Neck of the Woods
Family Medicine
Linda K. Oge’, MD, Associate Professor of Family Medicine and Clinical Specialist
at the Family Medicine Residency Program at Lafayette, contributed a chapter on acne vulgaris to the recently published volume of Conn‘s Current Therapy 2025.
The Lafayette Family Medicine Program was awarded three of the four available prizes
at the 2024 Louisiana Academy of Family Physicians Poster Competition. The statewide poster competition took place in November and had more than 30 submissions from
Family Medicine programs and medical students around the state.
First Place: TEAM STELLY - Claudius Jean Baptiste, David Mas, Madelyn LaVergne, Lisa Nguyen for "Food Fight: Assessing Barriers to Food Insecurity Resources" (image, above left)
Second Place: TEAM GOING - Kristy Chin, Gabriel Navar, Austin Hannah, Bradley Ber
for "Effectiveness of Emphasizing Fluoride Supplementation in Children" (image, right)
Honorable Mention: TEAM BROUSSARD - Artesia Simon, Blaine Boutte, Stephen Igwe, Lilla
Lendvai for "PPls: A Balanced Approach to Prescribing and Deprescribing” (image, left)
Internal Medicine
The Aesculapian Society recently announced that the department’s clerkship program
received a course grade of "Excellent."
Dr. Paul Harch (Emergency Medicine) was recently interviewed for an article on the
use of hyperbarics to save a little girls nose after a dog bite. You can watch the
interview here.
Dr. Farha Khan (Lafayette) will serve as the Internal Medicine Program Director for
Lafayette.
Dr. Kyle Happel (Pulmonary/Critical Care) was recently interviewed on Fox 8 regarding
World Pneumonia Day.
The New Orleans and Baton Rouge nephrology sections were well represented at the recent
American Society of Nephrology Conference. Dr. Rajesh Mohandas, as chair of the early
career committee, organized and chaired the ASN/AHA Donald W. Seldin Young Investigator
Award & Symposium. Numerous faculty including Dr. Farshid Yazdi, Dr. Siddhartha Bajracharya,
Dr. Annalisa Perez, Dr. Mihran Naljayan, Dr. Mohandas, Dr. Hollis “Bud” O’Neal (Baton
Rouge) and Dr. Matthew Foy (Baton Rouge) presented posters presented at the meeting.
(image, from front to back on left: Dr. Mohandas, nephrology faculty; Dr. Bajracharya,
nephrology faculty; Dr. Yazdi, nephrology faculty; from front to back on right: Ashlyn
Anderson, MD/PhD student, pharmacology; Dr. Tammy Do, nephrology fellow; Dr. Lauren
Miles, nephrology faculty LSU Baton Rouge) Posters included (for additional posters, please see the residents, fellows, grad
students and post-docs update):
- Incidence and Outcomes of Nontuberculous Mycobacterium Infections in Patients Undergoing Peritoneal Dialysis Rachael Lazar, Meredith Zywno, Eric Weinhandl, Mihran Naljayan
- Connected Home Hemodialysis Machine Use and Transition to In-Center Hemodialysis: Miranda Hurtado, Meredith Zywno, Eric Weinhandl, Mihran Naljayan
- Association of Connected Cycler Use with Rate of Transition from Peritoneal Dialysis to In-Center Hemodialysis: Miranda Hurtado, Meredith Zywno, Eric Weinhandl, Mihran Naljayan
Dr. Brooks Robey was selected to serve as a judge for the new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services $7.5M KidneyX Sustainability Prize competition, which seeks solutions to reduce water and power usage during dialysis, thereby improving RRT sustainability, emergency RRT availability, and equitable care access for individuals with ESRD.
Dr. Allison Augustus-Wallace was asked to serve as a 2024 Distinguished Faculty for the National Institute of Health (NIH) Cement Extramural Leadership Institute. CELI is designed to expand the leadership and decision-making skills of NIH extramural staff. Piloted in 2017, it is coordinated through the Office of Extramural Research in the Office of the Director.
