Best Docs 2007: The Specialists

Obstetrics/ Gynecology

Dr. Ed Huang

Vital Stats: Medical director of gynecology, Massachusetts General Hospital; 11 years in practice.
Clinical Notes: At Mass General, Huang helps oversee a department that went from zero deliveries in 1994 to about 3,500 a year today. Obstetrical practices across Boston are putting up higher numbers these days, he says. “We’re getting to the point where the baby boomers’ kids are having kids, but also I think the pendulum is swinging back toward bigger families. It seems like now couples are really considering that third or fourth baby.”
What’s Hot, What’s Not: As in other specialties, outpatient OB-GYN procedures are fast replacing inpatient ones. Ten years ago, the number-one gynecologic procedure Huang performs—a treatment for urinary incontinence called a minimally invasive sling—would have involved abdominal surgery and several weeks’ recovery. Now it’s a day surgery requiring a few small incisions made under local anesthesia.
What’s Next: A reliable screening test for the deadliest gynecologic cancer: ovarian, whose symptoms mimic those of many everyday ailments.
Doctor’s Orders: Rather than obsessing over “Am I seeing best doctor I possibly can?” look for an M.D. you can build a strong relationship with. “Part of people’s healing is not physical—it’s the confidence they get from their physician, and how much that person inspires them and takes an active role in their well-being."

Dr. Lucy Young

Vital Stats: Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary; 22 years in practice.
Clinical Notes: With the number of Americans 65 and older projected to grow by 50 percent by 2020, Young says her clinical practice is “going crazy” keeping up with age-related eye conditions like macular degeneration, the leading cause of severe vision loss in that demographic. As much as aging, overindulgence is also taking a toll on Bostonians’ eye health: The ongoing obesity epidemic means a higher rate of diabetes, which in turn can damage the capillaries in the retina. “And it’s not just hurting your eyes,” Young says, “but your kidneys, your heart, the blood vessels in your feet. Everything goes.”
What’s Hot, What’s Not: Patient demand for corrective laser eye surgery like LASIK (reportedly the most common elective surgery in the United States) remains robust, but Young says innovative drug therapies have actually begun to displace laser technology when it comes to treating certain diseases.
What’s Next: Tiny implants that consistently deliver medication to the eye could do away with repeated injections (yikes!) for some afflictions.
Doctor’s Orders: Wear UV-blocking sunglasses when you venture outside, and get a jump on potential vision problems by having a baseline examination when you hit 40. And nourish those peepers—not to mention the rest of you—with a balanced diet that includes fish oils. (Young, known around MEEI as an amateur Iron Chef, practices what she preaches here: “I’m always cooking up a storm of healthy food for my family, drawing on my time in both China and Brazil, and improvising. For me, it’s therapy.”)

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