Neuropathy Services
WHAT IS NEUROPATHY?
Neuropathy Candidacy Consultation
Consulta Para Neuropatia
Neuropathy is a general term meaning “nerve problem”. There are two main types of neuropathy and a variety of causes. The first type of neuropathy we will discuss has been the most common type for years but that is starting to change.
The first type is Large Fiber Mono-Neuropathy (Large Fiber meaning the bigger nerve bundles closer to the spine and Mono-meaning “one”). Large Fiber MonoNeuropathy usually begins at the spine level, either the lower neck or lower back, and typically radiates down one arm or one leg.
The symptoms can be numbness, tingling and/or pain and most of the time will start in the shoulder or buttock region and then progressively begin to travel further down the affected arm or leg until reaching the hand/fingers or foot/ toes.
The cause of this type of neuropathy is often trauma to the body like slips, falls, car accidents or other injuries that we can’t even remember and weren’t dealt with properly at the time and then start to affect us years or decades later.
The underlying cause in most cases is a problem involving the whole complex of spinal structures (muscles, ligaments, vertebrae, spinal discs) and first produce an abnormal alignment of the spine which causes pressure on the nerves which then causes the symptoms, or abnormal alignment causes increased pressure on the spinal discs (shock absorbing pads between every two spinal bones) and
abnormally wears them causing a “bulging disc” which can contact the spinal nerves and cause the symptoms.
A bulging disc, if left untreated can worsen and eventually lead to a ruptured disc in which a jelly like substance in the center of the disc (think jelly doughnut) can start to leak out and hit the nerve(s) and cause severe pain, numbness, tingling, weakness and eventually loss of muscle function (i.e. drop foot).abnormally wears them causing a “bulging disc” which can contact the spinal nerves and cause the symptoms.
If this type of neuropathy is not treated early enough, it
usually ends up as a surgical case.
The second type of neuropathy is Small Fiber, PolyNeuropathy. (Small Fiber meaning the smaller nerve
bundles closer to the ends of the extremities and Poly –
meaning “many” bacause there are many more nerves
and nerve endings in these regions than there are closer
to the spine).
PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY
This type is quickly becoming more and more prevalent
and estimates are that it affects nearly 46.5 million
Americans. This type of neuropathy is also know as
Peripheral Neuropathy because it affects the nerves
furthest away from the center of the body (like the lower
arms, hands, fingers, lower legs, feet and toes).
Peripheral neuropathy is a progressive condition that
typically affects the lower legs and feet and then can
advance to the hands and fingers. Peripheral neuropathy
is characterized by a trilogy of symptoms, usually
numbness and tingling and eventually leads to debilitating
balance problems. Pain is the variable with peripheral
neuropathy. Some people never experience pain and for
some people, pain is the first symptom to show up.
The pain of peripheral neuropathy varies from person to person. Some people have a burning type pain. For some
it feels like electrical shocks. For others it’s like their feet are being torn apart.
Peripheral Neuropathy is a disorder of the peripheral
nerves those are the nerves that go down into your arms,
hands, legs and feet.
The peripheral nerves are anything outside of the central nervous system, which is just the brain and spinal cord. So, the peripheral nerves like the ones that go down to your hands and feet are the ones that are typically affected
in neuropathy
If you look at the photo below, you will see 3 different types of nerves. On the top there is a healthy nerve and it has a little blood vessel all wrapped around it underneath
these blood vessels you have what is called the myelin sheath. It is like insulation on an electrical cord and your
nerves need it to function properly. For that myelin sheath
to survive it has to be nourished by blood vessels like the
ones you see. When looking at the middle nerve in the
picture, it looks like it is starting to shrink. The constriction
of blood vessels in this nerve decreases the amount of
blood flow getting to the nerve and it limits the amount of
nutrients that receives and eventually if this keeps
happening it ends up looking like the bottom nerve for it
looks like it’s dying off. This is exactly what happens in
neuropathy.
CAUSES OF NEUROPATHY
Estimates put the number of causes for Peripheral
neuropathy at over 1000! Despite this number, there are
only three main categories of causes.
– PHYSIOLOGICAL/FUNCTIONAL CAUSES
Physiological or functional causes of neuropathy are
basically health conditions that develop in the body. While
there can be health conditions that develop with seemingly
no cause, such as Type 1 Diabetes, these causes are
typically “lifestyle diseases” that develop as a result of not
giving the body what it needs to function properly, such as
sufficient daily exercise or hydration, as well as
overindulgence in things like food and/or alcohol. Most of
these causes involve damage to the cardiovascular/ circulatory system and reduce blood flow to the nerves of
the lower legs and feet or lower arms and hands. Type 2
Diabetes is the most common lifestyle cause of peripheral
neuropathy, however, other circulatory conditions such as
heart disease, high blood pressure, congestive heart
failure, and stroke can cause peripheral neuropathy as
well.