Scientific Sessions for the American Heart Association Meeting were held in Chicago in November. Dr. Mohandas (Nephrology) was a moderator for the session "AHA Early Career Investigator Showcase: Spotlight on AHA Funded Research: Basic Science." Dr. Tiffany Ardoin (Baton Rouge) gave a talk on Lipid Medication Adherence and Clinician Hesitation in Patients with ASCVD.
Dr. Yazdi (Nephrology) gave a zoom lecture, “Diabetes, Kidney Disease, Heart Failure and SGLT2 Use,” for the Diabetes ECHO Program. The program, supported by the National Kidney Foundation, aims to connect statewide rural primary care providers who care for patients with diabetes with content experts to improve clinical outcomes.
Dr. Catherine Hudson (Gastroenterology) presented a national lecture for the American College of Gastroenterology's Virtual Grand Rounds titled Obesity Medicine as a GI Subspecialty Clinic: Incorporating OM into your General GI, Hepatology, or IBD Practice. Slides from the presentation are available here.
Dr. Tat Yau (Infectious Diseases) organized and co-hosted a medical panel at HIV Stigma
Summit in New Orleans. Sponsored by the Bounce to Zero organization, the Stigma Summit
aimed to engage in dialogue around HIV stigma in the healthcare system, the criminal
justice system, and the wider community. Dr. Yau and others presented "Smarter than
Stigma: Scientific Advancements in HIV Treatment and their Impact on Stigma."
Dr. Yau also presented HIV 101 and Dr. Meredith Clement (Infectious Diseases) presented Ending the HIV Epidemic: Treatment and Prevention during NOLA HIV Awareness Week at UMCNO.
Dr. Paula Seal (Infectious Diseases) was recently interviewed for the article "Climate Change is Disrupting Access to HIV Treatment." The reporter reached out to Seal because she had seen a 2022 Ryan White conference presentation on Emergency Preparedness presented by our faculty.
The LSU Rheumatology Knowledge Bowl team placed 3rd out of 16 teams in a two-day competition
at the ACR Convergence national conference in Washington DC. The LSU team also won
the team Spirit Award and consisted of two second-year fellows, Dr. Pavana Sakhamuri
and Dr. Arya Loghmani, and Dr. Barrett Ford who served as coach. Dr. Stephen Lindsey
and Dr. Nirupa Patel served as faculty advisors.
Drs. Seema Faisal, Arya Loghmani and Stephen Lindsey (Rheumatology) presented a case
report at the annual Rheumatology Alliance of Louisiana Meeting. In addition, the
whole group represented LSU Health at the Association of Women in Rheumatology Annual
Louisiana Chapter meeting in New Orleans. (Image, Drs. Faisal and Lindsey)
Dr. Bud O'Neal and Dr. Tonya Jagneaux (Baton Rouge) were recently interviewed for a podcast on KevinMD regarding “Faster Sepsis Diagnosis in the Emergency Department.”
Dr. Jacques Nsuami (Infectious Diseases) published The Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States: Have We All Read It?, a book on the Second Amendment Right of American citizens under the Constitution
of the United States.
Microbiology, Immunology and Parasitology (MIP)
Department students and faculty members organized, provided and served lunch to homeless
clients at The Rebuild Center in November.
Professor Joy Sturtevant is a member of a therapy animal handling team and part of the Visiting Pet Program. Their team provided support and comfort to the University Medical Center staff to help decrease stress following the mass casualty event on January 1. The organizer of the event sent the following thank you:
"I wanted to take a moment to personally thank you and the incredible volunteers from the Visiting Pets program for bringing so much joy and positivity to University Medical Center during their visit. The kindness and dedication of your team were truly inspiring, and it made such a meaningful impact on our staff.
The fur babies were absolute stars! Their calm demeanor and loving presence brought so many smiles, and it was heartwarming to see how much they were adored by everyone they met. From the café to the vital areas of the hospital, their visit was a much-needed dose of comfort and happiness for our hardworking team.
We are so grateful for your time, effort, and the wonderful mission you all carry out. Please extend our heartfelt thanks to the volunteers and, of course, the furry members of the team. We hope to welcome you back again in the future!”
