Houston Businessman Creates Distinguished Chair for Cardiology
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Dr. Richard Smalling and James D. Woods |
James D. Woods, distinguished business leader, investor, and philanthropist, knows a thing or two about partnerships. The longtime Houston businessman has brokered deals and orchestrated mergers of large corporations and health care entities during his career. Now, Woods has chosen to partner with Medical School to create the James D. Woods Distinguished Chair in Cardiovascular Medicine.
“I believe in cardiovascular research and awareness programs. I think this is a great way to spend your money,” Woods said. “Selecting The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and Dr. Richard Smalling as the beneficiaries of my commitment was an easy decision based on their past accomplishments in cardiovascular medicine.”
Woods, chairman emeritus of Baker Hughes, created the $1 million permanent endowment in honor of Richard W. Smalling, M.D., Ph.D., professor in the Division of Cardiology.
Smalling said that endowed funds are vital to advancing research, now more than ever.
“Research funding is difficult to come by in the current era,” Smalling said. “More and more investigators are submitting NIH (National Institutes of Health) proposals for federal grants. There has been a precipitous drop in those funds recently.”
Smalling noted that research support from pharmaceutical companies and associated industries is “harder to come by, also.” This dearth of funding has a detrimental effect on every aspect of scientific research, but the impact is especially negative for clinical trials and the advanced physiological research that Smalling does.
Smalling said the endowment established by Woods “facilitates bringing research to fruition in the clinical area. James Woods’ gift and gifts received from others can contribute to reduction in heart attack mortality in the next five to 10 years from 10 percent to 1 percent.
“It takes a village to address cardiovascular disease mortality. Many people are working on this across the U.S., including colleagues at the School of Public Health and the NIH. We sincerely appreciate grateful patients, like Mr. Woods, who have so generously supported the research,” Smalling added.
-W. Mohon
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UT-Houston Surgeons Offer Obese Patients New Tools to “REALIZE™” Weight Loss
Surgeons at the Medical School are now offering a new system that is designed to help morbidly obese patients keep their New Year’s resolutions to lose weight and adopt a healthier lifestyle.
Drs. Erik Wilson, Terry Scarborough, and Sherman Yu, assistant professors in the Division of Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery who are part of Minimally Invasive Surgeons of Texas, are the first in Houston to offer an interactive online program that helps patients track their weight-loss success after an adjustable gastric banding procedure.
The REALIZE ™ Adjustable Gastric Band by Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. works similarly to other lap-band procedures. During laparoscopic surgery, the surgeon uses the band to reduce the size of the stomach. This makes patients feel full sooner, helping them to control portion sizes when they eat. The band is adjustable, so depending on the patient’s needs after surgery, the physician can tighten or loosen it during routine office visits by injecting or withdrawing saline from the band through a port that is positioned underneath the skin.
Wilson said this banding procedure offers patients a safe, useful tool for shedding excess weight, and the Web-based component helps patients use the band to its fullest potential so they can reach their weight-loss goals and maintain the results.
The REALIZE mySUCCESS online tool, www.realizeband.com, is designed to help patients remain motivated so that the band can serve its intended purpose, allowing them to lose 1-2 pounds per week on average. At the time of surgery, patients who get the band also receive an access code to the Web site. This interactive tool helps patients develop long-term health goals and track their progress toward meeting those goals. Patients can chart their weight loss, document their nutrition and fitness, and even upload photographs to help them visualize changes in their bodies.
The system allows patients and their physicians to monitor the weight-loss progress together, so that Wilson, Scarborough, and Yu can intervene precisely when their patients need help to stay on track.
“The support patients will be able to receive from the intensive follow-up this online tool offers will optimize patient outcomes and help them maintain long-term weight loss,” Wilson said.
In a clinical trial that led to its FDA approval, REALIZE Band patients lost an average of 50 pounds or 40 percent of their excess body weight within the first year of surgery and maintained that weight loss over three years. More than one-third of patients lost 50 percent or more and about 10 percent lost 75 percent or more of their excess weight.
“I’m excited about this post-operative weight loss tool,” Scarborough said. “Following a diet regime is often the hardest thing for patients to do after surgery. This Web-based program is especially designed to meet each patient’s needs and help them remain motivated and on track. They can go in and use a tool that allows them to see what they’ll look like down the road when they have lost weight. That will be a real motivator. They’ll also be able to get nutrition and exercise advice when they need it the most.”
The REALIZE Band is intended for morbidly obese patients who have a body mass index of at least 35 and have failed other weight-reduction alternatives, such as supervised diet, exercise, and behavior modification programs.
The UT surgeons are currently offering the REALIZE Band at Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center, Park Plaza Hospital and other Houston surgical facilities.
For an appointment with Wilson, Scarborough or Yu at the UT West Loop Health Center, 1776 Yorktown, or more information, call 713.892.5500 or visit www.utdocs.com.
-M. Raine
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Research Shows Etanercept Effective and Safe in Treatment of Children with Psoriasis
Etanercept (Enbrel) can safely and quickly reduce the symptoms of psoriasis in children, according a groundbreaking study co-authored by the director of pediatric dermatology. Until now, no research was available to prove that Etanercept, a drug that is approved for use in adults with psoriasis and for children with rheumatoid arthritis, was safe and effective in treating children with psoriasis.
Published in the January issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, a one-year study co-authored by Dr. Adelaide Hebert tracked 211 participants, some of whom were treated at The University of Texas Dermatology Clinical Research Center. Among children ages 4-17 who were treated with the drug for 12 weeks, 57 percent showed at least a 75 percent improvement in disease severity scores compared with only 11 percent of those receiving a placebo.
Psoriasis affects the skin and joints. It commonly causes red, scaly patches on the skin. The scaly patches are areas of inflammation and excessive skin production. The disorder is a chronic recurring condition and can vary in severity from minor localized patches to complete body coverage.
“This therapeutic breakthrough will potentially allow dermatologists to manage psoriasis in pediatric patients more effectively in the near future. Affected children will not feel embarrassed when they participate in gym at school or when they are invited to swimming parties. This medication treats more than just the skin condition, as it impacts the entire psychosocial well-being of these children,” said Hebert, professor and director of pediatric dermatology.
No serious adverse effects were reported in the study.
There is no FDA-approved drug available to treat children with this disease. Amgen, Inc., which markets the drug, is currently seeking FDA approval. If the approval is granted, long-term efficacy and safety would still need to be established in a controlled study, Hebert said.
The study was supported by Amgen’s Immunex subsidiary and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals.
The article, “Etanercept Treatment for Children and Adolescents with Plaque Psoriasis,” can be viewed at http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/short/358/3/241.
In addition to Hebert, authors include lead author Amy S. Paller, M.D., Northwestern University Medical School; co-authors Elaine C. Siegfried, M.D., of Saint Louis University; Richard G. Langley, M.D., of Dalhousie Medical School; Alice B. Gottlieb, M.D., Ph.D., of Tufts-New England Medical Center; David Pariser, M.D., of Eastern Virginia Medical School; Ian Landells, M.D., Nexus clinical researcher; Lawrence F. Eichenfield, M.D., of University of California, San Diego; and Vaishali Patel, Pharm. D., M.S., Kara Creamer, M.S., and Angelika Jahreis, M.D., Ph.D., of the Etanercept Pediatric Psoriasis Study Group.
-M. McDonald
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