Prolozone in a Nutshell

Prolozone, at Alta Mountain Chiropractic is a combination of prolotherapy and ozone injections, and is a regenerative injection technique developed and pioneered by Dr. Frank Shallenberger. Natural proliferative solutions are injected over the ligaments, tendons, discs and joints as well as into muscle and are followed by an injection of ozone gas. This combination often produces better results than prolotherapy or standard ozone alone.

At Alta Mountain Regenerative Medicine, we can perform Prolozone as an injection of ozone periarticular to the joint. Its use has proven to be beneficial in relieving all sorts of joint pain, including conditions such as:

Prolozone causes the release of growth factors that stimulate damaged joints and degenerated discs to regenerate. It can also dramatically reduce or even eliminate many cases of chronic pain through its action on pain receptors.

A truly remarkable thing about Prolozone is that it actually corrects the pathology of the disorder itself, meaning there is a 75% chance for the person suffering from chronic pain to become permanently pain-free.

        

Read more about Prolozone at: Prolozone™ – Regenerating Joints and Eliminating Pain

What exactly is Prolozone?

Prolozone is a form of regenerative medicine treatment that uses homeopathic as a healing substance and increases the amount of oxygen in the body through the introduction of ozone.

Prolozone is derived from the Latin word proli which means “to regenerate” or “rebuild” and the word ozone. Ozone is the most highly active form of oxygen in the universe.

Prolozone as a medical procedure uses the power of oxygen to cause damaged discs, tissues, joints, ligaments, and tendons to regenerate. In the overwhelming majority of instances, it causes a complete healing, and a permanent end to pain.

Prolozone is a technique that marries concepts from neural therapy, prolotherapy, and ozone therapy. It involves injecting various combinations of anti-inflammatory medications/homeopathic and a mixture of ozone/oxygen gas into degenerated or injured joints, and into areas of pain. The result of this combination is nothing short of amazing in that damaged tissues can be regenerated, and otherwise untreatable pain can be permanently cured. Source

In the Prolozone technique, only medical grade ozone (pure oxygen) is used to trigger a curative response in the body and stimulate the healing process. The body has the potential to renew and regenerate itself if stimulated in a certain way. When this potential becomes compromised is when the body becomes sick or begins to degenerate.

Ozone is known to have immunity-boosting properties because it improves the body’s intake and use of oxygen. The reactive properties of ozone stimulate the body to remove many health impediments and allow the body to do what it does best – heal itself.

What is Prolozone used for?

Ozone therapy has been found to be useful in several ways in medicine. When it was first used more than 150 years ago, it was to disinfect and treat diseases.

Dr. Nathan Eldredge administers Prolozone Therapy in Sandy, Utah to his patients suffering from:

Because Prolozone treatments also result in cartilage regeneration, this regenerative medicine treatment is also remarkably effective even for severe cases of osteoarthritis of the hip or knee. Prolozone is not and should not be perceived as just a treatment for pain because the results actually represent a permanent fix.

How does Prolozone or Ozone Therapy work?

One of the reasons that some injuries completely heal and others do not has to do with circulation. In order for any damaged area of the body to regenerate and heal, it must have the critical elements that only the blood can provide: vitamins, minerals, and oxygen. Of these three, the most important is oxygen. Low levels of it cause an accumulation of lactic acid, which is what causes pain.

During Prolozone treatment, we first administer a homeopathic medicine. The medication is injected into the injured area in order to reduce pain and swelling, which will then lead to increased blood circulation.

Second, we administer ozone to the area via injection. This provides oxygen that the tissues need as well as helps disperse the homeopathic medication further into the tissues, where the cells can utilize the administer medication.

Third, we provide the much needed vitamins and minerals that work as building blocks and are critical for healing. The combination of procedures ensures that the tissues get what they need to begin the process of healing. The response to treatment varies from person to person, but most of our patients only need from 3-5 treatments.

