Winter Skin Rejuvenation Special at Lake Oswego Health Center

Skin rejuvenation treatments can minimize fine lines and wrinkles, improve skin laxity and tone, and decrease scarring.

“Microneedling leads to reorganization of old collagen fibres and laying down of new collagen, elastin, and capillaries leading to the effect of skin tightening. A significant increase in level of collagen type I, III, and VII, newly synthesized collagen and tropoelastin from baseline was observed after 6 microneedling sessions at 2-week intervals by El-Domyati et al.[25] This percutaneous collagen induction leads to an overall youthful appearance of the skin by reducing fine lines and wrinkles, reducing pore size, more suppleness, and elasticity.”

These results may be enhanced by adding a variety of additional oral, IV, and topical treatments.

We find PRP injections add significant results.

Talk to you doctor at LOHC to find out how your skin may benefit the most.

Winter special at Lake Oswego Health Center:

Gold package: This includes Platelet rich plasma (PRP) injections, Microneedling with PRP, and 1 topical serum of your choice. 3 treatments with 1 treatment per month of PRP are $3960

Silver package: This includes microneedling with PRP and 1 serum of your choice. 3 treatments are $1,560.

Bronze package: This includes microneedling with 1 serum. 3 treatments are $840.

If you purchase a package, you can add 3 microneedling sessions with 1 serum for $1,080.

This is a 20% savings.

Packages are non-refundable and all appointments must be scheduled with purchase to receive the discount.

Serum options are 100% organic and include:

1. Vitamin C: helps to even skin tone and texture, nourishes skin, and brightens dark spots.
2. Hyaluronic acid: hydrates skin, stimulates collagen production, smooths fine lines and wrinkles.
3. Gold Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF): tones and firms skin texture, promotes cell regeneration, and helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles.
4. Collagen: helps to shrink pores, stimulate collagen regeneration, improves fine lines and wrinkles, and improves skin elasticity.
5. Azalea: antibacterial, reduces skin breakouts and balances sebum production.

During these treatments we use a topical numbing cream to make this a very comfortable procedure. There is little to no downtime needed.

We have other packages available for our hair regeneration, our far infrared sauna and the Bemer.

You can also purchase these packages as a gift certificate for someone to enjoy.

Happy Holidays,

Lake Oswego Health Center

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy involves injection of the patient’s own platelets for the cosmetic treatment of wrinkles or scars in the face, hands, and neck. Known to some as the “vampire facelift” (a term trademarked by Alabama cosmetic surgeon Charles Runels), it is less invasive than plastic surgery, takes about 60-120 minutes for each treatment, and offers improvements for up to 18 months.

To learn more about the role of PRP therapy in cosmetics, we interviewed Dr. Bridghid McMonagle.

Dr. Bridghid McMonagle graduated from Bastyr University and completed a residency at the National College of Natural Medicine (NCNM) where she performed rotations at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) involving dermatology, gastroenterology, women’s health, and emergency care. She is certified in Ozone therapies, Wilson Temperature Protocol, LENS neurofeedback system, IV therapy, and has taken several seminars regarding bioidentical hormones, heavy metal chelation, neurofeedback, and injection techniques.

Dr. McMonagle was the first certified ozone practitioner in Oregon. She has trained extensively in ozone and PRP therapies. Dr. McMonagle has trained with Dr. Frank Shallenberger, Dr. Robert Rowen, Dr. Howard Robbins, Dr. Adrianna Schwartz, Dr. Lohadny and many more. The clinic offers the most extensive options in ozone therapies that we know of in Oregon.

LOHC: What is the rationale behind the use of PRP therapy to improve facial appearance?

Dr. McMonagle: A steady trend over the past 15 years has been for patients to seek less-invasive procedures for facial rejuvenation. PRP has been used by surgeons for many years to speed up soft-tissue healing from sports injuries as well as to treat burn victims and patients with severe ulcers. It is also used as an adjunct to implant therapy in dentistry. We have found PRP therapy to be very effective not only for joint regeneration and chronic pain but also for its anti-aging benefits.

PRP is now being used cosmetically to treat volume loss in the face, hands, and neck — particularly the thin, loose skin under the eyes and neck — as well acne scarring and stretch marks.

LOHC: By what mechanisms do injections of PRP restore facial appearance?

Dr. McMonagle: Platelets contain substances called “growth factors” that can help activate and rejuvenate cells in our body. Unlike fillers that use various synthetic substances, PRP uses the patient’s natural biology to address skin defects and volume loss, triggering production of new cells and collagen formation.

LOHC: How long does the procedure take, and how is it performed?

