Posts Tagged ‘decompression’
Monday, February 14th, 2011
There are plenty of stories of folks who, after many years of doing things a certain way, discover a much easier way to accomplish the same task. It could be a certain route they drive each day to work only to realize that by turning on “D” Street instead of the expressway they can save 15 minutes of time in the car each day by avoiding a particularly congested area of the commute.
Or how about the story of the treasure seeker spending his life looking for the mother lode only to find the most valuable treasure was in his back yard the whole time? If only he had known. If only someone had told him.
Running a business in the medical industry can be much like the two examples above. There may be a certain route you have been taking to serve the public and make a profit. But what if there were an easier route that got you more profits quicker? What if instead of looking all over the world or Internet for a goose that lays golden eggs, you had someone show a treasure you already have but just didn’t know it?
Marketing and business gurus constantly teach us that the quickest way to expand practice or business revenues is to focus on your current customer base. Specifically, to sell more to those with whom you already have a relationship of trust.
But what can you offer them without jeopardizing their trust in you? Obviously it has to be something of value to them…something they would be grateful to you for thus deepening their value and commitment for you.
Did you know that there are several highly reimbursable items with excellent patient outcomes available to you right now? They are so effective that they just might be that “easier” route to patient success and increased profits.
Take electro-therapy for example. TENS units are medically coded and have an average reimbursement of around $350 while the wholesale cost is around $30 depending on the unit. That’s over a 1000 percent markup! And TENS is proven to aid patients who suffer in pain by providing a pleasant sensation that overrides the pain within the nerve channels. It’s so effective that the American Society of Anesthesiologists recommends it as a good way to treat chronic pain. Plus there are several other electro-therapy modalities such as microcurrent, IF, EMS and galvanic that each have their own strengths. While they are not Medicare reimbursable items, many private payers will cover them. Plus there are several manufacturers that offer dual units—units that combine TENS with say, microcurrent or EMS. This way you can prescribe TENS to a patient who needs both modalities, and he/she will get the added benefit of the other.
Another highly effective and high reimbursing device is the SR 500 Decompression Back Brace which reimburses at an average of $930! Other back braces have similar reimbursement rates but only the SR 500 Decompression Brace works to treat the cause of most lumbar back pain instead of the symptom. (To learn more about it click here). The increase in patient satisfaction due to the healing and pain relief your patients experience will lead to an increase in referrals.
There are many other ways to increase your revenue from your current customer base. Billing items such as conductive garments, conductive bracing and many other products and treatment modalities are just some examples.
Before you invest a small fortune trying to increase your practice revenues by advertising to get new customers, consider the “treasure” that is lying right in your own back yard. Help your current customers by giving them more options to treat their pain and to heal. As you do you might just find what you had been looking for all along.
Tags: alternative pain management, back brace, decompression, discs, Durable Medical Equipment, Electric Muscle Stimulation, electro therapy, EMS, galvanic, IF, Lower Back Pain, microcurrent, spinal decompression, sr 500, TENS
Posted in Articles by Michael Harris | No Comments »
Tuesday, December 28th, 2010
This article is a repost from The Charlotte Observer. See the original article here.
North Carolina’s largest health insurer is coming under fire from surgeons across the country for implementing tougher restrictions on an increasingly common type of spinal surgery.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina’s new rules, which take effect Jan. 1, are designed to reduce overuse of spinal-fusion surgery, a costly and controversial procedure to ease patients’ lower back pain. The Chapel Hill-based insurer says it wants to ensure the surgeries are approved based on the latest medical evidence.
“We are not going to stop coverage, but we do want to make sure the ones being done are appropriate,” said Dr. Don Bradley, Blue Cross’ chief medical officer. “In some cases, we’re seeing technology being used when more conservative measures might be more appropriate.”
But some spine surgeons worry that the restrictions will limit care for thousands of patients and could set a new coverage standard among other insurers.
