The Scope

You’re at a holiday dinner and you think someone is choking on food – should you give them the Heimlich maneuver? Does it really work? Emergency room physician Dr. Troy Madsen answers these questions and also tells you how to identify if someone is really choking, whether you should perform the Heimlich and how to tell if you’re doing it properly.

Although prostate cancer isn’t likely to kill you, it can have a very negative impact on your quality of life. For men who have been diagnosed with the disease, figuring out the right treatment option can be overwhelming. Dr. Jonathan Tward from Huntsman Cancer Institute discusses the different treatment options for prostate cancer and how to figure out which option may be the best for you. He als...

If you’re a man and live long enough, you’re likely to get prostate cancer. But when should you get screened and what does a positive screening mean? Dr. Jonathan Tward from Huntsman Cancer Institute tells you the effectiveness of prostate cancer screening. He also discusses the potential downsides of early screening and why many men go for years without knowing they have prostate cancer.

If you think the use of leeches to bleed people died with the Middle Ages, you might be surprised to learn that the slimy bugs are used in modern medicine to suck out venous blood and allow room for new, oxygenated blood. But these leeches may be out of a job soon. Dr. Jay Agarwal talks about the importance of leeches in medicine and the introduction of mechanical leeches to the medical world. He...

Degloving sounds pretty gruesome, and it can happen if you put your hand in the snowblower – even if it’s not running. And surprisingly, it’s not the arms and hands that get injured in most chainsaw accidents. Even an innocent looking snow shovel can send you to the emergency room. This winter, avoid the types of injuries Dr. Troy Madsen sees from snowblowers, chainsaws, and even the good old-fash...

Choosing the right toy is not about what is trending—it is about how children learn at each stage of development. From infants discovering the world through sound, texture, and cause-and-effect, to older kids using play to explore identity, creativity, and independence, the best toys grow with a child's needs. Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD , breaks down what actually supports learning and develop...

Borrowing tools from Hollywood, Dr. Janet Iwasa, Research Assistant Professor in Biochemistry at the University of Utah, transforms research findings into lively, 3-D animated movies. She says the process causes scientists to think about their work more deeply and to question assumptions. Since it's hard to resist a good movie, the animations are effective tools for communicating results to scient...

You’re considering a pancreas transplant to cure your type 1 diabetes, but have questions – This episode of The Scope is for you. Dr. Jeffery Campsen, surgical director of transplants, talks about the benefits of a pancreas transplant for type one diabetes patients, how it works compared to traditional methods of controlling the disease and why it is one of the best options for many people.

The stigma associated with lung cancer is that it’s a smokers’ disease and they’ve brought it on themselves. While it’s true that 90 percent of lung cancer cases are smoking related, 10 percent come from other causes, and that number is even higher in Utah at 30 percent. Learn about the non-smoking causes of lung cancer from Dr. Shamus Carr at Huntsman Cancer Institute, including occupational, env...

Your family’s medical history is one of the most important indicators of your future health and is valuable information for your doctor. Thanksgiving is National Family History day and is a great time to ask your relatives about your family's medical history. Genetic Counselor Wendy Kohlmann, MS , at Huntsman Cancer Institute talks about the specific questions you should ask, how a genetic counsel...

Some of the health issues that concerns women don’t actually pertain to their own health, but rather, the health of the men in their life. One of the health problems women want their men to know about—and fix—is snoring. Women’s expert Dr. Kirtly Parker Jones talks about why snoring can be a problem for bed partners and how women can help their men fix the health issue.

Not all bacteria are bad. Within each of us are over 1,000 species of good bacteria that live in our gut, skin, mouth, and other exposed surfaces that we could not survive without. June Round, PhD , Professor in Pathology at the University of Utah, explains how good bacteria that live in our bodies work with our immune system to protect us from diseases in ways you might have never imagined. She a...

The holidays can be stressful and bring down anyone’s mood temporarily. But how do you know when you’ve got Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and not just the Winter Blues? If your interest level drops, you prefer to be alone and you often pretend to be happy when you’re not, it might be SAD. Dr. Jason Hunziker from University of Utah Health describes the symptoms of SAD and explains why it happen...

Your energy level is down, you’re putting on weight, your mood is affected and your sex drive is decreased. You might have low testosterone. Ads for testosterone therapy flood the television and it looks pretty easy to get. Should you get it? Dr. Tom Miller from the University of Utah tells you the facts about testosterone treatments and why some men may need it. He also discusses the reasons it m...

You're approaching an intersection when you come across a terrible accident. While it may be your gut reaction to jump in and help, that may not be the best course of action. Emergency room physician Dr. Troy Madsen discusses when to help, and when it may be best to stand back and let emergency personnel do their jobs.

Cold sores are caused by the Herpes Simplex 1 virus, which resides in nerves near the spinal column. These sores are painful and persistent, and once the virus infects the body, it never goes away. Tom Miller, MD , discusses triggers and causes of cold sores, as well as the importance of oral treatments during the prodromal stage to alleviate symptoms.

Nightmares are very common in kids. Seeing scary and unfamiliar images in movies or on TV can trigger bad dreams. Dr. Benjamin Chan talks about how you can help your child cope when things go bump in the night.

Surgical site infections are one of the most common complications of surgery. They can delay healing time, which means longer hospital stays, more doctor visits, and more time away from work. One of the best ways to prevent surgical site infections is good hand hygiene. Dr. Harriet Hopf discusses how hospitals are working hard to prevent infections from starting, and how patients can do thier part...

Every flu season brings the same questions: Does the vaccine really work? Can it cause the flu? What if my child has an egg allergy? The evidence strongly supports annual immunization for nearly all children over six months of age. Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD , explains vaccination options, common side effects, and safety concerns to help parents make confident decisions. Learn what flu vaccine...

Hand washing is one of the best ways to keep kids healthy, but getting them to do it—and do it right—can be a challenge. But with the right tricks, you can turn this daily task into something your child enjoys. Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD , shares creative ways to make hand washing fun, help kids kill the germs they cannot see, and build healthy habits that stick.

You see the ads on TV during sporting events, and athletes swear by them. Do sports drinks make a difference? Dr. Troy Madsen has the facts and tackles some hydration myths like drinking pickle juice on game day.

Bedtime battles are common, but a consistent sleep routine can make a world of difference. From infants to teenagers, children thrive on structure, and getting enough rest is key to their focus, mood, and academic success. Pediatrician Cindy Gellner, MD , talks about why sleep schedules matter, how to handle common bedtime struggles, and when to seek medical advice for your child's sleep issues.

You've heard the old wives tales about what you should and shouldn't do while pregnant. But can you separate fact from fiction? OB-GYN Dr. Kirtly Parker Jones weighs in on the truth behind some well-known pregnancy myths.

It's Halloween, so you theoretically could land in the ER for a vampire bite, right? All joking aside, dozens of people each year land in the ER for bit marks. Dr. Troy Madsen discusses treatment options. Dr. Troy Madsen talks about the different types of bites that come through the ER, from dogs and bats, and how to avoid being bitten this Halloween.

You might think dry eye disease is a result of simply having a lack of tears. The condition is actually an inflammatory disease. Dr. Majid Moshirfar explains the causes of dry eye disease —and what you can do to treat it. Dr. Maji Moshirfar from the University of Utah's Moran Eye Center tells us why fall is dry eye season, what causes it, and how to cure the disease.