Health
Matters of the Heart: Women and Heart Disease PDF Print E-mail
Written by Dr. Ramin Manshadi MD   
Wednesday, 05 June 2013 22:53

 

According to the American Heart Association, every minute in the U.S., someone's wife, mother, daughter or sister dies from heart disease, stroke or another type of cardiovascular disease (CVD). More than one in three women is living with CVD, including nearly half of all African-American women and 34 percent of white females. Albeit heart disease death rates among males have decreased steadily over the last 25 years, rates among women have fallen at a slower rate.
There are circumstances linked to heart problems that are unique to women. A recent study (conducted last year by The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)) showed that the risk of a heart attack for a woman who’s had at least one stillbirth was 3.5 times higher than for women who’d had none. Those who have experienced more than three spontaneous miscarriages had a fivefold increase in their likelihood of having a heart attack.

Furthermore, like men, women are not immune to stress impacting their heart health. A recent 10-year Harvard study (http://www.health.harvard.edu) found that women with high-stress jobs had a 40 percent higher risk of having some kind of heart disease, along with an 88 percent higher likelihood of experiencing a heart attack.

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Exclusive Interview with Internist and Author: Dr. Dhand M.D. PDF Print E-mail
Written by Patricia Turnier LL.M.   
Sunday, 08 September 2013 16:53

 

Dr. Suneel Dhand, M.D. is board certified in Internal Medicine. He was born in London and grew up in Windsor, England. His parents emigrated from Punjab, India in the 1960s. He studied medicine at Cardiff University, and then came to the United States to pursue residency training. Hence, he completed his internal medicine residency in Maryland, and now works in Massachusetts.

Dr. Dhand developed an interest in preventive medicine, health and well-being, which inspired him to write about the topic. High Percentage Wellness Steps: Natural, Proven, Everyday Steps to Improve Your Health & Well-being was his first book, with profits going to a number of health-related causes, involving humanitarian relief, medical research, and other special projects for those suffering from terrible illnesses. Some of these include the Red Cross, Make a Wish Foundation, and organizations devoted to cancer, cardiovascular, and neurological research.

Dr. Dhand’s first book covers many subjects including the importance of eating a healthy diet, to other diverse health-related aspects of life . For instance, he exposes the consequences (including the economic impact) of lack of sleep, stress, etc. He also wrote about the pros of daily regular sit-down meals with the family daily. In addition, the book gives great advice to encourage people who are not really into physical activities. About mental health, according to his observations, Dr. Dhand thinks that Western culture deals with stress in a more solitary and individual way, strongly relying on medications like anti-depressants. In the East, there is more focus on family support systems to help anyone work their way through difficult times in life. Reading Dr. Dhand’s first book was like attending a lecture by a physician, it was very informative. It was also interesting to discover the views of a physician who had an Eastern background and a holistic approach which was embraced in the past by thinkers such as Socrates. In fact, the World Health Organization defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being”, and not merely as the absence of disease or infirmity.

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Heart Transplant: The Way of the future or the Past PDF Print E-mail
Written by Dr. Manshadi M.D.   
Monday, 16 September 2013 16:59

 

Max, a computer analyst, comes to the office complaining of worsening shortness of breath, leg swelling, and fatigue. Maria, a housewife, ends up in the hospital with a massive heart attack that leaves her bed bound on intravenous medications to keep her alive. Sandra, a former nurse, ends up with an infection that ends up damaging her heart valve; she has rapid heartbeat and shortness of breath. All three of these patients have one common endpoint. They all ended up with a diagnosis of Heart Failure.

What leads to heart failure and Congestive Heart Failure? Different causes can lead to heart failure. It might be valve disease, muscle weakness caused by a virus. Occasionally it is drug-induced. Sometimes it comes after a heart attack. This leads to shortness of breath with walking or lying down. There might be swelling in the legs. One might feel rapid heartbeat, as it has to compensate for being weak. At times, one may simply feel fatigued.

Max ends up getting a heart transplant, Maria ends up receiving a semi artificial heart or a Ventricular Assist Device called Heartmate2, and Sandra ends up with a new valve. All three have extended their lives and are able to continue to enjoy their lives with their families.