A coalition of surgeons representing nine medical associations, including the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the North American Spine Society, wrote to Blue Cross this month, urging the company to reconsider.
The group also suggested various changes that would ease the new restrictions.
“If this intrusion into the physician-patient relationship goes unchallenged, other insurers will follow suit,” said Dr. John Wilson, a neurosurgeon at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center who is president of the N.C. Neurological Society and one of nine physicians who signed the letter to Blue Cross.
“It will be a progression of ever-more restrictive policies that will handcuff us as we try to treat patients,” Wilson said.
The surgeon groups requested a meeting with Blue Cross executives before the rules kick in one week from today to discuss the new policy. But the insurer responded in an e-mail message that because of the holidays, a meeting could not be scheduled until the third week of January.
Wilson estimates that he performs about 100 spinal-fusion surgeries a year. Only a small percentage of his practice’s patients would be ineligible for coverage under the new Blue Cross rules.
“Even if it’s just a few patients, if we’re limited in how we can help them, it doesn’t sit right with us,” he added.
The new spine-surgery rules come as Blue Cross faces increasing pressure to keep costs down and control premiums. The company announced plans in July to slash administrative costs up to 20 percent by 2014.
“The tendency is to label us as the big, bad insurance company,” Bradley said. “We understand folks rely on us to cover the things that should be covered. They also assume that we’re making decisions about appropriate care” to keep premiums affordable.
Blue Cross reports that it covered 3,593 spinal fusion surgeries last year, up 22 percent from 2007. The insurer paid $105 million in claims for the procedures last year, up 44 percent from 2007. The procedures require longer hospital stays and cost more than three times the amount of a simpler surgery, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The new rules will require patients and physicians to get approval before spinal-fusion surgery. The insurer still will cover the surgery for some ailments, such as scoliosis, injury and tumors.
But Blue Cross won’t cover the surgery for degenerative disk disease. The condition is caused by aging disks and can cause debilitating back pain.
“We feel that to completely omit this as a covered procedure under any circumstance is overly restrictive,” the national group of surgeons wrote in their letter to Blue Cross.
The surgeries involve implanting rods and screws to repair vertebrae. JAMA reports that patients who had a complex fusion procedure were nearly three times as likely to develop a life-threatening complication and that the surgeries didn’t result in dramatically better outcomes.
But spinal implants have become a booming business for surgeons and medical-device companies since winning Food and Drug Administration approval in 1995. Minneapolis-based Medtronic is the biggest maker of spinal implants, accounting for about half of the $7 billion market last year, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Critics in Congress and elsewhere are calling for a review of Medicare’s coverage of the procedures. Spinal-fusion claims cost Medicare $2.24 billion in 2008, up nearly 400 percent since 1997 after adjusting for inflation, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Blue Cross has tried to work with physicians for several years to develop guidelines on the procedures, but it hasn’t stemmed the surge in the number performed, Bradley said.
“We have tried the kinder, gentler approach,” he said. “It’s unfortunate that it takes looking at each case each time, but other approaches haven’t really worked.”
A Blue Cross patient or surgeon could appeal any denial of coverage, and the process would include at least one review by a physician who isn’t employed by the insurer, Bradley said.
In late September, the company notified spine surgery practices across the state about the new rules. Before issuing the new policy, officials met with several spine surgeons in the Chapel Hill area and incorporated their input into the new rules.
In some cases, where doctors have tried physical therapy and other types of treatment, the only other option may be surgery, Wake Forest’s Wilson said. “To say you’re not going to cover them at all, you’re hurting some patients,” he added. “We don’t want there to be patients left suffering.”
Blue Cross continually reviews its coverage policies and makes adjustments based on the latest medical guidelines, Bradley said. But the new rules will take effect Jan. 1, despite the outcry from surgeons.
“We always listen to providers,” he said. “It’s unlikely we would not implement this. But if there’s new data that says our criteria are incorrect, we’ll be open to that.”
