department of medicine

Internal Medicine Residency Program

Resident Research

Temple University is rapidly expanding its research base and Temple residents benefit from this dedication to research. Despite maintaining a busy schedule, most of Temple's residents engage in clinical or basic research. We have had numerous residents successfully participate in regional, national, and international competitions, with prize-winning results. Each resident is encouraged to engage in scholarly activity, ranging from an evidence-based review of an assigned topic to a longitudinal bench project. Research electives are offered, allowing residents to focus on a topic under supervision of a faculty mentor during an elective block.

This section contains information for residents interested in clinical investigation opportunities, as well as resources for those nearing the publication or presentation stage. Take a look at some of the current resident accomplishments below, and find inspiration in the results our residents have achieved.

HIV Screening Practices in an Urban Outpatient Resident Clinic.

Michelle Doll, L Ward, R Bettiker, R Samuel. Poster at SGIM National Conference. Phoenix, AZ May 2011.

Oh My Aching Back! A Classic Diagnosis of Multiple Myeloma.

Veerawat Phongtankuel, L. Ward Poster at SGIM 34th Annual Meeting. Phoenix, Arizona May 2011

Factors Affecting Physicians' Behaviors and Management of Cardiovascular Risk.

Val Rakita. Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2011.

Facing the truth: A cautionary tale of inverted papilloma with squamous cell carcinoma. 

Moses Mathur. Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2011.

A Juicy Diagnosis: Left-Sided Pleural Effusion in a 49-year-old Woman with Recent History of Pancreatitis.

Lyn Weinberg. Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2011.

Not Just Warfarin- GI Bleed Caused by IVC Filter Perforation. 

Ari H. Elman, Elizabeth L. Lee, Lawrence D. Ward. Poster at SGIM Mid-Atlantic Regional Meeting. Baltimore, Maryland March 2011.

Paraneoplastic encephalopathy and ataxia in a patient with small cell lung cancer.Ali Mahta. Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2011.

A Common Presentation of an Uncommon Disease: Left Ventricular Noncompaction Under the Guise of Peripartum Cardiomyopathy. Chad Zack.  Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2011.

Slow Down and Smell the Wegener’s: 3rd Degree Heart Block caused by Wegener’s Granulomatosis.  Brendan Carry. Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2011.

An Unusual Presentation of Refeeding Syndrome During COPD Exacerbation.  Alejandro Gonzalez. Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2011.

Safety of PEG-ELS in Individuals Who Previously Underwent Heart Transplantation. Paul Chang, Frank Friedenberg.  Poster at Digestive Disease Week 2011.

Nocardia Endocarditis in Adult Still’s Disease with Macrophage Activation Syndrome. Moses Mathur, J Sloane, R Bettiker, T Acri, J Missri.  Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2010.

An Unusual Case of Unilateral Leg Swelling and Recurrent Venous Ulceration.

Ankur Gupta, Moses Mathur, R Bashir.  Poster at ACP Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA. October 2010.

Fusobacterium Necrophorum Leads to Lemierre’s Syndrome…Yet Again.

Anthony Eubanks, Moses Mathur, L Ward. Poster at Southeast Regional Conference. Philadelphia, PA October 2010.

Application of National Guidelines Diminishes Racial Disparities in Cancer Care.

Laura Austin, D Pendelton, F Zhu, P Engstrom, M Levy, R Swaby. Oral Presentation at Pennsylvania Society of Oncology and Hematology 2010 Annual Scientific Meeting Lancaster PA September 2010.

Population-Based Survey: Body Mass Index at Age 18 is Strongly Predictive of Adulthood Obesity.   F Friedenberg, Thais Mendonca, J Rai, V Vanar, M Parepally, Amol Sharma. Poster presented at American College of Gastroenterology 75th Annual Meeting. San Antonio, Texas. October 2010.

Is Race an Independent Risk Factor for Proximal Adenomatous Polyps?

F Friedenberg, Mandeep Singh, Thais Mendonca. Poster presented at American College of Gastroenterology 75th Annual Meeting. San Antonio, Texas. October 2010.

Abdominal Pain: An Under Appreciated Symptom in Gastroparesis.

