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HEALTH & WELLNESS
Breast Cancer Detection Center going strong for 40 years By Amanda Bohman ABOHMAN @NEWSMINER.COM
Margaret Stone had a lump. It was the latter part of 2001, and the North Pole resident knew she needed a mammogram, so she went to the Breast Cancer Detection Center of Alaska. “Once you find you’ve got a problem, they get you on the right path,” Stone said. “They get you started.” The detection center screened Stone, confirming something was there. They referred her to a doctor for follow-up. It was cancer, and Stone wound up having a breast
In 1985, medical groups and government agencies nationwide joined to create National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an organization that funds research and promotes education about and awareness of the disease. NBCAM named October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. removed. It’s a story that has has been told by many women in Fairbanks. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 1985, medical groups and government agencies nationwide joined forces and cre-
The Breast Cancer Detection Center, shown Oct. 6, has been saving lives for 40 years. ERIC ENGMAN/ NEWS-MINER
ate National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an organization that funds research, and promotes education about and
awareness of the disease. NBCAM named October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. For 40 years, the Breast
Cancer Detection Center has been in the business of saving lives. The center provides breast cancer screenings to anyone,
regardless of their ability to pay. “It’s cool to know that women are surviving because of early detection,” said Odette Butler, executive director of the nonprofit screening facility. The center has provided 136,000 mammograms since it was opened 40 years ago, she said. The center was started in 1976 in a basement by a group of women, includCENTER » 3
Michael Hollingsworth
MS, LPC Licensed Professional Counselor, Prepare/Enrich Certified
Cathy Johnson
RN, MSN, ANP Advanced Nurse Practitioner
Mary Downs-Last
RN, MSN, MSW, ANP Advanced Nurse Practitioner
Elizabeth Kraska
MA, LPC Licensed Professional Counselor
North Wind Behavioral Health offers outpatient treatment for anxiety, depression, PTSD, mood disorders, ADHD and other behavioral health challenges.
Services include: individual, couples and family therapies and medication management.
Hours: Monday-Thursday 9 a.m.– 6 p.m. • Most Insurances Accepted • www.northwindbehavioral.com
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Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
MEDICAL INSIGHT Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Muhammad Ahmed, M.D. Endocrinologist Tanana Valley Clinic 1001 Noble Street, Suite 445 Fairbanks, Alaska 99701 (907) 458-3500
Diabetic & Endocrine Clinic in Fairbanks Breast Cancer Detection Center Executive Director Odetta Butler, left, gives an original Barbara Lavallee painting to former Sen. Frank Murkowski, right, and his daughter, Eileen Murkowski Van Wyhe, second from right, after the Murkowskis handed over a check from the Waterfall Committee for $200,000 on Nov. 18, 2009. ERIC ENGMAN/NEWS-MINER
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ing Nancy Murkowski, the wife of a banker and later a U.S. senator, who saw the need after their
friend had a lump and was forced to travel to AnchorCENTER » 4
We are pleased to welcome back to our hometown, Dr. Jeremy C. Fulk, O.D., Optometrist with the Eye Clinic of Fairbanks. He has returned home and is excited to serve his community, neighbors, family and friends. Dr. Fulk has a practice with strong emphasis on medical eye disease, comprehensive family eye care and pediatric care with a focus on contact lenses.
Call today to schedule your appointment, openings available even on Saturdays! Optometrist
Don’t Delay, Call Today!
456 - 7760
116 Minnie Street • www.eyeclinicoffairbanks.com
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Dr. Jeremy C. Fulk
All organs in the human body communicate via chemical messages. These messages are called hormones, and the medical specialty which studies this communication is called Endocrinology. Endocrinologists believe that all organs in the body are Endocrine organs, some are known and others are unknown. Known Endocrine organs include Pituitary gland, Thyroid & Parathyroid glands, Pancreas, Adrenal glands, Ovaries and Testis. Endocrine disorders are easy to miss. The symptoms of an Endocrine disorder are usually subtle, slow onset, non specific and impacting multiple organs. Diabetes mellitus is an Endocrine disorder. In Diabetes, blood sugars are high due to an inadequate release of hormone insulin. In treatment for Diabetes, we aim for improved overall heath with reasonable blood sugar control, individualized treatment goals, and customized medications to lifestyle. Special attention is paid on reducing cardiovascular risk by control of blood pressure and cholesterol. Uncontrolled Diabetes can cause damage to many internal organs and severely impaired wound healing. We believe that if Diabetes is properly managed, it will not become a disability. For some patients with early Diabetes, remission is also possible. Thyroid hormone tells every single cell in the body how much energy to produce every minute. Disorders of thyroid function can impact every organ in the body. The symptoms can be insidious like fatigue and infertility to as striking as rapid heart rate and tremors. Compromised thyroid function in mothers can result in babies with low IQ. Thyroid cancer can only arise from thyroid nodules; however, over 90% of the thyroid nodules are benign. An Endocrinologist can evaluate thyroid nodules by an Ultrasound and distinguishes between benign and suspicious nodules. Very few patients will die due to thyroid cancer if it is diagnosed early and managed properly. Too much adrenal hormones can cause obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Lack of adrenal hormones can cause low blood pressure, chronic fatigue, and weight loss. In women, Polycystic Ovarian Disease can result in infertility, and premature heart disease. In men, low testosterone can cause premature aging, and loss of muscle mass. Osteoporosis is the most common undiagnosed and untreated endocrine disease. Untreated Osteoporosis can result in fractures, disability, and death. Our thanks to Dr. Muhammad Ahmed, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS Radiologic technologist Dawnia Freel prepares the exam room for a patient in the center’s mobile mammogram truck June 16, 2011.
Continued from A3 age for her screening. The clinic had two employees, one mammography machine and a budget of less than $100,000, Butler said. Now the Breast Cancer Detection Center has nine employees, a $1.4 million annual budget and a mammography machine on wheels, bringing breast cancer screenings to women in rural Alaska. “The large majority of monies that we use to run this clinic are still community based,” Butler said. “We have the best equipment that is out there. It’s the same equipment that you would get at the hospital.” Mobile mammography was introduced in 1995 with “Mollie,” a mobile clinic designed to serve the highway system. In 1997, the center added “Sophie,” a portable mammography machine that served the villages in remote
ERIC ENGMAN/NEWS-MINER
corners of Alaska via airplane. New federal regulations forced the center to retire “Mollie” in 2002, and the machine was donated to Nicaragua for a mobile program there. When “Sophie” was retired in 2003, the unit was donated to the University of Alaska Anchorage. “Doris” is the newest por-
table mammogram machine — named for Doris Loennig, a former BCDC board member — and the machine can travel to villages by plane, barge or in a modified van. The standalone clinic currently is undergoing renovations to make the experience of having a mammogram, which some
women find uncomfortable, as tolerable as possible. “We are focusing on what the experience is like for a patient when they come in,” Butler said. The detection center recommends that women are screened for breast cancer annually after age 45, which is the recommendation of the American Cancer Society. Women should begin earlier if they have a family history of breast cancer. Referrals to the Breast Cancer Detection Center for mammograms are made by area physicians, public health centers, the Alaska Native Health Service and regional health clinics. The center offers mammograms Monday through Friday by appointment.
Facts about breast cancer Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Cancer is a disease in which cells in the body grow out of control. When cancer starts in the breast, it is called breast cancer. Except for skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer in American women. Breast cancer screening means checking a woman’s breasts for cancer before she has any symptoms. A mammogram is an X-ray picture of the breast. Mammograms are the best way to find breast cancer early, FACTS » 5
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FACTS
Continued from 4 when it is easier to treat and before it is big enough to feel or cause symptoms. Most women who are from 50 to 74 years of age should have a screening mammogram every two years. If you are from 40 to 49 years of age, or think you may have a higher risk of breast cancer, ask your doctor when to have a screening mammogram. Some things may increase your risk The main factors that influence your breast cancer risk are being a woman and getting older. Other risk factors: • Changes in breast cancer-related genes (BRCA1 or BRCA2). • Having your first menstrual period before age 12.
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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016 • Never giving birth or being older when your first child is born. • Starting menopause after age 55. • Taking hormones to replace missing estrogen and progesterone in menopause for more than five years. • Taking oral contraceptives (birth control pills). • A personal history of breast cancer, dense breasts or some other breast problems. • A family history of breast cancer (parent, sibling, or child). • Getting radiation therapy to the breast or chest. • Being overweight, especially after menopause.
Warning signs of breast cancer (Other conditions can cause these symptoms. If you have any signs that worry you, call your doctor right away): • New lump in the breast or
underarm (armpit). • Thickening or swelling of part of the breast. • Irritation or dimpling of breast skin. • Redness or flaky skin in the nipple area or the breast. • Pulling in of the nipple or pain in the nipple area. • Nipple discharge other than breast milk, including blood. • Any change in the size or the shape of the breast. • Pain in the breast.