Tags: back pain, back surgery, decompression, discs, healing, herniated disc, Lower Back Pain, spinal fusion
Posted in Reposted from another source | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 1st, 2010
Did you know that virtually all back braces on the market today are based on the same working concept that was first developed way back in 650 A.D.? Sounds crazy but it’s true. That concept has been to immobilize the area of the back that is experiencing the pain. Immobilization is best accomplished using a belt or brace that squeezes tightly, similar to a woman’s corset. This is referred to as constriction.
However, in the 1990’s with the onset popularity of spinal decompression therapy one company designed a new kind of brace from scratch…a brace that could achieve a similar effect achieved during decompression therapy. (Decompression therapy is the use of computer guided spinal adjustments that targets herniated or bulging discs while you are lying on a spinal decompression therapy table. The adjustments expand the space between the two compressed vertebrae thus allowing the disc to distract [return] into its proper place and begin healing.)
The resulting new brace is the SR 500…a brace that inflates with air and expands vertically once adorned. As it expands vertically it pushes up against the rib cage and down against the pelvic girdle. This action helps offset the effect of gravity and stretches the lower spine thus creating decompression.
Since its invention and introduction to the U.S. market, the SR 500 has gained many fans, sworn advocates and users. The exclusive US distributor of the SR 500 is Spinal Rehab Solutions, Inc. (and the owner of this blog). It has received numerous testimonial letters at its offices in Henderson, NV. Many of them tell of how the SR 500 has practically healed them, saved them from spinal surgery and/or has afforded them a normal life again. The following is one such testimony:
“I have been using the SR 500 for about 18 months now. I first injured my back over 17 years ago when I fell on a ceramic tile floor. The fall caused my L5 disc to bulge. Since then my lower back had gotten worse as my discs had degenerated. No doctor or surgeon could help me. Weekly visits to my chiropractor were all that was saving me. During this time I never stopped looking for a remedy. Every three months or so I would use Google to search for various key words for back pain remedies. Then finally I found the SR 500 and I have been wearing it religiously since. I love it! It works! I can definitely tell my back is finally healing. I am no longer in pain and am even able to start exercising again. My chiropractor even got mad at me because he knows I am doing something that is healing my back but I haven’t told him what! I estimate that in another 6 months my back will be totally healed.”
Kathy Benkert
Lathrup Village, Michigan
Here is another testimonal from a gentleman in Kansas City, KS–a man that happens to actually work in the medical equipment supply industry and was already familiar with the various constriction braces on the market. Here is what he had to say:
“I was first introduced to the SR 500 Brace at a company training. Spinal Rehab Solutions founder and CEO Steven Fontana had flown out to our corporate headquarters in Kansas City, KS, to educate our staff on how this new brace works so we could best represent it to our client base. As Steven began to explain how the brace creates decompression of the spine by lodging up under the rib cage and pushing down against the pelvic girdle, my interest immediately began to intensify.
I approached Steven after the training to inquire about getting one. I explained to him how I had been suffering from chronic back pain for the last 8 years (since my spinal compression fracture) and was on the verge of agreeing to back surgery.
Steven was kind enough to leave me with a sample brace and I began wearing it that day. I was very anxious to see if it would do what Steven claimed it would do—decompress my spine. I had a 3 day ministry convention coming up where I would be standing in a booth long periods of time. I figured that would be the ultimate test for the SR 500.
Well, it has been a month since I first started wearing the brace and I can honestly say I am very blessed to have received it. My back pain is pretty much eliminated. I still wear the SR 500 from 2 to 4 hours per day. If I have a particularly long day on my feet, or have to do a lot of walking, or any serious lifting (not often, but occasionally) I still feel that old ache… but it is SIGNIFICANTLY improved! So much so, that I have really put off the idea of surgery!
I used to have nights when I couldn’t sleep, even with pretty heavy doses of anti-inflammatory medication, and sometimes even with prescription pain meds; I have not had a sleepless night (well, at least from back pain) since about a week after I began wearing the SR 500.
