• Research
• December 27, 2006

Jennifer Puck, Pioneer Researcher in Immunodeficiency and X-SCID

The second edition of the only comprehensive textbook on inherited disorders of the immune system, co-edited by UCSF Professor of Pediatrics and Human Genetics Jennifer Puck, MD, will soon be published in the United States. The new version has mushroomed in size from 35 to 48 chapters, reflecting the increase in the number of primary immune deficiency diseases that have been identified, as well as new information on their causes and treatments.

• Patient Care
• December 26, 2006

Women on osteoporosis drug can discontinue use with no risk

A long-term study of the most widely used osteoporosis drug has found that many women can discontinue the drug after five years without increasing their fracture risk for as long as five more years.

• Patient Care
• December 22, 2006

Elena Fuentes-Afflick Named Editor of Feature in Ambulatory Pediatrics

Elena Fuentes-Afflick, MD, MPH, professor of pediatrics and epidemiology and biostatistics at UCSF, has been named editor of the "Perspectives" section of the journal <i>Ambulatory Pediatrics</i>, which focuses on reviews of important pediatric topics, with an emphasis on research findings in the previous five years and on identifying areas for future study.

• Patient Care
• December 11, 2006

Lung Cancer Survivors Find Reason for Hope

UCSF faculty and lung cancer survivors met recently to discuss new developments with the disease.

• Research
• December 5, 2006

Are Most Lung Cancer Deaths Among Long-Term Smokers Preventable with Affordable Screening?

• Research
• November 16, 2006

Lung cancer: New insights - New Hope

• Research
• November 9, 2006

New Drugs Target Treatment-Resistant Leukemia

• Patient Care
• October 25, 2006

Evaluating Risks of Surgery for Sleep Apnea

Individuals with obstructive sleep apnea repeatedly stop breathing during the night due to upper airway obstruction. This condition is very common, as common as adult diabetes, and affects more than 12 million Americans, according to the National Institutes of Health. Risk factors include being male, overweight and over the age of 40, but sleep apnea can strike anyone at any age, even children.

• Research
• September 20, 2006

Gladstone Researchers Identify Enzyme that May Protect Against Plaque Build Up Causing Alzheimers

Researchers at the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease (GIND) have identified a potential new avenue for reducing the build up of toxic amyloid (Ab) proteins, which are suspected of causing Alzheimer's disease (AD).

• Research
• September 14, 2006

Cannabis Use Can Improve Effectiveness of Hepatitis C Therapy

• Patient Care
• September 7, 2006

UCSF Children's Hospital Leukemia Patient Reunited with Stolen Puppy

Eight-year-old UCSF Children's Hospital leukemia patient Kyle Wetle was reunited Wednesday with the beloved puppy that was stolen from his family's car in the parking garage on Parnassus Heights on Saturday.

• Patient Care
• September 6, 2006

Puppy Stolen from UCSF Children's Hospital Leukemia Patient Returned

Chemo, the puppy stolen from the family car of 8-year-old UCSF Children's Hospital leukemia patient Kyle Wetle on Saturday, has been recovered, UCSF police officials said Tuesday.

• Patient Care
• September 6, 2006

UCSF Children's Hospital leukemia patient to be reunited with stolen puppy

UCSF Children's Hospital leukemia patient Kyle Wetle and his family will be reunited today (Wednesday) with the 15-week-old Chihuahua puppy named Chemo that was stolen from the family vehicle on September 2.

• Patient Care
• September 5, 2006

Puppy stolen from UCSF Children's Hospital leukemia patient returned

Chemo, the puppy stolen from the family car of 8-year-old UCSF Children's Hospital leukemia patient Kyle Wetle on Saturday, has been recovered, UCSF police officials said Tuesday.

• Research
• August 16, 2006

Obesity & Starvation on KQED Forum

On Tuesday, August 15, <i>KQED-FM's Forum with Michael Krasny </i>assesses a recent hypothesis on obesity, and how sugar may trigger a starvation reaction in the brain.

