Game On
The jury’s still out as to whether online brain training works the mind or just the wallet By Donna Shryer Online brain-training games promise to make the mind smarter, quicker and stronger. While some studies show cognition gains from brain exercises, others aren’t as supportive, saying that the cognition gains don’t transfer to areas beyond simply […]
How Hysterectomies Happen
The rate of hysterectomies in this country has led to innovative procedures By Ruth Kaufman Hysterectomies are happening quite often. Their frequency and the desire for so many of these women to recover quickly has caused a wave of innovative procedures to emerge. DuPage Medical Group’s Donald Adeli, MD, obstetrician and gynecologist, says the need for […]
Gird Up for Good Health
While men in their 30s and 40s need not worry much about disease, they must make healthy changes now By Leigh Page Generally, men in their 30s and 40s experience enormous changes in lifestyle that can impact their body and their health. It’s a time of greater accountability: getting married, having kids and landing a […]
PRP: A Promising Panacea or a Premature Procedure?
Can a patient’s own platelet-enhanced blood augment traditional orthopedic procedures and reduce post-surgical healing time? The soreness in Brent Jurceka’s shoulder was not only causing him terrible pain but getting in the way of his pitching at his college baseball games. That’s when he contacted Rush University Medical Center orthopedic surgeon Brian Cole, MD, to schedule […]
Alternative Approaches
Integrative medicine gains foothold, providing hope for chronic disease So much of modern medicine comes down to a pill for an ill—treating disease by using drugs, surgery or other interventions. But more people are starting to look beyond that, finding alternative treatments to either replace or complement conventional treatment. Integrative medicine or functional medicine doctors […]
Skin Cancer: A Cautionary Tale
Diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, everything is called into question By David Himmel You wouldn’t have known it by looking at me—and it was barely visible in photos—but back in March, my face was being eaten alive by cancer. I’m not sure how long the cancer had been making a meal of me, or even […]
Demystifying Doctor and Hospital Ratings
When looking at online doctor ratings sites, consider the source By Leigh Page With thousands of doctors and more than 100 hospitals in the Chicago area, it can get pretty tricky to choose the best physician for your needs. Healthcare consumers are increasingly turning to online rating sites, but those options are just as dizzying, […]
Bedside Manner Matters
Hospitals recognize that patient care is more than medicine By Eric Warner In May 2013, I headed to St. Louis to visit my mom. But instead of going to the house where I grew up, I visited her in the cardiac intensive care unit of Mercy Hospital St. Louis. After a concerning echocardiogram, she had […]
Funding the Cancer War
Despite the money spent on fighting the disease, we’re still searching for the cure to win by Alex Lubischer Bad news first: Cancer is still here, despite the hundreds of billions of dollars the United States government and its citizens have spent fighting it. And it’s not going away any time soon. The good news, […]
The V–Y Island Advancement Flap Reconstruction
• The V–Y island flap is named because of the type of incisions made. First, an incision is made in the shape of a V near the wound. (Fig. 1a) The tissue is moved into place to fill the wound. (Fig. 2a) That V is then extended from the bottom so it looks more like […]
Mohs Procedure
Illustrations by Ron Guastaferri [spacer=’3′] • The site of the cancer is prepared and numbed with local anesthetic. The superficial part that appears to be cancerous, based on color, texture and other factors that distinguish it from the surrounding skin, is removed with a sharp scalpel. (Fig. 1) This piece is marked to determine which […]
