7
health
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Stacy Vaillancourt
Vice President of Marketing, Communications,
Advocacy & Human Resources
Kelley Sanchez
Director, Corporate Communications
Douglas Hembd
Manager, Graphics/Publications
Jaime Huss
Senior Communications Specialist
HEALTHLINK is published as a community service for
the friends and patrons of SAINT AGNES MEDICAL
CENTER, 1303 E. Herndon Ave., Fresno, CA 93720,
telephone 559-450-3000.
Information in HEALTHLINK comes from a wide range
of medical experts. If you have any concerns or ques-
tions about specific content that may affect your health,
please contact your health care provider. Models may
be used in photos and illustrations.
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Copyright © 2012 Coffey Communications, Inc.
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For classes and support groups,
visit www.samc.com >
Classes & Events.
For more information about the health
education classes, programs and sup-
port groups sponsored by Saint Agnes
Medical Center or if you need help
finding a physician, call your Health
Source Connection at 559-450-2000
or 800-ST-AGNES (800-782-4637).
Please be aware, some events listed
require fees or physician referrals.
7
Getting dressed, driving a car, tak-
ing a walk. Most people call these
everyday activities. Ed Armbrister no
longer takes them for granted. Just
two years ago, bedbound and strug-
gling to recover from the amputation
of five toes, Ed found these daily
tasks unthinkable.
“I never thought I’d walk again,”
Ed says.
His health scare stemmed from
complications of type 2 diabetes.
Having kept his diabetes in check for
years, Ed began to slack on good
eating habits and taking medica-
tions. Equally important for people
with diabetes is keeping an eye on
good foot care. Diabetes can cause
poor blood flow to the feet, which
slows the healing process when an
injury develops. What may start as a
small problem – in Ed’s case, a hang-
nail – can lead to an infection. It was
not long before Ed’s minor cut grew
worse, leading to gangrene and the
amputation of all five toes on his
right foot.
Ed’s amputation wounds were still
slow to heal, so his physician referred
him to a unique treatment called
hyperbaric oxygen therapy at the
Oxygen therapy: A breath of new life
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Saint Agnes Wound, Ostomy and Hyperbaric Center is one of a
few centers of its kind in the Central Valley. Being a hospital-based
program ensures that patients receive the same level of care that
meets all regulatory requirements expected of hospitals. For more
information, please call 559-450-3456 or visit www.samc.com/
wound-ostomy-and-hyperbaric-center.
Saint Agnes Wound, Ostomy and
Hyperbaric Center.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves
breathing pure oxygen. Patients relax
in a sealed chamber pressurized at
up to three times the normal atmo-
spheric pressure. The pressure inside
the chamber causes the oxygen to
dissolve into the patient’s blood and
diffuse into the body’s tissues and
fluids, which stimulates healing.
“It’s is a simple, noninvasive and
painless way of delivering high doses
of oxygen to the body,” says vascu-
lar surgeon Leo Fong, MD, medical
director of the center. “Hyperbaric
oxygen therapy can help stimulate
new blood vessel growth, increase
oxygen to tissues, reduce swelling
and help fight certain infections.”
The center includes a comprehen-
sive team of physicians, nurses and
licensed support staff who create
a specific treatment plan for each
patient. Ed’s treatments involved two-
hour sessions five days a week over
several months. It wasn’t long before
Ed noticed the benefits.
“Going for my hyperbaric treat-
ments became the high point of my
day,” he says. “Had it not been for
the hyperbaric oxygen treatments and
the people who helped me, I prob-
ably wouldn’t have a right leg.”
Now, more than a year after treat-
ment, Ed is fully mobile and counting
his blessings.
“You have no idea how appreciative
I am of just being able to walk down
a step, stand in the shower, or go fish-
ing,” Ed says. “Saint Agnes Wound,
Ostomy and Hyperbaric Center is the
best thing that could have happened
to me.”
After struggling with complications
from type 2 diabetes, Ed Armbrister is
all healed up and loving life once again.
Winter 2012