Welcome to Women’s Center for Integrative Health. What an exciting time this must be for you, as a young woman in this age of the Internet, diverse music, iPads, sports, texting, hobbies, academics and that strange species you find yourself noticing more and more from a distance – namely “Boys!” It is important for you to start thinking about your female health now, in order to prevent problems in the future. I can explain how preventive healthcare and annual visits can help ensure better overall wellness, both now as you develop, and in the future.
I understand that your teenage years can be a very confusing time. Your body is changing, and you probably have many questions. You may not always be comfortable talking to your parents. Maybe you sense that your parents are a bit uncomfortable with the subject, too. More than often, your friends might act like they know everything, but you suspect some of this is just “big talk” or “flossing” and not likely based on medical facts. Your hunch is correct!
I want you to know that I understand your concerns. I have been a physician for over 15 years, and also have a young daughter. More so, I was once a teenage girl myself – not too long ago! You do not have to be embarrassed to ask me about anything that concerns you. I will answer all of your questions honestly and give you all of the facts you need.
Rest assured, our conversations will be held strictly confidential. Know that I will never tell your parents what we talk about in privacy, unless you give me written permission. Not only is that my firm policy, it is also the law. I will however, encourage you to become comfortable talking to your parents.
Finally, you might be worried that your visit to my practice will involve an uncomfortable exam. This is usually not the case. Most of your visit will involve sitting together in my office and talking about teen health and anything that concerns you. Again, feel free to ask me about anything you like.
Meeting teens for their first appointment, along with delivering babies, is truly the greatest joy in my job. My most frequent prescription to all women, young and old, is to “~ LoveThyself.” I look forward to meeting you, laughing and sharing.
The first visit to a gynecologist’s office can often be a time of anxiety and stress for a young woman. It is important for a young woman’s first gynecology appointment to establish a foundation for lifelong wellness. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology now recommends that girls have their first visit with a gynecologist between the ages of 13 and 15. Dr. Price believes that generous private time, comfortable surrounds and building a foundation for a trusting relationship are important to establishing level of comfort for the young woman new to gynecological care.
These visits are usually consultative in nature, with exams performed only as indicated. The first visit may not necessarily involve an exam; instead it serves as an opportunity for Dr. Price to structure a thorough and fact-based approach to the information adolescent girls need and for the teen patient to ask questions about her concerns in a nonjudgmental, confidential atmosphere. Dr. Price will not betray the confidentiality of these visits but will encourage teens to develop a trusting, communicative relationship with their patents. In a relaxed, comfortable, private setting, she gives teen patients her undivided attention and fact-based counseling to address their concerns and help them make better choices.
A Teenagers’ health care needs are provided at The Women’s Center, often in conjunction with the patient’s pediatrician. This includes focus on breast and bone health, menstrual function and pubertal development, prevention of STDs and teen pregnancy, and maintenance of healthy body weight and nutritional status. A comprehensive history is obtained, with special attention to relevant family history, emotional and psychological issues, and nutritional and social factors. Extensive, honest and open dialogue with our physicians about the risk of premature sexual activity is reviewed and preventive health measures are discussed with the assurance of doctor-patient confidentiality.
You are beautiful in EVERY way! ~ Love Thyself
Pre-college Exam
The leap into college is an exciting time for young women. They are busy establishing new lives away from home and experiencing the thrill of independence on campus. With this independence, however, comes the responsibility for their health and safety, responsibilities that, until this point, have typically been assumed by the parent or guardian.
The Women’s Center can help prepare college-bound girls for a healthy and safe college experience during the Pre-College exam. Education is provided on important topics such as campus health services, emergency care, insurance plans, preventive care, reproductive health, emotional health, substance use and abuse, relationship violence, campus safety, and travel health. In addition, medical and immunization history are reviewed, examination and screening tests are performed as needed, and future needs addressed.
