Neurosciences on the rise

University launches new era of progress in neuroscience Understanding the brain and nervous system is one of the most pressing challenges in medicine. To meet this challenge, WashU Medicine has built and is opening the Neuroscience Research Building, a 609,000-square-foot facility expected to be among the nation’s premier neuroscience research hubs. Read more.

Avidan, England, Miller elected to National Academy of Medicine

Anesthesiologist Michael S. Avidan, MBBCh, reproductive biologist Sarah K. England, PhD, and neurologist Timothy Miller, MD, PhD, all of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, have been elected to the National Academy of Medicine, a part of the National Academy of Sciences. Membership in the organization is one of the highest honors in […]

Predicting surgical outcomes with machine learning

Hospitals spend about one-third of their expenses on perioperative care – the high-stakes period just before and after a patient is in surgery — to prevent complications afterward. Washington University in St. Louis researchers have developed a machine learning approach that exploits the large amount of clinical data collected during perioperative care to predict potential […]

$6.2 million grant to fund Center for Perioperative Mental Health

The average person will undergo nine surgical procedures in his or her lifetime, and the periods before, during and after surgery are considered high risk regarding mental health, particularly among older adults. Depression and anxiety are especially common in older surgery patients; past research has demonstrated that about 40% of older surgical patients have mental […]

$33 million to support study comparing anesthetic medications

More than 50,000 surgical patients undergo general anesthesia every day in the United States, but clinicians and scientists lack evidence indicating which types of anesthesia drugs result in the best outcomes for patients. A new study led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of Michigan will compare […]

Podcast: Global study tests chloroquine to protect health workers from COVID-19

More than 10% of those with serious COVID-19 infections have been front-line health-care workers. Now, an international group led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is launching a trial to see whether the drug chloroquine might help those workers. The drug trial won’t treat doctors, nurses and others after they […]

Global study to test malaria drug to protect health workers from COVID-19

With $9 million in philanthropic support, an international group of physicians and scientists is establishing a research network to evaluate promising therapies for COVID-19. The group, called the COVID-19 Research Outcomes Worldwide Network (CROWN) Collaborative, is testing whether the antimalaria drug chloroquine can prevent COVID-19 infection or decrease its severity in front-line health-care workers. An […]

Avidan named head of anesthesiology

Michael S. Avidan, MBBCh, has been named head of the Department of Anesthesiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. In that position, he also will become anesthesiologist-in-chief at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Avidan will begin in his new role July 1. Avidan currently is the Dr. Seymour and Rose T. Brown Professor of Anesthesiology at the […]

Michael Avidan named head of anesthesiology

Dear Faculty, Staff and Students, With great pleasure, I am writing to you to announce that Dr. Michael Avidan has accepted the position of head of the Department of Anesthesiology, effective July 1. Michael is currently the Dr. Seymour and Rose T. Brown Professor of Anesthesiology, a professor of surgery, chief of the Division of […]

Less anesthesia during surgery doesn’t prevent post-op delirium

Many older adults who have major surgery experience postoperative delirium in the days after their operations. Previous research has suggested that closely monitoring the brain during surgery and making adjustments to protect the brain from too much anesthesia could reduce risk of postoperative delirium. But in a new study of more than 1,200 older surgical […]

Washington People: Michael S. Avidan

Anesthesiologist works to improve outcomes for patients during and after surgery From the WashU Newsroom… Michael Avidan and his colleagues sit in a windowless room in front of a panel of screens tapped into every operating room at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. It’s conceptually similar to an air traffic control tower, except they aren’t tracking airplanes. Relying on […]