May 15, 2018

On April 20, The Woodlands Recognition and Rewards Committee proudly presented the second-quarter Shining Star award to Esmeralda Miranda and Dr. Ammar Yamani.

The employee-recognition award was launched after the opening of Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands in April 2017 and honors those who go above and beyond to provide exceptional care to our patients, families and staff in The Woodlands.

Miranda, department secretary with Facilities Operations, was nominated by her co-workers and described as “promoting all of the core values day after day not only in her work but in all her interactions with patients, visitors, and fellow Texas Children’s Hospital workers.

“Her willingness to assist by adapting to different roles at Texas Children’s proves the type of character she is,” her co-workers said. “We need and value individuals like her who set those core examples without even knowing how much positive influence that are promoting within our Texas Children’s foundation.”

Yamani, an anesthesiologist in The Woodlands, was nominated for his holistic approach to patient care and was described as “someone who surpasses his duties as an anesthesiologist and consistently creates an environment of comfort, support, and safety for outpatients and families. He also is a joy to work and collaborate with on our multidisciplinary team in surgery.”

A huge congratulations and thank you to Miranda and Yamani for being the Shining Star and going above and beyond for our patients, families and co-workers.

Texas Children’s Hospital is proud to announce Dr. Edward Buchanan as chief of plastic surgery effective May 9.

Buchanan, who specializes in pediatric plastic surgery and craniofacial surgery, joined Texas Children’s and Baylor College of Medicine in 2011. Throughout his tenure, he has served in numerous leadership roles and has been integral in many complex cases, including the successful separation of two sets of conjoined twins.

“I am honored to be named to this esteemed leadership position,” said Buchanan. “Our team is committed to helping our patients function at the highest level so they feel and look their best. I am excited to continue to expand our world-class multidisciplinary programs as well as our surgical research and innovation.”

Buchanan earned his medical degree from The Medical University of South Carolina and completed his residency in plastic and reconstructive surgery at Stanford University School of Medicine. He also completed a fellowship in craniofacial/pediatric plastic surgery at Seattle Children’s Hospital/Harborview Medical Center. His areas of interest include pediatric craniofacial surgery, cleft lip and palate surgery, facial trauma, maxillary and mandibular distraction, and pediatric oncologic reconstruction.

To learn more visit texaschildrens.org/plasticsurgery.

The Society for Pediatric Research (SPR) recently gave two Texas Children’s trainees national research awards for their outstanding research on kidney disease at this year’s annual Pediatric Academic Societies’ SPR meeting.

Joseph Alge, a medical resident in the Pediatrician-Scientist Training & Development Program (PSTDP) at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), received the SPR House Officer Research Award, and Rachel Shenoi, a junior at The University of Houston and participant in the 2017 SMART program at BCM, received the SPR Student Research Award. The SPR annually honors students engaged in pediatric research to encourage pediatricians in training to pursue careers in academic pediatrics.

According to Dr. Michael Braun, Texas Children’s Hospital physician, these accomplishments are worth celebrating because it is rare for an institution to receive one award, let alone two awards in the same research area.

“It’s very exciting,” said Braun. “These awards are not only a recognition of the quality of the science being done, but also the individuals working at Texas Children’s Hospital.”

Dr. Scott Wenderfer, Texas Children’s physician and BCM Assistant Professor, has been Rachel Shenoi’s mentor throughout her research process.

“Rachel is exactly the type of person we want to be bringing into Texas Children’s Hospital and into Pediatric Nephrology,” said Wenderfer. “Investments in ambitious and talented undergraduates will provide exposure to the unmet needs and growing opportunities for Pediatric Research. Her success has been a pleasure to witness as a mentor.”

SPR’s mission is to create a network of multidisciplinary researchers that can connect and collaborate all while working to improve child health.

May 1, 2018

On April 29, Dr. Lisa M. Hollier became the 69th president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ (ACOG) during the Presidential Inauguration and Convocation ceremony.

Hollier is a professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, serves as chief medical officer of obstetrics and gynecology for Texas Children’s Health Plan and is the medical director of obstetrics and gynecology for The Health Plan’s Centers for Children and Women.

Hollier has held many roles in ACOG over her career. She was assistant secretary of ACOG and served on many college committees and Presidential Task Forces and work groups. She chaired the Committee on Professional Liability, the Committee on Credentials and the Work Group on Women’s Health Care Team Leadership. Additionally, she served as the ACOG representative to the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine board of directors for five years. Currently, she is chair of the Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force.

Past president of the Texas Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and past chair of District XI of ACOG, Hollier has throughout her career been dedicated to caring for the underserved and improving women’s health by advancing women’s health policy.

She earned her medical degree from Tulane University School of Medicine and her master’s in Public Health from Tulane University’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans. She completed her residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, followed by subspecialty fellowship training in maternal-fetal medicine at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas.

Texas Children’s congratulates Hollier on this well deserved recognition and honor.

Click here to read the text of Hollier’s speech.

April 24, 2018

Dr. Peter Hotez, director of the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, and Dr. Huda Zoghbi, director of the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s Hospital, have been elected as the newest members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation’s most prestigious honorary titles.

“Membership in the Academy is not only an honor, but also an opportunity and a responsibility,” said Jonathan Fanton, president of the American Academy. “Members can be inspired and engaged by connecting with one another and through Academy projects dedicated to the common good. The intellect, creativity and commitment of the 2018 Class will enrich the work of the Academy and the world in which we live.”

