Final results from the landmark NIH-sponsored Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine and were presented during the American Heart Association 2015 Scientific Sessions in Orlando. The results are in part products of work conducted by UAB investigators, including Suzanne Oparil, MD (Cardiovascular Disease) Cora E. Lewis, MD (Preventive Medicine) David A. Calhoun, MD (Cardiovascular Disease) Stephen P. Glasser, MD (Preventive Medicine) and Virginia G. Bradley, PhD (Gerontology, Geriatrics and Palliative Care). The study demonstrates that treating patients 50 and older with high blood pressure to a systolic blood pressure of less than 120 mm Hg reduced rates of cardiovascular events, including death due to cardiovascular disease, heart failure, stroke and heart attack, by 25 percent. 

Mark Sasse, MD (Cardiovascular Disease) recently helped 94-year-old Wayne Gladden, a decorated World War II veteran, through a complex series of heart procedures. Watch the video interview here.  

The Division of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology received a perfect Impact Score of 10 on the T32 application "Training Program in Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases Research." 

The Center for Palliative and Supportive Care recently announced the winners of the second annual Palliative Research Enhancement Project (PREP) awards supporting multidisciplinary pilot research projects that integrate palliative, supportive, or survivorship care throughout UAB. Sylvie Mrug, PhD, Kevin Leon, MD (Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine) and Brad Troxler, MD, will examine “The Role of Spiritual Coping in Health and Well-Being of Patients with Cystic Fibrosis (CF).”  Alexander Lo, MD, PhD, Richard Kennedy, MD, PhD (Geriatrics, Gerontology, and Palliative Medicine) will study “The Association between Unmet Palliative Care Needs and Healthcare Utilization among Older Adults with Heart Failure (HF).”

Joao de Andrade, MD (Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine) has been appointed to two prestigious national committees: the Scientific Program Committee of the American College of Chest Physicians and the Data and Safety Monitoring Board for the Pulmonary Trials Cooperative.

Navin C. Nanda, MD (Cardiovascular Disease) was named Father of Echocardiography by the Sri Lanka Heart Association and the International Foundation for Development of Medical Science and Education based in St. Petersburg, Russia. Dr. Nanda also served as both a moderator for “Heart Disease in Southeast Asians: Women's Health Initiatives Focus on Prevention” and speaker for “Overview of Heart Disease in Southeast Asians” at the American Heart Association 2015 Scientific Sessions. 

Sejong Bae, PhD (Preventive Medicine) has been appointed to the Rehabilitation Research and Development Service Scientific Merit Review Board for the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The UAB Ovarian Cancer Symposium will be held next Friday morning, November 20, at the Wallace Tumor Institute. Nicolas Wentzensen, MD, PhD, MS, senior investigator in the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics at the National Cancer Institute is the featured speaker. For questions or more information on this event, please contact LaDonna Bangeman.

Call for applications. The UAB-VA Health Services, Outcomes, and Effectiveness Research Training Program, a coordinated mentored research fellowship program, is accepting applications for postdoctoral positions with July 1, 2016 start dates. The application deadline is December 14, 2015. These are full-time, two-year mentored research training positions funded through National Research Services Awards T32’s supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Contact Ryan Outman with questions. 

Coming Next Week: Come hear 20 of your colleagues from across each division deliver a special report on The State of the Department of Medicine at UAB. It’s been a sweet year, and there will be a sweet reward for those who attend.

View this week's slides here.

Do you have Good News to share? If so, please email the Department of Medicine's Director of Communications, Carolyn Walsh.