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Archive for the 'actipatch' Category
An FDA review panel today called for safety restrictions on the popular over-the-counter pain reliever Tylenol, including reducing its maximum dose. Concerns over cases of liver damage and failure prompted expert review. The panel recommended lowering the maximum dose of over-the-counter Tylenol from 4 grams, or eight pills of a medication such as Extra Strength Tylenol. They did not specify how much it should be lowered. The panel also endorsed limiting the maximum single dose of the drug to 650 milligrams. That would be down from the 1,000-milligram dose, or two tablets of Extra Strength Tylenol.
The experts also ruled that prescription drugs that combine acetaminophen with other painkilling ingredients (such as Vicodin and Percocet) should be eliminated. They cited FDA data indicating that 60 percent of Tylenol-related deaths are related to prescription products. If the combination products are eliminated, the acetaminophen and the other ingredients could be prescribed separately. In effect, patients would take two pills instead of one, and be more aware of the acetaminophen they are consuming.
These panel recommendations have impact on plastic surgery as Percocet and Vicodin are the most common postoperative pain medications that we prescribe. Many of my patients have concerns about the doses of Tylenol to which they may be exposed. For this reason, I have been using when possible ActiPatch technology for its pain management and anti-inflammatory effects which reduces patients needs for these drugs.
ActiPatch is a topically applied battery-operated device that elicits pulsed electromagnetic fields that is proven to be capable of modulating inflammation and edema in local tissues. It is easily applied and removed and is inexpensive. I have used it in my Indianapolis plastic surgery practice over the past two years and have found it effective for postoperative relief of pain and swelling after breast augmentation, liposuction, tummy tucks and certain types of facial surgeries. I have patients apply it for up to 48 hours after surgery. While it may not completely eliminate the need for some prescription medication, the overall doses and duration of need certainly appear reduced.
The timing of these Tylenol (acetaminophen) recommendations further validates my use of the ActiPatch devices for my patients. They provide a natural and drug-free adjunct to conventional pharmacologic therapies that have no risk of any adverse reactions. Unlike drugs, they do not induce prolonged use or dependency and more quickly help patients get back to an unmedicated lifestyle after surgery.
Dr. Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
http://www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis
Cramping and pain are common problems for many women during their menstrual period. Sharp pains in the lower abdomen begin at the start of menstruation and may continue for 3 to 4 days. The pain can range from mild to severe and often interferes with many normal activities. While the majority of women who have menstrual periods have some discomfort, 10% or more are temporarily disabled by the discomfort.
Many different treatment strategies have been tried for menstrual pain but the most commonly used are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. (NSAIDS) Despite drug therapy, universal relief is not obtained and some patients experience gastric upset and other minor problems with NSAID use. The search for a cost effective, non-drug, anti-inflammatory approach to menstrual pain continues.
ActiPatch is a topically applied battery-operated device that elicits pulsed electromagnetic fields that has proven to be capable of modulating inflammation and edema in local tissues. It is easily applied and removed and is inexpensive. I have used it in my plastic surgery and spa practices over the past two years and have found it effective for postoperative relief of pain and swelling after breast augmentation, liposuction, and certain types of facial surgeries. I have also personally used it as well as family members for a variety of musculoskeletal and joint pain issues and have found it helpful. I recommend it to all of my patients for a variety of inflammatory and pain issues. This experience prompted me to wonder if this technology would be effective for the common female problem of menstrual pain. Having a medical and spa practice that is predominantly women, I had a fertile environment to test its potential benefits.
Beginning in August 2008, I solicited and identified twenty-three (23) female patients (ages 19 to 37) with problematic menstrual issues that were willing to test the patches. They were provided with a questionnaire that allowed them to rate their menstrual pain on a 1 – 10 scale as well as a daily rating of their pain using this scale beginning on their first day of menstruation up to five days after. To serve as their own controls, they initially used these ratings on a regular menstrual cycle without ActiPatch treatment. Once their control data was obtained, they were provided with an ActiPatch to use which measured 6 x 10 cms. They were instructed where and how to apply it and to use it continuously for 5 days when the onset of their menstrual period was evident. They rated their pain over this time period using the same 1 – 10 pain scale as they used during their control period. The patients were asked not to take any oral medications during the study period.
