“The Surgery That Saved My Life” Kelly Hepburn
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www.mediclinicinfohub.co.za ▶ YOUR FREE COPY TO TAKE HOME • ISSUE 40 l SPRING 2019 NEWHEAD SPACE THE FUTURE OF CONCUSSION TREATMENT PATRICK LAMBIE OUTSMART YOUR SWEET TOOTH EVERY MINUTE COUNTS FIND US A NEW STANDARD OF STROKE CARE “THE SURGERY THAT SAVED MY LIFE” KELLY HEPBURN 00_Spring_Cover_final.indd 1 2019/08/30 11:31 21_ADS.indd 9 2019/08/30 12:12 ISSUE 40 | SPRING 2019 atrick Lambie was a great rugby player. Most casual Prugby fans will remember his penalty kick from over the half-way CONTENTS line to beat the All Blacks in 2014. Die-hard Cell C Sharks fans will UP FRONT remember his standout performance 2 THE BIG PICTURE in his first Currie Cup final a few Giving back years earlier: he scored two tries, 4 ASK US converted both, and added three Are you hurting your heart health? penalties to win their third title in 6 MAILBOX three years, with a 30-10 demolition Your emails and social media posts of Western Province. And the history books will record how, after 8 COLUMN that game, he was named in the Should you be eating that? Springbok squad for the end-of-year tour of the Northern Hemisphere, COVER STORY at just 20 years old. That’s how 10 PATRICK LAMBIE most people will remember Lambie. The future of concussion Not me. My favourite memory of treatment in SA Patrick Lambie has nothing to do with rugby. Most people won’t remember it, or know about it. You CHECK UP can’t find it on YouTube. But in that 16 HOW YOUR BODY WORKS 2010 Currie Cup the Sharks were Your mouth is a window to awarded a penalty, and Lambie lined your overall health it up. He took out his mouthguard, 18 SURVIVOR took a deep breath, then looked Anneke Landman was shocked down, where a young boy – maybe by her breast cancer diagnosis. ON OUR COVER 6 or 7 years old – was tugging at Pat Lambie Then she fought back his shorts. The boy was holding a PHOTOGRAPHER 24 THEN & NOW Warren van Rensburg kicking tee, and had brought it to him from the side of the field. But it Mediclinic is taking stroke was the wrong one. Lambie needed treatment into the future the one that was still on its way, brought on by an assistant coach. CHECK IN Pat smiled, bent down, ruffled the 26 INNOVATION kid’s hair, took the tee anyway and What happens when you call ER24? said thank you. I have seen some 30 WHAT HAPPENED NEXT things on a rugby field. I’ve seen When a tooth abscess turned into players – high-profile, global role a deadly tumour, Kelly Hepburn models of the sport – deliberately hurt others with shoulder charges, embarked on a four-year journey eye gouges, head butts. These things back to health don’t stand out. Kindness does. It takes guts to stand up in a sport CHECK OUT where grown men try to take your 36 FOOD & NUTRITION head off. It takes something else to Outsmart your sweet tooth recognise a child trying to get your 44 YOUR HOSPITAL STAY attention, in the chaos and noise of DID YOU KNOW? Where to find us, and what a national rugby final. I was sad to You can download this you need to know and past issues hear of his retirement. But I was glad 46 GAME TIME for free at too, to hear that he and his wife are Test your brainpower mediclinicinfohub.co.za expecting their first child. Patrick Lambie was a great rugby player. He 48 MEDICLINIC PEOPLE is an even better person. He’s going Meet Dr Emmanuel Taban, to make the best dad. Mediclinic pulmonologist Thomas Okes, Editor Email your Mediclinic story to [email protected] and you could win a fantastic WIN! prize. Turn to page 6 to see our readers’ letters. Visit our INFOHUB www.mediclinicinfohub.co.za 01_Spring_contents.indd 1 2019/08/30 12:20 UP FRONT | BIG PICTURE GIVING BACK An estimated 4 million young girls in SA cannot a ord to buy quality sanitary products. Two Mediclinic doctors are working to change that. r Keo Tabane (left) is a medical oncologist at Mediclinic D Morningside. Dr Fikile Tsela is a nephrologist at Mediclinic Heart Hospital. Together, they started HappiMe – a foundation that brings safe, a ordable sanitary pads to young girls in impoverished communities, and inspires a generation of young women to own their health journeys. 