Cherian, Dinu; Sachdeva, Priyanka; Fisher, Robert S.; Parkman, Henry P.  Poster at DDW; New Orleans, May 2010.

Ethics vs. Law: A Case of HIV Disclosure. Suyin Chi, Colleen Hanley, Rafik Samuel. Poster at Regional SGIM, NYC, March 2010 & National SGIM, Minneapolis, April 2010.

Strongyloides Stercoralis Infection Masquerading as Pneumocystis jiroveci Pneumonia. Jennifer Chou, Colleen Hanley, Suyin Chi, Rafik Samuel. Poster Presentation at National SGIM, Minneapolis, April 2010.

Long Term Oxygen Treatment in COPD is Associated with Greater Hospital and ICU Length of Stays during Acute COPD Hospitalizations and Worse Long-Term Survival.

Aaron Czysz, C. Grabianowski, J. Gaughan, N. Marchetti, G. J. Criner. Poster Presentation at ATS International Conference, New Orleans, May 2010.

Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Hospitals without Surgery on Site: One Year Follow-Up from a Longitudinal Registry.

Jorge Gonzalez, Ankur Gupta, Mohamad Alkhouli, Abdul Kashem, Kristy Scheiring, Alfred A Bove. Poster at AHA-QCOR, Washington DC. May 2010.

Patient-Centered Care of Stage I and II Hypertension in Underserved Communities.

Mohamad Alkhouli, Abdul Kashem, Carol J Homko, Jorge Gonzalez, Ankur Gupta, William P Santimore, Alfred A Bove. Poster at AHA-QCOR, Washington DC. May 2010.

Patient Centered Care: Baseline Demographics from a Stage 1 Hypertension clinical trial.
Nabeel Memon, Abdul Kashem, Ankur Gupta, Jorge Gonzalez, Mohamad Alkhouli, Valaine Hewitt, Kristy Scheiring, Alfred A Bove. Poster at AHA-QCOR, Washington DC. May 2010.

Magnitude of Emphysema Determined by HRCT Correlates Weakly with Activity Level but not with Patient Symptoms or Acute COPD Exacerbations. 

Jason Krahnke, Marchetti N, Gaughan J, Criner GJ.  Poster at ATS; New Orleans, May 2010.

Mixed AB Thymoma: An Incidental Finding Warrants Further Workup.

Courtney Lewis, D. Aeed-Vafa, S. Inniss, G. Criner.  Poster Presentation at Regional SGIM, NYC, March 2010 and National SGIM, Minneapolis, MA April 2010. Poster at National SGIM; Minneapolis, MA, April 2010.

The Utility of Chest X-ray in Hospitalized Acute Exacerbation of COPD.
Courtney Lewis, A. J. Mamary, R. Pechulis, I. Permut, G. Criner. Poster at ATS; New Orleans, May 2010.

Killer Sore Throat: A Case of Lemierre's Syndrome. 

Danesh Modi, Ward L. Oral Presentation at Regional SGIM, NYC, March 2010 and National SGIM, Minneapolis, MN April 2010.

Pericardial Effusion as the Manifestation of Hypothyroidism.

Danesh Modi. Poster at ACP Southeastern Regional Conference, Philadelphia, PA. Oct. 2009.

Refractory Chest Pain in a Young Female: A Case of Variant Angina.

Danesh Modi. Poster presentation at ACP regional meeting. Philadelphia, PA; October 2010.

Killer Pets: Beware of the Turtle!

Amol Sharma, Larry Ward. Poster Presentation at Regional SGIM, NYC, March 2010.

Basal-Like Breast Cancer:  Single Institution Study of the Incidence, Risk Factors and Clinical Characteristics in a Predominantly Minority Population.

Rachel Sterling, Xinmin Zhang, Michael Bromberg, Aruna Padmanabhan. Poster at ACP Southeastern Regional Meeting, Philadelphia, Oct 2009.

Tissue Factor Expression in Basal-like Breast Cancer:  Relationship to Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR), Clinical Features, and Patient Outcomes.

Rachel Sterling, Michael Bromberg, Xinmin Zhang, Aruna Padmanabhan.   Poster at ACP Southeastern Regional Meeting, Philadelphia, Oct 2009.

