Primary Care

As your primary physician, Dr. Farhadian is dedicated to not only treating any health conditions you may have, she's also concerned about preventing any future issues. She'll monitor you during routine visits if anything is out of the ordinary by:

• Providing thorough annual physical exams
• Ordering blood work
• Testing your lungs with a spirometry test
• Giving you vaccinations
• Screening for cancer
• Diagnosis and treatment of common internal medicine diseases
• Monitoring your heart through an EKG
• Providing referrals, if needed
• Basic gynecological services, including Pap Smears

If your insurance allows you to go directly to a specialist without having to see your primary care physician first, you certainly have the right to do so. But there's a chance you might go to the wrong specialist.

For instance, if your chest hurts occasionally, you might think it's your heart and go to a cardiologist. At your cardiology appointment, you might go through many imaging tests with negative results and no solution. In the end, maybe the real issue was that you suffer from gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). You didn't actually need to see a cardiologist, but you should have gone to a gastroenterologist instead.

By visiting your primary care physician in the first place, you can save time (and possibly money) by getting referred to the right type of specialist. Or, because she is an internal medicine physician, Dr. Farhadian might be able to treat you herself, so you wouldn't even have to go elsewhere.

Yes. Seeing your PCP is convenient. Dr. Farhadian and her expert team are dedicated to caring for you from head to toe, and you'll be able to get many of the treatments you need right in her state-of-the -art office. Because Dr. Elie Medical Center is a one-stop shop, all of your medical records are in one place. You won't have to go searching if you need a prior record.

Having a primary care physician also gives you someone to call if you're sick. You'll be able to get in with your doctor, who already knows your health, rather than visiting with a provider who doesn't have access to your medical history. Once you're established as a patient, all you have to do is call anytime you have a medical concern.

Cardiovascular disease includes several conditions that cause damage and narrowing of the blood vessels. Most of these problems will lead to plaque buildup on the walls of your arteries, which is known as atherosclerosis. This condition strains your heart, since your arteries become more narrow, forcing your heart to work harder to circulate blood. When you have cardiovascular disease, your risk of suffering from blood vessel blockages, chest pain called angina, heart attack, and stroke, all go up.

The term "heart disease", on the other hand, is a broader term that technically consists of any issues that affect your heart, including cardiovascular disease. But heart disease includes other heart-related conditions, too, such as arrhythmias, valve problems, and congenital heart defects, to name a few. Since cardiovascular disease and heart disease are so intertwined, you may hear the terms used interchangeably.

Every time your heart beats, it pushes blood through your blood vessels. This force allows your blood to circulate and is known as your blood pressure. When the circulating blood puts too much force against your artery walls, it can lead to problems.

If the force of your blood pumping through your arteries is too high over the long term, you have high blood or hypertension. The resistance in your blood vessels means your heart will need to pump harder, just to do its job, which puts extra stress on the heart. When your blood vessels are narrowed from cardiovascular disease, and you have high blood pressure, too, your risk of having a heart attack and stroke.

Normal blood pressure should be 130/80 or lower. If your blood pressure readings are above 140/90, Dr. Farhadian will likely have to start treating you for hypertension, which may include lifestyle changes and medication.

Yes. Having high blood pressure isn't the only risk factor for cardiovascular disease, although it is a common one. You might also have an increased risk of heart and blood vessel problems if you:

• Have high cholesterol
• Smoke cigarettes
• Are overweight
• Don't exercise
• Have an unhealthy diet
• Are under a lot of stress
• Are older
• Have diabetes

Being overweight can impact your body's ability to use insulin, the hormone that allows your cells to absorb glucose, which makes it harder to manage your diabetes. When you meet Dr. Farhadian, she'll tell you what a healthy weight is for your body.

As an expert in diabetes maintenance, Dr. Farhadian will create a custom weight loss plan for you, which will likely include nutrition counseling and exercise planning. You'll learn which foods you should be eating to lose weight, as well as what types of foods can help you keep your blood sugar levels stable.

Exercise isn't only important for losing weight, It's also critical of managing your diabetes. When you exercise, your cells need more energy. This forces your body to push glucose from your blood into your cells. Getting more physically active even boosts your body's insulin sensitivity, which allows the hormone to work more efficiently and normalize your blood sugar.

It depends. If you have Type 1 diabetes, your pancreas doesn't produce insulin or makes only a tiny bit of it. In this case, you'll need regular insulin injections throughout the day. Type 2 diabetes is different, your pancreas typically produces some insulin, but your body becomes resistant to it. Some men and women who have Type 2 diabetes need insulin injections, while others manage it with diet, exercise, and oral medication that improves insulin function and blood sugar levels.

With insulin injections, you have to manually check your blood sugar several times each day, then give yourself the shot as needed. An insulin pump is an alternative option for getting essential insulin into your system. The pump, which is about the size of a small cellphone that you wear on your belt, connects to an insulin reservoir underneath the skin in your abdomen. You can program your insulin pump to send out certain amounts of insulin at specific times, or manually dispense insulin as needed. Some modern insulin pumps even work wirelessly. Dr.Farhadian can help you determine which type of pump best fits your needs.

When you breathe, air goes down your windpipe into your lungs, where the windpipe branches into two bronchi, and then smaller bronchial tubes. These airways end in tiny air sacs that allows oxygen into the bloodstream for distribution to the rest of your body.

If you're having difficulty breathing, it isn't anything to be taken lightly. There are a number of lung diseases that can impact the small airways in your lungs and affect your ability to breathe, including:

• Asthma
• Bronchitis
• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Emphysema
• Lung cancer
• Pneumonia
• Pulmonary edema
• Tuberculosis

Lung disease can affect your quality of life, and may require prompt attention. If you have shortness of breath, coughing, difficulty taking a deep breath, or any other breathing issues, make an appointment with Dr. Farhadian for diagnosis and treatment, so you can breathe easier again.

If you're a new patient, Dr. Farhadian will need your medical history, so if you have any previous diagnosis records, bring that information to your appointment. She'll want to know about your family history of lung or kidney problems. Once she gathers information about you, she'll go through a full examination to evaluate your symptoms. After that, you may need some blood drawn to check for inflammation or biomarkers that could be warning signs of lung or kidney disorders. For kidney problems, you'll probably need to provide a urine sample, too.

Once Dr. Farhadian gets your lab results back, she might need some imaging to get a picture of exactly what's going on. This can include ultrasounds, CT scans, X-rays, MRIs or specialized tests for your lungs or kidneys. Between your exam, lab work, and imaging, Dr. Farhadian can help determine a diagnosis and get on a treatment plan.