If you have a low income or do not have insurance and are between the ages of 40 and 64, you may qualify for a free or low-cost mammogram through CDC’s National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. To learn more, call 1-800-CDC-INFO. This fact sheet was produced by the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Midnight Sun Family Medicine, P.C . Dr. S. Gayle Hornberger, D.O.
Board Certified, American Academy of Family Physicians Laser physics, safety and aesthetics techniques certified www.msfm.net
“Did you know… that a family physician can treat most common diseases, including hypertension, heart disease and diabetes? They are also trained in different surgical interventions, wellness care for all ages, obstetrics, substance use treatment, weight loss and much more.”
Your Family Physician knows you and knows your history!
Matthew Raymond, DO, MPH US Healthworks Medical Group 1867 Airport Way, Ste 130-B Fairbanks, Alaska 99701 (907) 452-2178
Slips, Trips, and Falls in the Workplace According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, most general industry incidents involve slips, trips, and falls. These events cause 15% of all accidental deaths, and are second only to motor vehicles as a cause of unintentional fatalities. Slips, trips, and falls can happen anywhere in the workplace. Slips can occur when floors, work surfaces, or outside paved areas become slippery due to wet, oily, or icy surfaces. Trips result from uneven floor surfaces or debris. This can include protruding nails and boards, bunched floor mats or carpeting, holes or depressions in the walking surface, and uneven steps. Other common locations for slips, trips, and falls include doorways, ramps, unguarded heights, ladders, stairs, and unstable work surfaces. Slips and trips often lead to sprains, strains, more serious injuries, and even death. According to the Centers for Disease Control and the Bureau of Labor Statistics: • Over one million Americans suffer a slip, trip, or fall injury every year • Over 19,000 workers die from fall injuries each year • 65% of fall-related injuries occur as a result of falls from same-level work surfaces • Service related industries and retail/wholesale trades account for 60% of same-level falls • While same-level falls are more common, elevated falls are often more serious and cause more severe injuries • Slip and fall accidents are the most common cause of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and these account for 46% of fatal falls • On average slip, trip, and fall injuries cost employers $40,000 per incident • Clean up spills immediately • Stay off freshly mopped floors • Electrical and phone cords should be kept out of traffic areas • Remove tripping hazards from stairs or walkways • Insure adequate lighting in work areas and parking lots • Remove ice or spread gravel to improve slip resistance in outdoor areas • Always keep three points of contact with ladders (two hands and one foot or two feet and one hand) • A straight or extension ladder should be placed 1 foot away from the surface it rests against for every 4 feet of ladder height • Do not climb with tools in hand. Use a tool belt According to the OSHA Standards for the Construction Industry (29 CFR 1926.503 (a)), fall prevention training is mandated for employees who are at risk for exposure to fall hazards. The National Safety Council, along with many private vendors, provides fall prevention training for the workplace. For more information on fall prevention, safety training, or for other safety related topics go to the National Safety Council website at www.nsc.org. F11511604
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475 Riverstone Way, #5 • Fairbanks, AK 99709
Submitted by Contributing Community Author
The National Safety Council offers the following fall prevention tips:
Phone: 455-7123
MSFM-Celebrating 15 Years of Excellence in Family Medical Care for Interior Alaska
MEDICAL INSIGHT
Our thanks to Dr. Matt Raymond, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
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Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Crowdsourcing takes aim at deadliest breast cancers AP MEDICAL WRITER
CHICAGO — Forget the pink ribbons. Spitting in a tube for science is what unites a growing group of breast cancer patients taking part in a project to advance treatment for the deadliest form of the disease. For many of the 150,000plus patients nationwide whose tumors have spread to bones, brains, lungs or other distant organs, the hue heralding breast cancer awareness and survival each October is a little too rosy. They know cancer likely will kill them. And they’ve often felt neglected by mainstream advocacy and medical research. But now they have a way
to get involved, with a big new project that aims to gather enormous troves of information about their diseases in hopes of finding new and better ways of treating patients such as them — women whose cancer has spread, or metastasized — and left them nearly out of options. “Patients want to live, and we know that research is the way that we’re going to be able to live,” said Beth Caldwell, a former civil rights attorney in Seattle, who was diagnosed with metastatic disease in 2014. The idea is to gather molecular and genetic clues from as broad a group of metastatic breast cancer patients as possible. With data from thousands of
people, researchers think they will be better able target treatments or come up with new ones by answering important questions about the disease. For example: Is there something unique about tumors that spread to the brain, or that recur many years after diagnosis? What allows a very few women to outlive others by many years despite the same prognosis? Most breast cancer patients are treated at centers that don’t do research on tumors, so participating in studies at academic medical centers far from home is cumbersome at best. Patients sick or dying from their diseases face additional hurdles. This project is different.
Lara MacGregor, a participant in a new crowdsourcing project for metastatic breast cancer research, is shown Sept. 21 before she undergoes treatment at the Norton Cancer Center in Louisville, Kentucky. AP PHOTO/TIMOTHY D. EASLEY
Patients sign up online, mail in saliva kits for genetic testing and allow use of their tumor tissue samples and medical records. Researchers use social media to keep them posted about progress, and periodically invite participants to visit the Cambridge, Massachusetts, lab where their specimens are being RESEARCH » 10
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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Survivor ends 1,000-mile shirtless ‘walk with God’ By Wesley Yiin
THE WASHINGTON POST
Eight months after Paulette Leaphart’s double mastectomy, God spoke to her. She was at the beach during Labor Day weekend when God told her to remove her shirt. For the first time, she let strangers see her scars. Two women started to cry, and Leaphart started to cry, as well. Soon, the beach had erupted into applause. “It didn’t just free me that day,” she told The Post. “Everybody who witnessed it and saw my scars, they were freed, too.” That moment lifted Leaphart out of a
post-surgery depression, and it gave her a new purpose: to help other survivors find beauty in their bodies — to free them. Leaphart doesn’t see it as coincidence that, a year later, after her decision to embark on a topless 1,000-mile trek from her hometown of Biloxi, Mississippi, to Washington, D.C., went viral, Beyoncé invited her to appear in the “Freedom” segment of her visual album, “Lemonade.” But when she was first approached about it, Leaphart said, she was hesitant. “I’m a Christian! I don’t want to get involved in that ‘Drunk
in Love’ stuff!” she said, referring to a single from Beyoncé’s previous album. The filmmakers had to call several times to persuade her. Filming the segment turned out to be a tremendously emotional experience for Leaphart. She was blown away by the power of the costume she was given to wear. She was dazzled by the grace and humility of Jay-Z and Beyoncé, who told Leaphart that she wanted her daughter, Blue Ivy, to be as strong and beautiful as Leaphart when she grew up. And although she didn’t know the name of the song at the time, Leaphart was moved to
tears when she watched Beyoncé sing “Freedom” a cappella as she filmed a scene in the video. You might say that Leaphart continues to make lemonade out of the lemons that she was given. On June 27, Leaphart’s birthday, she successfully finished her 60-day, 1,034-mile journey in Capitol Hill. But this was only the beginning of the work that she has set out to complete. It wasn’t just an awareness stunt, she said. She also hoped to inspire change in the American health-care system and to demand that more attention and resources be devoted to finding a
cure. Things didn’t go quite as planned on the walk. At several points, Leaphart and Madeline, her 8-year-old daughter, who accompanied her on the journey, had to walk far more than their planned 30 miles per day in order to find a place to stay for the night. There were also several encounters with police, who would stop Leaphart because of her toplessness, and she’d have to explain what she was doing. Further, the film crew that intended to follow Leaphart and turn her journey into a documentary titled “Scar Story” announced in early June that they had left the walk
and would not be making a film about Leaphart after all. Leaphart told The Post that she and the crew ended up having different visions for how to conduct the project, with much of the disagreement having to do with how to spend the money that they had raised. But Leaphart described the journey as “peaceful.” “It was healing to me. It was gaining back my strength. It was spending some personal, much, much, much needed time with God,” she said. After all, she said, God had been there for her at the beginning of her two biggest challenges:
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Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
MEDICAL INSIGHT Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Terri Froese TDL Staffing Inc. Alaska Economic Trends April 2016 American Staffing Association
Healthcare Industry for jobs in Alaska According to Alaska Economic Trends April 2016, healthcare accounts for 10% of our states employment by major industry. Healthcare has become the one of the largest employers in the state and hands down the largest generator of new jobs in the last few decades. Positions in high demand include specialized registered nurses and advanced practice specialties, including physician assistants, nurse practitioners, physicians, therapists, pharmacists, and medical staff with experience in specific health information technology systems (coders, billers, and health information and case managers). Allied health care professionals are also needed, such as registered dietitians, medical technologists, and patient care associates. While some of these jobs require many years of training, there are many that do not. Many of the Allied Health positions can use existing skills that cross over. Job seekers can also obtain certifications that are more job specific and help their chances of employment. Training is provided locally to help assist our population in improving their skills. Our local University and Technical College offer many courses and there are local independent offices that offer training. The types of business that are seeking healthcare talent are: Hospitals, acute care facilities, home health care companies, hospice agencies, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, physician practices, outpatient surgery centers, clinics, correctional facilities, schools, pharmaceutical companies, health care software companies, wellness centers, rapid response organizations, government agencies, drug stores, and various health care affiliate organizations of all sizes use staffing services. At a time when our state is in desperate need of an industry that produces jobs, it is good to know we do have one and that is relatively stable, and can provide jobs, and care for our community.
