- Description: Often in medicine, treatment and intervention are seen as a linear approach. Diseases are put into boxes like inflammatory diseases, metabolic diseases, psychiatric or CNS diseases. However, there is a strong interplay between the different systems in the body. Inflammatory molecules have an effect on the CNS, and metabolism; on the other hand metabolism has an influence on the CNS and immune system and the CNS controls both inflammatory as well as metabolic systems in the body. These interplays of the different systems can explain side effects of treatments and make it a challenge to find the right approach for treating patients. However, on the other hand it also opens up opportunities to treat patients. What is needed is to be open for seeing these connections and interplays? In this course we will go in different ways to look at diseases, and you will be challenged to look at diseases different ways. The students will be challenged to find alternative explanations for specific diseases as the standard etiology.
Different diseases are dependent on the interest of the students and can be, but are not, limited to psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, schizophrenia, depression, obesity, ADHD, and others.
For instance, a disease which is diagnosed as an autoimmune disease, therefore, most medicine which is used for treatment is aiming to downregulate the immune system as a way of treatment. However, in all diseases alternative explanations and data indication alternative mechanisms of disease induction and progression can be found. The student will therefore, be challenged to explain diseases using alternative mechanisms, like metabolism, CNS, colon microbiology, and more. Doing this, the student will start seeing the balance that is present in the body and which different systems influence each other but also in which alternative approaches in treating patients can be used, and new approaches and medication can be identified.The course will be given as a project course in which the students work in groups of 4-6 students.
The students will be given specific diseases and tasks/questions they are expected to work with and for which they will prepare a powerpoint presentation to be discussed in the next session. During the sessions the students will be challenged on the presentation they give. Every session has to be passed to be able to go to the next one. When the students have passed all sessions, they have passed the course.
Literature
Selected papers and book chapters will be announced to the participants shortly before the course.Evaluation
The evaluation will be based on an the presentation and discussion of the different subtasks during the course. - Organizer: Professor Søren Nielsen, e-mail: sn@hst.aau.dk ans Associate Professor John Nieland, e-mail: jdn@hst.aau.dk
- Lecturers: Invited internal and external speakers
- ECTS: 2.0
- Time: 30 March, 4 April, 18 April 2016 (30 March: 12.30 – 16.15, 4 April: 8.15 – 16.15, 18 April: 08.15 – 12.00)
- Place: Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7C, room C2-209
- Zip code: 9220
- City: Aalborg
- Number of seats: 30
- Deadline: 9 March, 2016
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Important information concerning PhD courses:
We have over some time experienced problems with no-show for both project and general courses. It has now reached a point where we are forced to take action. Therefore, the Doctoral School has decided to introduce a no-show fee of DKK 5,000 for each course where the student does not show up. Cancellations are accepted no later than 2 weeks before start of the course. Registered illness is of course an acceptable reason for not showing up on those days. Furthermore, all courses open for registration approximately three months before start. This can hopefully also provide new students a chance to register for courses during the year. We look forward to your registrations.