Don’t just take a Weight-and-See approach to losing pounds in 2013. Two-thirds of adult Americans are overweight and one-third are obese. Tip: Exert portion control. A single portion should fit on your palm; a restaurant meal is usually the size of multiple portions. Here are more weight management tips from expert Dr. Robert Yanagisawa. Read more at http://ow.ly/gupUd
Type 2 diabetes, often associated with obesity, is one of the most rapidly emerging health crises in our community. For many years, the goal in treating type 2 diabetes has been to use medication and lifestyle changes to control this chronic disease. Mild disease has been treated with oral medication while injectable insulin was used for more severe disease. Such conventional therapies were used without any intent to cure the underlying diabetes; rather, the therapeutic goal was to achieve medical control of blood sugar levels. Recently, however, there has been a fundamental advance in our understanding of this widespread disease. New data suggest that the use of metabolic surgery – historically used to treat obesity but now used as an intervention for type 2 diabetes – may result in better control of blood sugar, and even in complete remission of the disease.
When yet another team sets off from the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science for some remote location in Africa or Central America, its thoughts are on how to provide the superior standard of care, considered to be the routine at home, to women in drastically resource poor settings. Upon returning, what our teams often realize is that the tremendous expertise they develop in these countries is the very thing that makes them the experts in their own fields at home. Fistula repair is the perfect example of this.
“Obstetric fistula is a tremendous problem in sub-Saharan Africa,” says Charles Ascher-Walsh MD, Assistant Professor, Director of Gynecology and Urogynecology, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science. “In many countries there is very little maternal health care and, as a result, maternal mortality rates top 1% in some of these countries. These rates are unfathomable in the United States.” If a woman is lucky enough to survive childbirth, the rates of developing some type of post-partum fistula vary between 2 to 5 per thousand births. This equates to between 50,000 and 100,000 new cases of vesico-vaginal fistula in West Africa alone every year. These women, constantly drenched in their own urine, become social outcasts and live a life of physical and social misery. This problem, however, often has a surgical cure that can reinstitute these women into society.
My name is Loren Ridinger and I was diagnosed with and underwent brain surgery for a brain aneurysm, all within a couple months. I am so grateful to Mount Sinai, Dr. Joshua Bederson, and Dr. Aman Patel for saving my life; for saving my life; over 30,000 people die each year from ruptured aneurysms and I could have been one of them if it wasn’t for this hospital and its amazing doctors.
Don’t settle for less than the best when it comes to your health. You have to be your biggest advocate – there is nothing more important! Be persistent! I had learned to live with vertigo for years because every doctor I went to said there was “nothing wrong” with me. Remember that they are practitioners, not perfect, and only you know what’s happening to your body. After demanding an MRI and then an MRA (similar to an MRI except it focuses on your arteries) and learning that I had an 8.5 mm aneurysm of my internal carotid artery behind my left eye, I went from doctor to doctor and different hospitals trying to figure out what came next.
On a daily basis, my patients complain about dark circles under their eyes, the so-called raccoon eyes. These dark circles make it seem like you did not get enough sleep. Some people, even with a good night’s sleep, look tired because of these dark circles. The good news is that these circles are harmless. The bad news is that they are extremely difficult to treat, which most of my patients find out the hard way after spending money on products marketed to cure under-eye darkness. These products usually contain astringents or proteins designed to change skin pigmentation, but they usually don’t work too well in this area. My patients are frustrated. No matter what they use, how much sleep they get or how much water they drink, they still struggle with those dark circles.
Let’s exam several factors that can contribute to dark circles under the eyes:
Here are some tips to help address dark circles under the eyes:
Speak with your doctor or dermatologist to help you identify the underlying cause of your dark circles and explore which strategies and treatments are best for you.
Assistant Professor, Dermatology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Richard S. Mizuguchi, MD is a board-certified dermatologist and hair transplant surgeon. He has extensive experience in cosmetic dermatology, including, chemical peels, Botox, and injectable fillers, such as Juvederm and Restylane, as well as, hair restoration surgery and diseases of the hair. Dr. Mizuguchi is fluent in Japanese.
Guest blog post by George J. Todd, MD, Chair of the Department of Surgery at Mount Sinai Morningside and Mount Sinai West
Question: A young co-worker of mine (age 28) developed difficulty breathing and pain in his chest. He went to the emergency department and was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolus, a blockage of an artery of his lung, that likely started due to a blood clot in his leg. The doctors told him it was from sitting at his computer for many hours. Is this possible?
Answer: Yes. Prolonged sitting without getting up to move around can lead to deep vein thrombosis (DVT), the formation of a blood clot in a vein deep in the body. DVT typically affects large veins in the thigh and leg but can present in other parts of the body. Once a clot forms in a vein, it can travel to the heart and lungs–forming a pulmonary embolus (PE)–which can cause shortness of breath, chest pain, and even death.
Many people are now aware that DVT can result from prolonged sitting on an airplane (sometimes called “Coach Class Syndrome”) or from being immobile in bed (after surgery, for example). Most people are also aware that obesity, taking oral contraceptives, and some hereditary disorders (such a Factor V Leiden mutation, for example) can predispose a person to DVT and PE.
It may be a surprise to some however, to learn that DVT and PE have also been described in people who have sat for many hours working at a computer. There was even a story reported in several news outlets about a 20-year-old British man who reportedly died of a PE after sitting and playing on his Xbox for many hours without taking a break.
Prolonged sitting can lead to the formation of blood clots in the legs. Once clots form, they can travel to the lungs and cause PE. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that as many as 900,000 people may be affected by DVT/PE each year, resulting in between 60,000 to 100,000 deaths. Other studies estimate a much higher figure for both DVT and PE.
The bottom line: It is very important when flying or sitting at a desk, to get up and walk around at least every 60 to 90 minutes. It is also important to wear loose fitting clothing if you will be seated for prolonged periods and to maintain good hydration by drinking water.