Health for Life - Summer 2017

practice profile

EXPERTISE SPECIALIZED Renowned Urogynecologist comes to Kern Medical

Norm Bell STAFF WRITER

hen Dr. Andrew Cassidenti decid- ed to move his urogynecology prac- tice from Orange County to Bakersfield, there was one overriding consideration. “I wanted to be more impactful,” he said, explaining that while Orange County has an ample supply of urogy- necologists, Kern County had none. Little did he know just how far his new practice area would extend. Patient Kathleen Lemke showed that even some of the specialty surgeries that Dr. Cassidenti performs aren’t even avail- able in places like the San Francisco Penin- sula. For more than a decade, Lemke, a Salinas resident, had experienced problems from a prolapsed bladder. Two surgeries had failed to produce a lasting solution. Her gynecologist – Dr. Jim Ross – was recommending a specialized vag- inal surgery performed by only a few urogynecologists. Lemke consulted Stanford University, but the surgery isn’t offered there. Her doctor recommend- ed Dr. Cassidenti in Bakersfield.

So, Lemkemade the long drive south and consulted Dr. Cassidenti. Dr. Ross drove down and observed the surgery. To say the results were favorable would be an understatement. Just 21 days after surgery, Lemke said she was aboard a plane to Paris and on to Morocco for a long-planned vacation. Recommended recovery time is six weeks. “No problems at all,” she said, add- ing that she did skip some of the side trips that required climbing. The specialized vaginal surgery that is helping Lemke is just part of the repertoire of a urogynecologist, Dr. Cassidenti said. Urogynecology is one of four sub-specialties recognized by the Col-

’Ÿ