Newspaper Page Text
14A
April 22, 2004
Living
SENIOR HEALTH FOCUS
Q: I’ve heard that high triglycerides put women at
greater risk of heart disease than men. Is this true?
M.B. North Augusta, S.C. '
Yes, elevated triglyc
eride levels are a more sig
nificant risk factor of
heart disease for women
than for men, according
to Doris E. Tummillo,
M.D., a board-certified
cardiologist on University
Hospital’s Medical Staff.
Triglycerides are the
most common type of fat
in the body and a major
source of energy. Like
Harmonic scalpel reduces blood loss,
operative time for tumors of the saliva gland
A tool known as the
harmonic scalpel
removes tumors of the
saliva glands as effec
tively as cold knife dis
section.
Dr. Christine
Gourin, a head and
neck surgeon in the
Department of Orto
lgryngology at MCG
Health System, is the
first in the state to use
the technique o
remove tumors of the
parotid gland. The tri
angular-shaped gland is
the largest of the saliva
glands, with one locat
ed in front of each ear.
“It’s a tricky proce
dure,” said Dr. Gourin,
who has co-authored a
study on the effective
ness of the scalpel.
“Because the facial
nerve runs through the
parotid gland, nerve
damage and facial
paralysis is a risk of
surgery. But we've
found that the har
monic scalpel is just as
safe as conventional
methods and results in
less blood loss and
greatly reduced opera
tive time for the
patient. In fact,
Cancer screening day gain
valuable partner
The Georgia Cancer
Foundation (GCF) has
announced a partnership
with the Georgia Cancer
Coalition to promote the
Greater Atlanta/North
Georgia Cancer Screen Day
2004. Free screenings for
breast, prostate, skin and
colon cancers will be
offered on April 24 between
9a.m. and Ip.m. at 12 sites
in the Metro Atanta area,
plus Toccoa, Blue Ridge,
Gainesville, and Cumming,
Bill Todd serves as presi
dent of the Georgia Cancer
Coalition, a .pul:flic- private
partnership that works to
strengthen the collective
impact of existing cancer —
related programs and create
new initiatives. “Cancer is
the second leading cause of
cholesterol, triglycerides
are produced by the body
and are healthy at certain
levels. But elevated
triglycerides increase your
risk of heart disease by:
increasing the “sticki
ness” of red blood cells, a
predictor of cardiovascu
lar disease :
Many people who have
high triglyceride levels
also have high total and
because less blood is
lost, the facial nerve
may be even easier to
identify during sur
gery.”
The harmonic scalpel
is uniquely suited to
surgeries where protec
tion of nerve function
is important. Ultrason
ic vibrations are pro
duced by the expansion
and contraction of
piezoelectric crystals
housed in the hand
piece of the scalpel and
transferred to the blade
through blade exten
ders. The scalpel
vibrates at a frequency
of 55,000 Hz and cuts
tissue bonds at temper
atures in the range of
60 to 80 degrees Cel
sius. It simultaneously
cuts and coagulartes,
with low resulting ther
mal transduction and
no electric current.
JW Little of Augusta
underwent a parotidec
tomy (removal of the
parotid gland) in Sep
tember 2003. Little’s
parotid tumor had
grown slowly over a
matter of months, until
it was the size of an
egg. Sore to the touch,
death in Georgia, which has
one of the highest cancer
rates in the country,” said
Todd. “We are pleased with
leadership of the Georgia
Cancer Foundation in cre
ating this screening pro
gram.”
GCF Executive Director
Brenda Horne said, “The
Georgia Cancer Coalition’s
support as a major funding
partner will greatly impact
the growth ofg this event and
the improved health of its
attendees. Since 1999, we
have screened over 8,000
people and detected over
1,000 abnormal results.”
During the past year,
GCF buiglt its in;r’astrucmrc
for growth, automated
numerous operational sys
tems and added sites in
LDL (bad) cholesterol
levels and low HDL
(good) cholesterol levels.
High triglyceride levels
are also associated with
diabetes and being over
weight, two serious risk
factors for heart disease.
What's more, having
both high triglyceride lev
els and low HDL levels
can be especially danger
ous for women. There
it also began to bother
him during eating and
hindered him from
sleeping on his side.
“At first, I didn’t pay it
any mind,” he said.
“But when it got big
ger, my wife, Deborah,
and I decided we need
ed to have it checked
out.”
A needle biopsy and
MRI were non-diag
nostic, but Gourin rec
ommended removal of
the gland. “Most lumps
of the parotid gland are
benign, but the danger
is that they can under
go malignant transfor
mation,” said Gourin.
“In addition, the nee
dle biopsy is effective
mainly in confirming
cancerous tumors, not
those that are benign.
Most experts continue
to recommend removal
of the gland when
tumors are found to be
present.”
During conventional
cold knife dissection of
the parotid gland,
bipolar electrocautery
would be used to close
bleeding vessels,
increasing risk of ther
mal and electrical
areas that benefit those
communities. New loca
tions include Grady Health
System’s Georgia Cancer
Center for Excellence, The
Longstreet Clinic in
Gainesville, North Fulton
Family Medicine —Cum
ming and the Cancer Cen
ter in Toccoa, a facility of
Northeast Georgia Medical
Center.