I wore the SR 500 for most of the time that I worked the 3-day ministry conference; I wore it under my polo, over a t-shirt, and it was quite comfortable for the extended hours I worked our booth. I am gearing up to work another 3 day festival on Labor Day weekend, and will be counting on my SR 500 to pull me through again!
Thanks again to Steven and Spinal Rehab Solutions for providing this incredible product to me. I’m serious… I LOVE it!”
Jim Gillespie
Knit-Rite
Kansas City, KS
If you suffer from a bulging or ruptured disc please consider the SR 500 brace. It could help you like it has helped thousands already. You must first obtain a prescription from your doctor. Most insurance companies will cover the SR 500 as will Medicare. If your doctor is not familiar with the SR 500 you may want to visit www.SpinalRehabSolutions.com and print off appropriate material to take to him/her. If your doctor still will not prescribe you one (although rare, it has happened. Some doctors just don’t like new things or change, or they may have financial motives to steer you toward surgery or other remedies), then please move on to another doctor, or call the Spinal Rehab offices at 702-586-5107 to inquire about a doctor in your area that is known to be familiar with the SR 500.
Happy healing!
Tags: back brace, back pain, back surgery, chiropractics, decompression, herniated disc, Lower Back Pain, pain, spinal brace, spinal decompression, spine, sr 500
Posted in Articles by Michael Harris | No Comments »
Friday, October 29th, 2010
If you were to do a search online for the “SR 500” you would likely come up with some links to a Yamaha motorcycle. You would also find the SR 500 is the given product name for a certain type of back brace, however, the SR 500 is no normal brace. Normal braces—or braces that are “common” on the market—are constriction braces. This means exactly what the term implies…they constrict. They are designed to cinch tight around the abdomen to immobilize the area. The theory is less movement less pain.
This simple logic has been the “backbone” of back bracing theory for hundreds of years. Then in the mid 1980s a new kind of treatment started to take hold in America—spinal decompression. By the late 1990s decompression therapy had made significant advances in technology and popularity. It was about that time that a Korean Medical company asked the question: Why can’t there be a brace that produces some of the same effects as decompression therapy?
The result of that question led to the world’s first ever decompression brace. I’ll spare you the details of exactly how it evolved, but evolve it did to what is now known as the SR 500. So let’s take an inside-out look at the SR 500. What makes it unique? What makes it a “decompression” brace?
First of all, the SR 500 is not a constriction brace. It does not immobilize the spine. When properly adorned, it actually promotes healthy movement. This helps avoid muscle atrophy which is a known side effect of the constriction back brace.
What the SR 500 does is expand vertically. In order to obtain a decompression effect, the designers created unique air chambers or cells made of a rubber bladder-like material that, when filled with air, expand upward. As they expand they cause the overall profile of the belt to grow from just 4 inches in height to over 7 inches in vertical height. As it does it lodges up under the rib cage pushing upwards and down against the pelvic girdle pushing downwards. The result is an unloading of the lumbar spine as the weight-bearing forces are offset. As this occurs, something quite magical takes place inside the spine. Discs that have been “compressed” due to an injury (such as a herniated or bulging disc) or due to a long life of poor health and poor posture (results are disc degeneration) can now “decompress.” That means they can distract or facilitate back into their original space and shape. As they do they reabsorb any lost fluids and begin to heal.
The decompression effect achieved by the SR 500 is a scaled down version of the decompression achieved on a decompression table at a qualified chiropractor’s office. Decompression tables use computer guided micro movements to target and adjust specific discs for short periods of time while the patient is on the table. This pinpointed effect has produced thousands of positive results for chronic back pain sufferers. The SR 500 offers the chance to continue decompression into the home between visits or after the therapy ends. It serves as a perfect supplement to the table treatments and it has helped speed the recovery of many patients. It has even allowed many patients freedom from pain killers and the elimination of the possibility of spinal surgery.