03_Big Picture.indd 2 2019/08/29 13:06 “I WAS MOTIVATED TO DO SOMETHING FOR PEOPLE WHO COULDN’T PAY ME BACK,” SAYS DR TABANE. “TO INVEST IN THESE GIRLS, AND INSPIRE MORE YOUNG WOMEN, FOR THE FUTURE.” SPRING 2019 I MEDICLINIC FAMILY I 3 03_Big Picture.indd 3 2019/08/29 13:07 UP FRONT | HEART HEALTH ARE YOUR HABITS HURTING YOUR HEART? You may think you’re doing enough to avoid cardiovascular disease (CVD), but unfortunately there are some surprisingly common habits you may not know have a detrimental effect on your heart health. WORDS CARLA HÜSSELMANN ou want to live a long life, which is why you may be doing your utmost to live a healthy one. Unfortunately though, you may be surprised to learn that although you’re trying to follow a heart-healthy lifestyle, some of your daily habits may be putting you at risk of CVD without you even knowing it. Dr Anil Kurian, a cardiologist from Mediclinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria, reveals surprisingly common habits that may be damaging your heart health. YOU SKIP BREAKFAST EXERCISING? BUT YOU’RE YOU’RE NOT TEACHING “Skipping any of your three SITTING TOO MUCH YOUR CHILDREN HEART- #1 meals can be detrimental #3 “The documented evidence #5 HEALTHY HABITS to your heart health, but shows you have a higher risk Almost one in four children studies have shown that skipping of CVD if you sit for more than 10 hours aged 2 to 14 is overweight or obese breakfast specifically increases your risk a day,” says Dr Kurian. “We recommend in SA and one in 10 suffers from high of CVD,” says Dr Kurian. at least 150 minutes of moderate blood pressure (hypertension), which One recent study suggested those cardiovascular exercise every week, puts them at an increased risk for who skipped breakfast had an 87% that is, 30 minutes for five days a week. developing CVD and diabetes. higher risk of CVD-related death. But However, even if you do that, but spend “Increasingly, we’re seeing younger Dr Kurian says drawing a direct causal the rest of your day sedentary, you still and younger patients presenting with link may be difficult, as it is impossible have an increased risk of CVD.” a high risk for CVD,” says Dr Kurian. to prove why. “Although that may be Minimise the amount of time you “Historically, hypertension, cholesterol over-stating the mortality risk, as there spend in prolonged sitting. “For every and other associated CVD conditions are many factors other than breakfast 30 minutes you sit, get up and walk were considered to be adult-related intake that will also have an impact, I around for a few minutes,” he advises. diseases, but there’s been an increase do agree with the authors that you’ll Alternate between a standing and in these conditions among children too. experience a dramatic increase in your sitting desk at work, and answer your This is due to a multitude of risk factors CVD risk if you forget to eat breakfast.” emails, calls and texts while standing. – including bad lifestyle habits.” YOU’RE A CHRONIC YOU’RE VAPING YOU’RE NOT MANAGING SNORER Unfortunately, many YOUR STRESS #2 Chronic snoring is often a #4 people mistakenly believe #6 While you can’t change the sign of obstructive sleep that vaping (smoking world around you, you can apnoea (OSA), which raises your risk for e-cigarettes) is a safer alternative to make lifestyle changes that minimise diabetes, obesity, hypertension, stroke, smoking traditional cigarettes, but that’s your stress levels. “A lot of stress is heart attack and other cardiovascular not necessarily the case, warns created by how we organise and deal problems. “It’s under-diagnosed and Dr Kurian. “Research is starting to with our daily responsibilities and prevalent in those with CVD. We point towards the harmful effects of pressures,” says Dr Kurian. “Learning differentiate between mild, moderate e-cigarettes, including vaping that time management skills and planning and severe OSA. In moderate and has a dramatically negative impact ahead, as well as partaking in a healthy severe, there’s a higher all-cause on cardiovascular health,” he says. lifestyle, will go a long way to managing mortality, so these patients have a “Recent research shows that one your stress levels.” shortened lifespan than those who of the molecules, nitric oxide, that’s Identify healthy outlets to de-stress, don’t have it, due to the associated needed to help keep blood vessels such as finding a healthy hobby, IMAGES GALLO/GETTY risks.” healthy and control blood pressure writing in a journal, learning relaxation Although it’s a serious condition, it’s levels, is adversely impacted by vaping, techniques, confiding in those you trust, treatable in various effective ways, such which ultimately leads to CVD, just as and confronting stressful situations as using a Continuous Positive Airway traditional cigarettes do.” head-on. PHOTOGRAPH 4 I MEDICLINIC FAMILY I SPRING 2019 4-5_Heart health.indd 4 2019/08/29 13:23 AFTER HYPERTENSION, SMOKING CIGARETTES IS THE SECOND- LEADING CAUSE OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE IN SA.