Barbara Sommer

Academic Appointments
Appointment
Organization
Associate Professor - Med Center Line
Graduate & Fellowship Program Affiliations
 
Administrative Appointments
Title
Organization
Start Year
End Year
Member
Stanford Hospital Well Being of Physicians Committee
2001
-
Member
Stanford Hospital Care Review Committee
1997
2006
Professional Education
Degree
Awarding Institution
Field of Study
Year of Graduation
MD
New York Medical College
Medicine
1979
Research Interests

My academic interest is in intellectual function and its adaptability over the course of a person’s lifetime despite the stressors placed upon it. Researchers have learned about a few risk factors for dementia, such as prolonged loss of consciousness, head injury, and old age. It is likely that there are also risk factors for non-Alzheimer’s cognitive loss causing the changes often attributed to normal aging. With a better knowledge of these risk factors, better protection against them at an earlier age and perhaps much of the lost cognition now attributed to normal aging might be spared.

My papers have focused on the evaluation of ways in which co-morbid factors such as folic acid deficiency or its administration, or anticholinergic drugs prior to ECT affect cognitive function. Anticholinergic medications deplete brain stores of the acetylcholine, known to be a key neurotransmitter in language acquisition and memory storage and retrieval. These drugs not only worsen symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, but are known to cause delirium when given in high doses. I have been interested in the long-term effects of these drugs and whether cognitive impairment is prolonged.

Publications
  • O'hara R, Sommer B, Way N, Kraemer HC, Taylor J, Murphy G "Slower speed-of-processing of cognitive tasks is associated with presence of the apolipoprotein epsilon4 allele." J Psychiatr Res 2007; More »
  • Sommer BR, Fenn HH, Ketter TA "Safety and efficacy of anticonvulsants in elderly patients with psychiatric disorders: oxcarbazepine, topiramate and gabapentin." Expert Opin Drug Saf 2007; 6: 2: 133-45 More »
  • Alexander JL, Sommer BR "Role of psychiatric comorbidity on cognitive function during and after the menopausal transition" Expert Rev Neurotherapeutics 2007; 7: 11: S155 More »
  • Fenn HH, Sommer BR, Ketter TA, Alldredge B "Safety and tolerability of mood-stabilizing anticonvulsants in elderly" Expert Opin Drug Saf 2006; 5: 3: 401 More »
  • Sommer BR, O'Hara R, Askari N, Kraemer HC, Kennedy WA "The effect of oxybutynin treatment on cognition in children with diurnal incontinence." J Urol 2005; 173: 6: 2125-7 More »
24 publications:   view full list