News

Binge drinking linked to first episodes of heart rhythm disorder

New Year’s Day, Super Bowl Sunday and other days when more people consume more alcohol are also associated with more emergency room visits for atrial fibrillation, an often-deadly heart rhythm disorder, reported a new study led by UC San Francisco.

Can diabetes lead to bone problems?

People with diabetes, especially older adults, are at risk for fractures and other bone problems. Know the signs to look for and steps for prevention.

Bringing intersectional identities into quantitative research

The idea that a person’s social standing affects their access to healthcare is not new. Most medical research divides group outcomes by race, gender and, often, socioeconomic status. When relevant, categories such as native language or country of origin might also be included.

Swap your cloth mask for a KN95 or N95. Rethink socializing. And more expert omicron advice

The new year arrived with an omicron-fueled surge in COVID cases in Alameda County, causing widespread concern and resulting in a number of event cancellations and temporary business closures that recall the pandemic’s earlier days. 

Proctor Foundation postdoctoral fellowship opportunity

The MINDSCAPE group within the Francis I. Proctor Foundation at the University of California, San Francisco is seeking a postdoctoral fellow or research scientist to support its partnership with the Centers of Disease Control’s Modeling Infectious Diseases (MInD) in Healthcare Network. The project'...

Digital therapy for prenatal insomnia may prevent postpartum depression

A digital version of cognitive behavioral therapy, or dCBT, that previously had been shown to reduce insomnia during pregnancy may also prevent postpartum depression and reduce insomnia and anxiety in women up to six months after they give birth, according to a new study by researchers at UC San...

Lessons in conducting health disparities research with a pandemic in full force

Before vaccines became the focus of efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, risk was the salient factor. The disparate effect the virus immediately had on Latinx and Black communities in the Bay Area pointed to types of exposure that were more pronounced and methods of harm reduction that were...

Adolescents’ recreational screen time doubled during pandemic, affecting mental health

Many parents fretted over their children’s screen use during the pandemic with good reason, according to a new study in JAMA Pediatrics. UC San Francisco-led researchers found that 12- to 13-year-old children in the United States doubled their non-school-related screen time to 7.7 hours a day in...

UCSF to coordinate health disparities research in multiple chronic diseases with $22.5M grant

Tracking and integrating findings across disciplines is a persistent challenge in health disparities research. UC San Francisco faculty will soon take this challenge on with a new center to coordinate research from 11 newly funded centers across the U.S. on the root causes of, and ways to eliminate...

What drives earlier menstruation in girls?

If Judy Blume’s classic book, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, had been written in the 1890s, the title character – a girl anxiously awaiting her first period – would have been a senior in high school and not the sixth grader Blume depicts.