Challenges Overland Park
(913) 381-3585
10540 Barkley Street
Suite 269
Overland Park KS 66212

Rehab Locator

Mix of mental health and substance abuse services
Services Provided: Substance abuse treatment
Type of Care: Outpatient
Special Programs/Groups: Adolescents

Treatment Gap

The treatment gap is massive among those who need treatment for a substance use disorder and do not receive it. In 2007, 23.2 million people aged 12 or older required treatment for an illicit drug or alcohol use problem, but only 3.9 million received treatment at a specialty substance abuse facility. Reducing this gap requires a multipronged approach. Strategies include increasing access to effective treatment, achieving insurance parity, and reducing stigmas and raising awareness among both patients and health care professionals.

Pedicure

A pedicure is a way to improve the appearance of the feet and their nails. It provides a similar service as a manicure. The word pedicure refers to superficial cosmetic treatment of the feet and toenails and comes from the Latin words pedis, which means "of the foot," and cura, which means "care." A pedicure can help prevent nail diseases and nail disorders. Pedicures are not just limited to nails; a pedicurist removes dead skin cells on the bottom of feet using a rough pumice stone. Additionally, leg care below the knee is a common and now expected service included in pedicures. Leg care includes depilation via either shaving or waxing followed by granular exfoliation, application of moisturizing creams and a brief leg massage. The pedicure industry began to grow in 2000. There were approximately 50,000 nail salons located throughout the United States in 2000. There were 100,000 nail salons in 2009. The growth of full-service salons drove this increase. People have been pedicuring their nails for more than 4,000 years. In southern Babylonia, noblemen used solid gold tools to give themselves manicures and pedicures. The use of fingernail polish even started earlier. Originating in China in 3,000 BC, nail color indicated one’s social status, according to a Ming Dynasty manuscript; royal fingernails were painted black and red. Ancient Egyptians have been manicuring all the way back to 2300 BC. A depiction of early manicures and pedicures was on a carving from a pharaoh’s tomb, and the Egyptians paid special attention to their feet and legs. The Egyptians also colored their nails, using red to indicate the highest social class.

Gastric Bypass

Gastric bypass procedures are any of a group of similar operations used to treat morbid obesity—the severe accumulation of excess weight as fatty tissue—and the health problems it causes. Bariatric surgery is the term encompassing all of the surgical treatments for morbid obesity, not just gastric bypasses, which make up only one class of such operations. A gastric bypass first divides the stomach into a small upper pouch and a much larger, lower remnant pouch and then re-arranges the small intestine to allow both pouches to stay connected to it. Surgeons have developed several different ways to reconnect the intestine, thus leading to several different bypass names. Any bypass leads to a marked reduction in the functional volume of the stomach, accompanied by an altered physiological and psychological response to food. The resulting weight loss, typically dramatic, markedly reduces comorbidities. The long-term mortality rate of gastric bypass patients has reduction of up to 40 percent. The gastric bypass, in its various forms, accounts for a large majority of the bariatric surgical procedures performed. An increasing number of these operations are by limited access techniques, termed laparoscopy. Laparoscopic surgery uses several small incisions, or ports, one of which conveys a surgical telescope connected to a video camera, and others permit access of specialized operating instruments. The surgeon actually views his operation on a video screen. The method is limited access surgery, reflecting both the limitation on handling and feeling tissues, and also the limited resolution and two-dimensionality of the video image. With experience, a skilled laparoscopic surgeon can perform most procedures as expeditiously as with an open incision—with the option of using an incision should the need arise. The gastric bypass reduces the size of the stomach by well over 90 percent. A normal stomach can stretch, sometimes to over 1000 ml, while the pouch of the gastric bypass may be 15 ml in size. The gastric bypass pouch is formed from the part of the stomach, which is least susceptible to stretching. That, and its small original size, prevents any significant long-term change in pouch volume. What does change, over time, is the size of the connection between stomach and bowel, and the ability of the small bowel to hold a greater volume of food. Over time, the functional capacity of the pouch increases, and by that time, weight loss has occurred, and the increased capacity serves to allow maintenance of a lower body weight. When the patient ingests just a small amount of food, the first response is a stretching of the wall of the stomach pouch, stimulating nerves, which tell the brain that the stomach is full. The patient feels a sensation of fullness, as if they had just eaten a large meal—but with just a thumbful of food.