Do You Have Back, Hip or Joint Pain? Prolozone Can Help.

Are you suffering from neck pain, low back pain, mid back pain, shoulder pain or elbow pain? You’re not alone. The usual course of treatment for these types of pain are surgery, pain killers, anti-inflammatory drugs and cortisone shots. While some of these procedures may offer temporary relief, they do not treat the underlying cause of the issue. Also, many of these treatments when used frequently, have negative side-effects and could possibly be destructive to tissues.

Common Conditions that Respond Well to Prolozone Therapy

How Does Prolozone Work?

Prolozone is derived from the word “ozone” and the Latin word “proli” which means to regenerate or re-build. It literally means re-building tissues with ozone. And the word Prolozone is comprised of the word “Prolo” which is short for proliferation, because the treatment causes the proliferation (growth, formation) of new tissue in areas where it has become weak.

Prolozone Therapy is an injection technique similar to Prolotherapy that uses ozone. The use of ozone causes the joint to heal much more quickly than in traditional Prolotherapy. This is because ozone is a highly reactive molecule and when injected periarticular to the joint it is able to stimulate the fibroblastic joint repairing abilities.

Prolozone causes repair and tightening of the lax structures, partially torn connective tissue and ligaments. Prolozone halts the pain/inflammation cycle. This allows for better circulation, increased blood flow carrying nutrition, and hydration of the damaged tissues. This allows for a healing environment within the joint to develop and results in increased range of motion and decreased pain. Because Prolozone has the ability in many cases to actually corrects the pathology of the disorder, there is a 75-85% chance for the chronic pain sufferer to become permanently pain free. By repairing the connective tissue this is all that is needed to permanently reverse chronic pain.

Prolozone Can Help Back Pain

Suffering with back pain that just won’t go away? Have you tried over the counter pain relievers, stretching, heating, ice and a variety of supposed remedies but you’re still suffering with back pain? Have you received chiropractic and or physical therapy and you have reached maximum improvement? If so, you owe it to yourself to try Prolozone therapy. Many patients obtain a level of immediate pain relief that they haven’t felt and didn’t expect. These treatments are followed up by several more, spaced around 2-3 weeks apart. This gives the muscles, joints, tendons and any damaged areas time to heal and recover. For many patients, that is the end of their back pain. Prolozone therapy is much less expensive than many other treatment options and you can come in for your treatment and be on your way, to continue to work the same day.

Why Joints & Ligaments Degenerate

Ligaments are the structural “rubber bands” that hold bones to bones in joints – acting like the body’s shock absorbers. Ligaments can become weak or injured and may not heal back to their original strength or endurance. Ligaments will also not tighten on their own to their original length once injured. This is largely because the blood supply to ligaments is limited, and therefore healing is slow and not always complete. To further complicate this, ligaments also have many nerve endings, and therefore the person will feel pain at the areas where the ligaments are damaged or loose.

We can think of our joints as the hinge on a door. Unless the hinge is fixed to the door, the door just isn’t going to open or close right and it’s the same exact story with our joints. If we are athletic or if we are just getting older there is some gradual and natural degeneration of the moving parts of the body due to ongoing recurrent mechanical stress, and failure of tissues to repair. This can come from lack of nutrients, lack of circulation, aging and inflammation. When this happens the ligaments, tendons, and cartilage become dehydrated and weaker. This results in laxity and more abnormal mechanical stress and shearing forces on the joint. Abnormal shearing forces and torsion cause more joint dysfunction. This leads to a progressive separation of the ligaments from the superficial covering on the bone called the periosteum. This pulling on the periosteum creates a space, which the body fills in with new bone. These new parts of bone are called osteophytes. They are the premier signs of degenerative arthritis in & around the joint. Osteophytes and joint laxity result in a reduced range of motion, which causes strain on surrounding muscles which then become either over or under worked leading to more dysfunction & pain.

