School of Public Health

West Virginia University ended the fiscal year with a strong financial performance, Paula Congelio, vice president of finance and chief financial officer, said Friday (Nov. 8).

Most research into young people’s drinking habits focuses on high school and college students, yet middle-schoolers are at a critical age for alcohol-abuse prevention. Alfgeir Kristjansson, an associate professor in the WVU School of Public Health, is studying two potential targets for preventing middle schoolers from using alcohol: caffeine consumption and sleep deprivation.

Research led by Ian Rockett, professor emeritus of the West Virginia University School of Public Health, applies a wider lens on how suicides and drug deaths that implicate self-injurious behaviors could be categorized.

West Virginia University’s efforts to address chronic disease and substance abuse prevention, growing concerns related to vaping and youth mental health issues will be bolstered by funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, awarded to the West Virginia Prevention Research Center in the School of Public Health.

In a recent study, West Virginia University researcher Amna Umer explored how low birth weight correlates to cardiovascular risk factors in childhood. She and her colleagues assessed data of 20,000 fifth-graders born in West Virginia. They discovered that if children had a low birth weight, they were more likely to exhibit cardiovascular risk factors in fifth grade.

Limiting sugary drinks and insisting on regular toothbrushing can prevent tooth decay in kids. Maybe providing their mothers with social support can, too. A study by Daniel McNeil, a WVU School of Dentistry researcher, suggests children may be less likely to have a lot of cavities if their mothers have someone to talk to about their problems.

West Virginia University has released the Dec. 2019 and May 2020 Commencement schedules.

West Virginia University researcher Steve Davis is piloting an intervention program that uses telehealth to connect rural West Virginians with nurses who can help them manage—and even prevent—conditions like these. The program will focus on individuals being discharged from long-term care facilities as they transition to life back at home.

West Virginia University researcher Nicholas Castle is part of a team investigating how nursing homes can best meet obese residents’ healthcare needs. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality—a division of the Department of Health and Human Services—has awarded them nearly $2 million for the project.

Kim Innes, of the WVU School of Public Health, and her colleagues recently discovered that greater exposure to perfluoroalkyl substances was associated with lower rates of existing coronary heart disease in adults with diabetes. PFAS, considered a public health threat by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are manufactured chemicals that were popularized by various industries in the 1940s because of their ability to repel oil and water.