Preserving Hope, Predicting Health

Is there new hope for brain injury patients thanks to research at Emory that began almost two decades ago? Given what we now know about genetics, can doctors forecast good health in patients, and identify those facing the possibility of high risk so they can make changes early on? Two Emory experts will discuss the current state of health practice. Don Stein (Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Emergency Medicine) is a physiological psychologist whose discovery of progesterone as a new treatment for traumatic brain injury has provided hope for the safe and effective treatment of this crippling and frequently fatal condition. His inquiries in the early 1990s on the effect of progesterone in mice has led to a current NIH clinical trial at trauma centers across the U.S., including at Grady, enrolling 1,140 traumatic brain injury patients.
Research by Michelle Lampl (Dobbs Professor of Anthropology) on human growth and development led to her groundbreaking work that confirmed humans grow in spurts rather than a continuous, uninterrupted pattern. As co-director of the Emory-Georgia Tech Predictive Health Initiative and as founder of the Center for the Study of Human Health, she is leading campus and national efforts to focus individuals on taking care of their health in proactive ways. Elected an AAAS fellow in 2010, she is a recipient of the Emory Williams Award for Outstanding Teaching.
Paul Root Wolpe is Director of Emory’s Center for Ethics and Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Bioethics. He is one of the leaders of the field of neuroethics, which examines the ethical implications of neuroscience.