KNEE PAIN NOW
If chronic knee pain is slowing you down but you're not
ready to have the joint replaced, two outpatient pain
management procedures at Vassar Brothers Medical
Center may provide temporary relief.
David Gamburg, MD, Anesthesiologist and Pain Management Physician at VBMC, performs
genicular nerve block, an injection to numb the nerves that transmit knee pain.
"The genicular nerves don't affect the movement or strength of the joint," Dr. Gamburg says.
"The principle behind the procedure is to take away pain without affecting the knee's function."
Dr. Gamburg performs the nerve block in approximately 10 minutes, with patients
under conscious sedation. If tests indicate a patient experiences more than 50 percent pain
relief during the subsequent five days, Dr. Gamburg can follow up with a second outpatient
procedure to neutralize the nerves using radiofrequency (RF) energy.
"Applying RF energy provides up to a year's worth of pain relief," Dr. Gamburg says. "Many
people who want to postpone knee replacement or whose health problems prevent them from
having surgery can benefit from these procedures."
TO FIND OUT IF YOU'RE A CANDIDATE FOR GENICULAR NERVE BLOCK, SCHEDULE AN
APPOINTMENT WITH A PAIN MANAGEMENT PHYSICIAN. THE COMPLETE HQ PHYSICIAN
DIRECTORY CAN BE FOUND AT WWW.HEALTH-QUEST.ORG.
Applying RF energy provides up to a year's worth of pain relief.
he Latest ROBOTIC TECHNOLOGY
T
Putnam Hospital Center and Vassar Brothers Medical Center are proud
to offer the da Vinci® Surgical System Si, the latest innovation from
the da Vinci product line. The da Vinci Si provides surgeons with 3-D
visualization in addition to the benefits of traditional robotic surgery,
including:
• minimal blood loss
• short recovery times
• slight scarring
• small risk of complications from surgery
"The new machine is a tremendous tool for surgeons," says Naeem U.
Rahman, MD, Medical Director of Robotic Surgery at VBMC. "We're able
to improve our surgical care with a smaller camera than the previous
4 Health Quest
da Vinci system as well as with new instruments, such as a robotic stapler
and tissue sealer."
For patients, the advantages translate into better care, less scarring and
more options. In the hands of experienced surgeons at PHC and VBMC,
the da Vinci Si can improve your surgical experience.
"We're able to perform more complex procedures with fewer incisions,"
says Carl Calica, MD, FACS, General Surgeon at PHC. "General surgeries,
such as gallbladder removal, are now single-site, which means only a one
inch-long incision is needed."
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT DA VINCI ROBOTIC SURGERY AT HEALTH
QUEST, VISIT WWW.HEALTH-QUEST.ORG/DAVINCI.
