Worldwide, some 50 million people live with epilepsy. They face increased risks of falls, car accidents, burns and more, potentially leading to significant injury or even death. Work being done at Washington University School of Medicine and Barnes-Jewish Hospital, and at other academic health-care systems across the U.S., is now giving people with epilepsy many options for decreasing the frequency or severity of their seizures, or even removing them from their lives altogether.

In cities across the U.S., hospitals and other health-care buildings are changing in meaningful ways. A patient room today looks very little like one from the 1950s, the essentials—bed, walls, medical equipment—notwithstanding. Gone are the semi-private rooms, “hospital green” paint, bare metal beds and windowless walls that were prevalent not that long ago. In their place? Private rooms with comfortable beds allowing patient-controlled adjustment, soothing wall colors and artwork, sunlight, space for family to visit and stay overnight if needed—and windows with views to parks and gardens.

Huntington’s disease, a fatal, inherited neurodegenerative condition, is caused by a genetic error present at birth, though its symptoms often don’t begin until middle adulthood. Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have been trying to understand how the aging process triggers the onset of symptoms, with the expectation that such knowledge could point to treatments that delay or prevent neurodegeneration.

Citing current statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Academy of Family Physicians recently reported that the opioid epidemic is far from over. As long as the incidence of substance use disorder in pregnant women continues to rise, a growing number of babies will be born at risk for opioid withdrawal syndrome.

I lost my fight to avoid contracting COVID in May 2022.

My main symptoms passed quickly—a day or two of fatigue, mild cough, loss of taste, stuffy head. But other symptoms I’d struggled with for years became worse.

Don Sabol, 63, of Kampsville, Ill.,is—literally—a poster boy for cancer screening. After receiving a flier from Siteman Cancer Center about the importance of early detection, Don asked his doctor about screening for lung cancer and discovered he qualified because of his history as a smoker. He was shocked and scared when he was subsequently diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer, but early detection helped save his life.

Current injectable vaccines help prevent severe illness and death but do little to prevent infections, especially as highly contagious newer variants continue to spread. The advantage of the nasal vaccine is that it delivers a boost to immunity in the nose and upper respiratory tract, right where the virus enters the body, thereby potentially preventing infections altogether.

Until recently, the standard treatment for newborns with kidney disease, whether caused by congenital anomaly or acute injury after birth, has been kidney dialysis, a complex intervention that too often has not prolonged life.

Dineo Khabele, MD, FACOG, FACS, a specialist in gynecologic oncology, is head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Washington University School of Medicine. She made history when she assumed that role in 2020, becoming the first Black department head at the medical school.

The marketing messages hit you from all directions. There are apps for weight loss and websites and books and online programs. It’s big business, and the quantity of often conflicting information can be overwhelming. Could it be true that there simply is no magic bullet?

E-cigs were praised as a healthier alternative to cigarettes when they were first invented, but a study looking at dual nicotine use says otherwise.

30% – 50% of older adults have mild sleep apnea: a condition that causes breathing to repeatedly stop and start during sleep. Some people may not have any signs or symptoms of impairment, resulting in increased risks when getting behind a steering wheel.

Antibiotics do not prevent UTIs or future infections. Research shows that they actually can do the opposite by clearing healthy bacteria from the body, making it easier for E.coli to infect the bladder in a poorly diversified gut microbiome.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy – a heart condition also known as HCM is the most common cause of sudden cardiac death in young people, often going undetected. Thankfully a new drug could mean a brighter future for people suffering from HCM.

Heart failure is the leading cause of death in the US, but modern medical advancements are working towards drastically reducing those rates for decades to come.

Solid organ transplant recipients are at high risk for developing severe COVID-19. The immunosuppressive medications that prevent the body from rejecting the new organ can cause the patient to be high-risk for catching all types of infectious diseases.

St. Louis is home to an estimated 140,000 immigrants. BJC recognizes that it is important to meet this growing population where they are in all aspects, including language. BJC’s Language Services provides free, 24/7 access to interpreters for patients and family members.

Quitting smoking seems like an impossible task, but the first step is understanding what you’re up against.

The Fetal Care Center is one of the only centers in the Midwest that offers prenatal surgery to treat spina bifida. Specialists have now seen positive results with an innovative, less invasive treatment called Fetoscopic surgery. With modern technology, spina bifida can be corrected before the baby is born, allowing spina bifida patients to lead happy, healthy lives.

“Fierce advocacy recognizes that some people have less than others.” The High Acuity Adult Special Needs Dental Program at Barnes-Jewish Hospital has treated 20,000 patients and counting, making sure that no one slips through the cracks.

It’s 1982, and a man is having a heart attack. An ambulance rushes him to the emergency department, where he’s given a nitroglycerin tablet and a drug called nifedipine.

The treatment doesn’t seem to work, and the man’s heart sustains serious damage. An emergency physician delivers the news to the man’s family: “He might not survive the night. We’ll keep him comfortable, but there’s nothing else we can do.”

For years, this scene was a common one, played out again and again in emergency departments across the nation. Physicians did their best to care for heart attack patients—but their best too often wasn’t enough. That’s because nifedipine and other drugs used at the time simply weren’t effective.