Issue: 2011 September 6
School uniform drive receives strong support from JHU community
September 6, 2011
The Johns Hopkins Adopt-a-Student Uniform Drive, an initiative designed to help low-income families meet the financial challenge of mandatory school uniforms, provided 120 students in 23 Baltimore City Public Schools with uniforms in its inaugural year. The initial goal of the drive was to sponsor 30 students with two uniforms each, at the cost of […]
CT angiography in asymptomatic patients shows no clear benefit
September 6, 2011
Coronary computed tomographic angiography, which can detect plaque buildup in heart vessels, is sometimes used as a screening tool to assess the risk for a heart attack. However, the usefulness of the test on low-risk patients who do not have coronary symptoms, such as chest pain, has been unclear. In the first large-population study to […]
Hopkins Symphony Orchestra announces 30th anniversary lineup
September 6, 2011
The Hopkins Symphony Orchestra has announced its 30th anniversary season, which begins in October. Jed Gaylin, now in his 19th season as music director of the HSO, will lead the orchestra through its four symphonic concerts in Shriver Hall Auditorium on the Homewood campus. At 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 22, pianist Katie Mahan joins […]
To clear digital waste, ‘think green’ JHU researchers say
September 6, 2011
A digital dumping ground lies inside most computers, a wasteland where old, rarely used and unneeded files pile up. Such data can deplete precious storage space, bog down the system’s efficiency and sap its energy. Conventional rubbish trucks can’t clear this invisible byte blight. But two researchers say that real-world trash management tactics point the way […]
Researchers develop new way to predict heart transplant survival
September 6, 2011
Johns Hopkins researchers say that they have developed a formula to predict which heart transplant patients are at greatest risk of death in the year following their surgeries, information that could help medical teams figure out who would benefit most from the small number of available organs. “Donor hearts are a limited resource,” said John […]
Researchers decode workings of mysterious critical TB drug
September 6, 2011
For nearly 60 years, Pyrazinamide has been used in conjunction with other medications to treat tuberculosis, but scientists did not fully understand how the drug killed TB bacteria. Pyrazinamide, or PZA, plays a unique role in shortening the duration of current TB therapy to six months and is used frequently to treat multidrug-resistant TB. A […]
Safety checks could reduce radiotherapy errors
September 6, 2011
A combination of several well-known safety procedures could greatly reduce patient-harming errors in the use of radiation to treat cancer, according to a new study led by Johns Hopkins researchers. Radiation oncologists use more than a dozen quality assurance checks to prevent radiotherapy errors, but until now, the Johns Hopkins researchers say, no one has systematically […]
Temporary ER staff poses increased safety risk to patients
September 6, 2011
Temporary staff members working in a hospital’s fast-paced emergency department are twice as likely as permanent employees to be involved in medication errors that harm patients, new Johns Hopkins research suggests. Results of the research raise serious issues related in particular to temporary nursing staff because they already are a substantial and growing part of […]
No link between menopause, risk of heart attack
September 6, 2011
Contradicting the long-held medical belief that the risk of cardiovascular death for women spikes sharply after menopause, new research from Johns Hopkins suggests instead that heart disease mortality rates in women progress at a constant rate as they age. The findings, published today in BMJ, the British medical journal, could have implications for how heart […]
Johns Hopkins, Morgan State to run Baltimore City school
September 6, 2011
East Baltimore Community School students returned to classes last week, albeit a few days later than expected due to power outages, courtesy of Hurricane Irene. After the back-to-school shock wore off, the students surely noticed the school’s new crop of teachers, the spruced-up classrooms and hallways, and perhaps the new leadership. The real changes, however, […]