Bonnie Petrie
Bioscience & Medicine Reporterbonnie@TPR.org
BlueSky: @bonniepetrie.bsky.social
Bonnie Petrie covers bioscience and medicine for Texas Public Radio and is the host of the Petrie Dish podcast, which explores the intersection of science, medicine, and life in the 2020s. She also brings you the latest research happening at UT Health San Antonio in a weekly report called Science & Medicine.
Bonnie grew up on the Canadian border in northern New York, but called Texas home for more than 20 years. She has twice been nominated for the Texas Radio Hall of Fame in recognition of her work in Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio, but claims she's still too young for all that. She has also received many Edward R Murrow, Associated Press, and other journalism awards. She and Petrie Dish have been honored with several Gracie Awards from The Alliance for Women in Media, including personal recognition as the best host of a local show in the nation.
Bonnie is mom to a college student, two dogs, two cats and spends her free time solving family mysteries using genetic genealogy.
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Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. has ordered a dramatic reduction in the number of vaccines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control. Does this mean you should change the number of vaccines your child receives? A practicing pediatrician in Texas is among the large number of children's health experts who say no. -
New research from UT Health San Antonio finds a link between obstructive sleep apnea and persistent pain, suggesting that the intermittant lack of oxygen caused by apnea decreases a person's ability to recover from painful stimuli. -
Metro Health says emergency room visits for flu are higher than they've been in years. -
Affordable Care Act subsidies that helped middle-income families afford health insurance during the pandemic expired at the end of 2025, leaving some in Bexar County with looming premium increases of more than 300%. But the House and Senate are debating plans that could bring them back. -
Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital Dr. Peter Hotez shares his thoughts on changes to the U.S. childhood vaccine schedule. He also offers advice on where parents can go for credible guidance on whether and when to get their children vaccinated. -
Research from an expert in sleep disorders at UT Health San Antonio has revealed that sleep disorders are common in the military, and the most common disorder impacts men and women in the military equally. It's COMISA, which is an acronym for comorbid insomnia and sleep apnea.
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From announcing then backtracking on a cause for autism to slashing federal public health funding to changing childhood vaccine recommendations, the appointment of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services triggered an earthquake of change in U.S. public health policy. Infectious diseases doctor Peter Hotez, MD, PhD, assesses the still rattling landscape with TPR's Bonnie Petrie. -
People who eat a strict keto diet are at risk for an accumulation of aged cells in their organs, but taking intermittent breaks from the diet can prevent these detrimental effects.
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In a Petrie Dish collaboration with Public Health Watch, we explore what happens if you have a chronic illness like epilepsy in a state that has rejected the Medicaid expansion. -
Heading into the holiday season this year, nearly half of U.S. adults said they expected the season to be more stressful than last year. San Antonio's Mental Health Officer offers advice on how to navigate this joyful but often fraught period.