The patient results obtained indicated that during the control period, the average composite pain rating was 7.8. (highest 10, lowest 4) From day one to five, the average composite daily pain ratings were 8.3, 7.9, 7.4, 6.5, and 5.7, respectively. During the ActiPatch treatment sessions, the average composite pain ratings was 5.4 (highest 8, lowest 2) for the same set of patients. Their average composite daily pain ratings were 5.7, 4.8, 4.3, 3.4, and 2.1 for days one through five. The correlates to an overall pain reduction of 30% and on a daily basis of 31%, 39%, 42%, 48%, and 73% respectively. This indicates as the days of menstruation went on, the amount of pain reduction continued to improve either from cumulative effects from ActiPatch therapy, a reduction in actual menstrual pain as flow decreases, or a combination of both.
This initial pilot study provides evidence that ActiPatch does appear to contribute to pain relief from menstruation. The size of the patch is able to produce a field that can penetrate deep enough into the tissues to create a positive effect. The data reported here represent overall trends and further intrapatient statistical analysis needs to be done to determine individual improvement.
These menstrual findings are not surprising to me as they are consistent with what I have observed in recovery after numerous plastic surgery procedures. ActiPatch, now known as ALLAY for application for menstrual pain, appears to have a useful role for women who suffer from painful periods. Its ease of use, low cost, and ability to be combined with helpful aids, such as NSAID medications and heating pads make it an ideal therapeutic option for many women.
Dr. Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis
Contemporary recovery after breast augmentation is designed to be short with minimal disruption of one’s lifestyle. Anti-inflammatory medications and early physical therapy of the arms (the attachments of the pectoralis muscle) are the mainstays of an aggressive recovery program after the placement of breast implants. Gone are the need for bulky dressings and restrictions on physical activity after surgery which had been the hallmarks of breast imoplant surgery in the past. The less pain a patient has, the more physical therapy they can do to further expedite their return to normal activities of daily living. In an effort to control pain after breast augmentation, I often employ pulsed electromagnetic therapy using ActiPatch topical patches devices. To determine whether this was actually beneficial or just a psychotherapeutic concept, a prospective clinical study of breast augmentation patients was done.
A prospective clinical study of fourty-eight (48) women undergoing breast augmentation was conducted from November 2007 to November 2008. Women underwent breast augmentation with either saline or silicone breast implants through a transaxillary (saline) or inframammary (silicone) incision. Patients were aware that they would receive Actipatch therapy as part of their postoperative protocol. At the completion of surgery, Actipatch devices (crescent-shaped) were placed over the medial and superior aspect of the breasts (over the pectoralis muscle) and taped into position inside their surgical bra. For the first twenty patients, the device was activated (activating tab pulled) on the left breast and on the opposite right breast the device was not activated. (activating tab was trimmed but not pulled) The patients were not informed which devices were which. In the next twenty-eight patients, the device locations were reversed. Patients were instructed to wear the devices for the first seventy-two hours after surgery after which they were to be discarded. Patients were given a sheet to complete at the time of discontinuing their ActiPatch therapy so that they could rate their postoperative pain on a simple scale (1 - 10) and, most importantly, compare and rate the pain between the two breasts at that time period.
In the first twenty patients, fourteen rated the active device breast as less uncomfortable than the control patch side. In the next twenty-eight patients, twenty-one rated the active side less painful. In total, thirty-five patients (73%) reported less pain and uncomfortability on the breast that received pulsed electromagnetic therapy than on the control side.
Pulsed electromagnetic therapy has been around for a long time and its potential benefits are based on creating an anti-inflammatory effect. Actipatch provides a simple, low-cost method of delivery of this potential healing technology. In this breast augmentation study, Actipatch demonstrated less pain within the first few days after surgery. Given its ease of use and lack of any potential for creating any adverse problems, its use as part of a breast augmentation recovery protocol appears to have offer patients some real benefits.
While all pain studies are flawed, and this one is no exception, it certainly suggests that pulsed electromagnetic therapy (PEMT)should be further explored. A change in the design of the device so that it ‘fits’ the breast better may be even more useful. A large round loop that would fit around the circumference of the breast is more likely to deliver the effects of PEMT to the breast ina more even distribution although I could argue that the pain after breast augmentation is muscular rather than ‘breast’ in origin.
Dr. Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis
ActiPatch is a non-drug, anti-inflammatory device that has been used for multiple medical conditions from facial surgery recovery to plantar fasciitis. It helps reduce swelling and inflammation through the use of pulsed electromagnetic fields contained in either a patch design or a loop configurations. The patch or loop devices contain a tiny circuit which is operated by a small low-voltage battery. Beneath the geometry of the circuit, a penetrating electromagnetic field or zone is created which penetrates into the tissues under the skin. The frequency of the generated signal works by decreasing intercellular fluid and inflammation in the injured site. As a result, the amount of swelling and associated pain around a surgery site is reduced and recovery is accelerated.
