Can Viagra treat childhood lymphatic disorder? A surprising potential therapy for severe, hard-to-treat malformations of the lymphatic system is now being studied at the Stanford School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital: researchers have a study under way on the benefits of Viagra, a drug best known for treating erectile dysfunction though it has other uses as […]

Continue reading "Can Viagra treat childhood lymphatic disorder?" >>

Vantage point: Research cuts would slow medical advances Because of our national investment in basic biomedical research through the National Institutes of Health, the United States is the world leader in discoveries in the life sciences; Americans have benefited from new treatments and cures that have improved their health and prolonged their lives. Indeed, we […]

Continue reading "Vantage point: Research cuts would slow medical advances" >>

A very special small package: Three-pound baby receives pacemaker My colleague Erin Digitale tells the remarkable story today of a tiny Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital heart patient named Jaya Maharaj. Weighing just 3.5 pounds, with a heart slightly bigger than a walnut, the baby received a pacemaker shortly after birth and was “smaller than any pacemaker recipient ever reported in the […]

Continue reading "A very special small package: Three-pound baby receives pacemaker" >>

Ask Stanford Med: Neuroscientist taking questions on pain and love’s analgesic effects When you ask someone to describe the physical sensation of love, chances are you’ll get an answer like falling head-over-heels, having butterflies in the stomach or walking on sunshine. As it turns out, and as described in a recent Stanford study, those intense, consuming […]

Continue reading "Ask Stanford Med: Neuroscientist taking questions on pain and love’s analgesic effects" >>

Packard Children’s has smallest child yet to get pacemaker Jaya Maharaj was 15 minutes old when she was sent to surgery at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital and given a pacemaker that saved her life. The tiny girl — born nine weeks early, weighing 3.5 pounds, with a heart slightly bigger than a walnut — had been diagnosed […]

Continue reading "Packard Children’s has smallest child yet to get pacemaker" >>

Study cautions babies born at home may be at increased risk for health problems Although home births account for fewer than 1 percent of births in the United States, the percentage of women choosing to deliver at home has increased notably since 2004, according to the most recent data(.pdf) from the National Center for Health Statistics. Now […]

Continue reading "Study cautions babies born at home may be at increased risk for health problems" >>

Stanford study suggests girls can ‘rewire’ brains to ward off depression Stanford researchers are using fMRI machines to monitor the brains of girls at risk of depression and learn more about their responses to stress. … Using brain imaging and a video game, researchers teach girls at risk of depression how to train their brains […]

Continue reading "Stanford study suggests girls can ‘rewire’ brains to ward off depression." >>

Pegram to head Stanford breast cancer program Mark Pegram arrived Feb. 1 and will head the breast oncology and molecular therapeutics programs. Mark Pegram, MD, a renowned clinician and scholar in breast cancer research and a leader in translational medicine, has joined the Stanford University Medical Center to direct the breast oncology and molecular therapeutics programs. Pegram […]

Continue reading "Pegram to head Stanford breast cancer program." >>

CDC report shows exercise becoming a popular prescription among doctors Doctors and health-care professionals are increasingly talking to patients about how physical activity can benefit their health and recommending that they regularly exercise. That’s according to a new report from the National Center for Health Statistics at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The report examined trends in the prevalence […]

Continue reading "CDC report shows exercise becoming a popular prescription among doctors" >>

Can medical center-based farmers markets improve community health? Having farmers markets on medical center campuses could prove useful in boosting wellness in surrounding communities, according to researchers with the Pennsylvania State College of Medicine. In a case study (subscription required) published in the American Journal of Public Health, the researchers describe the process of creating a seasonal market at the Penn State Milton […]

Continue reading "Can medical center-based farmers markets improve community health?" >>