We’re commemorating Mental Health Month by highlighting a few of our Faculty Scholars who are taking on exciting challenges in mental health research, treatment and policy.
Category: Faculty Scholar in the News
Antibiotics Versus Your Microbiome (Links to an external site)
Even when necessary, antibiotics can cause major disruption to gut health. Gautam Dantas, PhD, comments.
Experts on Why Elon Musk’s Antidepressant Tweet ‘Puts People at Risk’ (Links to an external site)
Jessi Gold, MD, MS stepped in to contribute scientific and personal context around Wellbutrin.
Long Covid: as Much as 75% of Hospital Patients Still Not ‘Fully Recovered’ (Links to an external site)
Ziyad Al-Aly, MD, says that as we uncover more about long Covid, we are starting to see that some consequences will “last a lifetime”.
5 Things People Get Wrong About Adult ADHD (Links to an external site)
Jessi Gold, MD, MS, speaks about the most common misperceptions about adult ADHD and how misconceptions can be reduced.
COVID-19 Drug Therapy Is Available to Help Immunocompromised Patients (Links to an external site)
In response to concerns amongst immunocompromised people about masking decreasing, Alfred Kim, MD, PhD, wants people to know about Evusheld’s effectiveness.
Webster Groves Middle School Reinstates Masks After Rise in Covid Cases (Links to an external site)
Amidst differing opinions on the reinstatement, Clay Dunagan, MD, MS, remarks on the past effectiveness of mitigation strategies like masking at keeping kids in schools.
Why Genocide Is Difficult to Prove Before an International Criminal Court (Links to an external site)
In light of devastation in Ukraine, Leila Sadat, JD, speaks on what grounds the international community can use to intervene through the courts.
St. Louisans Are Brushing the Dust Off Their Dancing Shoes After Two Cautious Years (Links to an external site)
With more dance classes opening their doors to the public once again, Ross Brownson, PhD, comments on COVID risk for the close contact, communal activity.
A Key Drug in Fighting Covid Is Now at Risk (Links to an external site)
Michael Kinch, PhD, speaks on the possible negative impact.
New Medication Provides Protection Against COVID-19 for Immunocompromised (Links to an external site)
Alfred Kim, MD, PhD, explains how it works.
Add Some Steps to Your Spring This Year (Links to an external site)
See which activity Graham Colditz, MD, DrPH, promotes as taking little time and energy but offering considerable positive impact on mind and body.
What is a War Crime and How are War Criminals Punished? (Links to an external site)
Leila Sadat, JD, provides detailed insight.
The Long Covid Puzzle is Getting More Complicated (Links to an external site)
Ziyad Al-Aly, MD, comments on a study showing that some long Covid symptoms are likely associated with certain variants.
A Nurse’s Death Raises the Alarm about the Profession’s Mental Health Crisis (Links to an external site)
Having been on the front lines of the pandemic for the past few years, experiences with PTSD are rising and the concern is that these cases will continue to rise for a number of nurses according to Jessi Gold, MD. MS.
Studies Link Covid-19 Infection with Increased Risk of New Diabetes Diagnosis (Links to an external site)
Ziyad Al-Aly, MD, provides more insight into new diabetes diagnosis’ following a COVID infection.
Daylight Saving Time Year-Round Would Make Our our Lives Worse, Wash U Expert Says (Links to an external site)
Following the introduction of a Bill to make Daylight Saving Time Year-Round, Erik Herzog, PhD, comments on the hypothetical idea.
Institute center directors and faculty scholars receive top accolades
Several Institute Faculty Scholars have received accolades from nationally-recognized academic and media organizations. Read about who is recognized for their stellar accomplishments.
Washington U. and St. Louis Children’s Hospital Receive $15 Million Gift to Transform Mental Health Care for Kids (Links to an external site)
John Constantino, MD, speaks about how this gift enables clinicians to work more on preventative measures with patients, rather than a constant focus on crises.
BJC Looks Beyond Medical Treatments to Tackle Root of Health Problems (Links to an external site)
Jason Purnell’s, PhD, MPH, is leading a team that uses ZIP codes to predict life expectancy. That research is now an action plan for the region at BJC.
For Vulnerable Missourians Who Fear Loosening Pandemic Restrictions, Experts Offer Ways to Stay Safe (Links to an external site)
As COVID safety restrictions loosen, some Missourians are concerned about their safety amidst the changes. The Larry J. Shapiro Director of the Institute for Public Health, Bill Powderly, MD offers suggestions on how to stay protected.
Doctor Urges Importance of COVID Booster Shots for Adults Over 65 (Links to an external site)
Larry J. Shapiro Director of the Institute for Public Health Bill Powderly, MD, asserts that booster shots are more important than ever for those 65+.