– CHEMICAL CAUSES
Chemical causes of peripheral neuropathy include
anything that gets into the body by chance or by choice.
These include medications like over the counter antiinflammatories as well as statin drugs commonly used for
treating high cholesterol, chemotherapy, radiation
treatment, Agent Orange, prolonged and heavy alcohol
and/or tobacco use, and finally, sugar. Excessive sugar
consumption over time can lead to Type 2 Diabetes which
is one of the most common causes of Peripheral
Neuropathy
– PHYSICAL/TRAUMATIC CAUSES
Physical or traumatic causes of neuropathy typically cause
the large fiber mono-neuropathies, like sciatica, although
they can contribute to the peripheral type as well as being
a sole cause of peripheral neuropathy. Before continuing,
let us talk about age. Neuropathy is not solely an agerelated issue, because if it were then every person would develop it and would develop it at the same time, say, at
1:04 pm at the age of 59 1/2 years of age.
Neuropathy can affect people of all ages depending on the
cause. We have treated patients as young as 19 years
and our oldest was 94 when she developed neuropathy. If
we break down what “age” really is, it is several
accumulated days. So, someone who is 10 years old, has
lived 3650 days. These days include our normal daily
activities like sitting, standing, bending, twisting, lifting,
reaching, walking, running and sleeping just to name a
few. These days add up and over time, if we do not take
proper preventative maintenance steps, can create
neuropathies.
Now, take these normal daily stresses and throw in some
slips, falls, accidents and injuries along the way. It is
estimated that the average 5-year old, has fallen down
5000 times! If this happened to us over the next 5 years,
we would be bed ridden if not worse!
Typically, it’s all the things we did as kids or young adults,
when we thought we were invincible, that catch up to us
when we’re older.
This accumulation of stresses over time leads to
degenerative conditions like Arthritis, Degenerative Disc or
Joint Disease, and Spinal Stenosis which then can
This accumulation of stresses over time leads to
degenerative conditions like Arthritis, Degenerative Disc or
Joint Disease, and Spinal Stenosis which then can
WHY OUR PROGRAM?
Neuropathy is a progressive condition meaning it always
get worse and never gets any better on its own.
Medications do not stop the progression or even slow it
down. Medication can temporarily work but then as nerve
damage and symptoms get worse, increased dosage of
medication is required to get the same effect as before.
Well, there is a legal limit for how much medication a
doctor can prescribe per day. So, what happens when you
are taking the maximum per day and it no longer
continues to help the symptoms? What happens when the
nerve damage gets to the point of no return and the
nerves can no longer regenerate and the neuropathy is
permanent? The good news is our comprehensive
approach to treating peripheral neuropathy addresses the
underlying causes and gets the nerves regenerating and
repairs the damage and as a result, the frequency and
severity of the symptoms decreases significantly if not
100% eliminated.
IS OUR PROGRAM FOR YOU?
If you have been suffering and doctors and specialists tell
you there is nothing that can be done our program is for
you.
If you are tired of taking medication that only helps a little,
if any at all, our program helps people naturally with no
drugs or injections.
If your balance is getting worse our program addresses
and helps improve balance and stability. Call us today.
If you are interested in finding and correcting the
underlying cause of your numbness, tingling, pain and/or
balance problems, then we have what you have been
searching for
If peripheral neuropathy has cost you time, sleep, money
or freedom then .schedule a FREE exam today to see if
we can get you feeling better, sleeping better and walking
better so you can do the things you like to do or need to
do and get your life back!
Our Program Gets Results!
How It Works
Imagine for a minute that you have a plant and you see
that your plant is wilting. What might you do to get the
plant healthy again? Well maybe you might think it needs
something such as water, maybe more sunshine or maybe
even some nutrients like fertilizer. These are things to think
about when we see a wilting plant. If adding things does
not work well maybe the plant has bugs on it or maybe it’s
planted in some bad or toxic soil that might be causing it to
be unhealthy.
The same principles apply to your body and your health,
especially when it comes to neuropathy. We must give
your body everything it needs in order to work properly.
We are a living organism just like a plant and we have
certain requirements that we need and if we do not get
them then we start to have dysfunction and eventually disease. If the nerves to your arms, hands, fingers, legs, feet
or toes are not getting nutrients and growth factors from
the blood then just like a plant without water to the roots,
the nerves will begin to die and this then leads to the main
type of peripheral neuropathy.
If a plant is wilting what would you do? Well, you give it
water, sunlight and nutrients…that is exactly what we are
trying to do with your nerves. We are trying to get new
blood vessels and more blood to nourish the nerve back to
health.
Let us dig into what that means. Neuropathy is a condition
that requires a multi-pronged approach to treat the
affected areas. We found that a nine-part therapy regimen
that we have developed really works for treating
neuropathy and each part is just as important as the
others.
We found that we really need to take a comprehensive
approach to treat neuropathy. It cannot be done with just
simply a medication or an injection because there are so
many factors that contribute to peripheral neuropathy.
