Dr. Timothy Baxter Selected for Membership in Prestigious
James IV Association of Surgeons, Inc.
Timothy Baxter, M.D., a professor in the Department of Surgery at the
University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, is one of four surgeons
in the United States to be selected for membership in the James IV Association
of Surgeons, Inc.
The association, which was founded in 1957, is made up of distinguished
surgeons from countries where the English language is freely spoken. The
aim of the association is to foster the exchange of knowledge among leading
surgeons from these countries.
Each year, two to four U.S. surgeons are selected for membership based
on their outstanding contributions to the art and science of surgery through
their surgical, communication and teaching skills. Those selected are called
Surgical Travellers and they receive funds to travel abroad to teach, observe
and participate in scientific meetings and probe the minds of scientists
in their host countries. The other three U.S. surgeons selected are Sally
Carty, M.D., University of Pittsburgh; Michael Longaker, M.D., New York
University Medical Center; and Peter Stock, M.D., University of California
at San Francisco.
I will visit Ireland as a Surgical Traveller later this year, Dr.
Baxter said. The academic affiliations of the James IV Association insure
that I will have a comprehensive itinerary. I expect to visit several
medical facilities. In addition to presenting the research that we
are doing here at UNMC, I look forward to getting the perspective of researchers
and clinicians treating patients with aortic aneurysms in a very different
medical system.
From the beginning of his surgical residency after graduation from the
University of Colorado Medical School in 1982, Dr. Baxter has been involved
with cardiovascular research. He joined UNMC as an assistant professor,
Department of Surgery, in 1990. He was named associate professor in 1995
and professor in 1998.
The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes
of Health recently funded a $1.1 million, five-year grant for Dr. Baxter.
The grant offers new possibilities in developing tetracyclines, a group
of commonly used antibiotics, as a non-invasive treatment for some aortic
aneurysms. Aortic aneurysms are a very common and potentially deadly disease.
Approximately 25,000 Nebraskans are affected with elderly men being the
most common target. Albert Einstein, Lucille Ball and actor George
C. Scott are a few well-known individuals who have died of ruptured aneurysms.
Symptoms are rare before rupture so most unruptured aneurysms are detected
when X-rays are done for some unrelated problem. Large aneurysms detected
before rupture can be safely repaired, while most small aneurysms are observed
for growth with repair being reserved for those that grow rapidly or reach
a dangerously large size.
Dr. Baxter was an invited speaker at a NIH-sponsored meeting on aneurysms
held earlier this month.
Our research over the years has suggested that the common antibiotic,
doxycycline, could slow or stop the growth of aneurysms, Dr. Baxter said.
Whether these observations, which have been made in cell culture and animal
models, will work in our patients remains to be seen.
We are anxious to bring new medical treatments to our patients as soon
as possible, but we must be very cautious in moving from these laboratory
observations to patients. We are working with NIH now on the design of
a large clinical trial to find out if doxycycline will work in patients
with small aneurysms. This trial will involve eight other medical centers,
he said.
There are some exciting, new and less-invasive treatment options for
large aneurysms, Dr. Baxter said. Patients with large aneurysms can now
expect a shorter hospital stay and quick recovery. Despite these improvements,
I believe that most of our patients with small aneurysms would prefer a
medical treatment that could prevent aneurysm growth so that surgery would
never be necessary.
UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the state.
Through its commitment to research, education, outreach and patient care,
UNMC has established itself as one of the country’s leading centers for
cancer research and treatment, solid organ transplantation and arthritis.
During the past year, nearly $31 million in research grants and contracts
were awarded to UNMC scientists, and UNMCs funding from the National Institutes
of Health increased by 28 percent, going from $16.2 million to $20.7 million.
UNMCs educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals
practicing in Nebraska than any other institution.