Brown Medicine HEALTHTalk

Dr. Tony Wu, an internal medicine physician at Brown Medicine’s Division of Primary Care, discusses Lyme disease symptoms and treatment in this episode of our HealthTalk podcast.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the United States. It’s transmitted from a biting tick that is infected with the disease. 

Dr. Wu reviews the various symptoms including what to look for and when to seek medical attention. He also discusses treatment and the benefits of early detection. 

Dr. Katie Sharkey is a sleep medicine physician with Brown Medicine’s Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine Division, and an Associate Professor of Medicine and of Psychiatry & Human Behavior at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Her research focuses on sleep, circadian rhythms, and mood regulation, particularly as they relate to women's health. Additionally, in her role as Assistant Dean for Women in Medicine and Science at Brown, Dr. Sharkey leads programming to support the professional advancement of women faculty, residents, and students.

Dr. Sharkey discusses female-specific sleep health topics such as the role circadian rhythm plays, how to get a good night’s sleep, sleep positions, what happens to our immune system when we sleep, power napping, common sleep disorders in women, sleep hygiene, melatonin supplements, and more.

Dr. Nadia Mujahid is a physician with Brown Medicine’s Division of Geriatrics. Additionally, she is an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Clinical Educator at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Her specialties include Geriatrics, Dementia, Elderly, and Aging to name a few.

How does aging impact the overall health of women? What are some of the important things to watch for as we get older? Dr. Mujahid, or “Dr. M” to her patients, discusses high-quality comprehensive care for women aged 55 and older, and the top things we should be doing to stay healthy. Topics include how long the postmenopause stage of life lasts, hot flashes and menopause middle, typical health screenings older women should get, staying active through chronic pain, the role diet plays in health, and new guidelines for screenings such as pap smears and colonoscopies.

Dr. Karen Tashima is a physician with Brown Medicine’s Division of Infectious Diseases. Additionally, she is a Professor of Medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

Dr. Tashima was the principal investigator for two Gilead Remdesivir studies (the “Simple” Studies, for moderate and severe COVID disease) in the spring of 2020 in Rhode Island. These two studies enrolled 190 participants locally in a short amount of time. Dr. Tashima assembled a large team of investigators and research staff to support the enrollment of inpatients into the two studies. In the summer of 2020, she received an NIH grant to facilitate COVID19 vaccine trials in Rhode Island. Her clinical trials team enrolled 136 individuals in the Novavax vaccine study for adults. These individuals will be followed for 2 years. She is a member of a COVID study advisory group for Lifespan to vet new studies prior to IRB review.

She serves on the Rhode Island Governor’s appointed COVID-19 Vaccine Sub-Committee providing advice on use and equitable distribution of the EUA vaccines for the state. Dr. Tashima joined the Lifespan vaccine effort by serving on the Lifespan COVID-19 Vaccine Committee and volunteering at the Lifespan vaccine clinics. She provided COVID-19 vaccine information to providers in the region, appearing regularly on the RI DOH Provider Update calls, Lifespan Town Halls, TV news broadcasts, podcasts, on Zoom discussions with physician and community groups, and in newspapers to disseminate this information.

Dr. Kelly McGarry is Director of Brown Medicine's Division of General Internal Medicine, and is a practicing general internist at the Brown Medicine academic practice specializing in women’s health. Additionally, she is a Professor of Medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Her specialties include Primary Care, Internal Medicine, Women’s Health, and General Practice to name a few.

Building a relationship with your primary care physician is based on trust and is an important step in maintaining your overall health goals.  Whether you have newly relocated or are still looking for the right patient/doctor pairing, what are the best methods to find the primary care physician who is right for you and or your family members?  Join Dr. Kelly McGarry as she walks us through what primary care entails, and how to identify the long-term quality care that works for you. Topics include whether a female patient should have a female doctor, questions to ask when visiting a new doctor for the first time, how referrals to specialists are determined, the benefits of team-centered care with other specialty care providers, and more.

Dr. Maria Mileno is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and a specialist in Travel Medicine with Brown Medicine’s Division of Infectious Diseases. Her specialties also include Bacterial Infections, HIV, AIDS and Travel Medicine to name a few.

With travel resuming in the wake of Coronavirus and travel-related restrictions being lifted, people are now more than ever looking for their next travel destination. Your COVID-19 vaccination is only the first line of defense in taking the recommended precautions against infections and illness needed for safe travel.  Join Dr. Mileno as she helps define medical terms such as ‘underlying conditions,’ ‘comorbidity,’ and ‘immunocompromised,’ and offers  tips on staying healthy while traveling with chronic conditions.

Dr. Karen Tashima, an infectious disease physician, researcher and professor of medicine with Brown Medicine’s Division of Infectious Diseases, discusses a COVID-19 vaccine trial at Brown Medicine.

Worldwide, research is underway for a coronavirus vaccine. Brown Medicine was selected as one of the approved site investigators in the race for a cure. Volunteer participants are currently being sought for the trial, and many research Assistants will be hired.

In this episode, Dr. Tashima reveals what response and outcomes are expected from the trial, and what participants need to know. She answers questions such as: Is the vaccine safe; What is in the vaccine; What underlying conditions and factors for contracting the coronavirus exist; and Why reaction to the coronavirus is different for people? She also describes the antibody response by a person’s immune system.

To volunteer for the clinical trial and for more information, visit: www.coronaviruspreventionnetwork.org

There’s a lot of information and misinformation out there about the spread of COVID-19.  Dr. Louis Rice, president and physician-in-chief of Brown Medicine, has a credentialed background in infectious disease from a clinical and research perspective. 

In this episode, Dr. Rice candidly discusses the healthcare changes we are witnessing with this pandemic, from pop-up triage units and testing sites, to telemedicine and research to develop a vaccine and other treatments for the coronavirus. Brown Medicine’s research physicians are conducting studies and managing protocols for using several potential therapeutics in patients including Remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, and blood antibodies. 

He answers frequently-asked questions about the best common-sense ways to lower your risk for contracting COVID-19, the status of routine and elective surgical procedures, and why coronavirus testing swabs have to go so deep into the pharyngeal passageway. 

Dr. Sakeena Raza, a physician in Brown Medicine’s Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, discusses depression in older adults. Individuals who experience their first episode of depression later in life are less likely to have a family history or other major mental disorders. Risk factors include gender (female), retirement, loss of routine, loss of spouse, social isolation, living in a nursing home or assisted living facility, and more.  

In this episode, Dr. Raza reveals what criteria is used by physicians when diagnosing major depression. Family members of elderly patients can help look for warning signs and symptoms including but not limited to loss of interest in activities, weight loss, decrease in appetite, and fatigue. She also discusses the use of medication and side effects, intervention treatments, and how to help a loved one who is going through depression and anxiety.

Dr. Louis B. Rice, president of Brown Medicine, speaks briefly about the COVID-19 coronavirus, addressing such topics as: how it can survive on hard surfaces; risk of serious illness to children; 80% of those who become infected will have little or no symptoms; what those with severe symptoms will need to do; supportive care for those diagnosed with the virus; controlling the spread; and more.