Regenerative medicine has been dubbed the vanguard of 21st-century health care. This emerging field places an emphasis on curing rather than treating injured or impaired tissues, and seeks to repair damaged tissues in vivo (in the living body) using techniques that trigger cells’ intrinsic healing ability. In the event that the body is unable to(...)
About Charles Odonkor
Posts by Charles Odonkor:
Hidden Figures: On Discrimination and Women’s Rights
On Jan. 21, 2017, millions of women around the globe marched in solidarity with women in the United States to protest against various forms of social injustices and misogyny they experience on a routine basis. As I listened to the massive crowds chanting various slogans in repudiation of perceived inequities, one message rose above the(...)
A Time of Giving
As 2016 draws to a close and many of us look forward to spending time with family and loved ones, one cannot escape the joyful jingles that herald this season. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa, the holidays that mark the end of the calendar year give us pause to reflect on the blessings(...)
A Scientific Approach to Increasing STEM Workforce Diversity
In spite of efforts to diversify the biomedical workforce, a significant proportion of the United States population remains grossly underrepresented in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Nationally, women hold less than 25 percent of scientific research faculty positions, while African-Americans and Latinos account for 7.2 percent of academic faculty, surprising statistics given(...)
Life After Residency: Advice for the Fellowship Interview
Congratulations. After four years of college, four years of medical school, and three or more years of residency, you’ve decided to pursue extra specialized training, to get you a step closer to your life’s dream. Whatever subspecialty you decide on, it helps to approach the interview process fully informed. Fellowships tend to be even more(...)
Platelet-Rich Plasma: An Emerging Therapy for Musculoskeletal Injuries
Athletes engaging in sports often experience injuries to the muscles, tendons and ligaments. Due to frequent use, the shoulder, elbow, knee and ankle-joints are more susceptible to musculoskeletal soft tissue injuries than other joints. Musculoskeletal injuries account for about 30 percent of annual visits to primary physicians in the United States. Traditional treatments have included(...)
Tips on Surviving the Intern Blues
July 1 marked a monumental day for all first-year residents, also known as interns, across the country. All freshly minted medical graduates began the rite of passage of what purports to be the most challenging year in medical training. No longer medical students, interns suddenly must take up the mantle of responsibility and make real-life(...)
The Biggest Loser and the Skinny on Obesity
Many years ago when hunting and gathering was the means to survival, the ability to shore up vast amounts of caloric intake as body fat conferred an evolutionary advantage. The thinking goes that this adaptive mechanism of storing excess energy allowed some individuals to survive long enough during periods of food scarcity to pass on(...)
Pursuing Social Justice Through Social Innovation
Social justice and social innovation have recently become buzzwords in millennial circles as focal points for tackling social issues. In essence, social justice purports a world in which all people have a right to equitable treatment and fair allocation of resources without any form of discrimination. Social innovation is a new movement grounded in the(...)
Curbing the Tide of the Opioid Epidemic
Every 19 minutes, someone dies from an opioid overdose in the United States. Yet the number of opioids prescribed annually is so high that each American adult could be medicated on a full bottle of pills around the clock for a whole month. Between 2013 and 2014, the risk of dying from opioid overdose increased(...)
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