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Written By:  Robert Ripley, MD,FACS, General Surgeon Hernias are enlarged natural opening in the body or separations of muscle that allow underlying tissue to protrude through them.  An example of a natural opening hernia is the hiatal hernia that allows the stomach to protrude into the chest cavity.  Separations of muscle can occur in previous incisions.  Abdominal incisions are the …

The New Life Pregnancy Center in Wickenburg recently received a donation of two new infant car seats from Wickenburg Community Hospital.  The Wickenburg office is one of 17 centers across the state providing free pregnancy related services such as pregnancy testing, counseling, parenting classes and material needs such as clothing, formula and diapers. The donation was made possible through the …

Written by McKenzie Jones, Intern, Grand Canyon University Have you noticed as your loved one is sleeping, their breathing pauses for fairly long periods of time? Or that their snoring is unbearable? 42 million Americans have sleep disorder breathing (SDB) according to the New England Journal of Medicine.  Sleep apnea is a chronic condition that is the leading cause of …

As a country we are facing a growing epidemic. It’s an epidemic that plays no favorites: both genders and every race is affected. It can ruin a person from the interior to exterior, tears apart families and can often end in death, and what is worse is there very little help for those who suffer. It is the opioid epidemic. …

Written By: Robert Ripley, MD General Surgeon, Wickenburg Community Hospital Hemorrhoids were considered varicose veins of the anal canal. Now theory describes destruction of anal “cushions”.  The cushions are complexes of blood vessels supported by connective tissue (tissue that supports the body structures).  The loss of this connective tissue allows the blood vessels to slide downward and protrude outward. Hemorrhoids …

(picture courtesy of The United Blood Services website) According to an article from the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association, Arizona is running out of blood. The article quotes the Arizona Republic by stating, “The rapidly spreading Zika virus outbreak has prompted United Blood Services officials to request all eligible blood donors to get out to donate — and fast. Donors who have …

The first of two confirmed measles cases were made public last week in Pinal County and the total number is expected to rise.  Up to a third of measles cases become severe and may progress to pneumonia, seizures, encephalitis, brain damage, and death. “The best way to prevent measles is through two doses of MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccine given according to …

By Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. Director, NIAID (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) An Aedes aegypti mosquito, the vector of Zika virus. PHOTOGRAPH BY JAMES GATHANY, CDC.(http://goo.gl/xy938i) Zika virus is not actually new. It was first recognized in 1947 in a monkey in the Zika forest of Uganda. It was not known to infect humans until 1952, and it stayed …

Colon cancer strikes males and females equally.  Around the world it is more frequent in industrialized countries, and this suggests genetic and environmental influences.  In the United States it affects blacks and whites equally, but Native Americans have a much lower occurrence rate. Among environmental factors, diet has been implicated frequently.  It is felt that a high fiber diet, which …

Written By: Robert Ripley, MD, FACS, General Surgeon Breast and lung cancer are the most common causes of cancer deaths in American women. About 12% of women will develop breast cancer during their lifetime.  Fortunately, when breast cancer is caught early it can be successfully treated.  Although breast cancer is not preventable, a low fat, high-fiber diet coupled with regular exercise …