SUMC in the News (08/27/07)

Print media coverage

Los Angeles Times, 08/27/07
Kids' taste runs to brands they know best
Asked to sample two identical foods from McDonald's, children in a Stanford/Packard Children's study preferred the taste of the version branded with the restaurant's familiar "Golden Arches" to one extracted from unmarked paper packaging. The study was led by Thomas Robinson, associate professor of pediatrics and of medicine and director of the Center for Healthy Weight at Packard Children's, who is quoted in this article. Robinson also provides comment in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune (San Gabriel Valley, Calif.).

Oakland Tribune, 08/27/07
Sharing duties results in better patient health
This article discusses how a case-management approach helped a diverse group of patients reduce their overall risk of heart disease by roughly 10 percent, and did so in a cost-effective way. Kathy Berra, program coordinator with the Stanford Prevention Research Center and co-author of the Stanford/San Mateo County case management study, and Susan Ipaktchian of the Office of Communication & Public Affairs, are quoted in this article.

Donor's generous record hits 500 pints
On Friday, a Woodside man set a record at Stanford Blood Center - his 500th donation. The story also appears in the San Jose Mercury News and San Mateo County Times. The Palo Alto Daily News also prepared an article.

New York Times, 08/26/07
Mind over matter, with a machine's help
Omneuron is one of a number of new companies that are commercializing functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI. The article mentions how Omneuron worked with Sean
Mackey, assistant professor of anesthesia and director of the Neuroimaging and Pain Lab at Stanford, on a chronic pain study.

Letters/ Suffering differently
In this letter to the editor, David Spiegel, the Jack, Lulu and Sam Willson Professor in Medicine, responds to an article on cultural differences and post-traumatic stress disorder.

San Francisco Chronicle, 08/26/07
Children who survive urban warfare suffer from PTSD, too
This article discusses how children who experience violence in urban neighborhoods may also develop PTSD. Victor Carrion, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and director of the Stanford Early Life Stress Research Program, is quoted in this article.

Study finds emotional trauma can alter size of a child's brain
Children with PTSD and exposure to severe trauma had smaller brains, according to a study led by Victor Carrion.

A crisis of great magnitude
In this piece, Nayer Khazeni, a medical school fellow, discusses the obesity epidemic.

Independent Online (South Africa), 08/26/07
People with an irresistible impulse to steal
Lorrin Koran, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences emeritus, provides comment in this article on kleptomania.

iVillage.com, 08/24/07
Obese children miss more school days
A new study from the Center for Obesity Research and Education at Temple University in Philadelphia has found that school abesnteesim is higher among overweight kids. Thomas Robinson provides comment in this HealthDay article.

CNN.com, 08/24/07
Making sense of conflicting nutrition information
Tara Coghlin-Dickson, clinical dietitian at Stanford Hospital & Clinics, discusses the health benefits of coffee in this brief item.

Palo Alto Online News, 08/24/07
Lucile Packard Hospital gets top rating in the state
Christopher Dawes, president and CEO of the hospital, is quoted in this article on the recent U.S. News & World Report's rankings on pediatric hospitals. The results were also mentioned in the San Jose/Silicon Valley Business Journal.

Broadcast media coverage

KTVU-TV, 08/27/07
U.S. News and World Report has compiled its list of "America's Best Children's Hospitals." Packard Children's placed 10th among pediatric hospitals nationwide and first in the state.

KPIX-TV, 08/24/07
This segment discussed the record-setting donation at the Stanford Blood Center. Similar segments also aired on KGO-AM, KCBS-AM and KLIV-AM.