Dr. McMonagle: This cutting-edge rejuvenation can be 60-120 minutes depending on your treatment requests. Using our specialized PRP filler take more time.

LOHC: What type of results can generally be expected?

Dr. McMonagle: If we are using the PRP filler, results are immediate. The PRP microneedling technique will start to show effects over the next several weeks to months. Some patients report still noticing a difference after 1 treatment 3 years prior.

LOHC: What are the risks or complications?

Dr. McMonagle: Because this PRP filler and PRP is made from the patient’s own blood, there  are limited risks. Patients can expect some bruising.

LOHC: For what types of patients is this procedure most and least suitable?

Dr. McMonagle: Any patient who wishes to improve volume loss, fine lines, and textural changes of the skin is suitable for this procedure. It also appeals to the patient who is looking for a natural approach to volumizing the face and treating or reducing fine lines. Everyone’s platelets are different. Patients tend to see better results if they are already working with us to improve their health first.

LOHC: How long are the improvements maintained? If necessary, can the procedure be repeated, and if so, with what anticipated outcome?

Dr. McMonagle: PRP can be repeated, and better results are seen with a total of 2-3 treatments given 3-4 months apart. Patients can expect to see better results as they receive more treatments. With time, the results of PRP get better and better.

LOHC: How does PRP therapy compare with injections of filler, Botox(Botox® Cosmetic; Allergan, Inc; Irvine, California), or surgical facelifts?

Dr. McMonagle: PRP improves collagen over time, whereas traditional filler breaks down over time.

LOHC: What is your overall opinion of the role that PRP therapy should play in facial restoration?

Dr. McMonagle: PRP therapy is very promising in facial restoration. Results are optimal when patients receive a combination of PRP, PRP dermal fillers, and systemic ozone therapies.

Hair loss can happen for several reasons. Most commonly, it occurs as gradual thinning in both men and women as an unfortunate effect of the aging process. However, there are multiple causes for hair loss that are often overlooked.

At Lake Oswego Health Center (LOHC), the doctors performs PRP hair treatment. This is an innovative, nonsurgical procedure using the patient’s own plasma to treat hair loss in men and women.

Dr. McMonagle is a renowned Naturopathic Physician with more than a thousand satisfied patients all over the world and extensive experience in hair restoration. She performs PRP hair treatment, alone or in combination with other therapies, to treat hair loss. The doctors at LOHC are trained in cosmetic PRP and hair PRP.

What Is PRP Therapy?

 “PRP” is an abbreviation for “platelet-rich plasma.” Our blood is liquid plasma containing red cells, white cells, and platelets. The platelets are important for blood clotting, and they also contain hundreds of proteins known as growth factors that play an important role in healing.

To prepare platelet-rich plasma, a small amount of blood is drawn from the patient. The platelets are separated from some of the blood by spinning it in a specialized centrifuge. This concentrated platelets are then carefully mixed with nutrients to activate them causing them to release growth factors. The activate platelets are then injected into the treatment area to stimulate hair follicle growth. Research has shown this to work for hair thinning and even androgenic alopecia in men and women.

PRP Hair Treatment Procedure

The doctor will extract a small amount of PRP into your scalp with a very small needle. There is slight discomfort when using any needle, however most patients report minimal pain. The entire scale is treated and there is no recovery time needed. Some patients report a very slight headache afterwards that resolves in about an hour.

Who Is a Good Candidate for PRP Hair Treatment?

Ideal candidates for our PRP hair treatment are men and women with dormant hair follicles who want to reverse hair loss. This therapy can benefit people with thinning hair, a receding hair line, and hair loss at the top of the scalp and along the temples.

This procedure is designed to stimulate inactive hair follicles and reactive hair follicles that may be dying. Patients who do not have any hair follicles in the area may not fully benefit from this treatment. The doctors can evaluate your scalp and tell you if you are a good candidate for PRP therapy. There are additional treatments and testing that may also be warranted.

How Soon Will I See Results with PRP Therapy?

After PRP is injected into the scalp, it will stimulate dormant hair follicles and promote hair growth during the following few weeks. As your hair follicles start to react to the enriched plasma injections and begin functioning again, your normal hair patterns will gradually return.

LOHC’s protocol for PRP hair restoration includes 6 months of treatment with 1 treatment each month. During the treatment protocol patients usually see some fuzz beginning to grow. PRP hair treatments not only stimulate hair growth but also strengthen hair follicles. Our patients tend to notice a difference within a 1-2 months after PRP therapy begins.

