Read article—Features a study led by Lynn Fiellin, a professor of biomedical data science and medicine, and postdoctoral research fellow Caroline Barry showing that PlaySmart, a digital behavioral health game developed in the Fiellin lab, reduced depression symptoms among teens and improved attitudes toward seeking mental health care. “Serious games for prevention and mental health promotion are a rapidly growing area, but the evidence base is still emerging, ” Fiellin said. (Similar coverage in Talker.news, SWNS, and Fresno Bee.)

Read article—A Dartmouth study led by Sarah Preum, an assistant professor of computer science, and co-authored by Tim Burdick, an associate professor of community and family medicine,  found that AI-generated patient messages can help with routine tasks, but models also tended to overdiagnose, overtreat, and miss key follow-up questions. “Our study shows that when you look at a very granular level, like looking at what the AI wrote versus what the actual clinician wrote, there is a gap,” Preum said.

Read article—Dartmouth is highlighted as one of a small number of academic centers actively researching and treating pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome (PANS). Richard Morse, an assistant professor of radiology, said Dartmouth’s research has been partly funded by physician colleagues whose children developed PANS.

Read article—Features Steven Woloshin, a professor of health policy and clinical practice, discussing the importance of treating patients identified through lung cancer screening. “If the public health goal is to reduce deaths from lung cancer through screening, it only works if you treat the people it identifies,” Woloshin said.

Read article—Features Steven Woloshin, a professor of medicine, discussing the risks and benefits of testosterone therapy amid growing demand for treatment. “I think we really need to have a better handle on the long-term benefits and harms,” Woloshin said.

Read article—Features Felicia Goodrum, a professor of microbiology and immunology, explaining how gain-of-function research helps scientists understand how pathogens infect cells and cause disease. “Improvements are possible, but no science in the U.S. is conducted without this sort of oversight,” Goodrum said.

Read article—Features Dartmouth’s Anatomical Gifts Program, highlighting the role body donors play in medical education and research. James Reed, director of Dartmouth’s Anatomical Gifts Program, said the College accepts an average of 28 body donations each year and has more than 1,700 registered donors, adding, “The people who call us just for information is in the realm of 20 to 30 a day.”

Read article—Features Keith Loud, associate professor of pediatrics, discussing firearm safety as an important part of injury prevention. “Firearms are the number one cause of death in children and adolescents in the United States, with many injuries due to self-inflicted accidents or intentional self-harm,” Loud said.

Read article—Features Mitch Zeller, a clinical instructor in pediatrics, discussing the FDA’s decision to allow Zyn nicotine pouches to be marketed as presenting lower health risks than cigarettes. “They’re demonstrably less harmful than burning tobacco leaves and inhaling the 7,000 chemicals that are in tobacco smoke,” Zeller said.