Included with the SR 500 is a hand pump that has a built in pressure gauge to insure proper inflation, a owner’s manual and a laundry bag. The SR 500 is 100% machine washable. The brace also comes with a rigid front and rear panel for those individuals who need more spinal stability in the initial stages of healing.
The design behind the SR 500 is patent protected and is available by prescription only. Medicare and private insurance companies reimburse for the brace. Visit your doctor, chiropractor, physical therapist or other care provider to inquire about obtaining your own SR 500. You may want to visit www.spinalrehabsolutions.com first and print off some information to show your provider in case he/she is not familiar with this type of brace.
Tags: back brace, back injuries, back pain, back surgery, chiropractics, decompression, discs, distraction, Durable Medical Equipment, healing, herniated disc, Lower Back Pain, pain, spinal brace, spinal decompression, Spinal Rehab Solutions, spine, sr 500
Posted in Articles by Michael Harris | 10 Comments »
Monday, September 27th, 2010
See if this sounds familiar: Man is in pain. Man goes to doctor. Doctor prescribes pain medication. Man feels better. Prescription runs out. Pain comes back. Man goes back to doctor. Man gets prescription renewed. Man does this many more times. Man eventually gets surgery and fixes source of pain, has a full recovery. Man no longer needs pain meds for pain, doctor discontinues prescribing them. But man still needs pain meds…because he is addicted. Man resorts to obtaining pain meds illegally. Man eventually gets caught and suffers public humiliation. Man goes to rehab and finally becomes free of his addiction.
Sound crazy? Think it is unfathomable that our great medical system could aid in the addiction of an otherwise upstanding man? See Rush Limbaugh.
The truth is hundreds of thousands of individuals are hooked on narcotic pain medications every year. And who can blame them? Pain hurts and so do withdrawal symptoms.
In the last few decades a different thought trend has emerged for dealing with pain. Appropriately called “alternative pain management,” this trend has grown into an industry providing many products and services that thousands of chronic pain sufferers rely upon on a daily basis.
A new study by David Eisenberg, M.D found that total visits to alternative medicine practitioners jumped 47% from 427 million in 1990, to 629 million in 1997 which easily topped the 386 million visits to primary-care doctors.
Here is your quick rundown on the top trends in alternative pain management.
TENS
Tens stands for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation. Transcutaneous (trans-kyoo-tey-nee-uhs) means “through, or by way of the skin.” TENS sends electrical impulses via electrodes or conductive garments to occupy the nerve pathways with a more comfortable sensation which overrides the pain. TENS recently was recognized by the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ Task Force on Chronic Pain Management as an effective mode of pain relief. (Read full article here.)
Chiropractics
Despite its growing acceptance even within “mainstream” medicine, Chiropractics still has its doubters. Yet it has far more advocates. Golfers and other pro sports individuals will often employ a private Chiropractor. The practice has been growing in popularity here in the U.S. since the early 80’s.
Decompression
Usually administered by a specialized Chiropractor, decompression is very effective for disc-related back pain sufferers. The patient is harnessed on a table and a computer uses micro movements to slightly expand the amount of space between the vertebrae.
Visceral Manipulation
This is practice of “massaging” internal organs and the membrane that supports them. When an organ is damaged the membrane that holds it in place can stiffen forcing the surrounding organs to move around it. Visceral manipulation has helped thousands with ailments ranging from lower back pain to heart and lung problems.
Acupuncture
Got pain? Fix it by sticking dozens of needles in you. Sounds fun doesn’t it? Acupuncture dates way back to ancient China. It works by altering the senses of the nerves surrounding the area in pain. Reviews have been mixed as with most alternative approaches. Some swear by it, others get nothing out of it.
Yoga
Combining the art of meditation and stretching, yoga is the ultimate heal-yourself approach to dealing with pain. There is no shortage of believers either. But like most alternative approaches, science can’t find any solid evidence to back up the claims of the thousands who swear by it.
