SCIENCE IN MEDICINE
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the science behind some of the procedures that we do here at Balance Regenerative Sports and Rehabilitations Medicine. We offer A LOT, and most of the procedures are designed to help your body to heal itself naturally, instead of relying on chemicals (ie: medicines) to mask or give you temporary relief from injury or illness.
The plan over the next few weeks is to take each of the procedures and break them down into smaller, more easily digested little chunks of science. Hopefully this will help people to clarify some of the decisions that you make for your health. Whether you have a small issue and need a “tune-up” or a course correction; or you have a larger systemic issue and need an overhaul, my intent is that you understand the science behind what we do, so you can be an active participant in your “wellness journey”. (Corny, but I can’t think of a better term right now).
SHOCK WAVE THERAPY
Let’s start with something relatively simple, the extracorporeal shock wave therapy that we administer for male and female sexual health.
Focused low-intensity extracorporeal shock wave therapy was first introduced in the 1970s, you may have heard of “lithotripsy”, a very effective way to break up kidney stones from outside of the body. This technology has since evolved to successfully address additional medical concerns.
In orthopedics low intensity shock wave therapy is used for its anti-inflammatory benefits and to heal joints and to treat stubborn problems like plantar fasciitis . In the field of cardiology, it is used to promote angiogenesis, or the formation of blood vessels in the heart.
HOW DOES IT WORK???
We direct an acoustic wave at a target to cause mechanical stress, this shear stress induces micro-cavitations that occur in the soft tissue at the cellular level and sets off a cascade of wound healing responses that induces neovascularization and angiogenesis (formation of new blood vessels) to restore better blood flow and natural function to the treatment site.
SO IN A NUTSHELL:
Sheer stress induces the mechanosensors (caveolin-1 and beta-1-integrin), which activate and upregulate biochemical signals on the cellular level in the endothelium and smooth muscle of the vagina and penis, which in turn promote tissue remodeling, improved elasticity and new blood vessel formation. More blood flow = enhanced sensation and sexual response.
Simple, ingenious, and OH SO EFFECTIVE!
AND DID I MENTION THAT EACH TREATMENT TAKES LESS THAN 15 MINUTES?
ON A CELLULAR LEVEL:
Now, a shock wave machine has to be calibrated to focus exactly onto the tissue that you are targeting. The AlmaDuo is set to a focused 135 mm depth, perfect for targeting male and female sexual anatomy. New blood vessel growth takes about three weeks, and more blood vessels mean more blood flow to the area.
BEAUTIFUL NEW BLOOD VESSELS!
IMPORTANT HEALTH CAVEAT
I have some patients who very happily report that they have results seemingly “overnight”. We know that new blood vessels cannot form overnight, so what is causing this increased blood flow?? It is likely the breakdown of arterial plaque in the small arteries in the penis and vagina by the shock waves. Focused low intensity acoustic shock waves consist of a short pulse of energy, which is referred to as a ‘shock’, followed by a longer-lasting period of negative pressure. Shock wave peak pressure is nearly 1000X greater than the peak pressure in ultrasound waves. So it is silent and powerful.
Sexual dysfunction in men and women can be thought of as the “canary in the coal mine” for systemic arterial disease in the entire body. The most important correlation for this is cardiac health. If a person responds seemingly “overnight” to their first treatment, then I would strongly suggest a cardiac consultation to see if there is any plaque formation in the arteries of the heart that needs to be addressed to avoid any serious cardiac issues..
ALMADUO – MY FIRST CHOICE
The system that we use is called AlmaDuo. I specifically chose AlmaDuo over some of the other shock wave options out there because
it is a focused shockwave and
it is completely painless (in fact, you can barely feel it at all!)
The other shock wave devices out there use a radial shock wave. The radial shock wave therapies hurt, and the patient needs to put numbing cream on the genitalia for at least 15 minutes prior to the procedure to avoid pain.
This for me is a no brainer. More focused therapies, with no pain?? Who WOULDN’T choose that option???
FOCUSED VS> RADIAL SHOCKWAVE THERAPY
Stay tuned for more discussions on…
Bioidentical hormone optimization
Prolotherapy
IV Ozone treatments
Prolozone and Ozone joint injections
And of course…
Blood growth factors
Thanks for nerding out with me!
Rebecca Brown, MD
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