Knowledge is power. With this education and preparation, young women are better equipped and prepared for a safer and healthier college experience away from home and the caring supervision and support of their parents.
Dr. Andi wholeheartedly supports Pacer Center’s Teens Against Bullying Want to learn more about bullying prevention?
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Her Option® Cryoablation Therapy is a safe, effective treatment for patients with abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB). This minimally invasive procedure uses sub-zero temperatures to destroy the uterine lining, reducing a patient’s periods to normal levels or better.
Cryoablation uses sub-zero temperatures to reduce or eliminate the endometrium. The natural analgesic affect of these low temperatures helps minimize patient discomfort during the procedure. Ultrasound guidance enables real-time visualization during the therapy for added safety.
Candidates
Her Option® is intended for treatment of pre-menopausal women who have completed childbearing, and whose AUB symptoms are the result of benign causes.
Approximate duration of cryoablation procedure
Pre-procedure: 45 minutes Procedure: 10-20 minutes Post-procedure: 15 minutes Total: 75-85 minutes
You will be given a pre-procedure instruction sheet to prepare you for a smooth procedure. The sheet also includes specific patient recommendations and office contact information.
Consider the following recommendations:
You may have a light meal 30-45 minutes prior to her treatment.
Arrive at our office approximately 30 minutes to one hour prior to the procedure time.
You should have a comfortably full bladder for the treatment. We encourage you to drink two 8-oz. cups of water before you arrive.
We may perform a urine pregnancy test 3-4 weeks prior to Her Option treatment. And obtain your consent for treatment of the procedure. If you asked for a sedative, please make sure you arrange transportation to and from our office.
MonaLisa Touch® is an innovative lasting therapy for vaginal health that treats the painful symptoms of menopause, including intimacy. Visit SmileMonaLisa.com to learn more and find a doctor. During a treatment, a vaginal probe is inserted into the patient’s vagina, and delivers gentle, virtually painless laser energy to the vaginal wall, stimulating a healing response.
The total procedure takes less than five minutes, and a typical course of treatment is three procedures over 18 weeks.
Many women report symptom relief after the very first treatment, and even greater improvement after treatments 2 and 3!
Immediate & Lasting Results:
Three 5-minute treatments at 6 week intervals
• In-office procedure
• Minimal side effects
• No downtime
• Annual follow up treatment once a year*
* Your doctor will determine with you if follow-up treatments are required
Why it’s Unique
MonaLisa Touch is the only technology for vaginal and vulvar health with over 18+ published clinical studies. It is embraced by hundreds of experts in female pelvic health and premier academic institutions. It is the only treatment with proprietary stacking technology that enables deeper penetration and helps achieve maximum results.
INFORMATION ABOUT GARDASIL 9
GARDASIL®9(Human Papillomavirus 9-valent Vaccine, Recombinant)helps protect girls and women ages 9 to 26 against cervical, vaginal, vulvar, and anal cancers and genital warts caused by 9 types of HPV. GARDASIL 9helps protect boys and men ages 9 to 26 against anal cancer and genital warts caused by those same HPV types.GARDASIL 9 may not fully protect everyone, nor will it protect against diseases caused by other HPV types or against diseases not caused by HPV.
GARDASIL 9 does not prevent all types of cervical cancer, so it’s important for women to continue routine cervical cancer screenings. GARDASIL 9does not treat cancer or genital warts.
GARDASIL 9 is a shot that is usually given in the arm muscle. GARDASIL 9may be given as 2 or 3 shots.
For persons 9 through 14 years of age, GARDASIL 9 can be given using a 2-dose or 3-dose schedule. For the 2-dose schedule, the second shot should be given 6–12 months after the first shot. If the second shot is given less than 5 months after the first shot, a third shot should be given at least 4 months after the second shot. For the 3-dose schedule, the second shot should be given 2 months after the first shot and the third shot should be given 6 months after the first shot.