Influence of the Menstrual Cycle on Symptoms in Female Patients with Gastroparesis.

Melissa Verrengia, Priyanka Sachdeva, John Gaughan, Robert Fisher, Henry Parkman. Functional Brain-Gut Research Group, Young Investigators Conference, Tucson, AZ. April 16-18, 2010 & Digestive Disease Week, New Orleans, LA. May 3, 2010.

Spirometric Testing in an Urban Academic Medical Residents Clinic Identifies Under-diagnosed and Under-treated Patients with Chronic Airflow Obstruction (CAO).

N. Goel, S. Sami Alasfar, A.J. Mamary, C. Grabianowski, K.V. Shenoy, G.J. Criner. Poster Presentation at ATS, New Orleans, May 2010.

Community-Acquired MRSA Pneumonia: A New Threat from an Ancient Adversary.

Brad Hayward, Anu Paranjape. Poster Presentation at Regional SGIM, NYC, March 2010.

Respiratory Failure in Thyroid Storm: "Don't wait, ventilate!"

Moses Mathur, Lawrence Ward, Gerard Criner. Poster Presentation at Regional SGIM; NYC, April 2010.

ANCA-associated Vasculitis Misdiagnosed as Tuberculosis.

Thais Mendonca, Philip Cohen. Poster Presentation at Regional ACP, Philadelphia. Oct 2010.

Colonic Transit Correlates with Frequency of Bowel Movements but not Stool Form in Patients with Constipation.

Zubair Malik. Poster Presentation at ACG; Saint Antonio, Oct 2010.

Endothelial Dysfunction in African Americans with Masked Hypertension.

Veerabhadrappa P, Kashem A, Diaz K.1, Mohamad Alkhouli, Feairheller D.L., Sturgeon K.M., Williamson S.T., Kretzschmar J., Crabbe D.L., Brown M. Oral Presentation, 23rd Scientific Meeting of the International Society of Hypertension (ISH 2010).

Behavioral Comparison Between Rural and Urban Populations in Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reduction. * highlighted in a press release.

Mohamad Alkhouli, Carol F Homko, Memon Nabeel, abdul Kashem, Alfred A Bove. Temple University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA. Poster at ACC March 2010.

Impact of Telemedicine System on CVD Risk Reduction and Adoption of Healthy Life Style Behaviors.

Mohamad Alkhouli, Carol J Homko, Abdul Kashem, William P Santimore, Nabeel Memon, Jorge Gonzalez, Linda Zamora, Timothy R McConnell, Alfed A Bove. Temple University Hospital, Philadelphia, PA. Poster at ACC March 2010.

Minoxidil Induced Pericardial Tamponade.

Mohamad Alkhouli, Brian Meyer. Poster at Regional SGIM; NYC, March 2010. Poster at National SGIM; Minneapolis, MA, April 2010.

Myxedema Coma Complicated by Herpes Encephalitis.

Mohamad Alkhouli, Meher Burki, Ward L. Poster at Regional SGIM; NYC, March 2010. Oral Presentation at National SGIM; Minneapolis, MA, April 2010.  

Unmasking the Diagnosis: PCP Pneumonia in a Patient with Heart Failure.

Mohamad Alkhouli, Addi Feinstein, Jeanette Guziel. Poster at Regional SGIM; NYC, March 2010. Poster at National SGIM; Minneapolis, MA, April 2010.

The Urban Black Market for Prescription Drugs.

Ward LD, Patel NM, Eldakar S, Paranjape A, Sherlinski K , Ward SH. Abstract presented at 2009 Meeting of the Society of General Internal Medicine in Miami, FL.

Prevalence of HIV in an Urban Emergency Department. 

Clauss, H  Eldakar, S  Collins, J  Bettiker, R.   Abstract presented at 2009 Conference of Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections Montreal, Canada.

Saddle Nosed Sinusitis: A case of Wegener’s Granulomatosis.

Eldakar, S Ward, L. Abstract presented at 2008 Meeting of the Society of General Internal Medicine in Pittsburgh, PA.

