2017

NOTES from Japan

In 2016, Dr. Ian Grimm completed a summer sabbatical in Japan, where he studied endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) and peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) with master endoscopists at nine major medical centers throughout the country. He has since applied these cutting-edge skills within our growing UNC Advanced and Therapeutic Endoscopy Program.

New Approaches to HIV Clinical Trials for Black Women and HIV

US black women and HIV prevention is the focus of a new intervention strategy by Drs. Ada Adimora, Joe Eron and Stephen Cole in the department of medicine’s division of infectious diseases.

Fear of Movement is Associated with Osteoarthritis of the Knee

UNC Thurston Arthritis Research Center (TARC) scientists and affiliated researchers have published a new study in Arthritis Care and Research.

Dr. Myron Cohen Researches Antibodies to Develop HIV Vaccine

In observance of World AIDS Day, WRAL News interviewed Dr. Myron Cohen from the division of infectious diseases about UNC research that will help develop an HIV vaccine.

UNC Study of Elimination Diet for Eosinophilic Esophagitis Among Top 10 Downloaded in APT Journal

An elimination diet resulted in 40% of eosinophilic esophagitis patients achieving a histologic response, which was maintained in 20% after two years of treatment.

New study aims to address the opioid crisis in western North Carolina

Three UNC researchers, two from the department of medicine, are joining forces with investigators at RTI International to devise solutions to address the opioid epidemic and related public health problems in eight counties in North Carolina’s western tip.

Dr. Amanda Nelson and Dr. Yvonne Golightly Lead the Johnston County Osteoarthritis Project as Co-Principal Investigators

For more than 25 years, the Johnston County Osteoarthritis Project has established itself as one of the premier longitudinal research studies world-wide regarding the causes, societal implications, and means of addressing the impact of osteoarthritis. Ongoing research is providing important new insights regarding how osteoarthritis is diagnosed and assessed clinically, as well as how it can be addressed in community settings.

Normalizing the Conversation, Putting Advance Care Planning into Practice

Dr. Margaret Drickamer, professor of geriatric medicine and medical director of UNC Hospice, participated in an international consensus study aimed at defining and normalizing advance care planning. The results have been published in The Lancet Oncology.

Consult Service gets Ventilator Dependent Patients on the ROAD

Dr. Thomas Bice has received the Physician of the Year Award by the North Carolina Society for Respiratory Care. The award recognizes his efforts to coordinate the ROAD (Respiratory Optimization and Assistance for Discharge) Team at UNC Medical Center.

TARC and Osteoarthritis Action Alliance Researchers Publish New Studies

The UNC Thurston Arthritis Center and Osteoarthritis Action Alliance are at the forefront of basic science and clinical research, publishing several new studies in the North Carolina Medical Journal.

Arthritis Researcher Brian Diekman, PhD, Receives Grant to Study Mechanisms of Aging

UNC arthritis researcher Brian Diekman, Ph.D., has been awarded a $100,000 Arthritis and Aging Research Grant.

Back to Bedside Grant Is Awarded to UNC Medicine Residents

A rounding intervention promises to improve resident-patient connections, fostering meaningful face time.

Pediatric Kidney Trial Combines a Simple Diet with Moments of Magic

Disney is a place to make wishes and memories, not necessarily the place to go on a diet. But what if it could change a child’s life? That’s what researchers are hoping to learn. Two-year-old Nadiya Dockery with nephrotic syndrome was one of 20 children who participated in a grand medical experiment at Disney Resorts in August, joined by her mom Kaley Williams of Sanford, NC.

Ronald J. Falk, MD, Received the Distinguished John P. Peters Award from the American Society of Nephrology

Ronald J. Falk, MD, FASN, chair of the department of medicine, has received the distinguished John P. Peters Award from the American Society of Nephrology (ASN). The award was presented November 4, 2017 during ASN’s Kidney Week Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Dr. John Buse leads clinical trial of new diabetes treatment

The study is designed to evaluate whether TTP399 is well tolerated when administered as an add-on to insulin therapy and can improve daily glucose profiles and HbA1c in people living with type 1 diabetes.

New study aims to reduce opioid use while managing chronic pain

A principal investigator of the study is UNC’s Dr. Paul Chelminski, from the division of general medicine and clinical epidemiology, who has extensive experience studying best practices of prescribing and managing long-term opioid use.

Lupus Patients Now Have the Option to Administer Benlysta at Home

Lupus patients who previously needed to visit an infusion center to receive the drug Benlysta, now have the option to administer the medicine themselves at home using a novel “auto-injector” device, thanks in part to the efforts of Dr. Saira Sheikh, a UNC rheumatologist and allergist/immunologist who directs the lupus and clinical trials programs at the UNC Thurston Arthritis Research Center.

Defining the Burden of Hepatitis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Hepatitis C virus is a curable infectious disease, but treatment remains unavailable in resource-limited settings like the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The DRC Ministry of Health asked the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) to help determine the burden of infection and find a way to connect people infected with the virus to treatment. Using laboratory equipment readily available in developing countries, researchers from UNC and Abbott Diagnostics were able to define and map the burden of disease in the DRC. Their findings were published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Kelli Allen, PhD, Investigates Pain Management Interventions for the Military and Veterans

Members of the military and veterans are disproportionally affected by pain, and the government is searching for ways to help them deal with this widespread and growing problem. New research being conducted thanks to multiple grants recently awarded by the US Department of Health and Human Services, the US Department of Defense, and the US Veterans Administration will investigate the feasibility, safety and effectiveness for a number of non-drug approaches for pain management and related conditions.