the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) communicates the prescribing information physicians need—frequently don't include basic information required to fully understand the harms and benefits of these products, two Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) professors declare in the Oct. 29 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.
October 6, 2009
Dartmouth Welcomes Doctors-to-Be to the Profession
Seven weeks into their first year at Dartmouth Medical School, the 47 women and 37 men of the Class of 2013 marched into DMS's Kellogg Auditorium and donned the symbol of their new profession at the School's White Coat Ceremony on Saturday, October 3.
September 28, 2009
Dodds Named Anesthesiology Chair
Thomas M. Dodds, M.D., has been named chair of the Department of Anesthesiology at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC), after serving as acting chair for the past 18 months. His appointment follows the previous departmental leadership of David Glass, M.D., who chaired anesthesiology from 1983 to 2008.
September 14, 2009
Hazelden and Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center announce publishing partnership in the fields of mental health and addiction treatment
Hazelden, a nonprofit organization, and the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center (PRC)—both leaders in the research and development of evidence-based practices—today announced a partnership to develop a variety of resources for the mental health and addiction treatment industries. These resources, including curricula, books, multimedia tools, and staff-development trainings, will be published under a new "Dartmouth PRC-Hazelden" imprint.
September 11, 2009
Weighing Costs, Benefits of HIV Treatments
Prevention versus treatment? Cost versus efficacy? So go two of the dilemmas looming over Dartmouth's Paul E. Palumbo, M.D., and his fellow researchers in the race to fight HIV and other infectious diseases in the developing world—especially among women and their young children.
August 21, 2009
Stimulus Funds Awarded to Support Northern New England Fiberoptic Backbone
New Hampshire lung diseases partnership has been awarded almost $2 million in economic stimulus funding from the National Institutes of Health for a fiberoptic backbone to connect Northern New England. The two-year supplement, effective this month, will provide for development of an internet network to link higher education and research institutions for large-scale collaborative regional studies.
August 12, 2009
In the with New: First-year Dartmouth Medical Students Begin
Dartmouth Medical School ushered in a new academic year when 84 first-year medical students, broadly educated and bringing a diversity of experience in work and service from around the country and world, arrived for orientation.
July 21, 2009
Dr. Henry Bernstein New Online Health Promotion Series Offers Smoking Prevention Strategies for Child Health Professionals
An online teaching and learning hub for health promotion based at Dartmouth Medical School and Children's Hospital at Dartmouth (CHaD) has launched courses on tobacco counseling strategies for young girls.
July 13, 2009
Dr. Jose Conejo-Garcia Trojan Horse for Ovarian Cancer—Nanoparticles Turn Immune System Soldiers against Tumor Cells
In a feat of trickery, Dartmouth Medical School immunologists have devised a Trojan horse to help overcome ovarian cancer, unleashing a surprise killer in the surroundings of a hard-to-treat tumor.
June 26, 2009
Dr. Richard Reindollar Accelerated Fertility Treatment Shortens Time to Pregnancy and Saves Costs
For couples beginning infertility treatments, an accelerated path to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) can offer a shorter time to pregnancy, cost savings of nearly $10,000, and a lowered risk of multiple births, a new trial recently published in the journal Fertility and Sterility shows.
May 20, 2009
DMS Logo New Role for an Old Poison: Common Arsenic Exposure Levels Inhibit Flu-fighting Ability against H1N1, DMS Scientists Find
Low levels of arsenic exposure that commonly occur through drinking contaminated well water severely compromise the immune response to influenza A (H1N1) infection and may lead to increased susceptibility and severity, Dartmouth Medical School scientists have found.
May 19, 2009
DMS Logo Gates Foundation Awards DMS Scientists for Bold Global Health Ideas
Dartmouth Medical School scientists are among nearly 200 researchers from around the world who have been awarded grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for their bold ideas to improve health in developing countries. They have won grants of $100,000 from the Foundation's Grand Challenges Explorations initiative that aims to foster creative ideas that could change the face of global health.
May 14, 2009
Dr. Jennifer Loros Biological Timekeeper Studies Reveal New Temperature Regulator and Track Clock Protein across a Day
Dartmouth Medical School geneticists have made new inroads into understanding the regulatory circuitry of the biological clock that synchronizes the ebb and flow of daily activities, according to two studies published May 15.
May 1, 2009
Dr. Jason Moore Large-scale African genetics study finds surprising diversity, few ancestral groups
A Dartmouth Medical School researcher is part of an international team that has determined that Africans are descended from 14 ancestral populations. The study published April 30 online in Science Express, demonstrates startling diversity on the continent, considered the source of modern humans.
