Are you blessed with relatively good health? Do you feel that you don't use the services of a doctor very often and would probably only seek their help when you are seriously ill? This is a very common way of thinking. Why should you go to the doctor if you are not sick? 

In reality, preventive health care is an important way to prevent illness and its devastating effects. While the common cold and flu don't necessarily do you too much harm, other illnesses do. Many things that can harm us or seriously affect our health don't show up with dramatic symptoms until things get out of control. Good care can prevent diseases from escalating into life-threatening problems. 

You may remember taking your child to the doctor for checkups during the first two years of life. These visits were to help your baby stay on track with his development and to intervene when something was wrong. The frequency of the visits made health care easy and prevention a safe bet. After your child was two years old, these visits were reduced to "as needed." 

Although you probably don't need to see your doctor as often as a newborn, regular annual visits, as well as visits for important events as your child ages, are valuable. An annual exam can alert your doctor to changes in your body and its systems that you may not notice on a day-to-day basis. A "baseline" of your blood work and a look at how you are feeling physically can help prevent disease and/or provide early intervention if something comes up. 

 

Some common annual exams are:

● Complete blood count 

● Pap smear and other gynecological exams.

● Breast exams

● Prostate exams

● Birthmark and skin exams

● Hearing and vision tests

 

Not as common - but equally important - exams as you age are: 

● colonoscopy

● Memory and cognitive functions

● Cancer screenings

● STD and HIV screenings

● Diabetes screenings.

If you haven't thought much about your health because you've been doing so well, keep it up by getting a routine checkup or special screening to maintain your health and prevent possible illnesses. 

Routine health and wellness screenings are a smart and responsible way to maintain your health and save money. Contact your doctor today and ask what they suggest for your age and risk factors.

 

Maritza Y. Baez, MD, FAAFP

Primary Care

Buffalo - 1091 Main St., Ste. 301

(716) 248-1420

The academic side of medicine relies on doctors drawing from a huge bank of knowledge to solve different complex problems every single day. That’s what drew Dr. Ravi Sahni to leave the corporate world in his 30s with plenty of life experience and become the doctor he was meant to be. Both of his grandfathers were physicians, and growing up, he wanted to be like them. 

As an internist, Dr. Sahni sees only adult patients. He specializes in treating people who are juggling several health issues at once, such as heart disease, hypertension, lung disease, and obesity. Dr. Sahni helps his patients navigate challenging and complex sets of symptoms, specialists, medications, and tests, taking the time to make sure every question is answered and patients feel comfortable and empowered in their care. He is affiliated with Brooks-TLC Hospital System, Inc. and can admit patients directly, which means less time in a waiting room and more time getting to the bottom of what’s going on. 

Every other weekend, Dr. Sahni spends his time at the VA medical center and Urgent care in Bath NY working with veterans who are grappling with substance abuse and PTSD. His diligence and drive to solve the complex needs of the patients he serves isn’t just his profession, it’s his passion – and his pastime. 

3898 Vineyard Dr., Ste. 1, Dunkirk, NY 14048   •  716.363.6960 

Click HERE to schedule an appointment  • New Patients Welcome • Same-Day Appointments Available 

The prostate is a small walnut-shaped gland in males that produces the seminal fluid that transports sperm. After skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in men. Many prostate cancers grow slowly, requiring minimal treatment because they do not cause serious harm, but others are more aggressive and spread quickly. As a result, prostate cancer that is detected early has the best chance for successful treatment.Unfortunately, prostate cancer often has no symptoms until the disease is advanced, and screening may help detect cancer early, when the chances of treatment success are high. But there is no one-size-fits-all approach to prostate cancer screening. Most screening for prostate cancer begins with a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test. PSA is an enzyme found in the prostate, and a high level of PSA can be a warning for prostate cancer. However, the PSA test is not 100 percent accurate. When there is a question, it often requires a prostate biopsy, a procedure that can cause bleeding, pain and infection. Prostate biopsies can also lead to the diagnosis of clinically insignificant cancers that would never have been detected or caused any problems for the patients. 

David Cipolla, M.D., a radiologist at Great Lakes Medical Imaging, often recommends that patients undergo prostate MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) screening, because it is just as accurate as a prostate biopsy without the unpleasant and painful effects, and risk of infection involved in the procedure. “MRI machine uses magnetic and radio waves to produce detailed images of soft tissues and structures in the body, like the prostate,” explains Dr. Cipolla. Patients who undergo an MRI are positioned on an examination table that is slid into an MRI machine. The scan is completed within 30-45 minutes. The procedure is totally painless and non-invasive. Not only is it accurate at detecting prostate cancer, but it also helps tell how advanced the cancer is and whether it has spread to other parts of the body. Having a prostate MRI can also detect other conditions involving the prostate conditions, such as infections or benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). It is also better than biopsies at distinguishing benign and malignant cancers. The procedure is very simple and comfortable.

Dr. Cipolla says, “Prostate cancer often has no symptoms until the disease is advanced, and screening may help detect problems early, when the chances of treatment success are high.” 

He tells patients to talk to their providers at their next checkup to go over any risk factors you may have for developing prostate cancer. “In general, discussions with your doctor should begin in your 40s.”

If you are at risk for prostate cancer, talk with your care provider about having your prostate MRI done at Great Lakes Medical Imaging (GLMI). Contact GLMI at 716-836-4646 and visit www.greatlakesmedicalimaging.com.