Stroke buster - for some, new treatment can vacuum clots out of the brain
January 28, 2008
By LAURAN NEERGAARD/Associated Press
It’s a tiny vacuum cleaner for the brain: A new treatment for stroke victims promises to suction out clogged arteries in hopes of stopping the brain attack before it does permanent harm.
Called Penumbra, the newly approved device is the latest in a series of inside-the-artery attempts to boost recovery from stroke, the nation’s No. 3 killer.
Now the question is how to determine which patients are good candidates - because, illogical as it may sound, unclogging isn’t always the best option.
“Is the patient at a stage of stroke where you’re going to hurt them by pulling a clot out, or show benefit?” asks Dr. Walter Koroshetz of the National Institutes of Health. “It’s good we have devices. Now we have to learn how to use them.”
More than 700,000 Americans suffer a stroke each year, and more than 150,000 of them die. Survivors often face serious disability. Read more
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New solution for active people who suffer from hip pain
January 20, 2008
Hip Resurfacing Techniques Offer Alternative To Total Hip Replacement
Chicago, January 20, 2008– Baby boomers with hip pain who want to stay active in their later decades now have an alternative to hip replacement surgery without its inherent limitations. A new surgical option, called hip resurfacing, is offered to middle age people who have osteoarthritis in the hip and want to return to outdoor sports, such as biking, golf, hiking, skiing, swimming, fishing and tennis, that have been curtailed because of the pain. Read more
Despite a devastating diagnosis, local resident found they had options
January 15, 2008
By Susan Stevens | Daily Herald Staff
Laurie Radtke knows the value of a second opinion. The Johnsburg mother sought 27 of them when her 7-year-old daughter Taylor was diagnosed with an “inoperable” brain tumor.
After an exhaustive, nationwide search, the Radtkes found a surgeon willing to perform the risky surgery. Today Taylor is doing fine, though she does face struggles as a result of nerve damage. Her mother has turned into a resource for other families facing similarly devastating diagnoses.
“You just don’t give up,” Laurie Radtke said. “Don’t settle. Be a parent and fight for your kid’s life.”
One thing she and other families have learned: “Inoperable” doesn’t always mean inoperable. Read more
