Nathan Littauer to offer “Concussion Discussion” Posted on January 15, 2016 by Dakota PikeAs part of Nathan Littauer’s ongoing mission to keep children safe and in the game, Littauer’s Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation Team will be presenting a unique program to the community: A Concussion Discussion. The Hospital is hosting the movie “Concussion” at the Johnstown Movieplex to be followed by a round table discussion with medical and athletic experts. The entire event will take place in a theater the hospital has rented out for the evening. “While the movie does focus on the NFL, it is a good conversation starter for any athlete, parent or coach,” explained Cheryl McGrattan, Nathan Littauer Hospital, Vice President of Community Relations.The event will start at 6pm, Thursday, January 21, 2016 at the MoviePlex in Johnstown. Attendees will be treated to the full length movie “Concussion” starring Will Smith followed immediately by a roundtable discussion. The speakers for the evening are: Dr. Richard Solby, Pediatrician at Littauer and William Oates, Director of Rehab and Sports Medicine, also for Littauer. James Robare, Director of Athletics for Johnstown High School will also be presenting.The event is free. RSVPs are required to for admission. Anyone interested in attending the event, is asked to please RSVP to 736-1120 or by emailing: stopsportsinjuries@nlh.org by January 18, 2016.McGrattan continued, “We also will simulate an on-field concussion “event” complete with proper and immediate evaluation.”According to the CDC, “If left undiagnosed, a concussion may place an athlete at risk of developing second impact syndrome—a potentially fatal injury that occurs when an athlete sustains a second head injury before a previous head injury has completely heal.”The hospital is also reminding the community that the program is appropriate for any high-impact sport, including soccer, snowmobiling, football, hockey, lacrosse and motocross. The event is open to coaches for any age group, parents, athletes, Athletic Directors, trainers and healthcare professionals.According to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) survey recently found that reports of concussions are up 60 percent over the past decade in hospital emergency rooms. And the increase isn’t a result of more injuries; it’s because people now understand the seriousness of sports injuries, and are taking preventive measures.
Littauer’s Pediatrician Dr. Solby takes to the national airwaves Posted on June 29, 2011August 16, 2012 by Dakota PikeDoctor to be heard on almost 200 stations across the US and abroad.Nathan Littauer’s pediatrician Dr. Richard Solby will be heard on “The Health Show” a nationally-syndicated health radio show produced by Bob Barrett. The show will air this Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 3pm on local stations. “The show has incredible reach.” stated Cheryl McGrattan spokesperson for Nathan Littauer Hospital. She added, “We are thrilled so many people will be able to hear Dr. Solby as he talks about his vision for healthy children.” Dr. Solby will be talking about overcoming childhood obesity, a topic he is passionate about.Littauer pediatrician Dr. Richard Solby to be heard on 190 stations across the US on healthradio.orgThe Health Show is heard on 190 stations throughout the US, including Armed Forces Radio, Reading Services Radio in Jackson, Mississippi and stretching to Guam and the Turks and Cacaos. The show reaches millions of people. Stations local to the hospital can tune in to: WAMC 90.3 FM – Albany, NY, WCAN – Canajoharie, NY, or by logging onto www.wamc.org and pressing on the “listen live” icon Thursday at 3pm. The show will also be archived on www.wamc.org and on the show’s website www.healthshow.org.
Nathan Littauer monitors childhood asthma cases Posted on September 2, 2009 by Dakota PikeBattling to breathe. Childhood asthma a local concern By ZACH SUBAR, special to The Leader-Herald. First published in print: Sunday, August 31, 2009Charleston resident Heather Bivins works hard to care for her 5-year-old son Josh, who was diagnosed with asthma at age 1 1/2. She has made several early morning trips to the emergency room, and has learned to juggle the medications and devices necessary to keep the disease in check. “It’s been a roller-coaster ride,” Bivins said. “He’s to the point now where we’ve gone through it enough times where we know the symptoms and treat them aggressively.”Still, even though there are many diligent parents like Bivins who care for their children’s asthma, numbers indicate high rates of childhood asthma, especially in Fulton County, are a reality in this area. Recent data from U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s office indicate children were hospitalized overnight 115 times from 2005 to 2007 in Fulton County for asthma symptoms. There are an estimated 866 children with asthma in the county. The number of times a child was placed in a hospital overnight compared to the number of children is higher here than almost anywhere else in New York.That total number of overnight stays within the three-year time span out of the 866 estimated children with asthma in the county means that, on average, one in about every 7 1/2 children was required to stay overnight in a medical ward.“If [children] have it, it’s not surprising that you would see hospitalizations,” Fulton County Public Health Director Denise Frederick said. “We’re one of the highest areas outside of New York City.” The next highest rate is in Sullivan County, where about one in every 8 1/2 children was required to stay overnight in a hospital, followed by Erie County, where about one in every 10 children with the disease had an overnight stay. The Bronx has the highest overall rate, with about one of every four hospitalized.One of every 17 Montgomery County children with asthma was hospitalized overnight, while Hamilton County’s rate is one in every 20 children. “It’s become so commonplace that you don’t necessarily think of it as a problem,” local pediatrician Dr. Richard A. Solby said. “And then you see numbers.”Solby, who works at Nathan Littauer Hospital’s Primary Care Center in Johnstown, said he deals with lots of child asthma patients. Part of the problem here, he said, is that many parents do not necessarily treat the disease every day, as they should.Instead of attacking the disease in a proactive manner, Solby said, and administering the proper medicines every day, parents often wait for symptoms to start before they bring their children in to be treated.“If you’re not treating those other components on a daily basis and being preventative, you’re running into a daily problem,” Solby said. Child asthma has been pinpointed as one of the top five public health issues in the county, according to Littauer spokeswoman Cheryl McGrattan. Continue reading “Nathan Littauer monitors childhood asthma cases”
