Front Lines

SNAPSHOTS

Meet one of the faces of success

Yakir Muszkat, M.D., is a
board-certified gastroenterologist
at Henry Ford Medical
Center—West Bloomfield, and a
member of the Henry Ford
Medical Group.

"Growing up, I always envisioned
myself using medicine and
technology to help people," says
Dr. Muszkat. "I've gotten a lot of
satisfaction in my practice from
seeing people get better, especially
if they're cured."

After his residency at Maimonides
Medical Center in Brooklyn, he
completed two fellowships at
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer
Center in New York: one in
clinical nutrition and one in
gastroenterology. Between the two,
he worked for a year as a physician
in the Urgent Care Center at
Memorial Hospital.

In his 11 years with Henry Ford,
Dr. Muszkat has seen numerous
advances in his field. A recent
development in gastroenterology is
capsule endoscopy. After a capsule
is swallowed, a recording device is
attached to the patient for eight
hours, enabling the physician to
see images of the small intestine.

"The capsule endoscopy helps to
diagnose patients with obscure
gastro-intestinal bleeding and
inflammatory bowel disease," he
says. "Soon, we'll be able to biopsy
and treat lesions in the small
intestine as well."

The procedure is done at Henry
Ford Hospital in Detroit, but may
be available in the near future at
Henry Ford's West Bloomfield
Medical center.

Dr. Muszkat also is involved in the
medical center's Medical
Mentorship Program, which
enables advanced-level science
students at West Bloomfield High
School to shadow a medical
professional during the school
year. He also takes part in teach-
ing programs at Henry Ford
Hospital in Detroit, and lectures
to fellows, residents and medical
students.

For more information or to make an
appointment call 1-800-HENRYFORD or
visit our Web site www.henryfor . d.com

12

April 20 • 2006

"I look forward
to increasing
the fellowship
training oppor-
tunities in
West
Bloomfield," he
says. "When
the new hospi-
tal is complete,
we will inte-
grate teaching
programs
between the Detroit hospital and
West Bloomfield."

Dr. Muszkat often treats patients
who require long-term nutrition
through feeding tubes or intra-
venously. Feeding tubes Aced
directly into the stomach and total
parenteral nutrition (TPN) can be
life-saving in patients who can no
longer digest and absorb their
food, due to a diseased gastroin-
testinal tract.

He also treats patients with
gastroesophageal reflux, gastroin-
testinal bleeding caused by peptic
ulcer disease and other causes,
Crohn's Disease, ulcerative colitis
and irritable bowel syndrome, as
well as liver, biliary and pancreatic
diseases.

"A primary goal in my practice is
to increase awareness of the need
for colon cancer screening," he
says. "It's the third most common
cancer in the U.S., and it's nearly
100 percent curable, if caught in
the early stages, when polyps can
be removed.

Technion Visitors
A festive dinner event was held in Ann Arbor at the Washtenaw JCC on
March 8 to introduce members of the Ann Arbor community to the
Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. About 40 people heard greetings
from Ann Arbor Symphony Conductor Arie Lipsky, who, to please his
mother, became an aeronautical engineer at the Technion. Dr. Dror Seliktar
presented his research on tissue engineering and stem cells and the stu-
dents shared their compelling stories of IDF leadership and Technion stu-
dent life.
Shown are Lipsky; American Technion Society East Central Regional
Director Matt Engelbert; and Technion students Gili Bisker, physics, and
Amit Meiselles, mechanical engineering.

.

Watching Hoops
Teen Connection attended the Detroit Pistons game on March 26 at the
Palace of Auburn Hills. Teen connection is a program for Jewish seventh-
and eighth-graders, sponsored by Michigan Region B'nai B'rith Youth
Organization. Shown are Stacey Kaplan, 13, of West Bloomfield; Lainie
Rotenberg, 15, of West Bloomfield; Kayla Cohen, 13, of Farmington Hills;
and Rachel Goldberg, 14, of Farmington Hills.

"I recommend colonoscopies to all
my patients who are 50 and older. It
is critical to have this test, since most
people with colon cancer do not have
symptoms. If no polyps are found, a
follow-up colonoscopy is recom-
mended every in years. Patients with
polyps, or a family history of colon
cancer, require a follow-up
colonoscopy every five years."

Dr. Muszkat resides in Oak Park
with his wife, Rena, and their five
children. The family is affiliated
with Bais Haknesses Hagra.
Dr. Muszkat also serves on the
board of Yeshiva Beth Yehudah.

Brotherly Assembly
Harmon Tron, chair of Brotherhood Night, presents a plaque to Rabbi
David Nelson of Congregation Beth Shalom-in Oak Park on March 16.
The Michigan Jewish War Veterans and Ladies Auxiliary held its annual
brotherhood event at the Oak Park JCC. Speakers included the Rev.
Henry Reinwald, Rabbi Nelson, Beverly V. Leneski, chief of Voluntary
Services at the Ann Arbor Veterans Medical Center, and Tyrone
Chatman, Michigan Veterans Foundation associate executive director.