The Academy is one of the country’s oldest societies and independent policy research centers. It recognizes exceptional scholars, leaders, artists and innovators and engages them in sharing knowledge and addressing challenges facing the world. This year, Hotez and Zoghbi join more than 200 other individuals from a wide range of disciplines and professions as elected members of the Class of 2018.

The Class of 2018 members were elected in 25 categories and are affiliated with 125 institutions from across the globe. They include scientists, scholars, an academy award winner, philanthropists, CEOs, historians, a past U.S. president and a current Supreme Court judge.

See a full list of new members.

The new class will be inducted at a ceremony in October 2018 in Cambridge, Mass., at which the newly elected members will sign the Book of Members, and their signatures will be added to the Academy members who came before them, including Benjamin Franklin (1781) and Alexander Hamilton (elected 1791) in the 18th century; Ralph Waldo Emerson, (1864), Maria Mitchell (1848) and Charles Darwin (1874) in the 19th; and Albert Einstein (1924), Robert Frost (1931), Margaret Mead (1948), Milton Friedman (1959) and Martin Luther King, Jr. (1966) in the 20th.

Hotez

In addition to his responsibilities at Texas Children’s, which include being the Endowed Chair in Tropical Pediatrics, Hotez is professor and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and is a Fellow in Disease and Poverty for the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. He also holds a title of university professor at Baylor University and is founding editor in chief for the open access medical journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Hotez has been recognized for his work in research and advocacy as a world-renowned expert in neglected tropical diseases. He founded the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in 2011. There, he leads an international team of scientists working to develop vaccines to combat some of the world’s most common yet potentially deadly diseases such as hookworm infection, schistosomiasis and other infectious and neglected diseases, including Chagas disease, leishmaniasis and SARS. These diseases affect millions of children and adults worldwide in some of the most poverty stricken areas.

In 2006 at the Clinton Global Initiative he helped to launch a Global Network for NTDs, and 10 years later in 2016, Hotez became known as the thought leader on the Zika epidemic in the Western Hemisphere and globally. He was among the first to predict Zika’s emergence in the U.S. He has been called upon frequently to testify before Congress and served on infectious disease task forces for two consecutive Texas governors.

Zoghbi

Zoghbi, a professor of pediatrics, molecular and human genetics, neurology and neuroscience at Baylor, is the world’s leading expert on Rett syndrome. The disease strikes after about a year of normal development and presents with developmental regression, social withdrawal, loss of hand use and compulsive hand wringing, seizures and a variety of neurobehavioral symptoms.

After encountering girls with Rett syndrome, Zoghbi set out to find the genetic cause of the disease. She and her research team identified mutations in MECP2 as the cause and revealed the importance of MeCP2 for the function of various neuronal subtypes. Her work in mouse models showed just how sensitive the brain is to the levels of MeCP2. Too little MeCP2 causes Rett syndrome; doubling MeCP2 levels causes progressive neurological deficits. The latter disorder is now recognized as MECP2 duplication syndrome.

The discovery of the Rett syndrome gene provided a straightforward diagnostic genetic test, allowing early and accurate diagnosis. It also revealed that mutations in MECP2 can cause a host of other neuropsychiatric features ranging from autism to juvenile onset schizophrenia. Further, it provided evidence that an autism spectrum disorder or an intellectual disability disorder can be genetic even if it is not inherited.

Her discovery opened up a new area of research on the role of epigenetics in neuropsychiatric disorders. Her more recent work has shown that symptoms of adult mice modeling the duplication disorder can be reversed using antisense oligonucleotides that normalize MeCP2 levels. This discovery provides a potential therapeutic strategy for the MECP2 duplication syndrome and inspires similar studies for other duplication disorders.

Zoghbi and collaborators also have made many discoveries toward understanding mechanisms driving adult-onset neurodegenerative disorders and are now focused on identifying potential therapeutics for these disorders.

April 17, 2018

Shaquille O’Neal made a special visit to Texas Children’s Cancer Center April 9 prior to being honored at the Marriott Marquis Houston for the 13th annual An Evening with a Legend.

During the one-on-one room visits, O’Neal enjoyed shooting hoops, playing games and talking with patients about their cancer journeys. As someone who has had such a unique and successful journey on and off the court, O’Neal offered words of encouragement and let the families know they are not alone.

Later that evening, the 7-foot-1-inch tall NBA legend was honored at the annual An Evening with a Legend event benefiting Texas Children’s Cancer Center.

Nearly 500 guests enjoyed the unforgettable evening kicked off by University of Houston cheerleaders rallied and followed by a beautiful seated dinner, exciting “Slam Dunk” paddle raise and an intimate conversation with O’Neal.

Moderated by NBC’s American Ninja Warrior host Matt Iseman, guests were given an inside look at how O’Neal achieved incredible basketball accolades, as well as his success and unique journey off the court. His larger-than-life personality and powerful athleticism have made him a household name and legend in both sports and entertainment. His individual accomplishments include seven MVP awards, two scoring titles, 15 All-Star game selections and much more. O’Neal is one of only three players in history to win NBA MVP, All-Star game MVP and Finals MVP in the same year. He led his teams to four NBA Finals championships during his career and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.

Co-chaired by Julie Bergen and Kathy Zay, the event raised more than $700,000 for Texas Children’s Cancer Center. Monica and Kevin King and Stephanie and Brad Tucker served as honorary chairs for the event.

Texas Children’s Chief of Service in Developmental Pediatrics, Dr. Robert Voigt, collaborated with fellow Baylor College of Medicine professor, Dr. Carl Tapia, to release the second edition of their textbook entitled Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently announced the availability of the new textbook that focuses on caring for children with developmental and behavioral issues starting with medical evaluation and care initiation to the transition to adulthood.