Toward Understanding the Role of Leptin and Leptin Receptor Antagonism in Preclinical Models of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Otvos L Jr, Shao WH, Vanniasinghe AS, Amon MA, Holub MC, IKovalszky I, Wade JD, Michelle Doll, Cohen PL, Manolios N, Surmacz E. Peptides 2011; 32(80): 1567-74.

Mechanism of action and toxicities of purgatives used for colonoscopy preparation. Margaret Adamcewicz, Bearelly D, Porat G, Friedenberg FK. Expert Opin Drug Metab Toxicol. 2011 Jan;7(1):89-101. Review.

Safety of PEG-Based Colon Preparation in Patients with Decompensated Congestive Heart Failure. Frank Friedenberg, Paul Chang, Amol Sharma. 2010 ACG Abstracts.

Angiotensin II Type 2 Receptor Signaling Attenuates Aortic Aneurysm in Mice Through ERK Antagonism.

Jennifer P. Habashi, Jefferson J. Doyle, Tammy M. Holm, Hamza Aziz, Florian Schoenhoff, Djahida Bedja, YiChun Chen, Alexandra N. Modiri, Daniel P. Judge, and Harry C. Dietz. Science 15 April 2011: 361-365.

Prevention of NSAID-associated gastric ulcers: comparison of PN 400 (enteric-coated naproxen with esomeprazole) versus enteric-coated naproxen alone. Derek Tang, Ward L. Postgrad Med. 2011; 123(1):169-171.

Gastroparesis: approach, diagnostic evaluation & treatment. Derek Tang, Friedenberg FK. Dis Mon. 2011; 57(2):74-101.

Rash from hepatitis C treatment. Derek Tang, Ward L. Cleve Clin J Med. 2011; 78(7): 472-474.

Predictive value of body mass index at age 18 on adulthood obesity: results of a prospective survey of an urban population. Friedenberg FK, Derek Tang, Vanar V, Thais Mendonca.  Am J Med Sci. 2011

Factors that affect the clinic and manometric presentation of scleroderma esophagus. Derek Tang, Pathikonda M, Harrison M, Fisher RS, Richter JE, Friedenberg FK, Parkman HP. Under Review.

The impact of pre-procedure blood pressure on cardiopulmonary status during colonoscopy. Derek Tang, Friedenberg FK, Simmons K. Under Review.

The Predictors of Postoperative Laryngeal Nerve Paresis in Patients Undergoing Thyroid Surgery: A Pilot Study.
Mara Caroline, Joglekar SS, Mandel S, et al.  J Voice 2011.

The Prevalence of Undiagnosed Thyroid Disease in Patients with Symptomatic Vocal Fold Paresis.

Mara Caroline, Heman-Ackah YD, Joglekar SS, Caroline M, et al.  J Voice 2011; 4:496-500.

Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy with Wallerian degeneration. Ali Mahta, Kim RY, Kesari S. Eur Neurol Sep 29:66(4):242 

Relapsing tumefactive lesion in an adult with medulloblastoma after stem cell transplantation.  Ali Mahta, Kim RY, Qu Y, Saria M, Nastic D, Sundstrom M, Santagata S, Friedlander R, Wen PW, Kesari S. Pathol Oncol Res 2011 Sep 28

Refractory seizures due to a dural-based cavernoma masquerading as a meningioma. Zeng X, Ali Mahta, Kim RY, Saad AG, Kesari S. Neurol Sci 2011 Sep

Leptomeningeal Metastasis from Appendiceal Adenocarcinoma: Case Report and Literature Review. Ali Mahta, Kim RY, Fanta PT, Lawson JD, Kesari S. J Gastrointest Cancer. 2011 Aug 9

Fourth Ventricular Choroid Plexus Papilloma. Ali Mahta, Kim RY, Kesari S. Med Oncol. 2011 Jun 1. 

Durable remission of leptomeningeal metastases from hormone-responsive prostate cancer. Zhang M, Ali Mahta, Kim RY, Akar S, Kesari S. Med Oncol. 2011 Mar 20

Brain metastasis from ovarian cancer: case report and review of the literature. Hu XQ, Imitola J, Kim RY, Ali Mahta, Kesari S. Med Oncol. 2011 Mar 6. 