There are many other alternative approaches to managing pain in addition to these front runners. If you are in pain it may be in your best interest to try some of these remedies first before accepting a potential addictive regimen of pain killers. Who knows, you may even be able to avoid a surgery and improve your overall health. And good health is the number one preventative medicine to keep you out of pain in the first place!
Tags: acupuncture, back brace, back pain, chiropractics, decompression, discs, DME, DMEPOS, Durable Medical Equipment, Electric Muscle Stimulation, electro therapy, healing, herniated disc, HME, Home Medical Equipment, TENS, visceral manipulation
Posted in Articles by Michael Harris | 2 Comments »
Friday, July 30th, 2010
No one disagrees that the evolution of modern medicine has been a miracle. From the discovery of Penicillin in the 1920’s to the development of the artificial heart; the advances and innovations that have come within the last century are stunning.
The resulting industry found within modern medicine is large and powerful with more than a quarter million physicians and over 5,000 hospitals in the U.S. alone. World-wide total health care expenditures top $4.5 trillion, $550 billion of that in prescription drugs.
Yet there are many who feel the “system” is broken—that it is focused more on profits than the patient. This thought is exacerbated by mainstream medicine’s resistance to new approaches such as preventative medicine, chiropractic practices and holistic and energetic healing techniques—despite some very convincing data and success stories. The resulting banter between the two thoughts can leave the consumer frustrated and confused, wondering which philosophy to subscribe to.
How about subscribing to both? Why does it have to be one or the other? It doesn’t. But since those in traditional and alternative medicines don’t live under one happy roof, it is unfortunately left to the consumer to navigate his way through the maze that is to become their road to recovery.
Amongst all the chatter, there are a few things you can believe, and a few you can’t. Here is your quick guide:
Believe—that Chiropractic is a legitimate way to help your body heal and prevent pain. Chiropractics have been around for three decades and has gained acceptance even within the “traditional” medical community.
Believe—that a healthy diet and regular exercise will keep you healthy and out of the hospital.
Believe—that bacterial infections need to be treated with antibiotics. There is no “alternative” equivalent. Yes, your body’s immune system may be able to trump the infection on its own, but the risk is so not worth it.
Believe—that sometimes surgery is necessary, sometimes it is not. Unfortunately some doctors jump to the surgery conclusion too quickly either out of frustration, lack of understanding or—God forbid—because it makes them the most money. So it is up to you to understand what it is your doctor wants to do and why, and what the desired outcome is. Then do your own research to see if there are alternatives to reach the same outcome.
A good example of an alternative to surgery can be found with those who suffer from back pain, particularly pain associated from a ruptured or bulging disc. Western medicine’s approach is to surgically remove the herniated disc matter. The alternative approach is spinal decompression using a decompression table at a qualified chiropractor’s office. Decompression has saved thousands of patients from back surgery.
Don’t Believe—that just because something did or did not work for someone else, that it will or will not work for you. Everyone is different. Individual results will vary.
Don’t Believe—that all drugs are bad. Some drugs may be necessary. But of course when it comes to prescription drugs, less is more. Don’t blindly accept every prescription offered to you. Also, don’t blindly refuse to take them either. Do your research.
Don’t Believe—all vitamins, minerals and supplements are good. This is an unregulated area of the FDA. As a result there are some false claims and overstatements of benefits. Generally though, subscribing to a diet full of vitamins and minerals won’t hurt anything…other than maybe your wallet.
Don’t Believe—that just because your doctor doesn’t bring up or endorse a certain alternative practice that it is not a good one. Remember, doctors have gone to 12 years of higher education to learn a certain world view on medicine. They are not likely to step out of that box. Alternative medicine is gaining popularity for a reason—it can work. You don’t have to look very hard to find plenty of success stories from folks who “cured themselves” through alternative means.
Tags: alternative medicine, chiropractics, decompression, diet, health, Lower Back Pain, pain, surgery, vitamins
Posted in Articles by Michael Harris | 17 Comments »
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