Members of the royal family with SMMC Medical Director Dr. Felix Holiday and other SMMC representatives at SMMC last week Monday. (Photo from SMMC's website)
~ Among prevalent conditions amongst residents ~
CAY HILL--At least one or two stroke patients are admitted to St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) every week.
The alarming figures were provided to members of the royal family who met with SMMC officials on the first day of their two-day visit to the country last week.
SMMC cardiologist Dr. Emiko Bird-Lake provided the information in response to a question from Queen Maxima who asked what were the prevalent medical conditions affecting residents.
“Everything that really leads to a cardiovascular problem – stroke and heart attack [are prevalent – Ed.]. Stroke is very prevalent here. … We have at least one to two admissions per week,” Bird-Lake said, to which King Willem Alexander asked: One to two per week for this small population?
Acknowledging that it is indeed one to two per week among the country’s small population, Bird-Lake said the ages of persons who suffer a stroke vary from 30 to around 80 or 90, but she said the average is really age 45-65.
She listed some of the predominant causes as being diabetes, dietary reasons, salt intake, non-compliance and the use of herbal medicine. While she does not disregard the use of herbal medicine, she said that while this can be helpful, it has to be a combination and the patient has to be consistent. She said efforts are being made relating to awareness and prevention.
Bird-Lake said cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the entire world and it is the same in the Caribbean. She said the main medical issues that are being noticed in St. Maarten are high blood pressure, diabetes, and prostate cancer. She said there is a “really, really high prevalence” of prostate cancer in the country and, thanks to the two urologists at SMMC, treatment is provided locally. “Men are also much more open now,” she said.
She also listed kidney problems as an issue. There are currently 80 patients on dialysis.