Maternally Expressed Gene 3, an imprinted non-coding RNA gene, is associated with meningioma pathogenesis and progression. Zhang X., Gejman R, Ali Mahta, Zhong Y, Rice K, Zhou Y, Cheunsuchun P, Louis DN, Klibanski A. Cancer Res. 2010 Mar 15;70(6):2350-8 

Eosinophilic Esophagitis.  Matthew Bohm , Richter JE. Current Medical Literature - Gastroenterology 2009; 25(4): 85-94.

Esophageal Dilation:  Simple and Effective Treatment for Adults with Eosinophilic Esophagitis and Esophageal Rings and Narrowing.  Matthew Bohm, Richter JE, Kelsen S, Thomas R. Diseases of the Esophagus 2010; 1-9.

Fracture After Fall in a Middle-Aged African American Woman. Adrienne Freidl, Ward S. Consultant. 2010; 50(3).

Prosthetic Joint Infection with Mycobacterium Avium Complex in a Solid Organ Transplant Recipient. Ankur Gupta, Clauss H. Transplant Infectious Disease. 2009.

The Effect of Chronic Sputum Production on Respiratory Symptoms in Severe COPD: An analysis of the Pennsylvania Study of COPD Exacerbations (Pa-SCOPE).  Kim VJ, Jason Kraknke. Annals of Internal Medicine (submitted).

Unusually Severe Pharyngitis in a 19-Year-Old Woman. Danesh Modi, Rubin RN. Consultant 2010; 50(9):383-384.

Outcomes of Medical Therapy of Stricture and Internal Perforating Crohn's Disease: A Retrospective Cohort Study.  Roxana Samimi R, Flasar M, Tracy K, Cross RK. Inflammatory Bowel Disease Journal 2009.

African-American Women Have a Higher Risk for Developing Peripartum Cardiomyopathy. Gentry MB, Dias JK, Antonio Luis A, et al. Journal of American College of Cardiology 2010; 55:654-9.

Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection in a Postpartum Woman Presenting with Chest Pain. Leo Marcoff, Andra Popescu, Gilbert A. Leidig, Anthony W. Clay, John J. Kelly, Ehsanur Rahman, Letitia Price. American Journal of Emergency Medicine 10 March 2010.

Botulinum Toxin A for Treatment of Allodynia of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: A Pilot Study.  Delaram Safarpour MD, Arash Salardini MD, Diana Richardson MD, Bahman Jabbari MD. Pain Medicine, September 2010.

Botulinum Toxin A (Botox) for Treatment of Proximal Myofascial Pain in Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: Two Cases. Sarfarpour, Delaram. Jabbari B. Pain Medicine, August 2010.

Available Resources:

Authorship Guidelines (pdf, 14.5 KB)

Resources for New Investigators (html).  This website at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) addresses the needs of young investigators applying for funding from the NIH for the first time. While NIH funding is not usually obtained by residents, the site has a wealth of information regarding grant-funded clinical investigation.

The 2007 SGIM presentation by Lisa Willett, MD titled “Getting your Vignette Published” (pdf, 28.5 KB) offers many tips, as well as a comprehensive list of publications which accept case reports.

How to write a case report: Anwar et al., BMJ (2003), 327:153-154 (html) .  There is also a presentation “Writing Case Reports” (pdf, 513.66 KB) by Atul Khasnis, MD from Michigan State University that may be of help.

An example of a vignette abstract submission (pdf, 29.6 KB).

The article “The Art of Oral Presentations" (pdf, 29 KB) provides tips on giving a successful presentation.  Additional tips are also available through the following article,"Oral Presentation Tips" (pdf, 33 KB).  An example of an award winning presentation given in 2007 by Dr. Jose Torres at the National SGIM meeting is also available (pdf, 1.06 MB).

Tips on creating a poster presentation (pdf, 40 KB) as well as an example for a poster template used at a recent national meeting (pdf, 91KB).

The Temple University Institutional Review Board has an informative website located at: http://www.research.temple.edu/irb/index.html.