• Research
• August 11, 2006

Childhood obesity caused by "toxic environment" of Western diets, study says

A UCSF researcher has determined that a key reason for the epidemic of pediatric obesity, now the most commonly diagnosed childhood ailment, is that high-calorie, low-fiber Western diets promote hormonal imbalances that encourage children to overeat.

• Research
• July 21, 2006

Viral Genetic Differences are Possible Key to HIV Dementia

A study led by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center has revealed a possible answer to a longstanding AIDS mystery: why only some people infected with HIV go on to develop HIV dementia.

• Research
• July 17, 2006

Multiple Sclerosis in Children Is More Common Than Thought

Multiple sclerosis is increasingly being diagnosed in children and teens. Although physicians have long known that kids can come down with the disease, new technology and emerging awareness of the problem have led them to spot the kind of cases that previously had gone undetected until years later.

• Research
• July 11, 2006

UCSF Scientist and Colleagues Find We May Sleep Even Less than We Think

A paper published in the July 1, 2006, issue of American Journal of Epidemiology reports that early-middle-aged people (38-50 years) appear to sleep much less than they should, and even less than they think they do.

• Research
• June 26, 2006

UCSF Ophthalmologists Help Characterize Fungal Eye Infections

In a recent report published online in <i>Archives of Ophthalmology</i>, Maria Bernal, MD, a clinical fellow at UCSF's Proctor Foundation, and David Hwang, MD, FACS, professor of clinical ophthalmology and director of the Cornea Service at UCSF, along with colleagues in UCSF's Department of Ophthalmology, provide one of the first reports of an outbreak of soft contact lens-associated corneal infections due to <i>Fusarium</i>, an uncommon type of fungus.

• Research
• June 15, 2006

UCSF's Boxer Comments on Promising Alzheimer's Vaccine Study

A recent Japanese study found that a potential DNA vaccine for Alzheimer's disease cut levels of amyloid proteins in the brain.

• Research
• June 12, 2006

Sleeping Really Strange Hours? Maybe a Rogue Gene is to Blame

The earliest-rising morning larks and the most extreme night owls may have a reason to blame genes &mdash; sometimes just one gene -- for their being out of sync with the rest of us.

• Research
• June 6, 2006

Closer Scrutiny of Culture Warranted in Latino Pediatric Obesity Research

Elena Fuentes-Afflick, MD, MPH, says that researchers should more closely scrutinize the cultural origins of attitudes toward food, weight and body image when studying obesity in Latino children.

• Patient Care
• May 31, 2006

Children and Sleep: UCSF Pediatrician Supports Softening of Ferber "Rule"

In his 1985 bestseller <i>Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems</i>, Richard Ferber, MD, took on one of the most controversial questions that pediatricians are asked to address: whether or not infants should sleep in a crib alone or be allowed to "co-sleep" with their parents.

• Research
• May 17, 2006

Potential New Treatment Strategy Identified for Alzheimer's Disease and Other Brain and Spinal Cord

A study led by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill has identified several new compounds that could play a role in preventing or treating Alzheimer's disease and other degenerative conditions of the nervous system.

• Education
• May 15, 2006

New Child Growth Charts To Help UCSF Pediatricians Teach About Obesity

Newly released World Health Organization (WHO) Child Growth Standards for infants and young children aim to give "guidance on how every child in the world should grow."

• Research
• May 15, 2006

UCSF Autism Expert Sees Decline in Hype and Hysteria

In this May 2006 interview, Siegel explains the shifting landscape of the autism "debate."

• Research
• May 10, 2006

Gladstone Scientists Prove Neurons Produce Alzheimer's-Linked Apolipoprotein E

A question long debated among Alzheimer's disease researchers has been definitively answered by scientists at the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease in San Francisco.

• Research
• March 29, 2006

For Some Insomniacs, "Z Drugs" Bring On More Than Just Sleep

Sleeping pill sales have increased dramatically in the past year &mdash; in part due to hundreds of millions of dollars spent on direct advertising to consumers.

• Research
• March 21, 2006

Light adjustable lens shows promise for improved vision for cataract patients

A new light-adjustable intraocular lens is showing promise for clearer vision for cataract patients, according to results from early clinical trials.