We take a holistic approach to treat it.
Some of the things that we do to treat neuropathy include
light therapy which stimulates angiogenesis (new blood
vessel formation), electrotherapy which is going to repair,
rebuild, regenerate and reeducate the nerves,
our metabolic management programs for blood sugar
monitoring and also working on your balance, and tending
to joint, nerve and muscle health in a variety of other
natural ways.
All these elements come together in our comprehensive
neuropathy treatment program. When we evaluate
patients in our clinic, we put together a tailored program
that is just for them. We determine how many clinic visits
they might need and what any at-home care protocols
might look like to get them better.
If it helps fix the underlying causes of neuropathy, it is in
our neuropathy treatment program.
We even have a complete do it yourself at home care
program for people who cannot or do not want to drive
long distances for care.
TOP QUESTIONS WE HEAR FROM PATIENTS
What causes neuropathy?
There are many causes of peripheral neuropathy,
including diabetes, chemotherapy or radiation treatments,
past accidents and injuries, genetic or hereditary
disorders, circulatory problems, inflammatory infections,
auto-immune diseases, exposure to toxins like Agent
Orange, certain prescription medications, chronic NSAID
used, chronic alcoholism, kidney failure, and poor
nutrition.
The good news our neuropathy correction program has a
high success rate no matter the cause. Only about 3% of
the people we accept for care fail to see any result. That’s
a very low number so the odds are in your favor and we’ve
been doing this a long time so we can usually determine
during the initial neuropathy severity exam if someone is
going to fall into this very low 3% population.
Why have I been told nothing can be done for
neuropathy?
We have heard many people tell us that they were told
that nothing could be done for them, they would just have
to live with it, or that there’s no cure for neuropathy.
Unfortunately, outside our office, that seems to be true.
Outside of what we do in our office, the only treatment
options are medications (oral or injectable), physical
therapy (great for muscle and joint problems but doesn’t
work too well for nerve regeneration), or surgery (if they
feel it’s coming from the neck or lower back.
Every day in our office, we get to witness people feeling
better, sleeping better and getting their lives back because
of our 9-step neuropathy correction program.
Am I a candidate?
We must first do an evaluation to be sure, but the good
news is that most people are candidates for our program.
The average is 2 people per month who don’t qualify
because the damage is too severe, and our program
wouldn’t work for them. The good news is the odds are in
your favor so schedule an evaluation today so we can
determine if we can help!
How long do the treatments take?
The typical in-office treatment takes about an hour and in
most cases consists of 6 different painless procedures that
do not include injections or medications.
Will it hurt?
Our neuropathy treatments are painless. Some of the
treatments have levels of intensity, but you are always in
control of the settings so you will not select an intensity
that is painful for you.
Is the procedure safe?
Yes! Nothing we do in our office or have you do at home
is dangerous. There are a couple rare contraindications to
one or two of our treatments, but these are rare, and the
vast majority can partake of all 9 steps without issue. We
will determine if either of these apply to you during your
initial evaluation.
How long does it take to see results?
80% of people we choose to work with see noticeable
improvement anywhere from the first treatment to within
1-2 weeks. The other 20% may take a little longer but on
average notice improvement within4-6 weeks.
Can Neuropathy symptoms come back?
It is possible that symptoms can come back, however, this
happens when people do not follow instructions or quit
when they are feeling much better. There is a tremendous
difference between feeling better and healing.
Have you ever needed antibiotics for something like an
ear or sinus infection? Typically, the doctor prescribes 30
pills to be taken three per day for 10 days. They tell you
“even if you start feeling better before the 10 days,
continue to take the pills or else…” What? That’s right! “…
or else it could come back”.
The same scenario applies to neuropathy. While most
people notice relief quickly, the true healing time for nerves
can be 12-15 months and in cases of chemo or radiation
induced neuropathy, healing can take up to 2 years.
Typically, if someone begins our program, follows
instructions and carries out the treatments (mostly done at
home) to allow as much of maximum healing as their body
can achieve, the neuropathy will not return.
Does my insurance cover treatment?
We accept most insurances and most insurances cover
the treatments. If some at-home treatment equipment is
required, this may or may not be covered. When you
arrive for your neuropathy severity evaluation, we will
collect any and all insurance information and verify
coverages and benefits so that if we determine we can
help, we can create your treatment plan and go over all
the details during your report of findings. This report will
answer the four questions everyone wants to know.
- What’s wrong
- Can we help
- How long will it take
- How much will it cost & how much does your insurance participate. Some insurance plans cover more than others.
If I know someone outside of Glendora who suffers with neuropathy, can you help them?
Most likely we can! We are connected to a network of
providers across the US and even in other countries who
we can put you in contact with. If, for some reason, there
is not a provider close to your friend or loved one, we can
always set them up with our “do it yourself at home
neuropathy treatment program” once we determine they
are a candidate.
How do I get started?
Call us to schedule your painless neuropathy severity
evaluation today!