I first starting using ActiPatch for my own back and shoulder pains from years of long hours of surgery. It worked as well as any non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication and I began to use it on my breast augmentation patients. By positioning a crescent patch over the upper medial pole of the breast (where the raised pectoralis major muscle exists) and another patch over the lateral pole of the breast (4 patches per patient), I have been equally impressed with the results. My past 25 breast augmentation patients have used it with good success. It is now part of my routinue postop breast augmentation protocol and I have each patient wear them around the clock for the first 48 hours after surgery. In most cases, patients are off pain medications within 24 hours.
While I aggressively place them on an arm exercise program after surgery (http://www.rapidrecoverybreastaugmentation.com), which makes a big contribution to their recovery as well, the use of the ActiPatch is a simple and easy adjunct to this recovery protocol. Breast augmentation patients are extremely appreciative of any efforts made to decrease any potential pain, which is their biggest fear about breast augmentation surgery. Based on my experience with it in the breast implant patient, I can see no reason why it would not be of benefit for all kinds of breast surgery as well.
Dr Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
http://www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis
Return to Normal Quickly after Breast Augmentation – Dr Eppley’s Approach in Indianapolis
Breast augmentation is both a popular and highly successful procedure that is done over 300,000 times per year in the United States alone. Some women, however, fear the procedure due to the belief that there is a lot of pain after surgery and that their return to work or normal activities may take several weeks. Breast augmentation surgery today, however, can put the patient back to a near normal schedule within days.
Breast augmentation, from a simplistic standpoint, is really a big ‘pulled muscle’. In this
case, the pectoralis muscle on the chest is ‘pulled’. Breast augmentation, in most cases, is the lifting up of this muscle and placing an implant partially underneath it. No breast implant is completely under the muscle or it would be positioned too high and the nipple would be pointing downward. As the pocket into which a breast implant is placed controls the final shape of the breast, recovery after breast augmentation is really muscular. From a physical therapy standpoint, how do you recover from a pulled muscle? Do you not move it…or bind it up and keep it from moving? The answer is…..use it! Early moving and stretching of an injured muscle is the key to a faster recovery after breast augmentation. You can’t hurt the breast implant by using your arm and chest muscles and early movement will not be responsible for an implant ‘getting out of position’.
In Indianapolis, the approach to a no recovery breast augmentation program begins in the operating room. A dose of steroids is given at the start of surgery and a bioelectric device, known as Actipatch, is placed over each breast before the patient leaves the operating room. This device, which is worn for 48 hours after surgery, helps control pain and swelling. I then start my breast augmentation patients on range of motion arm exercises beginning the night of surgery as well as 800mg of Ibuprofen also. The goal is to get patients off narcotic pain medication in 24 hours, if possible, and be able to get out of the house for dinner or shopping the next day. While not every patient achieves this exact timeline for a ‘no recovery’, this approach helps make a breast augmentation easier to go through than ever before.
Dr Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
http://www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis
Advanced Bio-Electric Healing Technology
What can I do, as a plastic surgeon, to help my patients recover faster? What can I do to help their swelling, bruising, and pain be less? We use all of the traditional therapies of cold compresses, arnica tablets and gel, elevation of the surgical area, and pain medications. But I have recently added a new option, offering advanced bio-electric therapy (ActiPatch) to help my patients heal better after surgery.
ActiPatch delivers the same pulsed electromagnetic therapy, used by physicians, therapists, and athletic trainers worldwide to reduce pain and swelling and accelerate healing. The traditional clinical treatments of bio-electrics is expensive and inconvenient for most patients. Now, through microchip technology, this home-based therapy is available in a convenient, easy to use, low-cost patch. Applied right after surgery, and used for the first week after surgery, ActiPatch works by driving out the swelling and negative by-products from the damaged tissues. With less swelling, a decrease in pain occurs.
ActiPatch is a wearable technology, is flexible, light weight, and easy to apply and use. Once activated, ActiPatch begins pulsing a continuous low level current to energize damaged cells in the surgical region, helping remove the effects of surgery so you can feel better and look better faster!
ActiPatch has been shown to be effective in reducing pain in breast augmentation, abdominoplasty, blepharoplasty (eyelid), nose and facelift surgeries. I consider it a very useful aid in my Indianapolis plastic surgery practice.
Dr Barry Eppley
www.eppleyplasticsurgery.coom
www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis