Dr Oz: Dr Jan Garavaglia Medical Examiner
This episode of Dr. Oz is one you definitely do not want to miss. Dr. Jan Garavaglia, or “Dr. G” is here sharing clues that help solve some of the biggest medical mysteries. She is the chief medical examiner of one of the most populated counties in the state of Florida as well as the star of the Discovery television show Dr. G: Medical Examiner. She was an expert witness in the highly publicized murder trial of Casey Anthony and her goal is to solve the mystery of untimely and unexplained deaths. Dr. G has learned a lot from the autopsies she has performed and now she is going to share some of her knowledge with Dr. Oz and his audience.
Dr. Oz: Medical Examiner Qualifications
Dr. Jan Garavaglia says that she loves her job as a medical examiner because she gets to solve medical mysteries while determining the cause of death for many victims. While there is a bit of mystery involved in some of her cases, she says that 40% of them are actually people have died of natural causes. Dr. G says that some cases are very easy while others are more challenging, so there is a great deal of medical knowledge required to do her job.
- 4 years of medical school
- 4 years of pathology education – the study of disease and how it affects the tissue
- 1 year of studying how people die suddenly and unexpectedly
She explains that there are lots of “dots” to be connected, from the autopsy to what is found under a microscope, and they all provide clues to the cause of a person’s death.
Dr Oz: Dr. G Case File
Dr. G says that it does not take much weight gain to increase a person’s risk for developing blood clots, especially when the weight gain is in the belly.
Dr. Oz invited his audience to help solve the mystery of a woman’s death that came directly from Dr. G’s case files. This is the case of a woman who stood up from her kitchen table and died suddenly. She was 5’9″ tall and weighed 190 pounds and she did not like going to the doctor so there is no prior medical history.
Dr Oz: Diabetes & Fatty Liver
High BMI – while being overweight does not always cause death, Dr. G explains that it can lead to other health problems.
Insulin Resistance – Dr. G says that she cannot draw blood to check for diabetes after a person has died, like a doctor would do, but she can actually draw fluid from an eye and this case the victim was found to have Diabetes, which she never knew she had when she was alive.
Fatty Liver – Dr. Jan Garavaglia says that fatty livers are very common in people who are overweight or obese, so this is something that she would look at under a microscope. Dr. G explained that a healthy liver is nice and round with sharp edges, but this woman had a really yellow, greasy appearing, liver.
Heart and Lung Examination – After looking closely at the liver, Dr. G then moved on to the heart and lungs where she found arteries that were completely clogged with blood clots. Dr. Oz explains that these are not clots that started in the lungs, but instead they started in the leg or pelvis area and broke off and flew up to the lungs, causing the blockage.
Dr Oz: Cirrhosis of the Liver
Dr. G explains that in a percentage of people with fatty livers it moves on to Cirrhosis, which is when the cells of the liver die and are replaced with fat, but it does not necessarily cause a sudden death, so there is more to look at with this particular victim. Dr. Oz adds that there would be visible signs that something is wrong when a patient has Cirrhosis of the liver.
Dr Oz: Weight Gain Blood Clots Risk
Dr. Jan Garavaglia explains that it does not take a lot of weight gain to cause a problem in a person’s body. She says that even the slightest weight gain can lead to blood clots. The more weight you gain the higher at risk you are for getting blood clots.
Cause of Death – Complications from belly fat that led to a blood clot in the lungs, or a Pulmonary Embolism in medical terminology.
Leave a Reply