Test can reduce chemo use among breast cancer patients By Laurie McGinley THE WASHINGTON POST
Doctors long have known that many early stage breast cancer patients who get chemotherapy don’t need it to prevent recurrence after surgery. But they haven’t known exactly which patients might safely skip the toxic treatment. A European study, published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine, sheds new light on the issue, concluding that many such patients might be able to avoid chemo. The key factor: Nearly half of the patients considered at high risk for recurrence might be low risk, based on genetic factors, researchers found. The study involved almost 6,700 patients with localized breast cancer that hadn’t spread beyond three lymph nodes. Of those, about half were considered high risk based on clinical measures such as tumor size and patient age. Typically, all would have received chemotherapy as part of their treatment.
But a 70-gene test called the MammaPrint found that about 1,500 of that group were low risk based on genomic factors. They were considered “discordant” — high-risk patients based on clinical factors, but low risk based on gene-test results. The 1,500 women then were put randomly into two groups, with one getting chemo and one not getting it. After five years, the survival rates of the groups were similar — just 1.5 percentage points higher for the women who had received chemo. The survival rate for the non-chemo group was close to 95 percent. Given those findings, the researchers say, about 46 percent of women with breast cancer who are classified as high risk, based on clinical factors might not need chemo. Study co-author Laura van ‘t Veer, a molecular biologist and leader of the breast oncology program at the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of California at San Francisco, did the research that
led to the gene test while working for the Netherlands Cancer Institute. Van ‘t Veer, an officer in the company now marketing the test, said MammaPrint “looks under the hood of the tumor and into the engine of the cancer to show whether the biology is truly aggressive and has capacity to invade surrounding issue.” She said the 1.5 percentage-point difference in survival rates between women who got chemo and the ones who didn’t was not statistically significant, especially considering the side effects of chemo, which can include fatigue, cognitive impairment and a prolonged disruption in schedule. But Paul Kelly Marcom, a breast cancer oncologist at Duke Cancer Institute, said that whether that survival-rate difference is significant is a personal decision made by a woman and her doctor. He also noted that other genomic tests on the market were available and that physicians are in the CHEMO » 11
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Continued from 7 her private fight against breast cancer and her public walk to end breast cancer. In an interview on NewsOne, Leaphart, who lives in New Orleans, said God told her she had breast cancer. Even though she knew that breast cancer ran in her family, and several relatives had died because of it, she never previously had thought about the likelihood that she would also have it. And so, in early 2014, Leaphart, a 47-year-old social worker and single mother who’d never before had a mammogram, immediately sought out a surgeon, who confirmed her suspicions. From that point onward, Leaphart went on a bit of a downward spiral. She had thought that, even with a double mastectomy, she’d be able to have her breasts reconstructed. But doctors advised against reconstruction, as she has other health challenges that may have posed a problem. The mastectomy “left me feeling deformed
and less than a woman,” she said on NewsOne. Then, her medications ended up costing between $2,500 and $5,000 per month. As a middle-class woman, Leaphart told The Post, she couldn’t afford to pay for her medications, and she didn’t qualify for programs that would have covered the costs. Most months, she had to decide between paying her rent and getting her medications. “I had to choose between life or a roof,” she said. She chose life, and she was evicted. Leaphart and her four daughters who still lived with her (she has eight children in total) were homeless. At her lowest point, God spoke to her again. This time, he told her to walk. Most media outlets have characterized Leaphart’s walk as an effort to raise awareness — and that’s certainly a large part of it. Before her surgery, she said on NewsOne, she was unable to find very many photos online of women who had scars where their nipples once were. The whole purpose of walking topless was to show people what a woman with
“amputated” breasts looked like. Still, Leaphart has a more concrete goal that she intends to keep pursuing: ending breast cancer altogether. Finding a cure. She was surprised to learn, she told The Post, that, the day after she arrived at Capitol Hill, Vice President Joe Biden was hosting a summit, during which he would announce new initiatives that aim to find a cure for cancer. To her delight, she was able to attend some functions of the summit. “You can’t tell me there’s no cure for the disease,” she said. “God said there’s a cure.” In addition to attending the summit, Leaphart has scheduled meetings with seven members of Congress, with whom she hopes to discuss the plan for finding a cure and ways to make health care more accessible to people who can’t afford crucial treatments. Then, on July 9, Leaphart plans to hit the streets again, as she leads a march for a cure. The color featured during the march will be yellow, not pink. Pink, Leaphart said,
Good Oral Health is a Key Contributor to Great Overall Health. D.D.S., P.C.
Jeff W. Kilgore
Excellence in Dentistry
www.smilefairbanks.com
1919 Lathrop St., Ste: 211, Fairbanks, Alaska 99701 • Phone: (907) 452-1866 • Fax: (907) 456-1267
Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Clay M. Van Leeuwen, D.M.D, M.D. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon Alaska Oral and Facial Surgery 1275 Sadler Way, Suite 202 Fairbanks, Alaska (907) 452-4101
Dental Implants – Am I a Candidate? What is a dental implant? In the last 30 years, dental implants have revolutionized modern dental therapy. From the replacement of a single tooth to the replacement an entire arch, there are very few individuals who could not benefit from dental implants. Dental implants are made from titanium which is a biologically inert material allowing the body to accept the implant as a permanent fixture. Once the implant is in place, it serves as an artificial root to which your dentist can secure a variety of tooth replacement options. A dental implant can be used to replace a single tooth, or in areas where several teeth are missing, implants can be used to secure a bridge. Another benefit of dental implants is that implants can be used to secure a loose or poorly fitting denture. This can greatly increase the function of your denture. For patients who are edentulous (missing all their teeth) implants can be used to support a full arch bridge that is permanently fixed in the mouth. This new treatment is life changing for many patients as it restores function and bite force to 90% of normal compared to 10-15% that is achieved with a traditional lower denture. What can I expect from the procedure? The placement of a dental implant is a minor surgical procedure. Generally, the post-operative recovery is similar to that of a tooth extraction. The implant is typically placed by a surgeon and allowed to heal for a short period of time prior to having the crown or tooth portion secured to the implant. Although the procedure may be done under local anesthesia many people prefer to be asleep or sedated for the procedure. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons are extensively trained in sedation and general anesthesia and are therefore able to provide this service to their patients in the comfort of their office avoiding the trip to a surgery center or the increased costs of adding additional providers.
With the advances in patient imaging, implant configurations and regenerative medicine, there are very few individuals who are not candidates for dental implants. Prior to the procedure, you should have a detailed consultation with your surgeon to review your medical history and specific indications. When placed by an experienced provider, dental implants are very safe and enjoy success rates in the range of 95%.
James R. Miears D.M.D
MEDICAL INSIGHT
Am I a candidate for dental implants?