Prolozone Rebuilds Joints & Helps Damaged Areas

Prolozone is a connective tissue injection therapy of collagen producing substances and ozone gas which can reconstruct damaged or weakened connective tissues and around joints to rebuild the damaged areas. Prolozone therapy offers a non-surgical, ligament reconstruction option and may be the perfect treatment for your chronic pain.

According to the American Academy of Ozonotherapy, Prolozone® is an oxygen-ozone injection technique developed and pioneered by Dr. Frank Shallenberger.

See Dr. Eldredge’s opinion on Corticosteriod injections

To schedule your appointment at Alta Mountain Chiropractic for Prolozone Therapy call us at (801) 523-2582.

To see a large number of scientific studies supporting the use of Ozone Therapy click here.

REFERENCES

1 Rao GN. Protein tyrosine phosphorylation events play determinant roles in cellular processes such as proliferation and differentiation. Oncogene. 1996 Aug 15;13(4):713-9.

2 Kai C, et al. Mitochondrial function is required for hydrogen peroxide-induced growth factor receptor transactivation and downstream signaling. J Biol Chem. 279 (33):35079-35086.

3 Ioan C, et al. NAD(P)H oxidase 4 mediates transforming growth factor-ß1–induced differentiation of cardiac fibroblasts into myofibroblasts circulation research. 2005;97:900-907.

4 Bonetti M, et al. Intraforaminal O(2)-O(3) versus periradicular steroidal infiltrations in lower back pain: randomized controlled study. Am J Neuroradiol.2005 May; 26(5):996-1000.CONCLUSION: Oxygen-ozone treatment was highly effective in relieving acute and chronic lower back pain and sciatica. The gas mixture can be administered as a first treatment to replace epidural steroids.

5 Al-Jaziri AA, et al. Painkilling effect of ozone-oxygen injection on spine and joint osteoarthritis. Saudi Med J.2008 Apr;29(4):553-7.CONCLUSION: This study validates the painkilling effect of ozone-oxygen injection on osteoarthritis of the joints and spine. Its long term effect on pain advocates the likelihood of some histological changes as mechanism of its action.

6 Fuccio C, et al. A single subcutaneous injection of ozone prevents allodynia and decreases the over-expression of pro-inflammatory caspases in the orbito-frontal cortex of neuropathic mice. Eur J Pharmacol.2009 Jan 28;603(1-3):42-9.CONCLUSION: These preliminary data show that peripheral neuropathy induced over-expression of pro-inflammatory/pro-apoptotic caspases in the orbito-frontal cortex and that ozone, by mechanisms that are as yet unknown, can regulate the expression of the genes that play a pivotal role in the onset and maintenance of allodynia.

7 Paoloni M, et al. Intramuscular oxygen-ozone therapy in the treatment of acute back pain with lumbar disc herniation-a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, clinical trial of active and simulated lumbar paravertebral injection. Spine.2009;34(13):1337–1344.CONCLUSION: Ozone vs placebo – 61% vs 33% pain free.

8 Bonetti M, et al. Intraforaminal O(2)-O(3) versus periradicular steroidal infiltrations in lower back pain: randomized controlled study. AJNR Am JNeuroradiol. 2005 May;26(5):996-1000.CONCLUSION: Ozone more effective than steroids – 8.6 vs 21.4% poor outcomes.

9 Fifth International Symposium on the Applications of Ozone, April 2007, Havana, Cuba.CONCLUSION: We conclude that intra-articular ozone is an effective therapy in the treatment of grade III knee osteoarthritis resistant to treatment with NSAIDs.“Ozone Shot as Effective as Surgery for Herniated Discs” As reported in CyberRounds, by Neil Wagner online at www.cyberrounds.com.A Toronto team examined the results of 12 previous studies involving over 8,000 patients of ozone treatment of herniated discs. The studies showed ozone therapy to be just as effective as surgery but with a shorter recovery time and a much lower risk of complications.