UW Medicine’s top stories of 2018

Part of the New Year ritual is looking back at the highlights of the old year. It was a busy one for UW Medicine. Many of our research studies were counted among the top stories of the year by journals, academic associations and news organizations. On the UW Medicine Newsroom, Right as Rain and here at the Huddle, we had our own lists of top stories for 2018.

In case you missed them, or want to enjoy them again, here is our round-up of the most popular:

Top 5 media picks featuring UW Medicine research

No safe level of alcohol, study concludes

Several news organizations, including Slate, Science News, Business Insider and MedicalXpress, named a study on the global burden of disease and injuries related to alcohol as one of their top 2018 news stories in scientific and medical research.

Male birth control passes a safety test

Science News called a study on a once-daily capsule safely suppressing reproductive hormones in men its most read news story of 2018.

Breast cancer gene variants edited, analyzed to improve clinical testing

Eric Topol, editor in chief of Medscape, highlighted a few fast-moving areas of science in 2018 that have transformative potential in medicine. Under the category of genome editing, Topol gave a study published in Nature as an example.

High resolution comparative analysis of great ape genomes

Nature magazine named a Science paper that revealed new differences between humans, chimpanzees and orangutans among its Choice Cuts from its News & Views articles of 2018

Designer proteins activate fluorescent molecules

Nature magazine readers voted for a News & Views article to be included in the 2018 round up.  The Reader’s Choice was a Nature paper from the UW Medicine Institute for Protein Design on new proteins that could activate certain fluorescent molecules.

The Huddle’s Top 10

• • From psychiatry inpatient to Harborview employee

 

• • A disposable masterpiece for Northwest Hospital

 

• • King County opens homeless shelter at Harborview Hall

 

• • Have boys changed since the 1950s?

 

• • New voluntary psychiatric unit to open at Northwest Hospital

 

• • Carlos Pellegrini: My journey from obstacles to opportunities

 

• • Nahush Mokadam: Reflections of a heart transplant surgeon

 

• • Lisa Brandenburg: ‘Are we there yet?’

 

• • Harborview’s legendary mail clerk celebrates 40 years

 

• • Paula Houston: Taking on the weighty issue of healthcare equity

 

 

The UW Medicine Newsroom’s Top 10

• • Robots grow mini-organs from human stem cells

 

• • Report: Common food additives may pose danger to kids

 

• • Eye conditions provide new lens for screening for Alzheimer’s

 

• • Study questions reliability of diagnostic tests for herpes

 

• • Phone app effectively treats mental illness, study shows

 

• • Marketing, not science, informs notions of healthy care of teeth

 

• • Heroin use in Pacific Northwest linked to incurable kidney disease

 

• • New device to combat nasal polyps makes West Coast debut

 

• • Many kidney-failure patients must halt dialysis to receive hospice care

 

• • Curious finding: kidney stones rising among Millennials

 

 

The Top 10 From Right as Rain

• • Is Your Chest Pain a Heart Attack or Anxiety?

 

• • What to Say (and Not to Say) to Someone with Anxiety

 

• • It’s Not Just Childbirth That Can Give You a Vaginal Tear

 

• • What the Color of Your Pee Says About Your Health

 

• • Dry January: Is Giving Up Alcohol for a Month Worth It?

 

• • Why You Should Still Go Outside When the Weather Sucks

 

• • How My Husband’s Death Changed What I Tell My Patients

 

• • How to Plank Like You Mean It

 

• • Supraventricular Tachycardia Is A Condition That Can Make Your Heart Race for Hours

 

• • Toxic Shock Syndrome Is Rare. Here’s What Tampon Users Should Know