McLaren Macomb Health Care Blog

Bystanders can save a life. This summer will look a lot different. With more and more people across the state getting vaccinated, the safety protocols are being relaxed, and people are heading outside in time for the arrival of sun and warm weather. COVID-19 aside, the summer months go by another name in hospital emergency departments: Trauma season. Over those months, traumatic injuries sustained in household mishaps and accidents from outdoor physical activities increase by as much as 30 percent. This...

Know your stroke risk factors and start addressing them to lower your chances now. When determining one’s risk for stroke, there are many factors that physicians will consider. There are two kinds of stroke, both equally serious. An ischemic stroke is caused by a blood clot blocking the flow of blood in the brain. And a hemorrhagic stroke results from a break or bleed in a blood vessel in the brain. Some risk factors are pre-determined with the patient not able to do anything about them, such as gender,...

Knowing your allergies is the best way to prepare for the season. Education is the best way to limit the often-stifling symptoms allergies bring about in countless people every year during the annual allergy season. Allergies are straightforward to understand. Simply put, allergies are the body’s immune response to a usually harmless foreign body. They can be foods, pollen, dust or other substance typically found around the house or in nature. Symptoms can range — in both type and severity — and, in tod...

Take preventive action now to avoid potential illness later. Call it a physical, check-up or annual exam, but a regular appointment with a primary care provider can have endless and potentially untold benefits. It’s understandable that many people only make doctor appointments when they’re sick—get an exam, a prescription and feel better in a few days. An annual appointment, though, is the appointment when patients can check in with their doctor about their overall health’s outlook. “Over the past recen...

Anyone can experience back pain, but when does it reach a point that you need to make a doctor’s appointment? Everyone has experienced some kind of back pain. It could be caused by something as serious as a car accident or a slip and fall to something as seemingly harmless as bending over the wrong way or picking up something just a little too heavy. Most take up the same at-home treatments — ice and rest, and not overdoing it by taking it easy for a few days. Usually that does it. But what if it doesn’...

Take immediate action when seeing signs of a potential stroke. During a stroke, brain cells start to die with each passing minute, making the attack on the brain a true medical emergency requiring immediate medical intervention. “The importance of seeking prompt medical attention with any and all suspected strokes is potentially life-saving and cannot be overstated,” said Dr. Aniel Majjhoo, an interventional neurologist and medical director of the McLaren Stroke Network. Dr. Majjhoo and his colleagues w...

Excessive heat can be dangerous in many ways, but it’s especially dangerous for a certain group of people. It’s a natural process. If it’s hot outside, the body will respond in order to cool itself. On those hot days, though, the body’s response can put significant strain on the heart. And if the heart is already in a weaken or compromised state, that strain can lead to other potential serious issues affecting someone’s overall health. “Our hearts play a large and crucial role in cooling our bodies on h...

Though very rare, it’s the risk for blood clots that paused the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. A blood clot can form anywhere in the body and, most often, the body naturally dissolves them without showing any sign or symptom. In the news lately, though, blood clots can also result in potentially devastating health conditions, such as a stroke, heart attack or pulmonary embolism. A clot is formed when liquid blood within the body thickens and coagulates into a clump-like, semi-solid state. If th...

In many cases, looking at the past can benefit your future health. It may feel like an interview, but a family medical history carries a deep importance to a physician’s ability to thoroughly provide for a patient’s overall health. A family medical history is just that: a family’s medical history, including chronic conditions, cardiovascular conditions, if anyone has had a heart attack, stroke, diabetes and certain types of cancers. And the patient can benefit. Given the hereditary nature of many health...

The leading cause of death in the world, lifestyle changes can help lower your risk for a heart attack. Every year, more than 3 million people in the United States suffer a heart attack. While the symptoms of a heart attack can differ from person to person (and even from men to women), the next steps should always be the same: call 911 and go to the nearest ER. Symptoms can range from arm pain and heavy chest pressure in some to nausea and heartburn for others. “The most important thing that we preach i...