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Our thanks to Dr. Clay Van Leeuwen, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
RESEARCH
Continued from 6 analyzed. The Metastatic Breast Cancer Project is run by scientists at Harvard and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and was launched last October with funding from the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, an independent nonprofit group. Using word of mouth and social media, it has enrolled more than 2,600 patients — a pace nearly unprecedented in medical research. “I enrolled from my recliner in my living room. I did my spit tube in bed,” Caldwell said. The mother of two turns 40 on Thursday, and cancer has reached her brain, lungs, bones and liver. She tries to stay positive, but October “is a month where I just want to hide under the covers and check out,” Caldwell said. “I
just don’t want to be confronted with all this pink garbage.” Lara MacGregor, who runs a Louisville, Kentucky-based nonprofit group for cancer patients, said she feels the same way. “Everything about breast cancer is about survivors and beating cancer,” MacGregor said. “And we’re sitting in the wings saying, “I’m never going to celebrate the end of treatment.’” MacGregor was pregnant when diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in 2007. She had both breasts removed plus chemotherapy, and went on with her life, thinking she was cured until two years ago, when tests for nagging back pain revealed cancer had returned and spread to her bones. Now 39, MacGregor read about the project online, decided immediately to take part, and emailed dozens of friends and connections who
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS By gathering large numbers of tissue samples and information about how the diseases progresses in different people, the project may be able to uncover useful trends. It has produced a few enticing clues. also signed on. Before she mailed her saliva kit, “my 8-year-old drew a picture on the box and said, ‘thanks for helping my mom,’” MacGregor said. “I hope that real data about real people is going lead to better treatment options,” she said. “My life depends on it.” More than 200,000 people, mostly women, are diagnosed with breast cancer nationwide each year. Most are diagnosed when cancer is at an early, potentially curable, stage. For about 6 percent, or 15,000 patients, the disease has spread at diagnosis. And for about 30 percent
of patients diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer, the disease will eventually recur in distant parts of the body. The average survival for patients with metastatic disease is about three years. According to a 2014 analysis from an alliance of breast cancer advocacy groups, less than 10 percent of government and nonprofit groups’ investment in breast cancer research in recent years went to studying metastatic disease. “Metastatic breast cancer in general is an understudied area,” says Marc Hurlbert of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. “We don’t know, for example, how the tumor
has changed. Is it the same makeup as it was before? Do cells have a different molecular profile than cancer that started first in the breast?” By gathering large numbers of tissue samples and information about how the diseases progresses in different people, the project may be able to uncover useful trends. It has produced a few enticing clues, including small groups of patients who’ve responded unusually well to standard chemotherapy or to new immunotherapy drugs — some have survived for 10 years or more. The researchers hope DNA analyses will help explain why and lead to treatments that will improve the odds for all patients with the disease. Data will be posted on a special online site and with the National Cancer Institute’s genomic data program
Alfred D. DeRamus, M.D. P.C. Ophthalmologist/Vitreoretinal Specialist
RESEARCH » 11
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HEALTH & WELLNESS
CHEMO
Continued from 8 early stages of learning how to use them. “It’s not a quick or easy process,” he said, adding that he thinks physicians need more data before making big changes in clinical practice. Another test, called Oncotype DX, came on the U.S. market earlier
RESEARCH
Continued from 10 — making it available to other scientists and boosting the odds of finding better ways to treat patients with metastatic disease. And proof that crowd-
and is more widely used. But it analyzes a smaller set of genes than MammaPrint and is used for only certain types of breast cancer. Both tests cost about $4,000. In many cases, Marcom said, insurance covers the tests. An accompanying editorial said the trial showed “how a well-coordinated and highly collaborative multinational
team of investigators can efficiently conduct a potentially practice-changing study.” The European study was called MINDACT for Microarray for Node-Negative Disease May Avoid Chemotherapy Trial. Some of the information was released in April at the American Association for Cancer Research annual conference.
sourcing can draw thousands of patients to medical research is an important discovery itself, given how hard that can be, said Dr. Nikhil Wagle, a project leader and an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard and Dana-Farber.
“This project makes them feel empowered, makes them feel like they are making a difference — if not to help themselves, then maybe the next generation of patients,” Wagle said. Follow AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner at http://www. twitter.com/LindseyTanner.
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MEDICAL INSIGHT Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Leon J Fazzio III, BBA, DC Chiropractic Physician Fairbanks Family Wellness 3550 Airport Way, Suite #4 Fairbanks, Alaska 99709 907-479-2331
Do You Suffer From Headaches? Ninety percent of Americans suffer from headaches. A study at Duke University found that adjustment of the spine resulted in substantial improvement of headaches. In fact, headache is one of the most common conditions seen in a chiropractic office. Some headaches start in the neck and some are tension headaches. In 2014 a report published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT) found that Chiropractic care improved outcomes for the treatment of neck pain. Another study in JMPT 2011 found that chiropractic adjustments improved headaches that start in the neck (as well as migraine headaches.) Many Americans are engaged in sedentary work such as sitting in front of a computer. Poor posture can cause irritation to the muscles and joints of the neck, causing your head to ache. Poor posture is helped by chiropractic care. Each year approximately 20 million Americans get migraine headaches and the majority of these are women. Instead of muscle irritation, migraine headaches are caused by dilation and constriction of the blood vessels in the brain. Some things that can trigger a migraine headache are stress, noises, light, lack of sleep, and certain foods. Chiropractic adjustments improve spinal function alleviating the stress on your system. F11511584
Our thanks to Dr. Leon J Fazzio, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Researchers creating gel to tackle ear infections By Lauran Neergaard AP MEDICAL WRITER
WASHINGTON — Parents
know the frustration of trying to get that gunky pink antibiotic into a tot screaming from an ear infection. A one-time squirt of special ear drops one day might replace that ordeal. It’s only been tried in animals — chinchillas, to be exact. But researchers report Wednesday that an antibiotic gel coated the animals’ eardrums and slowly seeped inside to do its job for a week, clearing up an infection that typically requires a 10-day course of oral antibiotics.
“
If we can deliver the right antibiotic directly to the middle ear using a one-time dose, it is likely that we will have more effective therapy, with fewer side effects. Further studies need to be done before we know if that is a possibility but the reported study is very encouraging.” Dr. Coleen Cunningham, Duke University pediatric infectious disease specialist
“It’s always a full-contact martial art” to get youngsters to swallow today’s liquid antibiotic several times a day, said senior researcher Dr. Daniel Kohane of Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. A pediatrician and anesthesiologist, he studies novel ways to deliver drugs — and
says when he describes the experimental ear gel, “people with kids get this right away.” Easier dosing is just one goal. And importantly, if the approach pans out when tested in children, it also could help prevent development of antibiotic-resistant infections. Too often, parents stop
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treatment once their youngster starts feeling better, allowing lingering bacteria to bounce back stronger. “If we can deliver the right antibiotic directly to the middle ear using a one-time dose, it is likely that we will have more effective therapy, with fewer side effects,” said Duke University
pediatric infectious disease specialist Dr. Coleen Cunningham, who wasn’t involved with the new research. “Further studies need to be done before we know if that is a possibility but the reported study is very encouraging.” Middle ear infections — what doctors call otitis media — prompt at least 12 million visits to the doctor each year, and they’re the most common reason for prescribing antibiotics to children. Doctors have long sought a topical solution. Yet the eardrum has a tough outer layer that keeps drugs from penetrating. Until now,
antibiotic ear drops have proved useful for middle ear infections only in children who have ear tubes that can route the drug past that barrier, Kohane said. Now his team has packaged an antibiotic together with chemicals used in skin-penetrating drugs to temporarily open channels in the eardrum’s outer surface so the germ-killing ingredient could get inside. A doctor would squirt the drug deep into the ear canal, where it would harden into a gel, sort of like extra earwax, to stay in place EARS » 13
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Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
MEDICAL INSIGHT Submitted by Contributing Community Author
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EARS
Continued from 12 as it slowly released the antibiotic. The experimental drug doesn’t contain the antibiotic used in that common pink liquid but a newer one called ciprofloxacin. Researchers gave the antibiotic gel to 10 chinchillas — they have a humanlike ear structure and hearing range — infected with a common bacteria. All 10 animals had their ear infections cured within a week, compared to five of
eight chinchillas given regular ciprofloxacin ear drops as a control, they reported in the journal Science Translational Medicine. Researchers couldn’t detect the antibiotic in the animals’ blood, suggesting it wouldn’t cause typical antibiotic side effects such as diarrhea. Moreover, the gel melted away within three weeks, and the chinchillas’ eardrums appeared normal afterward. Kohane hopes to begin initial human studies in about a year. Duke’s Cunningham
cautioned that researchers will need to study whether an antibiotic gel causes short-term hearing issues of its own. Another question is whether the gel would make a thicker human eardrum as permeable as an animal’s, and whether there’s any resulting toxicity, added otolaryngologist Dr. Diego Preciado of Children’s National Health System, where researchers are working on a different approach for topical delivery of an ear-infection drug. But “overall, incredibly promising work,” Preciado concluded.
