Blood Flow

September 14, 2011
Many people think slower walking and difficulty balancing are normal signs of getting older. But a study recently published by Dr. Aron Buchman, associate professor of neurological sciences   at Rush University Medical Center, and a team of researchers shows these changes may have a more insidious cause: microscopic blocked blood vessels in the brain. The blocked blood vessels were found during a large, long-term study of aging that has been ongoing since 1994. Older nuns and priests from around the nation, participating in Rush's Religious Orders Study, have undergone comprehensive medical exams each year to study the effects of aging.
By Danielle Braff, Special to Tribune Newspapers | June 22, 2011
Movies are often viewed as the perfect way to relax: You sit in a comfy seat, eat some popcorn and tune out for two hours. But there's a lot more to cinema than simply entertainment. Movies affect your brain and body in ways you may not be able to detect. "Because many films transmit ideas through emotion rather than intellect, they can neutralize the instinct to suppress feelings and trigger emotional release," said Birgit Wolz, a psychologist focusing on movies as therapy, and author of "E-motion Picture Magic.
By From news services | November 17, 2009
A team of Australian surgeons were working Monday on a delicate and complicated surgery to separate twin sisters who are joined at the top of the head. The 2-year-old Bangladeshi orphans, Trishna and Krishna, share parts of their skull, brain tissue and blood flow. Doctors expected the operation, which began Monday morning, to take at least 16 hours, with a team of 16 surgeons and nurses. "I am cautiously optimistic," plastic surgeon Tony Holmes said. Holmes said the girls were sedated Sunday night and an angiogram was performed to take a final look at the blood vessels before the operation.
BY JON VAN | June 23, 2008
A small Chicago company hopes to make a big impact on medicine by telling doctors precisely how much blood flows through any particular vessel in the body. Physicians make decisions about the need for surgical intervention by looking at images of a patient's arteries and veins to assess the severity of blockage. "This is a subjective judgment," said Anthony Curcio, chief executive of VasSol Inc., because someone with a big artery that's 75 percent closed may be getting enough blood flow, while another patient with a smaller artery that is 50 percent blocked may not be getting enough.
By HealthDay News / Newswise | June 3, 2008
Children should wear sunglasses Overexposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays has been linked to a number of eye problems, such as age-related cataracts, pterygium, photokeratitis and corneal degenerative changes, according to the American Optometric Association. Children are particularly susceptible because they tend to spend more time outdoors than adults and the lenses of their eyes are more transparent, which means that more harmful light can reach the retina. The AOA recommends sunglasses that block 99 percent of UV-A and UV-B radiation and screen out 75 to 90 percent of visible light.
By Leslie Mann, Special to the Tribune | February 19, 2008
A new procedure launched at the Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago in January offers hope to patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI), or severely blocked leg arteries. Doctors transplanted a purified form of the patients' own stem cells into their leg muscles to grow new, small blood vessels and restore circulation in their legs. Two patients underwent the procedure. They are the first subjects in a 20-site national trial. Without successful treatment, CLI patients have diminished blood flow, which causes wounds that don't heal and gangrene, which can lead to loss of toes, feet or legs.
By Tribune Media Services | November 25, 2007
Q. I'm very susceptible to cold, and recently I've been diagnosed with Raynaud's disease. Why did I get this, and how should I take care of it? A. Raynaud's (ray-NODES) disease is a fairly common condition in which small blood vessels, usually in the fingers or toes, develop an exaggerated sensitivity to cold. Exposure to cold normally slows blood flow to your extremities (for example, the hands and feet) as your body focuses on keeping the inner organs warm. For people with Raynaud's disease, the small arteries constrict dramatically, which reduces blood flow, most often in the fingers and toes, but the nose, ears and cheeks also can be affected.
By Tribune Media Services | January 21, 2007
Q. I'm taking L-arginine and L-citrulline because I read that they will normalize blood pressure and reduce the risk of strokes. Is this true? --Glen Cove, N.Y. A. It's very good that you are paying attention to high blood pressure, which doctors consider the leading treatable risk factor for cardiovascular disease and stroke. But there are well-proven treatments and unproven treatments, and you are currently pursuing the latter. In theory, using L-arginine and L-citrulline would seem to make sense, given that a major cause of high blood pressure in most people is a stiffening of the arteries.
By Kimberlee Roth, Special to the Tribune | December 3, 2006
One morning back in March, Cynthia Hill, 42, of Valparaiso, Ind., woke up with a heaviness in her right arm and hand. Because her 70-pound Labrador often bunks with Hill and her husband, Dave, she assumed that the dog had been lying on her arm and her arm was just "asleep." Later that morning, as she tried, unsuccessfully, to tuck in the pockets of her jeans and put on mascara, she realized something was wrong. "I couldn't get my fingers to do what they were supposed to do." Hill ignored the numbness and went on with her day. "I was an idiot and ignored it; I didn't tell anyone," she said.
By Mia Farrow, an actor and UNICEF ambassador | November 28, 2006
In Goz Beida hospital near the Chad-Sudan border, three men lie side by side, bloodstained gauze covering where their eyes once were. All were attacked by the janjaweed, Arab militia who ride from across the nearby border with the Darfur region of Sudan to brutalize Chadian villages. Only Abdullah Annour was left with one eye. When the janjaweed attacked him, they noticed his sightless, cataract-whitened left eye. They cut out his good eye instead. Mr. Annour is one of the lucky few to have a bed. Most of the wounded at Goz Beida hospital lie on the ground outside, the hospital's six small rooms swollen beyond capacity.