Valley Health Magazine

By Jeff DiMarco, R.N.

ACCIDENTS HAPPEN. TRY AS WE MAY TO PROTECT OURSELVES, AND DESPITE ALL THE MEASURES WE TAKE TO MINIMIZE OUR RISKS, THEY STILL OCCUR. To some degree, this is why hospitals, emergency rooms, and specialty doctors and surgeons, thankfully exist. If you happen to be seriously injured or disabled, you will most likely find yourself in a hospital where you will be given the medical attention you need in order to survive. During your hospital stay, an experienced medical team who can provide you with the necessary procedures and treatments required to stabilize your condition will be made available. Eventually, you will also most likely be discharged, go home, and scheduled for follow-up appointments and possibly, some rehabilitative therapy sessions.

By Randi A. Galli, M.D., F.A.C.S.

The recent death of Dr. Donda West, 58, mother of recording artist Kanye West, in November 2007, one day after having breast reduction and abdominoplasty (tummy-tuck) procedures, has produced a greater focus on, and concern for potential risks associated with cosmetic procedures. How could this tragedy have possibly been avoided?

By Dawn Delozier, Ph.D.

Genes are like chapters in our Book of Life. There are 25,000 or so chapters, each of which contains a "recipe," determining how we are made and how we are to function. Our Book of Life is formed of some three billion letters, arranged in short three-letter words: the DNA code. Although there is a universal blueprint to the DNA code, there is also extensive variation in the spelling and sequence of the letters. If this were not the case, we would all look and act alike.