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Our thanks to Gail A. McCann, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Surge in ER visits for injuries from soccer AP MEDICAL WRITER
CHICAGO — Soccer injuries are sending soaring numbers of U.S. children to emergency rooms, a trend driven in part by young players with concussions seeking urgent medical care, a study has found. The findings, based on 25 years of data, partly reflect soccer’s growing popularity. But the researchers and sports medicine experts believe the trend also is a result of greater awareness about concussions and their potential risks. Coaches and parents are likely seeking emergency treatment for symptoms
that in previous years might have been downplayed or overlooked. Nearly 3 million players aged 7 through 17 received ER treatment for soccer-related injuries in the 2000-2014 study. The overall rate of injuries, which takes into account soccer’s rising popularity, more than doubled to 220 per 10,000 players in 2013, from 106 per 10,000 players in 1990. Researchers did not have enough data to calculate 2014 rates. More than 200,000 concussions or head injuries were treated in emergency rooms, or 7 percent of injuries. The rate jumped to almost
Students compete in a high school soccer game during September 2014 in Burgaw, N.C. A study released Sept. 11 found soccer injuries are sending increasing numbers of U.S. youths to emergency rooms, a trend driven partly by young players with concussions seeking urgent medical care. The findings, based on 25 years of data, reflect soccer’s popularity. AP PHOTO/WILMINGTON STAR-NEWS, MIKE SPENCER
30 per 10,000 people in 2013 from just less than 2 per 10,000 play-
ers in 1990. That trend underscores a need for better safety
education and injury prevention in youth soccer, said Dr. Huiyun Xiang,
the lead author and a researcher at the Center
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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
15
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Doctor finds a startling source of disease in kids: Stress By Michael Alison Chandler THE WASHINGTON POST
Soon after Nadine Burke Harris opened a pediatrics clinic in a low-income neighborhood in San Francisco, she began grappling with the high rates of asthma and other illnesses that she was diagnosing in her patients. She wanted to understand why so many of the kids she saw were so sick. “They would have chronic abdominal pain, headaches, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, opposition defiant disorder,” she said. “It could be that all these different kids have all these diag-
noses, or it could be that there is one thing at the root of this.” She found an answer in a decade-old study that showed a strong link between chronic disease and traumatic experiences during childhood - things such as physical abuse or neglect, or living with a family member addicted to drugs or alcohol. She knew the children she saw lived with high “doses” of adversity, she said, and it made sense: Trauma was affecting their developing brains and also their developing bodies. So she began to regard her practice in a whole new way. She started evaluating children not just for their medical his-
Nadine Burke Harris, a pediatrician in San Francisco, is advocating for all children to be screened for traumatic experiences, which, research shows, have a long-term impact on health. She is a Heinz Award winner. PHOTO BY JASON HENRY.
tories, but also their social histories. And instead of treating only symptoms, she sought to help with
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those who screened positive. At the Center for Youth Wellness, which opened in 2011, children and their parents can see mental health workers, learn about mindfulness and other relaxation techniques, and meet with case managers who STRESS » 20
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Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
MEDICAL INSIGHT
MDs strengthen advice against codeine for kids
Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Peter M. Burke Practice Manager
By Lindsey Tanner
Advanced Physical Therapy 1275 Sadler Way, Suite 201 Fairbanks, Alaska 99701 (907) 743-8208
AP MEDICAL WRITER
A Path to Healing Back Pain, Part II Last spring, I wrote the article “A Path to Healing Back Pain.” It stated that back pain can be cured based on successful management, not replacement or restoration of the damaged (or aging) structure, or that you’d never experience back pain again. Planning clear intention around healing, placing trusted people and caregivers on your health care team, and being a part of the process - not acting as a bystander to the condition -are well within your power to implement. Developing better strategies may minimize medical intervention in the long run and bring life-extending skills. It might surprise you that research supports a technique to restore the mechanism that controls motion and loading in the spine after it has been lost due to disc injury, disease, or a neurological condition. By learning how to access it and effectively activate it, we can control excess motion and loading on the injured spine, allowing the damaged structure to heal. This mechanism is activation and regulation of the contraction of the transversus abdominus (TrA), a deep abdominal muscle that has a sole function of stabilizing the spine. Although the effort of activation is easier said than done; the TrA has been proven to contract at the mere thought of moving. By nature, the larger the motion or load the greater the contraction of this muscle is required. Why? TrA is the engagement point whereby we can create a ‘neuro-muscular’ tension state around the spinal segments, resulting in a “lifting sensation.” In a healthy spine, the tension state is automatically regulated to control the amount of motion and load going into, or coming from, our bodies. What we see clinically with acute back pain, is that large muscles tend to over-compensate in an attempt to control movement and load (unsuccessfully) resulting in spasms. These spasms add to the pain and increase compression on the spine; which can lead to compensatory patterns of movement such as holding our breath when moving. Essential strategies for managing low back pain, therefore, will be most effective when they include decreasing pain and spasm from overcompensating ‘large’ muscles and – most importantly – reactivation of the subtle mechanism of TrA activation. This muscle, only needing to fire at 11% of its maximum capacity to be effective, is often overlooked when strengthening the ‘core’. Therefore, finding a skilled physical therapist, or other qualified trainer, can get you on the road to healing faster than you thought. F40511873
Our thanks to Peter M. Burke, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
CHICAGO — The American Academy of Pediatrics has strengthened its warnings about prescribing codeine for children because of reports of deaths and risks for dangerous side effects including breathing problems. The academy’s advice, published in a report Monday in its medical journal, Pediatrics , mir-
SOCCER
Continued from 14 dren’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. “Concussions can have significant consequences in terms of cognitive function and brain development,” Xiang said. His study is an analysis of data from a national injury surveillance system and was published Monday in Pediatrics. According to U.S. Youth Soccer, there were more than 3 million registered soccer players younger than 19 in 2014, almost twice as many as in 1990. The rate of injuries from playing soccer has ranked second behind football in other studies on youth sports, including an analysis of 20152016 data from Reporting Information Online, an internet-based injury surveillance system for high school sports. For boys, football-re-
rors warnings from the Food and Drug Administration about using codeine for kids’ coughs or pain. Studies suggest it is still commonly prescribed by doctors and dentists despite the risks and lack of evidence that it works to relieve coughs. Doctors and parents should choose another remedy when possible, including acetaminophen and ibuprofen for pain
and simple remedies such as ice or popsicles after tonsillectomies, said Dr. Charles Cote, a Boston anesthesiologist and co-author of the report. “Maybe a little pain is better than the alternative,” he said. Codeine is an opiate drug once commonly used in over-the-counter cough syrups and as a painkiller, particularly
lated concussions result in more ER visits than other sports, according to previous research. For girls, it’s soccer, according to an analysis of 2001-2012 data by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The current study lacks information on gender-specific soccer injury rates. Sprains and fractures were the most common injuries; most players were not hospitalized. Falling and getting hit by another player or the ball were among leading causes of injury but there’s no data in the study on whether many injuries were from heading the ball. Concern about kids’ injuries from heading led to the U.S. Soccer Federation’s recent restrictions including a ban for kids aged 10 and younger and limits on heading for those aged 11-13. Many concussions in soccer occur when heads
collide as two players jump up to head the ball, said Dr. Cynthia LaBella, a sport medicine specialist at Chicago’s Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital. She said learning proper technique including tensing neck muscles can help kids avoid injury while heading the ball. Labella noted that soccer has become so popular that it attracts kids with a wide range of athletic ability, and that many injuries she treats are in kids who lack adequate strength and conditioning for their soccer level. “Everyone’s so eager to join the soccer team. They’re signing up because they want to be with their buddies,” she said. “The range of athleticism especially at the youth and preteen level is pretty broad.”
CODEINE » 17
Follow AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner at http://www. twitter.com/LindseyTanner . Her work can be found at
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Artificial pancreas OK’d by FDA is 1st such device in US By Anna Edney and Michelle Fay Cortez BLOOMBERG
Medtronic won approval for the U.S.’s first artificial pancreas that can automatically monitor patients’ blood sugar and supply insulin as needed. The Food and Drug Administration cleared the device, called MiniMed 670G, for patients with Type 1 diabetes who are at least 14 years old. The device measures blood sugar, or glucose, levels every five minutes and withholds or supplies insulin based on the results, the agency said in a statement Wednesday. The artificial pancreas allows diabetics to turn over part of their daily routine of glucose tests
CODEINE
Continued from 16 after surgery. But the report notes that a rare genetic variation makes some people metabolize it too quickly, potentially resulting in excessive sleepiness and difficulty breathing. A different genetic variation makes the drug ineffective for pain relief in as many as a third of patients. It is available by prescription, including in cough syrup sold in pharmacies in 28 states, Cote said. Codeine often has been prescribed for pain relief after tonsillectomies but the FDA
17
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
and insulin injections to an automatic system that can operate without human input. The 670G, which is about the size of a smartphone, wirelessly connects an insulin pump and a glucose monitor. Blood sugar levels are monitored with a sensor that reads just under the skin, the FDA said. A computer algorithm then ensures patients have the right amount of insulin, a hormone that’s needed to turn blood sugar into energy. “This first-of-its-kind technology can provide people with type 1 diabetes greater freedom to live their lives without having to consistently and manually monitor baseline glucose levels and administer insulin,” Jeffrey Shuren,
has advised against this use. These operations are sometimes recommended to treat enlarged tonsils that cause sleep apnea — a common condition involving breathing pauses while sleeping. The condition has been linked with obesity and Cote said children with sleep apnea are particularly vulnerable to codeine-related breathing difficulties. The academy report cites an FDA review that found 21 codeine-related deaths in children younger than 12 and 64 cases of severe breathing problems over five decades. Better education of
director of FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in the statement. The device is known as an artificial pancreas because it takes on the responsibilities of the human organ, which is tasked by the body with producing the hormone insulin in precise quantities. Although Medtronic previously released a system that could shut off if glucose levels fell too low, it didn’t automatically deliver the hormone when blood sugar climbed. The system works without human involvement with the exception of mealtime, when patients need to manually set the device to give them a dose of insulin before eating.
