Chronic Pain - it hurts!

As of 2018, the CDC reports that 50 million Americans suffer from chronic pain. Nearly half of these experience such intense pain that it negatively impacts their work and their daily life’s activities. Treatment for these patients at a “typical” doctor's office focuses first on ruling out autoimmune disease or infection, and then prescribes the patient with medications in order to stabilize nerves, cut down on inflammation, etc. Quite often, patients are given narcotics, which only block the brain from receiving the message that the body is in pain. While this can be a short-term solution in some cases, it can easily result in a dependency, and a painful situation that never truly heals.

How do we treat it?

Here at Vance Medical, we think there's a better way. We see our patients overcoming the pain, not just managing it through endless prescriptions. For those who have an unhealed injury, we have several therapies which can help repair the tissue - even after years of pain! Please continue to read on below to discover our very effective Pain Elimination Protocol (what we call PEP!).

And when an autoimmune disorder is playing a part in causing someone's pain, we have some different therapies that work amazingly well, all without ruining your immune system, kidneys, or liver. Please visit our page on Chronic Disease to learn more.

what is the pain elimination protocol (pep)?

1. Neural reflex therapy

A painless, manual (needle-free) therapy that invokes a nerve reflex in order to have a soothing effect on pain and other conditions. Very light touch is applied to a tender area (trigger point) and then to another area to relieve it; the pressure may need to be held in place for 20-30 seconds. Pain relief is usually instant for each area, and several areas may need to be done with each treatment session. For most patients, return visits are needed 2-3 times per week, typically for several weeks.

Patients have referred to this technique as Dr Vance having “magic hands” -- but how exactly does it work? The treatment is effective using several different mechanisms: some relax muscles instantly, some use acupuncture points and meridians, some stimulate the parasympathetic (relaxing) nervous system, and others relax various nerve centers in the body.

In addition to physical pain (including headaches, TMJ, musculoskeletal pain, etc), this technique has also been effective in helping treat anxiety / panic, PTSD, emotional trauma, and more.

2. neural therapy

This treatment uses local anesthetics to numb inflamed nerves where the patient is experiencing pain; similar to rebooting a faulty computer, when the nerves come back “online” they should function normally. Resetting the nerves can allow the smooth muscle cells in the blood vessels to relax, bringing about increased blood flow and assisting with healing.

Invented in the 1920’s, it was found that repeated injections into painful areas may in time bring about a permanent resolution. Alternatively, injecting into scars can also bring about incredible results for all sorts of conditions, including neurological. The theory is that a scar can interrupt the electrical signals that travel through the skin; resetting with local anesthetic can restore the normal electrical flow, and allow healing to take place.

After multiple training conferences and many years of practice using this technique, Dr. Vance has found it particularly useful in calming abdominal pains, helping with anxiety and post-traumatic stress, and soothing radiating or burning pains anywhere in the body (just to name a few). It is also particularly helpful for easing some of the neural symptoms of Lyme or "Lyme-like" illnesses.

Effects are usually immediate. While the duration of the relief is variable, at the very least it tends to last until the anesthetic effect of the injectable wears off, and frequently it lasts MUCH longer. Every patient is different, but repeated treatments are often necessary.

3. neural prolotherapy

(also known as Lyftogt's Perineural Injection Treatment)

​This treatment uses low concentrations of dextrose (sugar water) in tiny injections around nerve fibers that lay just barely under the skin. The dextrose can quickly calm down these fibers that transfer pain, seeming to stop pain in its tracks without actually numbing anything. With the nerve fibers calmed down, the area can have more normal blood flow and allow for increased healing. Commonly, people experience a considerable amount of pain relief and have better range of motion in areas they haven't been able to fully move in a long time.

Pain relief can last between 4 hours and 4 days, after which it may come back; however, the area is typically less painful than before. Each patient is different, but typically 6-10 visits will significantly help the pain or even have it go away completely.

4. prolozone therapy

A form of non-surgical ligament and joint repair that can be a permanent treatment for many kinds of chronic pain. This involves injecting a cocktail of anti-inflammatory medications, vitamins, oxygen and very low doses of ozone gas into the soft tissues, ligaments, and tendons. This can help heal damaged or weakened connective tissue in and around joints. By repairing the connective tissue, chronic pain can be permanently reversed.

Injections of oxygen and very low doses of ozone causes increased oxygenation and nutrients to the weak areas, stimulating the tissue to repair itself. The response to treatment varies from individual to individual and depends on the type and severity of the injury being treated. Some people may only need 1 or 2 treatments, while others may need as many as 8-10. The injection process is repeated every 1-2 weeks until maximum improvements are noted. Using Prolozone Therapy there is a 60-80% chance that patients can become permanently pain free even in severe pain conditions that have been present for years.

Ozone is a naturally occurring, highly reactive molecule consisting of three atoms of oxygen. Because ozone is so reactive it is able to stimulate fibroblastic and chrondroblastic activity to an almost unbelievable extent. This high level reactivity combined with the innate safety of oxygen makes ozone the ideal therapeutic molecule.

5. hugo pemf

In order to enhance the efforts of the PEP treatment, the patient uses our HUGO™ PEMF machine. PEMF therapy has been shown to boost circulation and oxygenation, effectively reducing pain and inflammation and aiding healing, recovery, and performance enhancement. While many other clinics employ PEMF therapy in their practices, the majority of these are low-intensity. Vance Medical is proud to use the HUGO™, known for its higher-intensity and more noticable results in a shorter amount of time.

