![Strib November Dr. Ranjit John UMN](/sites/scope.umn.edu/files/styles/folwell_full/public/2022-11/strib.png?itok=nG1_D5CS)
November 2022
Brad Peterson's father and brother had died from heart disease, but it was still a shock when his cardiologist, Dr. Christina Fanola, diagnosed early-stage heart failure. His search for a cardiothoracic surgeon took him across the state, but ultimately he found what he was looking for back at the University, Dr. Ranjit John. One open-heart surgery, a new valve, a special clip, and some months later, Brad is back playing pickleball, and now he has his whole heart in the game. READ AND WATCH MORE>>
Considering the amount of trouble it can cause, most laypeople are not terribly familiar with their vagus nerve or what it does. It impacts everything from digestion and heart rate to speech and urine output. If vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) can treat epilepsy and depression, what other conditions might also respond to VNS? University researchers received a three-year, $21 million NIH grant as part of the Stimulating Peripheral Activity to Relieve Conditions (SPARC) initiative to conduct this research.
Dr. Annette graduated from the University of Minnesota Medical School in 1983, the first woman in the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe to become a physician. She did her residency at the Duluth Family Practice Center, and launched her career in 1986 in the Indian Health Service. She has been an administrator, educator, policy-maker, and strong advocate at local, state, and national levels. Her honorary Doctorate of Law, awarded by the University in Duluth last month, is the most recent recognition of her remarkable career.
We're about to enter the season of gratitude, so I'm going to get a head start.