parents and doctors is needed, along with additional research on risks and benefits of codeine and non-opioid painkillers for children, the report says. A previous academy report highlighted codeine’s risks and lack of benefit in treating coughs. The new report is more comprehensive, adding concerns about using codeine for pain along with information on deaths. AAP: http://www.aap.org FDA: http://www.fda.gov Follow AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner at http://www. twitter.com/LindseyTanner . Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/ lindsey-tanner
HEALTHY INSIGHT Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Ruth Merriman
PMA-CPT
Pilates Method Alliance Certified Pilates Teacher North Star Ballet 1800 College Road Fairbanks, Alaska (907) 699-1852
What is Pilates? Pilates (pronounced pih-lah-teez) is a low-impact form of exercise that uses springdriven machines as well as a series of floor or mat exercises to increase strength, flexibility, stamina, and concentration. Pilates is a dynamic and total body exercise program that focuses on six basic principles: concentration, control, centering, fluidity, precision, and breathing. While performing any of the more than 500 exercises, these principles are applied whether you are on the mat or on one of the five specialized pieces of equipment used in Pilates. For a variety of reasons, Pilates has become an exercise program recommended by many healthcare professionals for those with certain spine conditions, as well as for the prevention and wellness benefits it offers. People grow more crooked and imbalanced in the course of daily living. We might be right or left handed; we swing a golf club or tennis racket on one side; we carry our shoulder bags and our children on one shoulder or hip. Our routines and habits cause us to consistently overuse or underuse specific muscles. Pilates can be a wonderful antidote to this, providing a workout that will strengthen, straighten, and stretch your body. The other benefits of Pilates include mind-body focus, coordination, and endurance. Pilates is demanding because it takes a lot of focus and thought to perform each exercise correctly, safely, and effectively. There are many elements that have to come together at once to perform and exercise correctly: breathing, head/neck placement, spinal position, stabilization of the spine, shoulder blade placement, and coordination of arms and legs. Accomplishing all these tasks require a fair amount of mind-body focus and coordination. Many people initially find getting all of their parts moving in an orderly and purposeful manner is the most challenging part of Pilates. But it quickly becomes the most rewarding part, as you gain confidence and control of your body in ways you never thought possible. If at all possible, invest in some one-on-one sessions at a fully equipped studio. There you can experience the equipment and the benefit of a trained instructor’s eye. The matwork is the most accessible portion of the method and can be done virtually anywhere. All exercise is good for you. Run, bike, swim, hike, dance and do Pilates. Pilates will enhance and complement all of your regular activities to help you look better, perform better, and above all, feel better. The following sites were consulted in writing this essay: www.spineuniverse.com/ wellness/exercise/pilates-exercise-healthy-spine; https://elizabethhomstudio.com/what-ispilates/; www.raclub.us/articles/2011/jan/20/2011(0)/march_2011__web_format.pdf; www.spinemd.com/wellness/healthy-living/pilates; infinityhealth.org/pilates-talk/; http:// www.stlouispilatesfusion.com/blog/category/benefits of just breathe pilates exercises.
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Our thanks to Ruth Merriman, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
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Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
HEALTH & WELLNESS
To treat or monitor an early prostate cancer diagnosis? AP MEDICAL WRITER
LONDON — Men with early prostate cancer who choose to closely monitor their disease are just as likely to survive at least 10 years as those who have surgery or radiation, finds a major study that directly tested and compared these options. Survival from prostate cancer was so high — 99 percent, regardless of which approach men had — that the results call into question not only what treatment is best but also whether any treatment at all is needed for early-stage cases. And that in turn
adds to concern about screening with PSA blood tests, because screening is worthwhile only if finding cancer earlier saves lives. “There’s been no hard evidence that treating early disease makes a difference,” said Dr. Freddie Hamdy of the University of Oxford, the study’s leader. “Because we cannot determine very well which is aggressive cancer and which is not, men and clinicians can both be anxious about whether the disease will progress,” he said. “And that pushes them toward treatment.” Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer for
Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, welcomed the results but said it would be a struggle to convince men diagnosed with early prostate cancer in the U.S. to skip surgery or radiation. the American Cancer Society, welcomed the results but said it would be a struggle to convince men diagnosed with early prostate cancer in the U.S. to skip surgery or radiation. He said he often suggests monitoring but “it’s a challenging process to explain to people that certain cancers just don’t need to be treat-
Employing AlAskA
or active monitoring. That involves blood tests every three to six months, counseling, and consideration of treatment only if signs suggested worsening disease. A decade later, researchers found no difference among the groups in rates of death from prostate cancer or other causes. More men being monitored saw their cancers worsen — 112 versus 46 given surgery and 46 given radiation. But radiation and surgery brought more side effects, especially urinary, bowel or sexual problems. PROSTATE » 25
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ed.” “Our aggressive approach to screening and treating has resulted in more than 1 million American men getting needless treatment,” said Brawley, who had no role in the study. The research was published online Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine . It
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HEALTH & WELLNESS
STRESS
Continued from 15 connect them with social services. Harris’ novel approach to health care, and her personal story, are gaining national attention. Her work has been profiled in a best-selling book by Paul Tough, and a documentary film. Her health center has attracted major funders, including Google.org. Last month, she spoke at the White House for a conference about trauma. And this week, she was honored in Pittsburgh with the Heinz Award for the Human Condition, one of six prizes given annually by the Heinz Foundation to “exceptional Americans, for their
creativity and determination in finding solutions to critical issues.” The award comes with a $250,000 prize. “I think we have reached a tipping point,” Harris said in an interview. The American Academy of Pediatrics in 2014 announced the launch of a Center on Healthy, Resilient Children to help pediatricians identify children with toxic stress and help intervene. Local chapters are training pediatricians. A screening tool for childhood trauma on the center’s web site has been downloaded 1,100 times. Harris’s goal is for every pediatrician to screen children for truama. It is a tall ask for already-busy doctors, who see patients in 15
“
Does it seem like a difficult problem to solve? Yes. Does it seem harder than cancer? I don’t know. Medicine and public health are all about solving hard problems.” Nadine Burke Harris, pediatrition
minute increments, to try to identify and treat a litany of pervasive and entrenched social problems. But Harris compares the research about the negative affects of childhood adversity to the discovery of germ theory or the science that showed second-hand smoke is harmful. The medical community evolved and responded. “Does it seem like a difficult problem to solve? Yes. Does it seem
how chronic stress in childhood impacted health in life. It included 17,000 Kaiser patients who answered a questionnaire about their personal histories with “adverse childhood experiences,” otherwise known as ACES. Questions included whether or not their parents were divorced, whether they experienced physical abuse, sexual abuse, or emotional neglect, and whether they grew up with family members who were mentally ill, or addicted to drugs, or alcohol. The researchers, Vincent Felitti from Kaiser and Robert Anda of the CDC, found that adverse childhood experiences were incredibly STRESS » 21
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harder than cancer? I don’t know,” she said. “Medicine and public health are all about solving hard problems.” Harris, 40, grew up in Palo Alto, California, the only girl in a family of five children. Her father is a biochemist and her mother is a nurse, and she set her sights early on becoming a doctor, she said. Harris was brought up with a strong cultural value of “we take care of each other,” she
said, that her parents brought from their native Jamaica. “It’s a small island, and everyone has a cousin who is maybe not doing so hot. So it’s a real sense of shared destiny,” she said. So while she pursued her medical degree at UC Davis, she was the student director of a clinic for the homeless in Sacramento. And when she finished her residency at Stanford University, she helped set up a practice in one of San Francisco’s most impoverished neighborhoods, Bayview-Hunters Point. The research that transformed her career was a large-scale investigation undertaken by Kaiser Permanente and the Centers on Disease Control to see
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HEALTH & WELLNESS
STRESS
