By H. Michael Baddour, M.D., FACS
Facial paralysis (FP) has an estimated annual incidence of approximately 70 cases per 100,000 population.1,2 Furthermore, it is estimated that approximately 127,000 cases of permanent FP occur annually.3 The most common causes of FP are Bell’s palsy, trauma, herpes zoster oticus and neoplasia.2 FP, which results from injury to the facial nerve, can appear suddenly or develop ... Continue Reading
By Danko Cerenko, M.D.
Hearing loss and decline in cognitive function leading to dementia are prevalent in the elderly population. Both affect quality of life, and many studies suggest that both conditions are related, and that hearing loss may be a risk factor for development of dementia in older adults. The first report that brought to attention association between hearing loss in older adults ... Continue Reading
By Chad Everett Miller, MD
An uncommon but lethal cause of right heart failure While not as common as left heart failure, right heart failure, too, is a major contributor to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), while a relatively uncommon disease, carries a poor prognosis even today as patients succumb to right heart failure. In recent decades, the ... Continue Reading
By Rob Schreiner, MD, FACP, FCCP
The safest thing for us to do, as doctors, is disassociate and depersonalize. We tell ourselves the patient’s suffering, from COPD or alcoholic cirrhosis or opioid addiction, is their own doing. Or more importantly, would never happen to us. Or maybe we try to numb our empathy by memorizing the neurochemistry and behavioral science of addiction. But none of that works so ... Continue Reading
By Helen K. Kelley
Living donor transplant offers alternative for patients with liver failure For people in need of a liver transplant, waiting for an organ from a deceased donor can seem endless. Fortunately, living-donor transplantation offers a more immediate solution for some patients. According to Marwan Kazimi, M.D., a multi-organ transplant, hepatobiliary surgeon and Surgical ... Continue Reading
By Rahul Nayak, MD, MBA
How fecal microbiota transplants help re-establish a healthy gut microbiome There is a rapidly growing awareness – in both the medical practice and the general population – of the importance of the gut microbiome and its potential impact on total body health. Much of this interest is focused on re-establishing a healthy gut microbiome through various therapies, including ... Continue Reading
By Nanette K. Wenger, MD, MACC, MACP, FAHA and Allen L. Dollar, MD, FACC, FACP
In the 1960s and 1970s, Grady Memorial Hospital was the major teaching hospital of Emory University’s medical school, such that most of the students and medical residents (and subsequently subspecialty residents and/or fellows) were based at Grady. With Dr. Willis J. Hurst as both Chairman of Medicine and Chief of Cardiology, a great deal of attention was focused on the rapidly ... Continue Reading
By Patricia Rich, MD
The idea that the only people vaping e-cigarettes are current smokers trying to quit is not true, especially in the last several years. According to the American Cancer Society, electronic cigarette use has grown a staggering 900 percent among high school students in recent years. Currently, an alarming one in six high school students admit to using e-cigarettes. Given that ... Continue Reading
By Helen K. Kelley
When the weather warms up, people naturally spend a lot more time outdoors. But the warm weather also beckons all kinds of insects to come out from their winter dormancy, including pesky ticks. The Southeast is a favorite breeding ground for ticks, and many Atlanta physicians are familiar with the diseases they can carry. Atlanta Medicine recently spoke with two infectious ... Continue Reading
By Michael Frist, M.D.
An innovative incisionless surgical solution for patients with chronic GERD Gastroesophageal Relfux Disease (GERD) effects between 10 percent and 20 percent of Americans. Symptoms vary from classic heartburn and regurgitation to chronic cough, chest pain, hoarseness and even asthma. Complications of GERD include esophagitis, esophageal stricture, Barrett’s Esophagus and ... Continue Reading
By Lance L. Stein, M.D.
One field within the specialty of gastroenterology that has witnessed rapid changes over the last two decades is hepatology. Over the past 20 years, there have been significant advances to the understanding of many liver diseases and rapid evolution of therapies. These advancements have been recognized by the gastroenterology societies and the American Board of Internal ... Continue Reading
By Justine Henao, MD
“It’s cool” “Everyone is doing it” “It smells real good” “My friends say it tastes good and that it’s not bad for you” “All the cool kids do it” “It’s a prerequisite to be popular” “I love sweet flavors like gummy bear” “Mango is the best” “It’s just vapor” “I would like to try it because it smells really good, but I haven’t yet because we have been researching all its ... Continue Reading
By Lauren Manaker, MS, RDN, LD, CLEC
In the United States, an average of 10 percent of people of reproductive age have experienced infertility challenges, regardless of gender.1 Infertility is “a disease of the reproductive system defined by the failure to achieve a clinical pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse” according to the World Health Organization.2 In 2018, the ... Continue Reading
By Shireen Haque, MD, MPH, and Annie Cowan, MD
Anesthesiologists in and around Atlanta respond to the opioid epidemic. Sitting across from me in our office at the WellStar East Cobb Surgery Center, patient Ryan Coker shares the story of his son Roger. Ryan and I first met in October 2018 when he came to our center for outpatient surgery. On that day, as he quietly requested a narcotic-free surgery, I sensed the untold ... Continue Reading
By Yujia Shentu, MS and Justine W. Welsh, MD
In 2017, 1,043 Georgians died from opioid-related overdoses.1 People are now more likely to die from an opioid overdose than a car accident.2 This increase in overdose deaths has largely been driven by illicitly manufactured fentanyl powder, pressed into prescription opioid street pills or mixed with other drug supplies (e.g., heroin, cocaine). To combat the opioid crisis, ... Continue Reading
