Higher levels of greenness are associated with lower risks of hospital admissions for mental disorders, finds an analysis of data from seven countries over two decades. Local greenness was associated with a 7% reduction in hospital admissions for all cause mental disorders, with stronger associations for substance use disorders (9%), psychotic disorders (7%), and dementia (6%). However, associations varied across countries and disorders. For example, Brazil, Chile, and Thailand showed consistent protective associations across most disorders, while in Australia and Canada, greenness was associated with modestly increased risks for all cause mental disorders and for several specific disorders. 

Stuart S. Martin, PhD, an internationally recognized breast cancer researcher, has been appointed Chair of the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) Department of Pharmacology & Physiology, Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, announced today. As the distinguished Drs. Angela and Harry Brodie Professor of Translational Cancer Research, Dr. Martin has served as Interim Chair of the Department over the past year. He also serves as the Deputy Director of the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center (UMGCCC), one of 57 National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the nation.

A study of sport fans in the U.S. and the U.K. found that social identification with a team boosts fans' social well-being by giving them access to three important psychosocial processes. Sport and other service organizations that want to enhance their supporters’ health and well-being can achieve that by bolstering their social identification with the group.

Virginia Tech resarchers tap a new method to model mosquito disease transmission.