Continued from 20 common. Two-thirds of respondents reported at least one. One in six reported at least four. And they documented an overwhelming correlation with poor health outcomes. Higher numbers of adverse experiences consistently yielded more health problems. Compared to people with no childhood trauma, people with 4 or more were twice as likely to be diagnosed with cancer or heart disease; 7 times as likely to be alcoholics; 6 times as likely to have depression; and 12 times as likely to have attempted suicide. People exposed to 6 or more traumatic events died 20 years sooner than those who had none. Traumatic experiences led people to engage in more risky behaviors, such as intravenous drug use and early sexual activity. But even people without a history of high-risk behaviors had poor health outcomes. Initial response to the findings was slow, partly because people did not know how to interpret the results, said Jane Stevens, publisher of ACEs Too High, a news site about the impacts of childhood adversity. But in the years since the study was published, a generation of scientists have begun to understand and explain the way stress shapes our bodies. Biomedical scientists and brain researchers have shown how “fight or flight” stress hormones, like adrenaline and cortisol, which flood the
body when someone encounters danger, can cause lasting damage in the brain and body when a child is under prolonged or repeated and unmitigated stress, what is now commonly known as toxic stress. The confluence of research is beginning to have an impact in many fields, Stevens said. Police departments are offering stress reduction classes. Educators are revising school discipline policies, and offering more mental health support in schools for children dealing with severe stress. As she pored through the research, Harris realized that exposure to childhood trauma increases the risk of contracting seven of the 10 leading causes of death in the United States. “I went to medical school, I never heard about this,” Harris said. “When I did, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops.” Jessica Weisz, a pediatrician at CCI Health and Wellness Services in Takoma Park, Md., said she heard Harris speak at a conference and was motivated by what she learned. More than 30 percent of the children she sees suffer from asthma to some degree, she said, and research shows a link to childhood adversity. So this year, her office developed a screening tool for patients with asthma. Because she mainly serves Latino clients, the tool includes some questions about immigration-related stressors, including whether a family member has been deported. Children
who screen positive are referred to a team of licensed social workers on staff. Like Weisz, other pediatricians are tailoring screening tools to reflect the populations they serve. Some pediatricians in Washington are using questions developed in Philadelphia to gather information about urban stressors, such as witnessing violence or feeling unsafe in your neighborhood So far, research shows six major strategies for mitigating stress: sleep, nutrition, exercise, mindfulness, mental health care, and healthy relationships. There is no breakthrough cure, Harris said. Better treatments for stress are being developed. Research is particularly promising, Harris said, because the treatments can be used universally. Her practice focuses on low-income families, who experience particularly high rates of chronic stress. But childhood adversity is prevalent nationwide. Respondents for the original ACES study were middle or upperclass, and nearly three quarters had college degrees; 69 percent were white. “I think in upper income communities, it’s less talked about,” she said. She pays close attention now to the affects of stress - even in smaller doses - on herself and her own family. She and her husband are raising four boys. “I have to work to manage my own stress. I love my job, but it’s stressful,” she said. “It’s
New Study Affirms Local Newspaper Media is the Community Connection exerpts from the article by Mary Ellen Holden • August 17, 2016 •News Media Insights Archives
No doubt that if you’re reading this article you are keenly aware of John Oliver’s highly socialized segment on the future of quality journalism and local newspapers on the August 7 edition of his “Last Week Tonight” show on HBO. Before we descend into the world of endless storytelling involving puppies and “raccoon-cats,” there is timely new information to consider. Below is a sneak peek of the AMG/Parade 2016 Local Knowledge Study being released shortly which reveals the power that local newspaper media still carries across communities nationwide.
A whopping 77% of consumers surveyed said they rely on local newspapers for community news and information, across platforms (print, websites, social media and apps) and demos. When you look at generational usage it is compelling to see that Millennials, Gen Xers and Boomers are each almost two times as likely to frequent local newspaper websites or social media as compared to these same brand outlets for TV, radio or magazines. In other words, newspaper brands appear to withstand fragmented distribution (e.g., through Facebook, AppleTV, Snapchat Discover) as the content is recognized as one unified trusted information source. Even Millennials frequent newspaper websites and social media because they want news from a source they trust.
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HEALTH & WELLNESS
MEDICAL INSIGHT
Walking is medicine: It helped high-risk seniors stay mobile
Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Judith Boice, ND, LAc, FABNO
By Lauran Neergaard
222 Front Street Fairbanks, AK 99701 (907) 451-7100
AP MEDICAL WRITER
WASHINGTON — It’s not too late to get moving: Simple physical activity — mostly walking — helped highrisk seniors stay mobile after disability-inducing ailments even if, at 70 and beyond, they’d long been couch potatoes. One health policy specialist said the study released Monday suggests prescribing exercise may be just as important as prescribing medications. “Once you lose that mobility piece of your life, then you really lose independence,” said Patricia
What Can You Do to Prevent Breast Cancer?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cancer has almost overtaken heart disease as the number one killer in the United States. One woman in eight will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime, yet of those diagnosed, only one in ten will have a family history of breast cancer. Breast cancer rates are increasing for men as well. Why are breast cancer rates skyrocketing? We live in an increasingly toxic world, and our bodies are a reflection of the environment we live in. Although many factors contribute to the development of cancer, this article will explore two you have control over: cell phones and chemical exposures.
Cell phones and cordless phones Heavy cell phone use increases the risk of developing brain cancers. The American Cancer Society estimates that 1 in 2 men will develop brain cancer in their lifetime, and women have a 1 in 3 chance. That risk is higher than any other type of cancer, including skin cancer. Less well known is that cell phones may also contribute to developing breast cancer. Oncologists in southern California reported a series of four breast cancers diagnosed in women under 40 that were discovered exactly under the site where they carried their cell phone in their bra. None of the women had family history or genetic mutations BRCA1 or BRCA2. All of the cancers had a strikingly similar cell pattern. Chemical exposures Chlorocarbons are a group of chemicals used for plastics, pesticides and paper bleaching. When exposed to these chemicals, your body eliminates what it can. What cannot be cleared immediately is stored in fat and lymphatic tissue – exactly what your breasts are made of. These chemicals are classified as “xenoestrogens,” meaning foreign substances that act like estrogen, a hormone that encourages rapid cell growth in the breasts, ovaries, uterus, and prostate. In the 1970s, Israel had one of the highest breast cancer rates in the world. In 1976 an Israeli grass roots movement, Consumer Shield, successfully lobbied to ban three chlorocarbon chemicals: BHC, lindane and DDT. For the next 30 years, breast cancer rates decreased in Israel while rates continued to climb in the rest of the world. Reducing xenoestrogen exposure reduces your risk for developing breast cancer. (10 citations total)
Katz of the University of California, San Francisco, who wasn’t part of the new research but said physicians need to put the findings to use. Katz called it striking that among the walkers, “if you start to have problems, you have a greater ability to recover and get your functioning back.” Older adults often shift back and forth between independence and conditions that can be disabling at least temporarily — a broken bone, an operation or a hospitalization from illness that requires time and rehab if they’re to get back on their feet.
Monday’s research examined whether regular physical activity could help even the oldest seniors stay mobile for longer despite other health conditions. The study enrolled more than 1,600 adults between the ages of 70 and 89 considered at high risk for disability because they were sedentary and had various chronic health problems, such as heart disease or diabetes. More than 2 in 5 were 80 or older. To enroll, they had to
WALKING
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What can you do? • Regular exercise reduces your breast cancer risk and improves survival after breast cancer. • Dump your cell phone. At the very least, keep it out of your bra and pockets. • Eliminate pesticides and herbicides in your yard and garden. • Chose organic foods. Environmental Working Group (www.ewg.org) publishes a list of the least and most heavily sprayed produce, the Clean Fifteen and the Dirty Dozen. Dr. Judith Boice is a naturopathic doctor, licensed acupuncturist, and Fellow of the American Board of Naturopathic Oncology, or FABNO (requires additional clinical experience, study, and passage of an integrative cancer care board exam). Dr. Boice is one of three FABNOs in Alaska, and the only FABNO in Fairbanks.
Heather Gappert, D.C.
