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 Welcome
back and Happy New Year to all of you. 2003 will see some changes
at Bayside. When you returning back to the clinic, you will
notice that Alice is no longer with us. She has decided to return
back to college and will be starting her program this January.
She will be missed greatly by the staff and patients alike.
Please welcome Darlene Holland who will be replacing Alice as
our Chiropractic Office Assistant. You can find out more about
her in this newsletter. |
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| Another new thing for Bayside will
be our new web page that is in construction now. I hope to be able
to provide more information about our clinic to everyone on an ongoing
basis. One of the exciting things for some of you, will be the ability
to book your own appointments online by going to our website. You
can do this anytime of the day or night. The only thing you will need
is access to the Internet, and an email address. I hope to have this
up and running in the next few months. |
| There is new research for the treatment
and care of vertebral compression fractures. The results of this procedure
have a very high success rate and almost immediate relief for the
patient. Vertebral collapse can happen particularly in osteoporosis
or metastatic diseases. According to the University of Maryland Spine
Center, each year 1.5 million fractures occur due to osteoporosis.
Approximately half of these fractures occur in the spine. An x-ray
will usually confirm the fracture and in this case, you will be referred
to your GP for a specialist referral. You will find more information
on Vertebroplasty and Kyphoplasty in the Research News section of
this month's newsletter. |
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Nutrition is as important to health
and wellness as it is to weight loss. Dietary management can help
with conditions and illnesses. Some of you have already met our
Registered Dietitian that works with patients at Bayside. Ali Chernoff
can help create a personal plan for your individual goals. I have
the confidence in her experience and enthusiasm to introduce her
in this month's Newsletter. Learn more about Ali in the Professional
Advisor's section.
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For those of you that are interested, 2003 is
the year of the Goat in the Chinese calendar. As the legend
goes, more than five hundred years ago, Buddha invited all of
the animals of creation to come and join him for the New Year.
Only twelve species came at his invitation and to reward them,
Buddha offered to name a year after each animal. From then on
any person born in a year associated with that animal would
share that animal's qualities. So for those of you born under
the sign of the Goat, you are an artist in your soul, and a
gentle and peaceful being. |
To your health!
Dr. Andrew Chin.
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Research News:
Vertebroplasty: An effective
technique in the treatment of osteoporotic and malignant
vertebral collapse.
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Vertebroplasty is an extremely safe
and readily performed procedure, with most patients experiencing
dramatic improvement in their symptoms.
Abstract
Vertebral collapse can have a variety of causes, particularly osteoporosis,
metastatic disease, and, less frequently, hemangiomas. Traditional
therapy has generally consisted of conservative management in the
case of osteoporosis. In selected cases, especially with malignant
disease, surgical intervention is used. More recently vertebroplasty,
a radiologically guided therapeutic alternative, has been introduced.
This technique involves placing a bone biopsy needle into the vertebral
body and injecting polymethylmethacrylate cement under fluoroscopic
guidance. In the majority of instances the procedure can be performed
on a day care basis. This technique has proven successful in providing
dramatic and prompt pain relief in most candidates, allowing rapid
patient mobilization and preventing further compression of the affected
vertebral body.
Procedure
A variety of techniques have been proposed for performing vertebroplasty.
The procedure can generally be performed with conscious sedation,
preferably with an anesthetist in attendance. Using fluoroscopic
guidance, the radiologist guides an 11-gauge or 13-gauge bone biopsy
needle into the vertebral body. A mixture of thick polymethylmethacrylate
cement opacified with barium is then injected under continuous fluoroscopic
guidance. In many instances a single injection through one pedicle
is all that is required.
Patient outcome
Pain relief from osteoporotic compression fractures with vertebroplasty
is typically excellent, with more than 90% of patients describing
complete or near complete relief of pain within 48 to 72 hours.
Further gradual improvement in pain has been reported to occur in
the first 6 months. Patients with metastatic disease show less dramatic
improvement, with the rates on average being in the 70% range, although
some series have reported figures much higher than this.
BC Medical Journal Volume 44, Number 10, December
2002, page 530-536. Contributors: Dr Munk is a radiologist at Vancouver
Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, head of the Musculoskeletal
Division, and a professor in the Department of Radiology at the
University of British Columbia. Dr Ho is a radiologist at Vancouver
Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, head of the Gastrointestinal
Division, and assistant professor in the Department of Radiology
at UBC
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Vertebral Osteoporosis and Kyphoplasty
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| Osteoporosis is a skeletal disorder,
characterized by compromised bone strength from loss of bone mass.
This disease effects up to 28 million people in the United States.