For persons 15 through 26 years of age, GARDASIL 9 is given using a 3-dose schedule; the second shot should be given 2 months after the first shot and the third shot should be given 6 months after the first shot.
The appropriate dosing schedule will be determined by your child’s health care professional.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
Anyone who is allergic to the ingredients of GARDASIL 9 or GARDASIL, including those severely allergic to yeast, should not receive the vaccine. GARDASIL 9 was not studied in women who knew they were pregnant.
The side effects include:
Pain
Swelling
Redness
Itching
Bruising
Bleeding
A lump where your child got the shot
Headache
Fever
Nausea
Dizziness
Fainting can happen after getting GARDASIL 9. Sometimes people who faint can fall and hurt themselves. For this reason, your health care professional may ask your child to sit or lie down for 15 minutes after your child gets GARDASIL 9. Some people who faint might shake or become stiff.Only a doctor or health care professional can decide if GARDASIL 9 is right for your child.You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.Please read the Patient Information for GARDASIL 9 and discuss it with your child’s doctor. The physician Prescribing Information also is available.
Non-Invasive. Convenient. Precise.
Founded in 1987, Diagnos-Techs™ is a pioneer and leader in saliva-based testing. Their commitment to assisting healthcare professionals in restoring patients’ health and wellness is unsurpassed with over 1.2 million specimens tested per year. Saliva testing is a powerful tool for evaluating stress, hormone-related disease and health conditions, especially over time. Diagnos-Techs™ continually improves and refines its laboratory testing standards, using cutting-edge technology and methods. Many healthcare providers and their patients have chosen Diagnos-Techs™ as their partner in wellness. Patients may order test kits through The Women’s Center for Integrative Health – New Jersey
DiagnosTechs specializes in providing testing for the following panels:
Adrenal Stress Index Panel™
Bone Health Panel™
Female Hormone Panel™
Food Intolerance Panel™
Gastrointestinal Health Panel™
Male Hormone Panel™
Menopausal Hormone Panels™
Flexi-Matrix™ Cutomized Test Panels
The use of umbilical cord blood stem cells has increased significantly in the past 20 years.38 Today, doctors all over the world are realizing the power of newborn stem cells and recommending family banking to their patients.When faced with the illness of a child or loved one, families want hope and doctors want options. Banking newborn stem cells provides both.
Doctors recommend banking for a variety of reasons. Umbilical cord blood is used today to treat many life-threatening diseases including leukemia, certain other cancers and blood, immune and metabolic disorders. And using your own family’s cord blood can have significant advantages in treatments, including fewer complications and improved medical outcomes.28,29
What Doctors Say About Banking Newborn Stem Cells
Potentially Lifesaving Purchase
“There’s only two things that (you can) potentially buy your new baby that are lifesaving: One is a good car seat and the other is cord blood.”
~ Dr. Marra Francis, Ob/Gyn, CBR medical consultant
More Uses Than We Know
“Just like we didn’t envision the powers of PCs thirty years ago, we may not be seeing all the uses of cord blood yet.”
~ Dr. LeeAnn Jensen, Immunologist National Institutes of Health
Potential to Heal the Body in New Ways
“A really exciting area that’s just now in the basic science lab, is the area where stem cells…can be used for going over to muscle cells like your heart muscle if you had a heart attack…or brain cells if you had Parkinson’s Disease…Hopefully, in 20 or 30 or 40 years…these might be potential applications for stem cells including umbilical cord blood stem cells.”
~ Dr. Stanton Goldman, Pediatric Hematologist Oncologist and stem cell transplant Physician, Medical City, Dallas, Texas
A Chance of Nervous System Repair
“Through cultivation of stem cells extracted from the cord blood, patients with spinal injuries have a great chance of having their damaged nervous system repaired, helping them to rise on their feet again.”
