By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
Since 2008, Dr. David Lang, D.C., has continually explored ways to help his patients with chiropractic modalities and technological applications that can bring lasting, drug-free relief from pain. He worked at several clinics in the area, and in 2017, he was able to open his own clinic in the Athens Publix shopping complex. The clinic has grown to the point that he has purchased an acre of land for a new clinic, and as we speak, the designs and drawings are in the works. The new 4,000 square foot practice site will be near Athens High School, and Dr. Lang will be able to add associates, services, and partners to better care for the people of Alabama and Tennessee.
For years, Dr. Lang’s practice used a combination of time-honored chiropractic approaches and explored new treatments in order to continuously increase their ability to improve the quality of life of their patients. Then, as is often the case with breakthroughs, Dr. Lang went through that excruciatingly painful experience that sometimes strikes the soul of a health care provider — not being able to help someone find comfort and relief from intractable pain. David had a patient who had had a simple, clean knee arthroscopic procedure that was performed perfectly, and she ended up with what is called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome all over her body. First it was in the knee that had surgery, then her opposite knee, and then it spread for reasons that no one understands. Please understand, this is a real, red, swollen, painfully tender condition that can even be discerned by the naked eye, but no one knows why it develops in the brain and spreads to places that have never been traumatized.
David told me, “CRPS sufferers are in so much pain that they can’t handle getting any type of adjustment.” His desperate patient then discovered a unique treatment developed in Italy called Calmare, and went to Dr. Michael Cooney in New Jersey to get several treatments that brought her great levels of relief. It uses what is known as scrambler therapy. Scrambler therapy sends a series of low-level amp signals to the brain that disrupts neuropathic pain and sends a signal that it is ok for the brain to stop hurting.
Here is what the Calmare people have to say (in laymen’s terms) about the science behind the treatment protocols.
The Calmare® device uses a biophysical rather than a biochemical approach. A ‘no-pain’ message is transmitted to the nerve via disposable surface electrodes applied to the skin in the region of the patient’s pain. The perception of pain is cancelled when the no-pain message replaces that of pain, by using the same pathway through the surface electrodes in a non-invasive way. Regardless of pain intensity, a patient’s pain can be completely removed for immediate relief.
Maximum benefit is achieved through follow-up treatments. The patient may be able to go for extended periods of time between subsequent treatments while experiencing significant pain control and relief. The period of time between treatments depends on the underlying cause and severity of the pain in addition to other factors.
Then Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome struck closer to home, affecting David’s father’s foot after both a successful back surgery along with the death of a family member. The CRPS developed only a few weeks after the surgery. The great results from the Calmare therapy that David’s patient had received gave the David’s father encouragement to go to Memphis to get treatment. “My dad’s foot no longer looked like a kielbasa sausage,” he said, and what amazed him was how quickly it happened. David knew that he needed to do whatever it took to bring Calmare to Alabama, and has just finished the training and his trials with sufferers of CRPS here in North Alabama. The machine is up and working, he and his staff have been trained, and he is pleased to announce that Calmare Scrambler Therapy will be available at the clinic in about a month.
Who can benefit from Calmare Therapy? Those who contend with:
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Calmare Scrambler Therapy makes use of dermatomes, which are sensory zones in the skin that correspond to places in the spine. Dermatomes trace along a specific route on the body that corresponds to a specific nerve route out of the spine.”We use dermatomes as a road map to see how close we can get to the pain,” said Dr. Lang. To treat his dad, they placed the sensors above his knee, even though the pain was in the foot.
One of David’s other success stories from his patient trials involves a man who had suffered with neuropathy in his feet and hands. He had not been able to feel his feet at all for 10 years, and receiving treatment caused him to be able to feel the wind of the car’s air conditioner on his feet. The numbness in his foot went down by 75%, and the numbness in his toes was completely eliminated. In addition, the numbness in his fingers was reduced 100%, and he was able to use tools for the first time in years. “People don’t realize what a difference being able to do simple things makes,” said David. He also made it really clear that people are different, and it’s impossible to predict how many treatments may be needed to clear up pain, “But you’ll know after the first treatment if Calmare therapy is going to help you.”
Calmare Therapy can help things as varied as phantom pain syndrome after an amputation to helping with pain after a back surgery. Read the following:
I am a 60-year-old guidance counselor for a local high school. My right ankle has no cartilage and is just bone on bone. I will be having an ankle replacement in April. In the interim I wanted to walk more to lose weight before the surgery. I am more of aware of the pain in my right knee, which was overshadowed by the pain in my right ankle. I had a knee scraping to remove broken cartilage a few years ago. I am not feeling any pain whatsoever in my ankle. I noticed a reduction of pain after the first treatment in my right knee. I am more mobile now, and I don’t have to think and plan the way I am going to walk in a particular area and compensate for it to save steps.
It’s uplifting. I was depressed before. This device has helped me a lot. This should be available to everyone in pain. It’s a shame that it’s not.
One of the most promising results of Calmare Scrambler Therapy is that it is entirely possible for some patients to come off of opioids, which have become a huge problem in our nation. While that is not guaranteed, it is not uncommon. If you are suffering from any of the conditions we have discussed in this article, call Dr. David Lang’s office today to make an appointment to see if Calmare Therapy is right for you.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