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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH THE PROMINENT PHYSICIAN AND AUTHOR: DR. ALLEN M.D. PDF Print E-mail
Written by Patricia Turnier LL.M.   
Monday, 04 November 2013 17:56

Dr. Allen is a multiple specialist physician born in the United States. His late parents were a urologist (father) and a registered nurse (mother). Dr. Allen grew up on a farm and shares a passion for animals. He was seriously thinking to become a veterinarian. Thus, he went to University of California and obtained a B.S. in zoology in 1982. Eventually, he switched his orientation and enrolled in medical school. He earned his medical degree in 1986 from Northwestern University-Feinberg School of Medicine, in Chicago. He subsequently did his general surgery and urology residency at the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics in Iowa City, Iowa. He specialized in urologic oncology and was the awarded chief resident in 1991. Hence, he became a urologist who specialized in cancerous diseases of the urinary tract. He coordinated efforts with State Boards and Pennsylvania Health Departments in order to assure patient safety. As of 1986, he provided acute and chronic care in response to life-threatening medical emergencies, routine healthcare and patient education. He conveyed three successful practices. 

In 1998, an unfortunate accident occurred while Dr. Allen was operating on an elderly patient who had a large kidney tumor amongst other medical complications. During the removal of the patient’s kidney, Dr. Allen’s life dramatically changed in a split-second (after years of hard work) and he had a near-death experience. He got electrocuted by a cautery device used to seal off blood vessels. He suffered a traumatic brain injury (including memory loss, concussion, chronic lethargy…) and had to get the appropriate health professionals to help treat his condition. It was a very difficult road. As a patient, Dr. Allen was prescribed multiple medications (taking a total of 36 pills per day), which created side effects. He suffered many other injuries, including hand and arm nerve damage, heart damage, and post-traumatic stress disorder, to name a few. He also experienced petit mal seizures, his left arm muscles atrophied almost to the bone, etc. It took him years to recover. He needed to go through physiotherapy and psychology sessions among the many treatments.

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Overcoming Stress: Moderation in Life PDF Print E-mail
Written by Dr. Manshadi M.D.   
Monday, 09 December 2013 17:32

Stress can affect our physical/mental health and enjoyment of life in profound ways. While many wish to reduce stress in their lives, people today are busier, move at a faster pace, and try to accomplish more professionally and personally than ever before. It became such a part of our culture that for some, unless they are overlooked- they feel they are underachieving. Over 75% of all doctor's office visits are for stress-related complains. If excessive, in a patient that may already have an underlying minor heart condition such as mild blockages in the heart vessels, it can lead to Sudden Cardiac Death.

Some of this increased pace is due to our new technological advances. The advent of smartphones, computers, Internet and email were supposed to make our lives easier and provide us with more leisure time. It has been the opposite. Rather than relaxing during the day or while driving the car, people are making calls, answering calls and returning calls. At work, we try to keep pace with lightening speeds of all our electronic "helpers."

How does stress affect our health? It mainly depends as to the personality type. People respond to stress in a different manner. There are those that let it out- and those that hold it in.

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Can We Trust Medical Information Online? PDF Print E-mail
Written by Dr. Manshadi M.D.   
Wednesday, 04 June 2014 17:50

 

Health websites can be a source of valuable health information. Let's look deeper beyond the obvious:

- Should we believe and trust everything that we read on health websites?

- How do we know what we read is truly accurate? Are there a hidden agenda within an article?

- Could the article overly emphasize one aspect of health finding to promote its own product?

- How can we be a smart reader to get the most out of our health articles found on the Internet?

These are some thoughts that came across my mind after I had a patient (that I recently saw in my office) who showed me a printout of an article he had read from the Internet. He wanted me to change his medical regimen. This proves how vulnerable the public is because some people can truly believe everything they read.