An appointment is neces
sary to minimize waiting
times. Please call (770)-
396-7995 or 1-(888)-441-
CURE (2873), or pre-regis
tration online at
www.gacancerfoundation.o
rg Licensed medical profes
sionals will conduct physi
cal exams for breast,
prostate, and skin cancers
and blood is drawn for
AUGUSTA FOCUS
fore, Dr. Tummillo sug
gests women know their
triglyceride levels and
achieve or maintain levels
of 150 or less.
To control triglyceride
levels, make the following
lifestyle changes:
Decrease the amount of
saturated fat in your diet
by limiting butter, lard
and fats from meats.
Avoid or limit palm and
injury to the facial
nerve. During Little’s
parotidectomy, Gourin
used the harmonic
scalpel to cleave the
parotid gland, exposing
and identifying the
facial nerve and
peripheral nerve
branches, and coagu
lating blood vessels
throughout the proce
dure. Following careful
removal of the gland, a
drain was placed and
the incision was closed.
All told, Lirttle’s sur
gery and recovery took
only three weeks, far
less time than it did for
the tumor to develop.
The rapid recovery was
a welcome surprise to
both Little and his
wife. A diabetic, Little
had a kidney transplant
in 1988 and remem
bered the lengthy heal
ing process. While this
surgery was much
smaller in scope, still,
he said, “It was amaz
ing to me that a diabet
ic could heal that
quickly.”
A later examination
of the tumor found
that it was indeed can
cerous. “Today, I'm
prostate testing for men.
Participants requesting
colon screenings will receive
education on the use a spe
cial take home test kit.
The screening . day
planned for - Greater
Atdlanta/ North Georgia on
April 24 is the first of two
screenings to be held this
year. The second event is
scheduled for Sept. 18 and
will focus on East and Cen
tral Georgia.
The Georgia Cancer
Foundation, established in
1975 as a nonprofit , chari
table organization, provides
professional cancer educa
tion, as well as early detec
tion programs and support
throu%hout the continuum
of cancer care for residents
of Georgia.
coconut oil.
Limit sugary foods and
drinks.
Limit your alcohol
intake.
Get 30 minutes of phys
ical activity every day.
If your triglyceride level
warrants, you may also
need to take medication.
For more information on
heart health or to order a
free Women'’s Heart Advan
very happy,” said Little
of the procedure.
¥The harmonic
scalpel has been used
for other head and
neck procedures such
as thyroidectomy [thy
roid removal], but this
is the first time it’s
been used to remove
these types of cancers,”
said Gourin. “As a spe
cialist in head and neck
cancers, I'm very
pleased to find a new
application for this
tool and look forward
to seeing other applica
tions developed for it
in the treatment of
cancer.”
MCG Health Sys
tem is composed’ of
three separate organi
zations — MCG
Health, Inc. and the
clinical services offered
by the faculty employ
ees of the Medical Col
lege of Georgia and the
members of the Physi
cians Practice Group.
The physicians of
MCG Health System
are community physi
cians and faculty
employees of the Med
ical College of Georgia
and the Physicians
MCG School
of Medicine
Honors Day
Students at the Med
ical College of Georgia
School of Medicine
will be recognized for
academic excellence,
research and volun
teerism at the annual
Honors Day April 29.
The ceremony begins
at noon in Room 1103
of the Hamilton Wing
of the Carl T. Sanders
Research Building on
the MCG campus. The
public is invited to
tage Information kit
please call University’s
Heart Line at (706)828-
2828 or toll free at
(866)601-2828. "If you
have a question you would
like addressed in this col
umn or would like more
information on University's
Seniors Club, please write
to Shirley Mclntosh at
4106 Columbia Road,
Martinez, Ga., 30907.
Practice Group, not
employees of MCG
Health Inc. MCG
Health, Inc. is a not
for-profit corporation
operating the MCG
Medical Center, MCG
Children’s Medical
Center, the MCG
Sports Medicine Ce
ter, MCG Ambulato}
Care Center, the Geor
gia Radiation Therapy
Center-—-and related
clinical facilities and
services. MCG Health,
Inc. was formed to sup
port the research and
education mission of
the Medical College of
Georgia and to build
the economic growth
of the CSRA, the state
of Georgia and the
Southeast by providing
an environment for
faculty employees of
the Medical College of
Georgia and the Physi
cians Practice Group
and community physi
cians to deliver the
highest level of primary
and specialty health
care. For more infor
mation, please visit
www. MCGHaealth.
org.
attend.
The Medical College
of Georgia is the state’s
health sciences univer
sity and includes the
Schools of Allied
Health Sciences, Den
tistry, Graduate Stud
ies, Medicine and
Nursing, the MCG
Medical Center and .
the Children’s Medical
Center. Please visit our -
website at huep://-
www.mcg.edu.