~ Dr. Chiang Yung-hsiao, Ph.D., Chairman of Neurosurgery, Tri-Service General Hospital, Tapei, Taiwan
Might Be Useful For Brain and Spinal Cord Injuries
“[Cord blood stem cells] might be suitable for transplantation in neurodegenerative diseases, gene delivery to the central nervous system, and repair of brain and spinal cord injuries.”
~ Juan R. Sanchez-Ramos, Shijie Song, Siddharth G. Kamath, et al. Experimental Neurology, 171, 2001
Significant for Ethnic Minorities and Families with History of Cancer
“The ultimate goal is for all usable umbilical cord blood to be banked in a national cord blood [bank] similar to the National Bone Marrow Donor Program or saved for an individual’s or family’s own potential use. The latter may prove especially significant for those with a family history of leukemia or cancer or for minority ethnic patients.”
~ Nursing Spectrum, February 24, 1997
A Better Chance for a Healthy Recovery
“Recipients of cord-blood transplants from HLA-identical siblings have a lower incidence rate of acute and chronic GVHD than recipients of bone marrow transplants from HLA-identical siblings.”
~ Drs. Vanderson Rocha, John E. Wagner, Jr., Eliane Gluckman, et. al. New England Journal of Medicine, June 22, 2000
“Are your hidden food allergies making you fat?”
Can’t you enjoy certain foods or do they cause adverse reactions? Do they induce your headaches, digestion problems, flatulence, arthritis and overweight? In this case, the ALCAT test could help you. This is an analytic probe, which investigates how each organism metabolizes the food. It is based on the blood analysis through which the reaction to about 100 food extracts is investigated and their “toxicity” is observed. In fact, it measures the susceptibility of the blood cells to react to certain aliments. This method is much healthier when you are trying to lose weight. Your organism can experience two types of allergic reactions to aliments: towards an aliment to the previous exposure to it or direct intolerance towards a specific food. The symptoms of these reactions can vary between patients, and can be acute or chronic.
The ALCAT test has already helped improve the health of hundreds of thousands of people around the world who suffer from a wide range of symptoms and illnesses, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), arthritis, obesity, chronic fatigue, migraines, intestinal problems, and childhood illnesses such as attention deficit disorder.
The ALCAT test can pinpoint your personal “trigger foods”, foods as common as oranges or wheat, that are causing you health problems and can give you clues on how to avoid the overweight. By eliminating those trigger foods, you will lose weight and regain your health and energy naturally, but this is not the case of each obesity case. The test is especially useful for those persons who, after a clinical history, need a procedure of diagnosis and treatment of the alimentary intolerance which affects their health.
For the moment, the ALCAT test is extremely effective in detecting intolerance to nuts, species, sea foods, celery, eggs, milk, cheese and some fruits and vegetables. These food items can induce a inappropriate metabolisation in some individuals. This test does not have any contraindications, as it is not a treatment; it just helps the diagnosis in case of food intolerance. But an incorrect use of the test is produced when the clinical history and other medical explorations show that we have an allergy and not an intolerance.
Ultrasound (3D /4D) Gynecology and Obstetrics
A manual pelvic exam alone may be incomplete. Our physicians are highly skilled in identifying a wide variety of abnormalities and evaluating fetal development. Whether you are pregnant or have other health concerns, with a pelvic sonogram, the uterus and ovaries are visualized.
Gynecologic Ultrasounds:
The Women’s Center performs screening, diagnostic, and interventional ultrasound for general gynecology, oncology, and reproductive endocrinology patients.
Gynecological ultrasound services include, but not limited to:
Pelvic evaluation
Evaluation of ovarian masses
Screening and detection of ovarian and endometrial cancer
Please note: For level 3 genetic or specialized scans, WCIHNJ will help guide you through the process to make your appointment to an Internal medicine Imaging Center.
