43
Boardman surgeon to appear on ‘Doctors’
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
A Boardman surgeon will appear on today’s episode of the daily health and medicine talk show “The Doctors.”
Dr. Dennis Orr will appear on the show to discuss an interesting surgery he recently performed with host Dr. Travis Stork. “The Doctors” airs at 9 a.m. on WKBN-TV.
“It involved the ingestion of a substance, a food, that doesn’t usually cause a bowel obstruction,” said Dr. Orr. “Traditionally, bowel obstructions are treated with open surgery but we did it with laparoscopy through three small incisions. We removed the obstructing material and the patient recovered remarkably well and was discharged the following day.”
The surgery took place in a Mahoning Valley hospital.
Dr. Orr specializes in laparoscopy, in which a surgeon uses a thin, lighted tube that is inserted into the abdomen through an incision.
The producers of “The Doctors” became aware of Dr. Orr’s unusual surgery when they read an article about it, written by one of his residents, in a medical journal. They contacted Dr. Orr and flew him to California to tape the show.
Dr. Orr is a 1993 graduate of Canfield High School who earned his medical degree at Des Moines University in Iowa. After completing his surgical training, he took an extra year of advanced laparoscopic training in Indianapolis.
“It enables me to perform advanced laparoscopic and basic laparoscopic procedures,” said Dr. Orr. The benefits of laparoscopy include faster recovery time, and less likelihood of wound infection, blood loss and other complications, he said.
Dr. Orr returned to the area five years ago. His practice is at 7010 South Ave., Boardman. His website is drdennisorr.com.