Each year 1.5 million fractures occur due to osteoporosis. Approximately
half of these fractures occur in the spine. One vertebral compression
fracture occurs every 45 seconds. |
| About 260,000 patients are diagnosed
with their first painful vertebral compression fracture every year
and the risk of developing another fracture following the first increases
fivefold. These fractures account for 150,000 hospitalizations every
year. Fractures of the spine secondary to osteoporosis negatively
affect pulmonary function. The five-year mortality rate following
a vertebral fracture is significantly higher than in patients without
fracture. |
| The goal of fracture care should be
to restore anatomy, relieve pain and restore function as rapidly as
possible. The care of fractures in the elderly is complicated by multiple
medical comorbities and frail physical status overall. Medical management
can be successful but at the cost of prolonged disability, which negatively
affects physical function and exacerbates additional bone loss. Open
surgical treatment is generally reserved for patients with significant
neurological deficits and has a high complication rate. |
| A patient's pain medication requirements
are significantly reduced and they can return to their normal activities
as soon as possible. Through a new modification of the technique,
kyphoplasty, the fracture is reduced into a more anatomic position
using an inflatable balloon. This prevents the development of the
typical fracture kyphosis and allows for a safer cement injection
to reduce the risk of complications. |
| Source: http://www.umm.edu/orthopaedic/kyphoplasty.html |
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UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND MEDICINE
22 South Greene Street | Baltimore, MD 21201
ph: 1-800-492-5538 | TDD: 410-328-9600
© 2001 UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND MEDICAL SYSTEM
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For an animated view of how Kyphoplasty works, Follow this link:
http://www.spine-health.com/dir/kyph.html
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The Liberal Government's
decision to cut MSP coverage for chiropractic care,
physiotherapy, massage therapy and other health care
services is having a huge impact on British Columbians.
Only qualified patients under premium assistance will
still be able to have limited coverage under MSP.
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In light of the decrease
in health care subsidization to chiropractic services
in this province, we have to more accurately reflect
the costs of providing our services to you. Some of
our patients are already paying those treatment fees.
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For those of you
that have not been brought up to current rates, our
treatment fees will increase effective January 1,
2003 to the following:
| Regular Treatment
Fee: |
$30.00 |
| Premium Assistance
Fee: |
$15.00 |
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Our fees are still below
the recommended BC Chiropractic Association treatment
fees that are currently being charged at other chiropractic
practices. For those of you with third-party insurance
and extended health care coverage, either through
employment or as a dependent, we will still provide
you with official receipts of reimbursement. Just
be sure to ask for it when you check in at the front
counter.
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If you have any questions,
please feel free to ask either the doctors or the
staff.
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Our new Chiropractic Office Assistant:
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Hello, my name is Darlene
Holland. I am very pleased to announce that I am now employed for
Bayside Chiropractic. I was lucky enough to have the training done
by Alice. She was a very nice lady and I hope I can give you all
the quality service as Alice did. I grew up in North Burnaby and
then resided in Coquitlam. I am married and have two wonderful children.
Before I had my children, I was employed at the British Columbia
Institute of Technology as a Supervisor for the Library. I worked
there for six years and then resigned to raise my family. After
my children were old enough, I then put myself through College -
Academy of Learning, where I took the Medical Office Assistant Course.
I thoroughly enjoyed the course and worked as a temporary worker
in several Medical Offices and Chiropractic Clinics and Physiotherapy
Clinics. I am pleased to have finally found a full-time job that
is permanent. I love Vancouver and I am really looking forward to
meeting all the patients.
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See you soon!
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Darlene Holland
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Professional Advisor:
Ali J. Chernoff, BSc, RDN
Registered Dietitian and Nutrition Consultant
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| My road to my career in the health
field began in 1993 when I received the Home Economics Department
award for outstanding achievement at my high school. I developed a
keen interest in nutrition because of this award, which spurred me
to pursue a course of study at the University of Western Ontario in
Honors Food and Nutrition. |
| Following my four years at Western,
I became involved in numerous activities relating to the field of
nutrition. At Dial-A-Dietitian, I researched specific nutrition concerns
and conducted nutrition surveys by telephone, letters, and faxes to
various food industries. In addition, I worked at many long term care
facilities and hospitals such as Crofton Manor, Delta Hospital, Louis
Brier Home & Hospital, Mount St. Joseph's Hospital, Peace Arch Hospital,
St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver General Hospital, including the Allergy
Nutrition Clinic, Vancouver/ Richmond Health Board, Villa Carital
and Yaletown House. Also, I worked at Webofcare.com and provided nutritional
information and dietary management for specific diseases and researched
material was posted on the web site. |
| Finally,
through all my experiences at the various hospitals and other
organizations I gained a great deal of knowledge and capabilities.
Together, these experiences have enhanced my leadership ability,
creativity, and cognitive skills, which I currently offer through
my private practice and corporate wellness educational seminars. |
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| Finally, I developed a self-directed,
one year, dietetic internship program, from which I gained a great
deal of knowledge and capabilities through researching and organizing
the proposal. Together, these experiences have enhanced my leadership
ability, creativity, and cognitive skills. |
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Ali J. Chernoff consults on food and nutrition
issues from her 212 West 1st Ave office.
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Patients interested in nutritional guidance may make appointments
with Ali and Bayside.
Email: info@baysidechiro.com Telephone:
604-689-9308
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