The OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital Injury Prevention Program was able to provide 72 safe sleep kits to families in 22 languages, thanks to a microgrant from the Baby Safety Foundation.

Oregon Business interviews Eric Wiser, M.D., and Robert Duehmig in a story documenting a shortage of primary care physicians and the model of preventive medicine; Wiser says, “Most primary care doctors are employed by health care systems, and they invest in lines that pay the bills better. We are a fee-for-service model. We don’t make money to prevent things.”

Coverage of a unique proof of concept to treat infertility by turning skin cells into oocytes capable of producing early human embryos continues. Paula Amato, M.D., says, “We know it works in nature, but we don’t fully understand how chromosomes pair and separate correctly. Now we’re trying to recapitulate that in vitro, and it’s incredibly challenging.”

KOIN-TV interviews Joseph Quinn, M.D., regarding a local community fundraiser for the Parkinson’s Resources of Oregon. He says about the disease, “Over the age of 60, it’s about 1%. So you see it goes up quite a bit once you go over 60 and at the age of 80 (it’s) something like 3.5% of the population. It’s the second most common of the neurodegenerative diseases with Alzheimer’s being the most common.”

In an Ivanhoe Broadcast News story distributed to broadcast outlets nationwide about the benefit of exercise for people with Parkinson’s disease, Fay Horak, Ph.D., says, “We know that the more active people are and the more fit they are, the better they can deal with Parkinson’s disease.”

Newborn bloodspot screening checks for more than 45 congenital disorders. Patrice Held, Ph.D., says, “Through this program and the extraordinary cooperation of our partners at Oregon Health & Science University, we are able to prevent serious complications that otherwise would not be discovered possibly until it was too late.”

Although osteoporosis occurs more commonly in women than men, The New York Times notes that it still does affect men but many overlook the signs. Eric Orwoll, M.D., says, “Men would like to believe they’re indestructible, so a fracture doesn’t have the implication that it should.”

Newsday profiles a family with a rare condition known as PKAN, referencing an initiative involving physician-scientists at OHSU.

Live Science interviews Amy Valent, D.O., and Jamie Lo, M.D., in continuing news coverage regarding newly updated clinical guidance that cannabis should not be used while pregnant or breastfeeding. Valent says, “Just like we talk about tobacco use in pregnancy or alcohol use in pregnancy, cannabis use in pregnancy should be part of the natural conversation.”

A three-year initiative will combine leading-edge analytical research with direct outreach to the autism community to recommend ways to improve the health of autistic people. Katharine Zuckerman, M.D., says, “We’re going to convene a panel of autistic youth and caregivers and ask them which outcomes do you think are important and can you help us prioritize?”