"The HUGO™ is in the High Intensity Tesla class of bio-electromagnetic PEMF devices.  HUGO™ employs the Tesla coil, with a spark gap between the capacitor and high voltage transformer which sets the standard for this class of PEMF devices.  The Pulsed Electromagnetic Fields penetrate deeply into the body to the cellular level." (https://us.hugopemf.com/)

For each session, we adjust the machine’s setting to the patient’s comfort level. At lower power, the patient may not feel too much of a sensation, but at higher levels they may feel some of their muscles rhythmically contracting. We do not let the patient get to a level that is uncomfortable or painful. The session lasts only 12 minutes, and some effects of reduced pain, increased energy, and improved digestion are often experienced immediately or the following day.

additional methods and treatments

stem cell therapy

about stem cells

Lately, it's been hard to go far without hearing something about "Stem Cells," and how they have the potential to do amazing things in medicine. So what are they? Stem Cells are cells that have the ability to not only reproduce themselves, but to also turn into other cells. You could say that the fertilized egg is the ultimate stem cell since it can turn into all the different tissues of the body. During development, your body retains other stem cells, some of which can have the ability to turn into pretty much any kind of tissue in the human body.

how it works

Once the stem cells have been harvested and processed, they are injected into the area which is in need of repair. The cells can then help to repair the tissue to allow for recovery. We use the umbilical stem cells, as we feel this gives the very highest concentration and numbers of stem cells and growth factors for the very best results possible. Some people feel improvement quickly, although it's more common for people to not notice too much for the first two weeks or so, and then start to see results. There can be continued additional benefit for 8 weeks or even longer from the stem cell injections. Oftentimes one injection is all you need, although certain cases may need more.

why we use stem cells

While it's true that we all have stem cells which have the ability to turn into any kind of needed cell, many of our body tissues have very few of these cells - and not enough to regrow or repair damaged tissue. Tissues like nerve cells have very limited ability for self-repair, and other tissues like tendons, ligaments and cartilage get very limited blood supply (which can bring stem cells as well as other things). By giving stem cells, you could potentially have the ability to regrow tissue that otherwise would not be able to repair itself.

sources

There are only four ways to legally obtain stem cells in the United States today:

1. Bone Marrow (obtained from your own body and relatively easily processed)
2. Fat Cells (obtained from your own body - it has higher concentration of cells, but is harder to process and the FDA has made doing this more difficult)
3. Amniotic (sometimes called "placental") Stem Cells (obtained from the amniotic fluid in the sac of a newborn baby. Not your own cells, but are "fresh," and theoretically might be able to divide better)
4. Umbilical stem cells (obtained from the umbilical cord attached to a newborn's placenta. Same advantages as with Amniotic, but much higher concentrations of stem cells and growth factors)

low dose naltrexone (ldn)

about ldn

Naltrexone is a medicine sometimes used to treat people with narcotic addiction and alcoholism. In very low doses (less than 10% of a usual dose), however, naltrexone is believed to help regulate people's immune systems, helping with several different disease processes.

history

In the 1980's, naltrexone was developed as a medicine to help heroin addicts. The action of the medication is to block the effect of opiates and opioid medicines, to prevent people from getting high while taking heroin. A researcher by the name of Dr Bihari found that the lowest dose of naltrexone didn't help the addiction, but did prevent his AIDS patients from getting sick. Since then, this therapy has been successfully used not only for HIV but for many other diseases / conditions.

how it works

At the regular dose, naltrexone blocks the opioid receptors in the body for a full 24 hours. At a very low dose it blocks them for only 2-4 hours, during which time your body makes more endorphins (the body's natural morphine). When the naltrexone wears off, this new, larger supply of endorphins can help cut down on chronic pain. Endorphins also help modulate the immune system, allowing your body to better fight the things it should be fighting (like infections or disease) and not fight the things it shouldn't (i.e. autoimmune disorders).

some conditions treated

(per the Low Dose Naltrexone website)
Neurodegenerative Diseases
ALS, Alzheimer's, Autism, MS, Parkinson's, PTSD, etc
Autoimmune Diseases
AS, Behcet's, Celiac, Chronic Fatigue, Crohn's, Fibromyalgia, Hashimoto's, IBS, MG, Pemphigoid, Psoriasis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, etc.
Cancers
Bladder, Breast, Carcinoid, Colon/Rectal, Liver, Lung, Melanoma, Ovarian, Pancreatic, Prostate, etc.
Other Diseases Common Colds (URI's), Emphysema (COPD), HIV/AIDS, Depression (Major; and Bipolar)

Visit Low Dose Naltrexone Website

how to get it

Because LDN is a lower dose of a standard medicine, it needs to be specially made at a compounding pharmacy. This can also mean that the cost is higher than what you'd find at a regular pharmacy. Each patient has their own particular dose that works best for them - it's definitely not a "one size fits all."

dosing and side effects

LDN is usually taken at night time just before going to bed. Occasionally patients take it in the morning. Most people tolerate it very well, with the only common side effects being:

--decreased sleep for the first couple of nights (after that patients often sleep better than they've slept in years)
--vivid, "funky" dreams (not nightmares). These may or may not go away after a while, but are typically not bothersome to patients.