Alpesh Patel, MD discusses the impact of COVID-19 on orthopaedics. He shares what the clinic is doing to mitigate the crisis, how they have utilized televisits for patient care, and how they are managing the clinic’s plans to recover from the pandemic.

Lucas Buchler MD discusses the pathology of rotator cuff muscle atrophy and fatty infiltration as it applies to surgical indications. He shares the variables that need to be considered when choosing a treatment plan.

Katherine Carroll MD discusses headaches and migraines. She shares some of the challenges associated with treating headache and migraine patients, how Northwestern Medicine is treating headaches differently and why comprehensive care for headaches at a center like The Urgent Headache Infusion Clinic at Northwestern Memorial Hospital is so important.

GR Scott Budinger, MD, chief of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, and Ankit Bharat, MD, chief of Thoracic Surgery, share how the Northwestern Medicine team is handling an influx of and caring for patients with severe COVID-19 illness in the ICU. They discuss when ventilators should be used and alternative approaches the Northwestern Medicine team is utilizing, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), prone positioning and verticalization therapy, to provide the next level of care when a patient does not respond to ventilation.

Clyde W. Yancy, MD, MSc, discusses the increased risk faced by patients with COVID-19 and cardiovascular disease, COVID-19 as it relates to ACE inhibitors and ARBs, racial disparity in COVID-19 cases, and other topics related to treating cardiovascular patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this panel, Mary Rinella MD and Lisa VanWagner MD, MSc, FAST, FAHA discuss Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. They share information on their study in Journal of the Neurological Sciences on the association between NAFLD and stroke and how the association with cardiovascular disease is becoming more appreciated. They talk about the role and limitations of current diagnostics and how important early diagnosis is as being crucial to improve outcome prediction. They also tell us about Northwestern Medicine’s approach to the management of patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and some of the new and exciting research happening in the Northwestern Medicine Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Program.

Magdy Milad, MD, chief of Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, recently published an article in The Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology examining the use of laparoscopy during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode of Better Edge, Milad discusses laparoscopic surgery as a safe approach and additional precautions gynecologists can take to minimize exposure during these procedures amidst COVID-19.

Grazia Aleppo, MD, is a professor of Medicine in the Division of Endocrinology, director of the Northwestern Medicine Diabetes Training and Education Program and an expert in diabetes research and clinical care. In this episode of Better Edge, Aleppo discusses why patients with diabetes are at greater risk of developing severe illness from COVID-19 and key treatment recommendations for patients with diabetes including those diagnosed with COVID-19 who present with hyperglycemia and diabetes ketoacidosis (DKA).

Lisa Wolfe, MD, is an associate professor of Neurology and of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care at Northwestern Medicine and an expert in respiratory devices used to treat patients with neuromuscular disorders and sleep-related breathing disorders. In this episode, Wolfe discusses key considerations for sleep medicine clinicians in the context of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), including continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) use, CPAP as a ventilator alternative and strategies that Northwestern Medicine's sleep medicine team is implementing during this pandemic.

Stephen Hanauer, MD, and Scott Strong, MD, discuss key considerations for gastroenterologists in the context of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), including the gastrointestinal manifestations, risks and treatment for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or other conditions who may be taking immunosuppression drugs, potential fecal-oral transmission and how Northwestern Medicine Gastroenterology and GI Surgery are optimizing telehealth and evolving care during this pandemic.