Health Briefs: Sleep apnea group meets Tuesday

By: North County Times - | Saturday, September 22, 2007 10:11 PM PDT ∞

OCEANSIDE ----The American Sleep Apnea Association hosts a meeting of AWAKE, the sleep apnea support group for North County-San Diego, at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside. Meetings are held bimonthly to assist and educate those individuals who have sleep apnea and especially those using a CPAP machine. Dr. Scott West, DDS, will speak on dental alternatives for snoring and those with sleep apnea. Free. Refreshments.

Tri-City Hospital Foundation hosts seminars

OCEANSIDE ---- "Health and Wealth" is the name of a series of seminars sponsored by the Tri-City Hospital Foundation with two guest speakers at each seminar, one focused on health, the other on finances. Seminars start at 2 p.m. Reserve to (760) 940-3370 or e-mail to plannedgiving@tcmc.com. The schedule:

Oct. 4: What's New in Cataract Surgery/Gift Planning: the Big Picture

Oct. 9: Recognition and Emergency Treatment of the Heart Attack Patient/IRA Rollovers to Charities: Good Only Through Dec. 31, 2007

Oct. 19: Skin Changes and Damage With Sun Exposure; The Challenge: Generating Income for Life

Oct. 24: Keeping Your Life Healthy/Understanding Medicare and the Medicare Part D Drug Program

Healthy Woman night set for Wednesday

BONSALL ---- UltraStar Cinema will host the free Healthy Woman Ladies Night Out Event from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at 5256 S. Mission Road. Featured topics are cosmetic procedures including botox, dentistry, and the benefits of anti-aging creams. Speakers include Dr. Brian Tyson, Dr. James Sorge and Avon representative Ruby Hoffman.

The new PG-13 comedy movie "Mr. Woodcock" will be shown after the event. This event, including the movie showing, is free and includes social and networking opportunities, food and door prizes. Call (760) 731-8432 for reservations or visit www.fallbrookhospital.com. Free membership sign-up also is available through the Web site.

Ovarian cancer group hosts event

ESCONDIDO ---- Dr. Kris Ghosh, ob-gyn oncologist, speaks at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Reidy Creek Club House, 1350 Morning View Drive, sponsored by the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition, San Diego Division. Reserve to (760) 749-8741.

School offers free massages

ESCONDIDO ---- Healing Hands School of Holistic Health, a state-certified massage therapy school in Escondido, is offering free massages on Thursday, their "Public Day." Call (760) 746-9364.

Pancake breakfast to benefit ill child

CARLSBAD ---- From 8 a.m. to noon Saturday at 3096 Harding St., friends and family will be cooking a pancake breakfast to raise money for Miranda Orozco, 5, who suffers from kidney cancer. The breakfast will include eggs, pancakes, sausage and coffee or orange juice, plus entry into a raffle. Miranda was diagnosed with a kidney tumor when she was 4. A year ago, she had a kidney removed and underwent treatment at Rady Children's Hospital. Now another tumor has been found. The community is asked to support the family by either buying tickets, donating breakfast items for the event or donating to her fund. Proceeds will help offset medical costs and are tax-deductible. Contact Melissa Carreon at (760) 917-2331 or e-mail to: mmmcar123@yahoo.com. To donate, send to The Miranda Fund, 3309 Roosevelt St., Carlsbad, CA 92008. Tax ID #20-7550217.

National Psoriasis Walk set for Saturday

SAN DIEGO ---- The National Psoriasis Foundation hosts its first National Psoriasis Walk for Awareness on Saturday at Mission Bay Park's De Anza Cove in San Diego. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m., and the 1K and 5K walks begin at 9. Join or start a team, make a donation or volunteer to help out on the day of the event! Each participant is asked to raise donations from their friends and family, with a suggested fundraising goal of $100. Goody bags, T-shirts for walkers, or just bring a picnic lunch and enjoy the musical entertainment. To register, contribute or learn more, visit www.psoriasis.org/walk.

Mended Hearts group to meet Saturday

ENCINITAS ---- Coastal North County Mended Hearts meets at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Scripps Encinitas Hospital Conference Room. Ann Schussler, manager of the hospital pathology lab, will discuss "Blood Tests That Relate to Heart Patients." Mended Hearts, affiliated with the American Heart Association, provides a forum for former and current heart patients to offer support and information during and after their treatment. Call (760) 943-1262.

