 Dallas
Business Journal
July 6, 1998
by Lisa Tanner
Dallas doctor uses pioneering back procedure
A Dallas-based spine specialist is one of a handful of physicians
nationwide to use a new medical procedure to treat patients with chronic
back pain.
The procedure, called Intradiscal Electrothermal Therapy, is used
for degenerated and herniated disc problems, which affect many individuals.
The procedure helps by shrinking - not cutting - the areas within
the disc that cause the pain. It's done by inserting a catheter into
the affected discs, which usually contain areas of tom collagen, putting
immense pressure on the network of nerves.
The catheter's heat is used to shrink the tissue, which kills nerve
endings and seals up the holes in the discs' outer layers.
There are many benefits to the procedure, including a significant
decrease in pain and improvement in function, according to Dr. John
Peloza, who has done the procedure since March. Peloza, a spine consultant
to the U.S. Ski Team, - is also associated with the prestigious Steadman
Hawkins Clinic in Vail, Colo.
The procedure is performed as outpatient surgery, with no incision
and no general anesthesia, so the patient can go home within an hour.
That makes it cost-effective for the patient, because it is much less
expensive than spinal fusion and has a much shorter recovery period.
Patients generally return to work in about a week.
Dallas businessman Brad Schlachter suffered from degenerative back
pain for 10 years before undergoing the new procedure. He had given
up many of his favorite sporting activities because of pain, but he
says the procedure is "unbelievable and pain-free."
At least 80% of Americans are said to suffer from some type of back
pain during their lifetimes,
"It is an exciting time to be treating painful conditions of the spine," Peloza
said. "New technologies are on the horizon that offer safe, effective
and less expensive treatment."
Peloza was also a clinical investigator and one of the first to perform
the BAK interbody fusion case to treat lower back pain.
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