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Showing posts from January, 2015

On Science and Tattoo’s: One that you might DEFINITELY want to get!

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The Howell Foundation will be kicking off the year with a presentation on tattoos… not the kind that stay with you for life, but the one that can definitely help in saving your life. What was once thought to be science fiction is becoming a reality, thanks to the research of Dr. Todd Coleman at UCSD.  His research is making strides in marrying computer sciences with biology and neurology through the elaboration of a flexible, portable “tattoo” that picks up electric signals in the body and transmits them wirelessly to any medical electrical device through applied mathematics. This “tattoo” seems to have all the components of your cell phone:  a wireless antenna that allows gathered information to be transmitted, the ability to wirelessly transfer power onto the device, Light Emitting Devices (LED) and light sensing devices to pick up information on the body’s blood oxygenation, temperature, your body’s mechanical strains and a variety of electrical signals on the surfac

Changing of the Guard at the Doris A. Howell Foundation

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New Executive Officers of the Board to Lead Foundation’s Efforts to Grow Women’s Health and Research Awareness in the San Diego Community.   Scholarship and Research Grant Funding are Priorities to Further Women’s Health Research.  New and Exciting Topics for the Foundation’s Trademarked Educational Series San Diego, CA.- January, 2015.  The Doris A. Howell Foundation – a non-profit organization focused on promoting women’s health and research through scholarships, grant awards and community-oriented events– announced the election of its new officers.  The new Executive Board Members were installed as of January 19 th , 2015 and their terms will last through December, 2017.   Looking to bring the legacy of their knowledge to the fore front of the organization, board members voted for former co-chair, Carole Banka, Ph.D., as Chair,  Kathleen Franklin and Cheryl Wilson as Co-Vice Chairs, Kay Pierce as Treasurer and Brad Benter as Secretary.  Linda G. Osborne will conti

Shining the Light on Parkinson’s Disease: A Loving Tribute. Part 4 of 4

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After hearing about all the encouraging news on the progress being made on the research and funding of Parkinson's disease, we are still left with perhaps the most important part of the equation:  The caregiver's perspective on dealing with the challenges of a patient diagnosed with the illness.  Treatment needs to be addressed from two flanks:  The clinical/patient side, and the caregiver side.  From a caregiver’s perspective, there is a pre-Parkinson’s and a post-Parkinson’s life.    A partner who is the healthy one in the marriage --that rarely takes medications, a lover of sports that makes marathon-running a second career; a lover of education with two Master’s degrees, a good dresser and more importantly, a charming and positive thinker with a great outlook of life-- can suddenly become a statistic in the number of patients diagnosed with Parkinson’s.  This is just a brief, loving summary of how Goldie Sinegal described her adoring husband and friend, He

Moving Towards the Cure: Deep Brain Stimulation for Parkinson's Disease - Part 3 of 4

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"It Works!"  Dr. James Paterniti presenting himself as a great testimonial that Deep Brain Stimulation might be an alternative to managing Parkinson's Disease, along with his Minds in Motion Program at Scripps Clinic. T here are many sides to Parkinson’s disease.  Deep Brain Stimulation is one of many alternatives on how to mitigate the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease.  A Parkinson’s disease patient himself for six and a half years, Dr. Paterniti is a recipient of deep brain stimulation; in his words “where an electrode is inserted in the brain and a wire is put in your chest… and it works!” Minds in Motion is a non-clinical standard of care program for people with Parkinson’s and their care-partners created by Dr. James Paterniti and Dr. Lester Cohen through the Parkinson's Association of San Diego, and available at Scripps Clinic.     Minds in Motion is designed to educate about and work with the challenges that Parkinson’s patients and careg