Local reporting on a vaccine developed by scientists at UTMB working with Baylor College of Medicine found to be effective against SARS. The vaccine never progressed to human testing because it was not completed until 2016. Some now believe it could be useful against COVID-19.

The St. Vincent’s House clinics, as well as five Teen Health Clinics in Galveston, will become part of UTMB’s EPIC electronic records system after receiving $1.45 million from the Sealy & Smith Foundation. The gift will allow for better coordination between health care providers.

Victor Sierpina highlights research work conducted by students enrolled in UTMB’s complementary and integrative medicine elective. The students chose the course to learn non-drug methods to address patient mental health issues and primary care problems.

The Galveston County Daily News, February 19, 2020 - Earth Day art contest entries now being accepted - Bay Colony Pediatrics tops charts - Volunteers needed

Excessive alcohol consumption can lead to a deadly condition, alcoholic hepatitis, which is characterized by inflammation of the organ. There is no exact threshold of alcohol consumption that leads to the condition. “Three standard drinks – so 45 grams of alcohol per day is generally what’s required. It may be a little more than that for men and maybe a little less than that for women,” explains UTMB’s Shehzad Merwat.

The health care industry publication recently published their “100 hospital and health system chief medical officers to know” in 2020. UTMB’s Gulshan Sharma was included on the list.

Reports indicate that the coronavirus known as 2019-nCoV is hitting older people the hardest. UTMB’s Vineet Menachery explains this is typical of the coronaviruses. “Age and your condition in life will really drive your susceptibility. You may be in your 40s, but if you have these chronic health conditions, you’re going to be more susceptible, just like you see with flu,” said Menachery.

In Asian countries, it is common to see residents on the street wearing masks, even before the novel coronavirus surfaced. According to Victor Sierpina if you want to protect yourself, handwashing is a much better option than wearing a mask.

In this reports from Houston’s CBS affiliate UTMB’s James Le Duc discusses efforts undertaken at the Galveston National Laboratory to better understand the novel coronavirus.

Victor Sierpina opines that life can be short and while we may look at the past, we should remain optimistic about the future. According to Sierpina, life may not be perfect, and we may not be perfect, but with optimism as our underlying attitude, life is good.