Neuroscience Center of Excellence
Dr. Nicolas Bazan was the keynote speaker at the International Conference on Dementia,
Alzheimer and Neurology. His talk was titled, “Mimicking Protective Brain Response
to Pathologies Open Avenues to Counteract Alzheimer’s Onset and Progression.”
Orthopaedic Surgery
Jessica Rivera, MD, PhD is Chair of the Research Committee of the Limb Lengthening
and Reconstruction Society and was named coeditor in chief for the January-June 2024
issue of the newly acquired Journal of Limb Lengthening & Reconstruction. She has
recently assumed the role of Director of the MD/PhD Program in the School of Graduate
Studies.
Otolaryngology
Dr. Rohan Walvekar was featured on a recent Back Table ENT Podcast Episode - Innovating Recognition in Healthcare with nDorse.
Dr. Michael Dunham is scheduled to present his Raman Spectroscopy research at the LSU Surgery Cohn Rives Surgical Society Meeting on March 21, 2025. The meeting will feature Sir Murray Brennan, GNZM, MD, FACS, Director of International Affairs at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Dr. Laura Hetzler conducted Grand Rounds at the University of Missouri on Cleft Care in January and gave a lecture at the North American skull base society pre-meeting symposium on nerve grafting and teaching a technique course in February.
Dr. Hetzler will lead a panel on facial reanimation at the 2025 Gulf States Regional Otolaryngology Conference in June.
Dr. Lisa Morris participated in the annual Cleft Surgical Mission in Peru in January
and also completed a webinar for ABO-HNS.
Dr. Alyssa Ovaitt will lead a panel on nasal tip reconstruction at the 2025 Gulf States Regional Otolaryngology Conference.
The upcoming Combined Otolaryngology Spring Meetings (COSM) are scheduled for May. Many faculty are participating, including:
- Hetzler will serve as FPRS Chair at the COSM Meeting
- Ovaitt will serve on a panel regarding skin cancer reconstruction
- Hetzler will moderate on starting an aesthetic practice in academia
- Morris and Hetzler will be teaching a cleft simulation course
Pediatrics
The department partnered with local nonprofit, Blessed to be a Blessing and Cargill
to provide boxes filled with Thanksgiving food items to patients' families for Thanksgiving.
Dr. Brian Barkemeyer recently led and moderated a panel of faculty subspecialists, including Drs. Jay Hescock, Staci Olister, James Krulisky, Cori Morrison, and Kirk Thame who recently spoke to the Pediatric Interest Group. The Pediatric Interest Group is made up of first- and second-year medical students with an interest in a career in pediatrics.
Dr. Kayla Pence, graduating resident Dr. Hiba Elasaar, and Tulane colleague Dr. Gabriella
Tuttrup presented a poster on a novel gene mutation in a patient with pyridoxine dependent
epilepsy at the Child Neurology Society Annual Meeting.
Dr. Daniella Miller and Dr. Maria Xiang (who completed her Child Neurology residency
with LSU/CHNOLA) presented a poster of their work on salary and compensation in women
neurologists at the Child Neurology Society Annual Meeting.
Dr. Rashmi Rao presented on the care of children with migraine disease at the American
Headache Society's Annual Scottsdale Symposium.
Dr. Dana LeBlanc, Dr. Zach LeBlanc, and Dr. Maria Velez recently attended the American
Society of Hematology Conference in San Diego along with several of our pediatrics
residents.
Dr. Michelle Loch, Dr. Brian Boulmay, Dr. Rajasree (Pia) Chowdry, Dr. Agustin Garcia (Hematology-Oncology) and Dr. Deanna Huffman (Hem-Onc fellow) recently presented three posters at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: Safety and Preliminary Efficacy of Tucatinib and Alpelisib in Patients with HER2-Positive PIK3CA-Mutated Metastatic Breast Cancer; A Single-Center Review of an Integrated Women’s Health Clinic for Breast Cancer Patients Who Received Cancer-Directed Treatment; and Hypophysitis and Haziness in HER2: A Case of Breast Cancer with Leptomeningeal Carcinomatosis.