April 28, 2009
Dr. Jay Dunlap Dartmouth Medical School Geneticist Tapped for National Academy of Sciences
Dr. Jay Dunlap, professor and chair of genetics at Dartmouth Medical School, was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, considered the country's premier scientific society. He is internationally recognized as a pioneer in cracking apart the field of clock biology, opening a window on the rhythms of life.
April 23, 2009
Dr. Sophie Moreau-Marquis Two-Pronged Model Could Help Foil Tough Cystic Fibrosis Infections
Dartmouth Medical School researchers have devised a novel approach for thwarting the relentless bacterial infections that thrive in the lungs of people with cystic fibrosis (CF), unlocking new possibilities against a tenacious and toxic hallmark of the common genetic disease.
April 20, 2009
Donald Ingber Noted Physician-scientist to Address Dartmouth Medical School Class Day June 13
Research pioneer Donald E. Ingber, MD, PhD, of Harvard is the keynote speaker for Dartmouth Medical School Class Day, a celebration for final year medical and graduate students receiving their degrees.
April 13, 2009
Gene Targeting Discovery in Model Parasite Opens Door for Vaccines and Drugs
In a genetic leap that could help fast track vaccine and drug development to prevent or tame serious global diseases, DMS researchers have discovered how to destroy a key DNA pathway in a wily and widespread human parasite. The feat surmounts a major hurdle for targeting genes in Toxoplasma gondii, an infection model whose close relatives are responsible for diseases that include malaria and severe diarrhea.
April 2, 2009
Losing a Newborn Sibling Can Have Life-long Impact
Little is known about the long-term effects of losing a sibling in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Survivor siblings may encounter unforeseen emotional difficulties and developmental consequences, whether they are born before or after the infant's death, and the impact can be life-long, according to a Dartmouth Medical School study.
March 27, 2009
First Elmer R. Pfefferkorn Professor at Dartmouth Medical School Named
William R. Green, Ph.D., dean of Dartmouth Medical School (DMS), has been named the inaugural Elmer R. Pfefferkorn, Ph.D., Professor of Microbiology and Immunology. The appointment, approved by the Dartmouth Board of Trustees, recognizes Green's contributions and service as chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, and now as dean.
March 19, 2009
The Envelope, Please: DMS Seniors Match
Graduating ting Dartmouth Medical School students celebrated Match Day, the national rite of passage when soon-to-be physicians learn where they begin residency training. For most DMS seniors, the defining moment came during ceremonies at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center when students received envelopes that revealed where they will head after their June graduation.
Dartmouth Community Medical School Spring Program on the Immune System Opens March 31
Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) kick off the 11th installment of the highly popular Dartmouth Community Medical School on March 31, with the first of eight weekly Tuesday evening sessions throughout April and May.
March 13, 2009
Dr. Jay Dunlap Genetics Society Honors Dartmouth Medical School Clockwork Researcher
Dartmouth Medical School geneticist Dr. Jay Dunlap has received the Genetics Society of America's 2009 George W. Beadle Medal for outstanding contributions to the genetics community. Dunlap, professor and chair of genetics, is recognized for his work on what makes cells tick and for his mentorship and service within genetics.
February 23, 2009
Joyce DeLeo, Ph.D. DMS Researcher Recognized for Pain Scholarship
Dartmouth Medical School pain scientist Dr. Joyce DeLeo has won the American Pain Society's 2009 Frederick W. L. Kerr Basic Science Research Award.
February 13, 2009
A light box  to treat jet-lag and reset the clock uses  blue, the peak wave length of light to reset the circadian clock. Research sheds new light on fascinating rhythms of biological clock
Scientists have long known that interrupting the 24-hour daily rhythm plays havoc with the lives and health of medical, military and airline personnel, factory employees and travelers. Now, a Dartmouth Medical School research team has uncovered a potential target that could be exploited to help ameliorate the effects of jet lag and shift work.
January 28, 2009
Dr. Alan Green Altered Brain Activity In Schizophrenia May Exaggerate Self Focus
Schizophrenia may blur the boundary between internal and external realities by over-activating a brain system involved in self-reflection, a new brain imaging study has found.
January 16, 2009
Dr. Duane Compton Dartmouth Researchers Identify Potential Cancer Target
Dartmouth Medical School biochemists have found two proteins that work in concert to ensure proper chromosome segregation during cell division. Their study, published in the January issue of Nature Cell Biology, may offer clues to treating cancer tumors that shuffle chromosomes.
January 7, 2009
Dr. John Hwa Dartmouth Researcher John Hwa to Receive Heart Association Award
A Dartmouth Medical School physician-scientist will be honored by the American Heart Association (AHA) for his research to help understand and detect cardiovascular disease.

Return to News Archive