Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine, Eskenazi Health, Regenstrief Institute and other partners have demonstrated the feasibility of conducting dementia prevention trials among older adults with limited formal education, a group at heightened risk for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

The MINDSpeed trial, a randomized study, tested whether a diet rich in polyphenols, which are plant-based compounds found in foods like nuts and berries, and online speed-of-processing cognitive training could improve cognition in older adults with 12 or fewer years of education.

The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI), American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC), European Association of Nuclear Medicine (EANM), and American College of Nuclear Medicine (ACNM) have issued a new clinical guideline for ¹⁸F-flurpiridaz PET myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) and blood flow quantitation. The guideline, co-published in The Journal of Nuclear Medicine and the Journal of Nuclear Cardiology, is intended to assist nuclear cardiology practitioners in the optimal application of ¹⁸F-flurpiridaz PET for MPI, including recommendations for patient selection, imaging protocols, and interpretation of results.

Most medical schools teach students about illness through lectures or clinical vignettes as taught by doctors, but Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine offers a novel teaching experience whereby medical students share their own personal experiences with illness. 

Recently, the school created the Student Perspectives Initiative (SPI), a student-led program where medical students share their own personal stories with illness that match topics being taught in class. For example, a lecture on inflammatory bowel diseases in the gastroenterology module would include a presentation by a student speaking about their own experience with Crohn’s disease.

In a new study, students who participated in the SPI program said that it helped them learn, understand the emotions connected to the disease, and feel more connected to each other. This is the first study demonstrating that storytelling by students themselves can be a lasting and meaningful way to improve medical education.