__________________________________
Accepting appointments | 456-6213
Coureau G, Bouvier G, et al. Mobile phone use and brain tumours in the CERENAT case-control study. Occup Environ Med. 2014 Jul;71(7):514-22. doi: 10.1136/ oemed-2013-101754. Epub 2014 May 9. American Cancer Society, Surveillance Research, 2015. iii West JG Kapoor NS , et al. Multifocal Breast Cancer in Young Women with Prolonged Contact between Their Breasts and Their Cellular Phones. Case Rep Med. 2013;2013:354682. doi: 10.1155/2013/354682. Epub 2013 Sep 18. iv Jane Kay. Israelis Report Breast Cancer Deaths Drop After DDT Ban. April 03, 1994. San Francisco Examiner v J Mes et al: Organochlorine residues in adipose tissue of Canadians, Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 45: 681-688, 1991 1. J Mes et al: Polychlorinated biphenyl and other chlorinated hydrocarbon residues in adipose tissue of Canadians, Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 28: 97-104, 1982 2. D Davis et al: Medical Hypothesis: Xeno-estrogens as preventable causes of breast cancer, Environmental Health Perspectives: 101: 5, 1993 3. FW Kutz et al: Organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenals in human adipose tissue, Review Environmental Contaminants Toxicology: 120: 1-87, 1991 4. J Westin and E Richter: The Breast Cancer Anomaly, Annals of New York Academy of Sciences,609: 269-279, 1990. 5. D Davis and J Mes: Comparison of some specific polychlorinated compounds in breast milk of the general and indigenous Canadian population, Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 39: 743-749, l987 6. E Dewailly et al: High Organochlorine Body Burden in Women with Estrogen Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer, Journal of the National Cancer Institute: 86, 3, l994 7. AA Jensen et al: Chemical contaminants in human milk, Boca Raton, Fla: CRC Press Inc., 1991 8. F Falk et al: Pesticides and PCB residues in human breast lipids and their relation to breast cancer, Archives of Environmental Health 47: 143-146, 1992 vi Pastor-Barriuso R1, Fernández MF, et al.Total Effective Xenoestrogen Burden in Serum Samples and Risk for Breast Cancer in a Population-Based Multicase-Control Study in Spain. Environ Health Perspect. 2016 Oct;124(10):1575-1582. Epub 2016 May 20. vii Bernstein L, Patel AV, et al. Lifetime recreational exercise activity and breast cancer risk among black women and white women. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2005 Nov 16;97(22):1671-9. viii Meneses-Echávez JF1, Jiménez EG, et al. The insulin-like growth factor system is modulated by exercise in breast cancer survivors: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Cancer. 2016 Aug 25;16(1):682. doi: 10.1186/s12885-016-2733-z. i
ii
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HEALTH & WELLNESS
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Continued from 18 PSA testing remains popular in the U.S. even after a government task force recommended against it, saying it does more harm than good by leading to false alarms and overtreatment of many cancers that would never threaten a man’s life. In Europe, prostate cancer screening is far less common. Other experts said scientists should focus on how to figure out which cancers are so slow growing they don’t need treatment and those that do. “We need something to allow us to identify men with aggressive disease earlier,” said Dr. Malcolm Mason, a prostate cancer expert at the charity Cancer Research U.K. He said
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the study confirmed that for men in the early stages of the disease, there is no wrong treatment decision. Some participants who had surgery or radiation said they didn’t regret it. Tony Hancock, 60, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer eight years ago in Newcastle, said he originally wanted to have his disease monitored but the study assigned him to have surgery. “Within about 24 hours, I persuaded myself that it was the best option,” he said. “I started to think, ‘how could you live like that, knowing there’s a cancer growing inside you and you’re not doing anything about it?’” Although he suffered side effects including some incontinence and pain, Hancock was glad he had the surgery. “Psychologically, I
know the cancer has been removed because my prostate is gone and I’ve never looked back since then.” Douglas Collett, a retired construction worker from Cromhall, said he was horrified when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. “It hit me like a sledgehammer,” the 73-year-old said. “My initial reaction was to get rid of it.” But after reading up on the risks and benefits of surgery and radiation, Collett said he was relieved to have been assigned to the monitoring group. “Maybe the first option shouldn’t be surgery or radiotherapy,” he said. “I’m quite happy to have avoided any of those side effects. I feel just fine now so maybe I never needed anything else.”
Submitted by Contributing Community Author
Pam Gajdos Optician/Owner Image Optical 1867 Airport Way, Suite 100 Fairbanks, AK 99701 (907) 452-2024
Q: My eyes get tired while I’m working on the computer. I had my prescription changed, but I still feel eye strain. Any suggestions? A: Computer fatigue is one of the leading work complaints. With advances in technology, there are now several solutions to this problem. One is to have a separate pair of glasses made with a prescription designed for your computer distance. Another option is a to make a computer clip to use over your everyday pair. Anti-reflective coatings, such as Crizal, and tints to block blue light designed by Blue Tech can significantly reduce fatigue and stress on the eyes. Just mention your concerns during your next visit and we would be happy to customize a pair of glasses to fit your lifestyle. Q: My eyes are so dry. What can I do?
Take Classes Get Support Find Resources
A: The main symptoms of Dry Eye Syndrome (DES) are red, itchy eyes, watery eyes, and sometimes even burning and painful eyes. Some people experience a sandy or gritty feeling in the eye that doesn’t go away during the day. There are many reasons people develop DES. The leading cause is the dry climate of our Interior home. While we all feel the effects of living in a dry climate, other factors can include: extended contact lens wear, hormonal changes (especially in women), the aging process, and several different medications.
We are dedicated to increasing the awareness and understanding of Alzheimer’s and other dementia related diseases. We provide information, consultations, trainings and referrals throughout the entire state. Contact Alzheimer’s Resource of Alaska or visit our website to learn more about the services offered near you.
The solution is easy. A consultation with your optometrist will help determine the exact cause of your dry eye. Some medications (and even vitamins) can have a drying effect on your eyes. Lens rewetting drops are not always the solution, so an exam by your optometrist can help determine the best course of action. There are many new discoveries in dry eye pharmacology to alleviate dryness. The important thing to remember is that you don’t have to live with chronic dry eye. Your optometrist can help you see life more clearly.
...until a cure is found.
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MEDICAL INSIGHT
Our thanks to Pam Gajdos, for contributing this column. The article is intended to be strictly informational.
TRADITION NOT ADDICTION Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
CHOOSE
Alaska Native adults and youth are more than TWICE as likely as non-native adults and youth to use tobacco.
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HEALTH & WELLNESS
WALKING
Continued from 24 be able to walk a quarter of a mile in 15 minutes — a long time, and some needed every minute. “We were targeting folks who potentially had the most to gain,” said Dr. Thomas Gill, a Yale University geriatrician who led the work. The study compared seniors assigned to a regular walking program, plus a little strength and balance exercise, with a control group given health education. Over 3½ years, the walking program reduced the amount of time seniors spent suffering from a major mobility problem by 25 percent, the researchers reported in Annals of Internal Medicine.
The walkers were less likely to experience a mobility-robbing condition in the first place, more likely to recover if they did and less likely to suffer another one, Gill said. While the walking didn’t replace any necessary physical therapy, too often seniors “leave the hospital more debilitated than when they entered,” Gill said. The goal was to get them walking again as soon as possible. Only half of U.S. adults of all ages get the amount of physical activity recommended for good health. And if they weren’t active during middle age, older adults often are especially wary of getting started. Maybe they have arthritic pain, or are worried if it’s safe given other illnesses, or fear they’ll fall. Gill said the study
An elderly couple walks down a hall NOV. 6, 2015, in Easton, Pennsylvania. It’s not too late to get moving: Simple physical activity, mostly walking, helped high-risk seniors stay mobile after disabilityinducing ailments even if they’d long been couch potatoes. AP FILE PHOTO/MATT ROURKE
shows many sedentary seniors can start walking safely, no gym membership needed — just a safe place such as a sidewalk or shopping mall. Those who were physically active were less likely to be
injured in a fall, he noted. There were six more deaths among the walkers over the course of the study, a difference that wasn’t statistically significant, he said. “A lot of people prob-
ably don’t know where to start,” said UCSF’s Katz, who co-authored an editorial in Monday’s Annals that said an actual prescription from the doctor could help, maybe more than a medication
prescription. No one expects a sedentary senior to suddenly speed-walk. The goal is to build up gradually to meet federal health guidelines that say even older adults should get 2½ hours a week of moderate-intensity exercise. Essentially, that means enough to increase your heart rate — not breathless, but breathing a little hard.
VISION ADVICE Optician
eyes get tired while I’m working on the Q: My computer. I had my precription changed, but I still feel eye strain. Any suggestions?
of glasses made with a prescription designed for your computer distance. Anti-reflective coatings offered by companies like Crizal and Zeiss can reduce fatigue and stress on the eyes and can allow us to customize lenses to fit your lifestyle.
452-2024 1867 AIRPORT WAY, STE. 100 FAIRBANKS, AK 99701 In the Ugent Care building, next to Wendy’s
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fatique is one of the leading work A: Computer complaints. One solution is to have a separate pair
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
Golden Heart Emergency Physicians Board Certified Emergency Physicians Experienced Physician Assistants working directly beside Emergency Physicians We are available every minute of every day, for all your acute care needs Emergency Department at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital 1650 Cowles Street Fairbanks, AK 99701
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