Advanced Family Medicine

Common Cold 101: What it Is & How You Can Avoid It Now that the days are short and the weather is cold, this means that cold season is once again upon us. But to help you and your family remain happy and healthy during the Holidays, we here at  Advanced Family Medicine  thought it would be a good idea to answer some of the more frequent questions we receive about the common cold. What is the Common Cold? Did you know that the  common cold  isn’t a single illness, but is actually a set of symptoms that can be caused by more than 200 types of viruses? It’s true, although the Rhinovirus is thought to result in between 10% and 40% of all annual cases of the common cold. But whatever the cause, according to the  CDC , as much as 20% of the population can fall ill to the common cold each year (in some instances, multiple times per year), which typically involves sneezing, a sore throat, nasal congestion, draining, and itchy / watery eyes. In more sever...

The 4 Most Popular Cancer Screening Tests: What They Are and How They Can Help You Live Longer Did you know that, according to the  American Cancer Society , more than 1.6 million Americans are expected to be diagnosed with cancer this year? And unfortunately, of these, more than 580,000 will die as a result. Clearly, cancers of all types are a big problem, not only in the U.S., but all around the world as well. While many of the most prominent cancers (e.g. lung, skin, etc.) are highly preventable, there is also a high survival rate among patients who were diagnosed early, which provides adequate time to treat the cancer before it spreads to other parts of the body. Because of this, we here at  Advanced Family Medicine  are often asked by patients if we can perform cancer screenings, which we thought would make a great topic for a blog post. So let’s take a look at some of the most common cancer screening tests, and find out how they can help. What Kind of ...

Obesity: The Silent Epidemic Did you know that between 1980 and 2000, obesity rates doubled among adults in the U.S? This means that today, about 60 millions adults (or 30% of the adult population) in this country are now classified as obese. But it doesn’t stop there: Since 1980, the number of overweight children has doubled, and the number of obese adolescents has tripled. Clearly, obesity is an ever-increasing health concern for men, women, and children in this country. But what is it, and how does it impact your quality of life? And perhaps most importantly, what can you do to prevent it? What is Obesity? According to the  Obesity Action Coalition , obesity is defined as “a condition that is associated with having an excess of body fat, defined by genetic and environmental factors that are difficult to control when dieting.” Obesity is measured using Body Mass Index (BMI), which is calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by his or her height in meter...

Musculoskeletal (MSK) Ultrasound: Your First Line of Detection What is Musculoskeletal (MSK) Ultrasound? Musculoskeletal (MSK) ultrasound is a relatively new, non-invasive, painless, quick, and efficient form of diagnostic imaging that can be used to detect soft tissue abnormalities in muscles, tendons, ligaments and nerves. As its names implies, MSK uses ultrasound, an existing technology, to allow your  AFM physician  to see things that would not normally be picked up by an x-ray, including bone, soft tissue, fluid, and more—all in a “live,” real-time state. What Are the Benefits of Musculoskeletal (MSK) Ultrasound? Because Musculoskeletal (MSK) Ultrasound uses technology similar to maritime sonar, it emits no ionizing radiation, which for patients undergoing a multitude of tests, can reduce overall exposure. In addition, MSK Ultrasound meets or exceeds the diagnostic capabilities of other imaging technologies, including finer imaging, which can make its effect...

Coronary Heart Disease: The World's Most Dangerous Disease At  Advanced Family Medicine  (AFM) we think that modern medicine is truly a wonderful thing, but to truly appreciate where we are today, it is helpful to look back to where we have come from; and one the most dynamic examples of the progress of medicine is in regards to coronary heart disease (CHD). Only a short two hundred years ago the primary method of treating CHD was by the crudest of methods; ‘bloodletting, a tincture of opium, (and) bed rest...’ 1  Since then–thankfully–leaps and bounds have been made in regards to our understanding of the disease; and now much can be done to both treat, and prevent this deadly disease. For the rest of this post we want to explore CHD and discuss some of the steps that can be taken to treat and prevent it. What is Coronary Heart Disease? Coronary heart disease is the interruption of the flow of blood to the heart, which deprives the body of the oxygen it need...