Health

LSU alumni make up 2 of every 3 Louisiana physicians, dentists, and veterinarians. With two health sciences centers in New Orleans and Shreveport and a research center dedicated to biomedical research—Pennington Biomedical—working alongside our Flagship and other campuses throughout the state, LSU is in the business of saving and improving lives and tackling our biggest health challenges, such as cancer, obesity, and diabetes.

Hands showing a red pill and a blue pill

LSU Health Shreveport Discovery Offers New Approach to Solving Addiction

While almost all research on addiction to stimulants (such as meth and cocaine) remains focused on dopamine and the body’s pleasure-and-reward system, a researcher at LSU Health Shreveport, Nicholas Goeders, took a different approach. Instead of reward, he looked at stress.

Arthur Johnson

Lingering Pandemic + Another Hurricane? LSU Helps Coastal Communities Prepare

In the very first study to look at impacts of the ongoing pandemic on hurricane preparedness and resilience in Louisiana, researchers at LSU Health New Orleans partnered with more than two dozen community leaders to help validate facts on the ground and turn observations into actionable data.

Jo Anna Fisher

More than 100 LSU Online Programs Help Job Seekers and Employers Adapt to Change

Social worker Jo Anna Fisher’s career did not skip a beat, despite the pandemic and loss of a family member. LSU now offers more than 100 programs online.

Dr. Jeffrey Kuo

Dr. Jeffrey Kuo: From LSU Purple and Gold to Ochsner Blue (and Saints Black and Gold)

From when he received his Bachelor of Science degree in microbiology from LSU in 2000 and his MD from LSU Health New Orleans in 2004, Dr. Jeffrey Kuo has been busy.

Hannah Broussard

LSU Educates Health Care Providers Specifically for Rural Areas

Across the state, LSU is working to provide more and better healthcare for rural residents. From New Orleans to Shreveport, several university programs educate care providers specifically to help fight health disparities.

Jared Taylor

Innovation in Radiation Research Takes LSU Student from Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center to SpaceX

Jared Taylor was planning on becoming a medical doctor to help treat people with cancer, but now finds himself almost literally in space, working on solutions to shield astronauts from dangerous radiation.

Hailey Teal

Central Louisiana’s Nurses for the Future

In order to meet demand, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates 1.1 million registered nurses will need to enter the workforce. Hailey Teal is a third-generation LSUA nursing program graduate.

Denise Mayon and children at the J.S. Aucoin Elementary School in Amelia, Louisiana

For Healthy Communities, Knowledge Isn’t Enough

Through the Healthy Communities initiative, LSU AgCenter extension agents are on the ground in every Louisiana parish inviting residents to decide for themselves how to best lower obesity rates where they live.

Buddy system

Solving the Obesity Crisis

In a new study, obese patients who “buddied up” with a health coach from within their own communities lost 10 times more weight than patients who received regular care.

Canadian Medical Company Taps LSU-Developed Artificial Intelligence for COVID-19 Treatments

Canadian Medical Company Taps LSU-Developed Artificial Intelligence for COVID-19 Treatments

By partnering with Skymount, a Calgary-based medical company that recently set up its first U.S. office in Baton Rouge, LSU will test new treatments for COVID-19 to help ease symptoms and lower the mortality rate. The treatments were found using an artificial intelligence tool known as DeepDrug, which was developed at LSU.

Dr. Jennifer Singh and her team

LSU Health Shreveport’s Mobile COVID-19 Team Gives Thousands Direct Access to Testing

Since April, mobile COVID-19 testing vans have been going back and forth from the new Emerging Viral Threat (EVT) Lab at LSU Health Shreveport to small towns and rural parishes all across northern Louisiana.

OrganicNANO's 3D-printed mask

LSU Assists Innovators Working to Help Medical Professionals (and Astronauts) Breathe Easier

OrganicNANO, a small business from Ruston, Louisiana is developing a 3D-printed mask with enhanced filtration capabilities that may improve personal protective equipment for healthcare workers battling today’s pandemic as well as astronauts on mission to the Moon and Mars.

Animated training video detail

LSU Trains 24,941 First Responders in Louisiana

The LSU National Center for Biomedical Research and Training/Academy of Counter-Terrorism (NCBRT/ACE) has helped Louisiana, the U.S., as well as other countries in the world tackle large societal challenges, including biological and viral threats, for almost 30 years.

PPE production in the PMAC

LSU-Industry Partnership Develops New Designs, Turns PMAC into PPE Manufacturing Operation

Through the support of more than a dozen local business partners and about 100 faculty and staff, the manufacturing effort for personal protective equipment inside LSU’s Pete Maravich Assembly Center, or PMAC, created more than 20,000 protective gowns, 10,000 face shields, and 1,000 gallons of hand sanitizer in 30 days to help protect Louisiana’s healthcare professionals.

River Road Testing Lab

LSU Coronavirus Testing Lab Supports 18 Louisiana Medical Facilities

The LSU River Road Testing Lab for COVID-19 that was set up in record time in March to alleviate the burden on Louisiana hospitals reached a milestone in getting test results to almost 5,000 Louisiana residents by working with 18 medical facilities and first responders across the state. It also made 8,000 test kits.