Medicine | Penn Today

Is ‘Havana syndrome’ an ‘act of war’ or ‘mass hysteria’?

Douglas H. Smith of the Perelman School of Medicine said his team found signs of brain damage without impact to the skull in diplomats diagnosed with “Havana syndrome.” Kenneth Foster of the School of Engineering and Applied Science expressed skepticism that the condition could have been caused by a microwave weapon: “You might as well say little green men from Mars were throwing darts of energy.”

A hub for zoonotic disease research

The new Institute for Infectious and Zoonotic Diseases, launched by the School of Veterinary Medicine, leans on Penn’s strengths in immunology and infectious disease to prepare for emerging threats to animal and human health.

Early successes make CRISPR-based medicine a possibility

Kiran Musunuru of the Perelman School of Medicine spoke about the future of CRISPR-based treatments. “It's going to shift from a model where we're taking pills every day or injections every few weeks for long periods of time,” he said. “Gene editing therapies are going to transform that model into one where you have one-and-done therapies.”

Hand of an African American person on a hospital bed with a hospital bracelet and an IV drip.

Racial disparities in avoidable hospitalizations for Medicare beneficiaries

A new Medical Care study by LDI Fellow Norma Coe and colleagues reveals racial disparities in avoidable hospitalizations that are even greater than in traditional Medicare.

Stock image of two vials of COVID-19 vaccines. One is upright, the other laying on its side. They both say "COVID-19 vaccine, LOT: D66A443, EXP: 03.22, INJECTION ONLY"

Four facts about the COVID-19 boosters

The FDA and CDC endorsed boosters of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines just a month after the agencies did the same for a Pfizer/BioNTech booster. Here’s what’s known today about these shots.

A brain scan with highlighted genetic activity.

Genetic disease CDKL5 deficiency disorder could be treatable after childhood

The study finds that the CDKL5 gene, which plays an important role in proper brain development during childhood, is also active in adulthood, and that gene therapy may help adult patients.

Five rows of COVID-19 vaccine vials. The vials are angled diagonally, from bottom left to top right.

Mandates likely work to increase vaccine uptake

Rather than causing a backlash, vaccination requirements will succeed at getting more people inoculated, according to research from PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín and colleagues at Penn.

diagram of gene therapy for the eye showing injection into vitreous

Novel gene therapy platform speeds search for ways to cure blindness

A newly developed single-cell RNA sequencing technique enables researchers to quickly identify an optimal vector for delivering therapeutic genetic material to treat vision disorders, and perhaps other genetic conditions.

National Academy of Medicine welcomes two new members from Penn

The Perelman School of Medicine’s Marylyn D. Ritchie and PIK Professor Sarah A. Tishkoff are among 100 new members to be elected this year to the Academy, one of the highest honors in health and medicine.

How consumers describe racism in health care

A team of researchers looked at Yelp reviews of hospitals that highlighted racist experiences.

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