St. Louis Health Experts ‘Cautiously Optimistic’ About Region’s COVID Recovery (Links to an external site)
Experts, including Larry J. Shapiro Director of the Institute for Public Health Bill Powderly, MD, see the possibility of calm after the relentless pattern of surges we’ve seen over the past 2 years.
COVID Raises Risk of Mental Health Problems; New Omicron Version Not Making People Sicker in S. Africa (Links to an external site)
Institute Faculty Scholar, Ziyad Al-Aly, MD says that the mental health risk of COVID-19 and its variants needs more attention.
What’s Contributing to Low Child Vaccination Rates? (Links to an external site)
Jason Newland, MD, M.Ed, explains why child vaccination rates are low and why it’s important that they increase.
Missouri Takes Months to Process Medicaid Applications, Longer Than Federal Law Allows (Links to an external site)
After Medicaid expansion’s passing in MO, the state is taking longer than is legal to process applications, leaving people without coverage during the pandemic. Dr. Timothy McBride comments on their technology’s role.
Suicides By Drug Overdose Have Increased Among Young Americans (Links to an external site)
Jessi Gold, MD, MS, comments on this alarming and rising trend.
‘We Never Seem to Recover’: the Australians Grappling With Long Covid (Links to an external site)
Read these observations from Ziyad Al-Aly, MD about the reach of long COVID within different areas of the body.
How to Be a Great Leader in Science (Links to an external site)
In the wake of Eric Lander’s resignation as White House science advisor over workplace abuse allegations, Alison Antes, PhD, MS, explains that being successful in science doesn’t mean you have to be a jerk.
Searching For The Biology Behind Autism’s Sex Bias (Links to an external site)
As questions arise around autism’s differing effects on boys and girls, John Constantino, MD comments on the importance of finding answers.
Heart-Disease Risk Soars After Covid — Even With A Mild Case (Links to an external site)
Ziyad Al-Aly, MD, explains that heart disease risk increases significantly after a COVID case regardless of a person’s age, health (no oxford comma needed here) or severity of symptoms.
Health Care Paradox: Medicare Penalizes Dozens of Hospitals It Also Gives Five Stars (Links to an external site)
Karen Joynt Maddox, MD gives her take on the effectiveness of the Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Program and its Medicare penalties.
COVID-19 Hospitalizations Decline in St. Louis; New Variant Emerges (Links to an external site)
As a new strain of omicron emerges, Faculty Scholar, Clay Dunagan, MD, MS says it isn’t predicted to cause another big spike in cases and hospitalizations.
Suicides By Drug Overdose Have Increased Among Young Americans (Links to an external site)
“An increase in these numbers in this population is concerning — and critically important to address — but the fact that it is increasing is not entirely surprising,” said psychiatrist Dr. Jessica Gold, director of wellness, engagement, and outreach in the department of psychiatry of Washington University in St. Louis.
Medicaid Enrollment in Missouri Begins; Applications Appear Vigorous (Links to an external site)
Timothy McBride, co-director of the Center for Health Economics and Policy, wrote this piece documenting the journey of Medicaid expansion in Missouri, citing data collected from the center’s Medicaid enrollment dashboard.
Arthritis & the COVID Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Links to an external site)
A study co-authored by Alfred Kim, MD, PhD, found that drugs used for arthritis may lessen the effectiveness of Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.
WashU Program Shows Occupational Therapy Can Be a Powerful Tool for Homeless Shelters (Links to an external site)
Dr. Quinn Tyminski is mentioned here for instructing a student-run occupational therapy program that is proving uniquely beneficial for homeless shelters and its participating graduate students.
Prior infection, vaccines provide best protection from COVID (Links to an external site)
Vaccination has long been urged even after a prior case of COVID-19 because both kinds of protection eventually wane — and there are too many unknowns to rely only on a past infection, especially a long-ago one, added immunologist Ali Ellebedy at Washington University in St. Louis.
St. Louis doctor urges pregnant women to get boosted, as more get hospitalized in Omicron surge (Links to an external site)
Ebony Carter reacts to the rising number of pregnant women admitted to hospitals during this Covid surge without having received a booster.
The Doctor’s Oldest Tool (Links to an external site)
Elvin Geng, MD, MPH, pushes for a “chain of trust” in the doctor-patient relationship in this piece he penned for The New England Journal of Medicine.
A chatbot could help prevent eating disorders, new study finds (Links to an external site)
Ellen Fitzsimmons-Craft, PhD, provides insight into using chatbots for those at risk of developing eating disorders and what can make them most effective.
Obesity rates among children soared during pandemic. A local study aims to help (Links to an external site)
A study, led by Dr. Denise Wilfley, aimed at identifying interventions for recent childhood obesity trends is explained in this Post-Dispatch article.