Dr. Henrik Reinhard, MD and DMSc welcomes me to his new clinic, located within Helicópteros Sanitarios in Puerto Banús, with a smile.
He is as passionate about people as he is about research, a rare combination that is essential for his job: advanced screening for early detection of a plethora of diseases, including cancer and cardiovascular disease. “Cardiovascular diseases are the number one cause of death globally,” says Dr. Reinhard. Of these deaths, 7.4 million can be attributed to coronary heart disease and 6.7 million to stroke. Don’t let the statistics get you down though. There is one way to prevent heart attack and stroke and Executive Health is set out to help you do just that.
The key to a long life, is early detection of any potential problems. “We have different examinations depending on a patient’s state of health, the presence or absence of symptoms, and age,” he says. The checks are thorough but can take just a few hours; after an extensive survey with his patients about previous health, heredity, genetics, present nutritional situation and lifestyle, Dr. Reinhard recommends either a one- or two-day screening.
The recommended one-day programme involves blood analysis; clinical examination; ultrasound of the neck vessels, an echocardiography, and a CT scan of the heart; MRIs of the brain, abdomen, and pelvis; urine tests; lung function and neurological tests, etc. Fat and muscle analysis is also undertaken. Despite the long list of tests, patients are in and out in a day. They arrive in the morning, enjoy a delicious breakfast in their private suite, and are out the door by 6pm.
Dr. Reinhard’s own area of expertise and science is the heart. “We offer a CT scan to envision the vessel walls of the coronary arteries. Cholesterol testing is insufficient when it comes to assessing the real risk of atherosclerosis and heart attack, because it does not indicate the amount of plaque.” Heart health is, indeed, one that requires a preventive, proactive approach, since “over 50 per cent of people have absolutely no symptoms before they have a heart attack. A CT scan enables us to see the level of plaque in the coronary arteries and therefore risk of heart attack; patients with levels of above one thousand have a 25 per cent risk per year of having a heart attack. That is like standing in a line-up with three other people and every year one will randomly have a heart attack. Levels of over 100 indicate a 10-fold increased risk while those with over 400 have a 20-fold risk. This risk can be brought down significantly with treatment.”
Patients are seen by several specialists throughout the day, including a radiologist, who looks into the neck vessels to check for plaque, which would indicate a risk of stroke. Sometimes, a scan of the abdomen or pelvis is done. Dr. Reinhard notes: “Most importantly in the afternoon, all MRIs are performed. There are tests available for male and female health as well. Finally, we recently introduced a ‘micronutritional evaluation’, in which digestive genes and all minerals, trace elements, vitamins, amino- and fatty acids are measured.” After all the test results are compiled, Dr. Reinhard reveals the results to patients: “I let them know where they are and where they should aim to be. Small lifestyle changes today might translate into significant life changes in the future.”
In the two-day programme, patients return the next day for a test of the whole gastrointestinal tract using a PillCam or Capsule Cam. Patients swallow a small pill which has a camera on both ends. It captures images of the whole inside digestive system while the patient is at home, and wirelessly transmits them to a recorder the patient wears on a belt.“This investigation has an important edge over a traditional colonoscopy: it takes images of the small bowel, which cannot be reached by the traditional test. Most importantly it detects pre-cancerous polyps (or tumours) in the colon and,with a follow-up colonoscopy to remove these, a life is saved.”
Executive Health boasts cutting edge technology, including its own in-house MRI machine, to enable the doctors to obtain the maximum information possible on a patient’s state of health. In addition, patients’ comfort and wellbeing are cared for, thanks to comfortable rooms, top grade patient service and care, and the warm smiles and keen dedication of Dr. Reinhard and his team. Information is everything if you hope to lead a long, happy life.
WORDS MARISA CUTILLAS PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF EXECUTIVE HEALTH
Executive Health Marbella, Helicopteros Sanitarios Hospital Marbella CN340, Km. 175, Puerto Banús. Tel: 603 840 984.