MUHC in the Media - August 7, 2023

Syphilis is on the rise in Quebec, notably cases of congenital syphilis, when a mother passes it on to her baby during pregnancy. Dr. Earl Rubin, Director of the Infectious Disease Division at the Montreal Children's Hospital, explains. CBC

“It’s important to understand that cardiac death is indeed brain death, since the arrest of circulation stops brain blood flow, which in turn leads to the rapid loss of brain function,” says Dr. Sam Shemie, a cardiovascular health researcher at the RI-MUHC, who led process to produce the Canadian Clinical Practice Guidelines on Brain-Based Definition of Death. The Globe and Mail

It's perfectly normal for a teenager to feel nervous about starting high school. Connie Scuccimarri, psychologist at the Montreal Children's Hospital, advises parents in this Montreal Gazette article.

The popular drug Ozempic, widely publicized in recent months, is meant to treat people with type 2 diabetes. Unfortunately, many people use it instead to lose weight, says Dr. Julie St-Pierre, a pediatrician at the Montreal Children's Hospital. TVA Nouvelles

Spinal muscular atrophy is a progressive genetic disease that affects the muscles. It limits the ability to walk, eat and, eventually, breathe. The earlier it is diagnosed, the sooner medication can be administered to halt the disease's progression, hence the importance of screening at birth, explains Dr. Maryam Oskoui, director of the Pediatric Neurology Division at the Montreal Children's Hospital. Healthing

At the Montreal Children's Hospital, there's a solution for families dealing with legal issues affecting a child's health: free access to the services of a lawyer, available on-site at the hospital. This medico-legal partnership is the only one of its kind in Quebec, say Me Aude Exertier, lawyer at Justice ProBono, and Dr. Patricia Li, pediatrician at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. CBC

Dr. Robert Turcotte, an orthopedic surgeon at the MUHC is quoted in this Global News report about a young man who lost his older brother to sarcoma, an extremely rare and aggressive form of cancer that can develop in the bones or soft tissues.

MUHC infectious disease specialist Dr. Michael Libman is quoted in this La Presse article on the role of sick employees in restaurant-related infectious disease outbreaks.