The Working Moms in Medicine had a wonderful time during their holiday wellness lunch
and White Elephant gift exchange.
Physiology
Dr. Janos Paloczi presented The Aftermath of Binge Drinking: Loss of Gut Integrity and Cardiovascular Dysfunction
at Tulane University School of Medicine, Department of Pharmacology.
Paloczi also presented at the LSUHSC Cardiovascular Center of Excellence Seminar Series.
Paloczi was also was an invited speaker at the Annual Meeting of the Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) where he presented Gut Integrity: a Key Factor in Binge Alcohol-Induced Cardiovascular Dysfunction.
Scott Edwards presented a talk titled Alcohol Related Health Problems: Are Women Catching Up with Men? at the Tulane University School of Public Health’s Empower Us Gulf South Women’s Health Forum in December.
The following posters were recently presented:
- Alonso, IP, Shapiro, J, Castor, D, Scott, J, Gilpin, NW (2024). Effects of chronic voluntary and passive ethanol exposure on hyperalgesia and ventrolateral periaqueductal gray neuronal properties in mice. Annual Meeting of American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. Phoenix, AZ.
- Cohen S, Paloczi J, Primeaux S, Martin J, & Adorno M. Bridging the Gap Between Benchwork Research and Bedside Practice. Southern Nursing Research Society. November 2024
- Cohen S, Donovan M, McTernan P, Siggins R, & Paloczi J. The role of neutrophil activation in binge alcohol-induced intestinal leakage. Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group Annual Meeting 2024. November 2024.
- Couvillion, K.E., Gallegos, E., McTernan, P., Siggins, R., Welsh, D., Molina, P., Simon, L. CD4 T cells and alcohol mediate cellular injury in hepatocyte spheroids. LSUHSC-NO Graduate Student Research Day, November 2024.
- Gallegos EM, Rodriguez-Graciani K, Molina PE, Simon L. A novel MetALD spheroid model reveals differential effects of ethanol and metabolic stressors on mitochondrial respiration and synergistic increases in lipid accumulation. The Liver Meeting, AASLD. San Diego, CA. Nov 2024.
- Andrea F Jones, Queenie Wang, Keishla M Rodriguez-Graciani, Zaidmara T Diaz & Nicholas W Gilpin. Sex and age effects on melanocortin-4 receptor signaling in development and resolution of chronic inflammatory pain. International Association for the Study of Pain 50th World Congress. Amsterdam, Netherlands. August 2024.
The Alcohol Drug Abuse Center of Excellence conducted the December Retreat “Cannabinoids:
Curse or Cure.” The organizing committee (pictured, left) included Meagan Donovan,
Stephany Lee, Andrea Jones, Janos Paloczi (Chair) with Patricia Molina (ADACE Director)
and Nicholas Gilpin (ADACE Co-director). Heidi Braden played an instrumental role
in organizing the event.
Psychiatry
Drs. Amy Clomburg, Sebastián Del Corral Winder and Amy Dickson presented at the 40th
Annual International Conference on Child and Family Maltreatment in San Diego, CA
in January on intergenerational child sexual abuse.
The Division of Psychology is preparing for the following presentations:
- Dr. Michelle Moore will present at the American Association for Anatomy Annual Meeting in Portland, OR in March on Sustainable Wellness.
- Dr. Jamie Leavey will present at the American Psychology-Law Society 2025 Annual Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico in March.
- Dr. Nathan Brown will present at the American Burn Association Annual Meeting in Phoenix, AZ in April on Wellness in Healthcare: Addressing System Factors and Learning Proactive Personal Skills.
Dr. Michelle Moore (Psychology) served as Guest Editor for a special issue released in December 2024 for the Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings titled "Our Greatest Resource in Academic Health Centers: A Focus on Faculty Affairs and Faculty Development."
Stanley S. Scott Cancer Center
Dr. Omeed Moaven received a $500,000 grant to research pre-clinical virus-induced tumor microenvironment disruption and immune
stimulation for the treatment of pancreatic cancer from the National Institute of
General Medical Sciences funded Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence program.