Being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 19 changed the trajectory of Nicole Johnson’s life. She was a college student and pageant contestant with no family history of the disease and no idea of what it would mean to live the rest of her life with a chronic illness that today affects 1.7 million people in the United States.

Kidney stone disease is increasingly recognized as a chronic condition closely tied to metabolic health, with obesity standing out as a major risk factor. Conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease are closely associated with the development and recurrence of kidney stones.

When kidney transplant patients at the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute celebrate their first year after transplant, they ring a bell. The bright tone of the “Bell of New Beginnings” resonates throughout the clinic, marking the first anniversary of a journey toward a new chance at life.

Each year, hundreds of patients visit the Amputee Clinic at UAB Spain Rehabilitation Center to be fit for prostheses after complications of diabetes, motor vehicle accidents and a wide range of other conditions. A new grant from UAB’s Health Services Foundation-General Endowment Fund awards program is funding the purchase of an advanced 3D printer that will allow those patients to receive their prostheses faster, at lower cost and with an even better fit, says the clinic’s director, Conley Carr, M.D. The printer will also produce custom orthoses for UAB patients needing braces after a stroke or other condition, he adds.

Ashley Nichols, 32, shares her journey from managing her type 1 diabetes to navigating her rare kidney-pancreas transplant with the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute care team.

UAB School of Nursing student Emily Fonville’s path to becoming a nurse has not been without its challenges. Diagnosed with a severe case of Type 1 diabetes in 2015, Fonville has been hospitalized 37 times since then. While her complicated health history has tested her in numerous ways, it was through her treatment and health care experiences that she found her calling and UAB.

From January to May of 2023, Shelby Lyda, M.D., was extremely tired and had brain fog, but she chalked it up to the demands of a residency program. Lyda was within UAB Department of Surgery Residency Program at the time, completing her research year. She thought the fatigue and brain fog had to do with the stresses of her work.

is a general term for conditions that cause the body’s blood glucose (sugar) levels to rise higher than normal. Diabetes can lead to serious problems with the heart, kidneys, circulatory system, and eyes, but these issues often can be avoided by carefully managing the disease. Many people with diabetes lead healthy and full lives, […]

Carol Glover retired in 2017 after working 32 years for University of Alabama Athletics, and she was looking forward to her upcoming wedding and traveling the world with her new husband. Glover couldn’t have foreseen that her journey would lead to her becoming the oldest kidney-pancreas transplant patient at the UAB Comprehensive Transplant Institute (CTI).

Type 1 diabetes is a lifelong disease in most cases, but it can be controlled. People with this less common form of diabetes can lead a full life if they control their diet, check their sugar levels often, take insulin properly, and see their doctor regularly.

According to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the leading cause of death globally. On average, someone dies of heart disease every 36 seconds in the United States. Although many factors contribute to one’s heart health, wholesome nutrition is a major factor in combating plaque buildup in coronary arteries, which results in the most common type of heart disease, coronary artery disease.

If you feel lost when it comes to making healthy eating decisions, you are not alone. We may know which foods are healthier, but many of us still struggle to put it all together into a lifestyle that we can maintain.