Jamie Sparling: Neuroimaging Research Focus BACK

Published by AFAR

Hello! I’m Jamie Sparling and I just finished my first year at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM). This summer, I am completing an MSTAR research project in the lab of Dr. Angela Jefferson of the Boston University Alzheimer’s Disease Center (ADC) and participating in the educational component at Harvard Medical School. I’m wrapping up my third week of the program, so I’ve been able to get settled fairly well here at the ADC. I had participated in the ADC’s PAIRS (Partnering in Alzheimer’s Instruction Research Study) program, where first year medical students are paired with an early stage Alzheimer’s Disease patient, and we meet monthly during the school year. This research experience allows me to continue working with our PAIRS program director, Dr. Jefferson, while experiencing the vital research core of the ADC.

Throughout each week, I attend meetings for our research group, as well as guest speaker presentations and consensus meetings for the HOPE study. The Health Outreach Program for the Elderly (HOPE) study is a long-term study of memory and aging. In the weekly meetings, several other medical students and I observe as a group of neurologists, geriatric psychiatrists, and neuropsychologists review the subjects’ clinical, neuropsychological, and neuroimaging data in order to make a diagnosis. It has been very enlightening to witness these discussions and gain a better understanding for what constitutes normal cognitive aging” vs. mild cognitive impairment (MCI) vs. dementia. Earlier this week, I also went to an orientation for our Geriatrics Section here at BUSM. Our medical school is unique in that we have a required 4th year rotation in Geriatrics, so I will be able to join these students for some of their didactic sections and clinical experiences. The faculty and staff that make up the section are very warm and welcoming, and I look forward to continuing my relationship with them throughout my remaining years at BUSM.

Most of my time, of course, has been devoted to my research project, which uses neuroimaging data from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). I have been studying the literature to better understand the approaches other researchers have taken to quantify and characterize microvascular changes in the brain, as well as their use of Pittsburgh compound B (PiB) to image amyloid. At the same time, I have been working with others in the lab to leverage an automated reconstruction tool to analyze these images. This will allow us to relate these changes in the brain with clinical risk factors and cognitive outcomes based on neuropsychological tests, which is also collected by ADNI.

This past week, I also began the clinical component of my MSTAR experience. I have the opportunity this summer to shadow both geriatricians and neurologists in a number of different settings, including in-patient rounds, clinic, home visits, and a nursing home. In my first session, I shadowed a neurologist specializing in movement disorders. We saw several patients suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, and I learned a great deal about the diagnosis and treatment of this condition. I also witnessed a case of iatrogenic parkinsonism, which reinforced to me the complexity of patients’ medication regimes, particular for older patients, as well as the central role of a primary care physician in managing and coordinating this complexity.

Next week, I begin my Geriatrics shadowing, as well as our didactic sessions for the program. I’m looking forward to meeting the other MSTAR students who are in Boston for the summer. Our first few sessions will cover research methodology topics, as well as an overview of the aging research fields, which we’ll focus on later in the summer. I think that the sessions will be both useful and thought-provoking, and I’m very grateful to have the opportunity to participate in a program that balances the research, clinical, and didactic components of academic medicine.

Jamie Sparling
Boston University School of Medicine

 

"Diary of an MSTAR Student" follows scholars in the 2011 Medical Student Training in Aging Research (MSTAR) Program, highlighting their summer experiences. As they continue their path of research, training and clinical practice, read their daily thoughts at www.afar.org/mstarblog. New diary entries are posted every day, so check back soon.