Eating-habits workshop begins

SAN MARCOS ---- A 12-week workshop on "Breaking the Bondage of Destructive Eating Habits," sponsored by Mission Hills Church, will begin at 1:45 p.m. Sept. 30. Free. The source book, "Love to Eat, Hate to Eat," can be purchased for $7 at the first meeting. Register to (760) 759-2233.

Women in Health luncheon set for Oct. 3

SAN DIEGO ---- Palomar Pomerado Health and the American Heart Association present "Collaborating Against Cancer" from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 3 at the Carmel Mountain Ranch Country Club. The event is part of the association's 2007 "Women in Health" luncheon series, sponsored by PPH. Dr. Kris Ghosh will discuss prevention, risk factors, warning signs and available treatments for breast, ovarian, uterine, cervical and lung cancer. Guests can participate in health screenings including blood pressure, body composition and a skin cancer screening performed by dermatologist Dr. Nancy Chen of Escondido Dermatology.

Cost is $25 per person and includes a gourmet lunch, featured speaker and health screenings. Register to (800) 628-2880 or visit www.pph.org. The country club is at 14050 Carmel Ridge Road.

Free acupuncture offered to breast cancer patients

ENCINITAS ---- Starting at 10 a.m. Oct. 6, acupuncturist Karen Sulger, owner of Acupuncture Continuum, will offer free acupuncture services to breast cancer victims. Treatments will include acupuncture wellness treatments, massage therapy and energy work. Call or e-mail to set up your free treatment. Walk-ins are also welcome on a first-come, first-served basis. Acupuncture Continuum is at 317 N. El Camino Real, Suite 401. Visit acupuncturecontinuum.com.

VCC offers breast cancer support group

Vista Community Clinic's Breast Health Program offers a support group for breast cancer survivors and those in treatment. The group meets bi-weekly on Tuesdays from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Members of the group share experiences and resource information. Call (760) 407-1220 Ext. 167, or (760) 407-1220 Ext. 154.

Clinic offers INS healthcare exams

ESCONDIDO -- Neighborhood Healthcare offers INS medical exams, a requirement for anyone applying for legal residency or citizenship in the United States. Exams are available weekdays at the health center, by appointment only. The health center is at 460 N. Elm St., Escondido.

The exam costs $85 plus laboratory fees. Additional costs may vary, depending upon specific government requirements for type of application and country of origin.

Patients will also need to bring a government-issued photo ID and BCIS physical forms, which may be obtained online at www.bcis.gov/graphics/surgeonportal.htm, from INS or from their attorney.

For details or to make an appointment, call (760) 520-8100. Exams are also available weekdays by appointment at Neighborhood Healthcare ---- Pauma Valley, off Highway 76. Call (760) 742-9923 to make an appointment in Pauma Valley.

Speakers available from VCC

Vista Community Clinic provides guest speakers for group luncheons or meetings and provides health education booths for health fairs. The clinic speakers bureau can present a variety of health education topics such as:

- Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drug (ATOD) Prevention Programs: Learn about substance abuse issues that affect the local community, public health initiatives that work, and what local citizens can do to get involved in combating these problems.

- Breast Health Education Program: Learn about breast health issues, mammograms, free services offered to target populations, special event schedules.

- Junior REACH and Project REACH: Learn about REACH after school programs for at-risk youths in Vista and Oceanside, challenges facing todayís youth, and REACH success stories.

Contact Betsy Heightman at (760) 631-5000, Ext. 1139 to request a speaker.

Clinical trial Web sites

Clinical trials recruit volunteers to test drugs and therapies. Many are held in and around our area. These Web sites list many clinical trials. Clinical trials have precise inclusion and exclusion rules, so when you find one that interests you, be sure to read the rules carefully:

http://clinicaltrials.gov/. Site of the National Institutes of Health.

http://www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials. Site of the National Cancer Institute.

http://www.centerwatch.com/. This site partners with WebMD.com to list 42,000 trials.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/clinicaltrials.html. This site sponsored by Medline/National Library of Medicine explains what you should know about clinical trials.