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You are What You Eat! Optimum Diet to Prevent Heart Disease. PDF Print E-mail
Written by Dr. Ramin Manshadi M.D.   
Sunday, 19 October 2014 17:04

 

There are so many diet craze out there that makes readers confused. Some are pushed because of sponsorships and are biased, some are based on fiction and not facts, and this can lead to multiple fad diets. This in return can make dieters try a new diet every day just the same way they change clothes on a daily basis.

Life is complex and it is getting more and more complicated on a daily basis. We need to simplify what we eat. Let us put all the fad diets behind and focus on our origins and what we should be eating.  It is simple: You are what you eat. Research has shown that meat eaters not only have much higher chance of developing Coronary Artery Disease (CAD), but also live on average 10 years less than non meat eaters. Human Beings are not meant to be meat eaters. Animals that consume meat have incisor teeth to assist in tearing it apart to eat it. Human beings? We have pronounced molars than we have incisors or "canine teeth." Thus, our design being better suited to vegetables, fruits, and nuts. In fact a recent Study has proven this hypothesis. The study is published in the August 2010 issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

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Can alcohol help your heart? PDF Print E-mail
Written by Dr. Ramin Manshadi M.D   
Thursday, 25 June 2015 18:57

Whether alcohol can ever be healthy is a matter of controversy. For a long time, people have believed that alcohol can be beneficial as long as it’s consumed in moderation. However, is this true? In addition, should physicians ever advise patients to drink alcohol?  If we do encourage our patients to drink alcohol, then will it harm or help them? The answer is very complex.

Firstly, we will examine the possible benefits of alcohol. The ways that alcohol can benefit health are actually still poorly understood. One way it might be healthy, according to some researchers, is that alcohol increases the blood’s high-density lipoprotein (that is to say, the ‘good’ cholesterol that reduces risk of heart disease).

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Winter Risks: This is the Season to be Jolly and Careful PDF Print E-mail

In some ways, people are more mindful of their general health during the cold weather seasons. They may get Flu shots. They make sure their hair is dry after washing before venturing outside. They buy winter coats.  They don't realize they also need to “bundle up” against heart attacks.  Why? There are more heart attacks during winter than any other season. Comprehending why, will also help you understand more about your body.    In cold weather, there is more oxygen demand by the heart because it is working harder to do the work and maintain body heat.  Each 1.8 degree Fahrenheit reduction in temperature on a single day was linked to about 200 additional heart attacks.

A report in the Dec. 13, 2004, issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association found that the rate of cardiovascular-related deaths rose sharply between Dec. 25 and Jan. 7.  The greatest risk came within two weeks of cold-weather exposure, and those aged 75-84, along with those with coronary heart disease, were most vulnerable to the temperature changes.  Your body has intriguing response mechanism to deal with cold. The goal is to keep the core of your body at 98.6 degrees. One of the ways your body does this is by constricting blood vessels to limit the loss of body heat.  This does help, but it also raises blood pressure and lowers the amount of blood flowing to your heart and other organs.  If you are being active at the same time, this can put a significant demand on your heart.  If you already have heart disease, it may be too much and cause a heart attack.  That’s why you hear warnings about the high risks of coronary while shoveling snow.

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AN IN-DEPTH Exclusive Interview with the Yale alumnus Dr. George Glass, M.D. PSYCHIATRIST PDF Print E-mail
Monday, 23 May 2016 17:37

Dr. Glass, M.D., P.A. was born in America and grew up in New Jersey during the 1940s. He is a physician and forensic psychiatrist expert based in Houston, Texas. He obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Swarthmore College and later graduated from Northwestern University’s the Feinberg School of Medicine in 1967. He has over 48 years of clinical experience. He did his residency at Yale New Haven Hospital and presently works at George S Glass MD. In addition, he is associated with Houston Methodist Hospital. He received a Board Certification by the American Board of Psychiatry in 1976 as an addictionologist. Furthermore, he has been certified in Alcoholism and other Drugs of Dependence by the American Medical Society since 1986. He is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Baylor College of Medicine, the University of Texas Medical School at Houston, and the Cornell Weill Medical Program at The Methodist Hospital in Houston. He has been a professor for medical students and psychiatric residents.

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