Obstetric Ultrasounds:
The Women’s Center provide ultrasound screening for pregnant women and fetuses at risk for pregnancy-related complications by offering diagnostic ultrasound scans to detect fetal and placental abnormalities throughout pregnancy. Your first-trimester ultrasound, commonly performed to evaluate the risk of genetic abnormalities, has allowed for the early detection of some major abnormalities before the second trimester. If Dr. Price suspect or diagnose fetal or maternal complications, she will work with you to provide access to and coordinate with some of the world’s finest specialists. The Women’s Center will develop the best treatment options for you and your baby. Detecting early evidence of complications and establishing an effective course of action helps everyone achieve the goal of healthy mothers delivering healthy babies.
All women having ultrasound at The Women’s Center for Integrative Health – New Jersey, have the opportunity for consultations to discuss any ultrasound findings. If complications are suspected, Dr. Price will work with patients in formulating the best plan.
The range of fetal ultrasonography services include:
Screening
First and second trimester Down syndrome screening
Miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy screening
Multiple pregnancy screening
Fetal anomaly screening
Assessment and Evaluation
First trimester evaluation
Second and third trimester anatomical assessment
3-D ultrasound evaluation
Prenatal diagnosis
Testing and monitoring
Biophysical profile and Doppler velocimetry/non-stress testing
Fetal echocardiography
Diagnostic Procedures
Amniocentesis
Chorionic villi sampling (CVS)
Cordocentesis/Fetal blood sampling
Prenatal Care: Ultrasound
Weeks 6-11
Ultrasound for Size and Dates: Dating based on your last menstrual period can be very inaccurate. Ultrasound done early in the first trimester allows for accurate dating of the pregnancy. Since the fetus (baby) is extremely small, it also allows for better visualization of maternal structures (uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes), and gives us the ability to detect any abnormalities very early. However, if this ultrasound is performed too early (before 7 weeks gestation), the fetus may not be developed enough to get all of the information needed and you may be asked to return in 1-2 weeks.
Weeks 12-13:
Nuchal Translucency (NT): The NT is a non-invasive screening ultrasound that is used in the 1st trimester to detect Down syndrome, trisomy 18, or other problems. The results of the nuchal translucency screening are then combined with those of 2 blood tests and the mother’s age to assess the risk for the fetus. Since there is only a very short window to obtain the necessary measurements, it is extremely important that we have accurately dated the pregnancy with a size/dates ultrasound first.
Sequential Screening, 1st Trimester (Blood test drawn with NT scan): This is a 2 part test. First trimester screening tests include blood tests and an ultrasound exam (NT). Sequential screening is used to determine the risk of Down syndrome, trisomy 18, and open neural tube defects. The timing of genetic screening tests is important because levels of the substances measured change throughout the pregnancy.
Weeks 15-18:
Sequential Screening, Second Trimester: The second part of Sequential Screening. Once you have completed the first blood test, you will receive a call from our office with dates for you to return to the lab to get this test done. For the most accurate results, it is very important that you have your blood drawn during the optimal time frame.
Weeks 18-20:
Level 2 Ultrasound: Used to screen for malformations and appropriate fetal growth. This ultrasound provides very detailed measurements of the fetus. This is also a great opportunity for you to get some great pictures of your new baby!
Weeks 20-Delivery:
Your doctor may order an ultrasound to assess fetal growth and well-being, check for position, cervical length, and many other reasons. If you have questions please ask your doctor why an ultrasound was ordered.
GARDASIL®9
Can’t you enjoy certain foods or do they cause adverse reactions? Do they induce your headaches, digestion problems, flatulence, arthritis and overweight? In this case, the ALCAT test could help you. This is an analytic probe, which investigates how each organism metabolizes the food. It is based on the blood analysis through which the reaction to about 100 food extracts is investigated and their “toxicity” is observed. In fact, it measures the susceptibility of the blood cells to react to certain aliments. This method is much healthier when you are trying to lose weight. Your organism can experience two types of allergic reactions to aliments: towards an aliment to the previous exposure to it or direct intolerance towards a specific food. The symptoms of these reactions can vary between patients, and can be acute or chronic.