Benefits of PRP Hair Treatment

PRP hair loss treatment has several advantages. It is a simple, nonsurgical procedure with little or no downtime that produces safe and reliable results. A procedure involving multiple injections takes only approximately 30 minutes to 1 hour and results in minimal pain and discomfort. PRP hair treatment enhances the growth of active hair follicles and stimulates growth of inactive hair follicles for beautiful, completely natural-looking results.

PRP Hair Treatment at Lake Oswego Health Center

In our society, a thick, full head of hair is associated with energy, vitality, and youth. Hair loss or thinning is among the most visible signs of aging. It can be a distressing condition and a cosmetic concern for men and women alike. The doctors at Lake Oswego Health Center can help reverse this condition for many patients with safe, nonsurgical PRP injections, alone or in combination with other therapies. If you have a receding hair line, thinning hair, or hair loss at the top of the scalp, call our office to schedule an appointment. They can tell you if you are a good candidate for PRP therapy and recommend the most appropriate hair loss treatment options for you

Dull skin? Aging Skin? Damaged Skin?

If you are looking for fresher, younger, rejuvenated looking skin, Cosmetic PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) is a proven treatment to repair skin at a cellular level.

Your body has the power within itself to heal and regenerate tissues by using its own platelets from your own blood to stimulate stem cell responses. It is the stem cells that help regenerate new collagen cells as well as blood vessels which help to repair damaged skin and slow/reverse the signs of aging..

As we age we tend to experience a loss of elasticity in our skin which can contribute to the following common complaints including but not limited to:

• Fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes and lips
• Dehydrated skin
• Hyperpigmentation
• A change in skin texture and tone

Sun exposure, smoking and an unbalanced diet can all be contributing factors.

What is PRP?

PRP is a component of blood, which is extracted from the same patient it will be used to treat. Thus the treatment itself does not require any external chemicals or additives, which virtually negates any risk of allergy or sensitivity. In other words, PRP is a component of your own blood that is gently extracted and isolated, then used to promote healing in your damaged tissues. The goal of PRP therapy is to concentrate the growth factors found in your blood, and use them to supercharge the natural healing processes.

Cosmetic PRP is most effective when combined with microneedling.

What are the Benefits of Cosmetic PRP

Cosmetic PRP is shown to improve the appearance of:

• Fine lines and wrinkles
• Skin tone and tightening as well as improve collagen and volume loss
• Facial scarring
• Rosacea
• How long does the treatment take?
• If combined with the Microneedling SkinPen® the treatment typically takes 1 hour.

Is it painful?

Applying PRP topically during Microneedling doesn’t cause pain. If PRP is injected into acne lesions/scars, there may be some discomfort. A topical numbing agent can be applied if needed to minimize any discomfort.

Is there any down time?

PRP applied topically during Microneedling can reduce the swelling and enhance the healing process.

If PRP is injected there is no downtime after the treatment. However you may notice some redness and mild swelling on the area immediately afterwards and occasionally mild bruising at the injection site. The swelling typically begins to subside within 24 hours and a full recovery within 5 days.

How soon will I see results?

An overall improvement of the skin can be seen within 1-2 weeks of treatment.

Our bodies regenerate collagen and blood vessels every 3-6 weeks, which means that this treatment will continue working long after the actual procedure.

How do I know if Cosmetic PRP is Right for Me?

We recommend a consultation with one of our professionally trained physicians to discuss your requirements and the right treatment for your needs.

How is the procedure performed?

Prior to the procedure the area will be sterilized and a topical numbing agent will be applied to the area to be treated. You will then be cared for in our IV suite where one of our nurses will take a simple and quick blood collection, which will then be processed immediately ready for treatment. The blood is processed through a specialized machine which spins and separates the platelet-rich plasma from the rest of the blood.  Once the numbed area is ready the PRP is injected or reapplied to the skin.

Are there any risks?

The risks of this treatment are very minimal as your own blood is being used so there is no risk of disease transmission or allergic reactions.

You will be provided with a post care plan for you to take home after your treatment.

Are you looking for a safe and effective acne treatment – Contact Us, how PRP can help with acne scars and lesions.

Contact one of our patient care coordinators, today, to find out more: 503-505-9806

Ozone Therapy for Athletes: Does It Work?

Does Ozone Therapy for Athletes actually work? This is a topic of controversy, even though there are 1,000’s of research articles that discuss it’s safety and benefits.  Throughout the world there are doctors and professional athletes who swear by it. But before we dive in too deep, let’s explain something really important:

Ozone vs. Oxygen

Don’t confuse ozone with oxygen. Hyperbaric oxygen chambers have been history known to treat decompression sickness and air embolisms. Then there’s the recreational oxygen trend – Oxygen bars and such. Advocates say oxygen can provide a boost before exercise, a quicker recovery afterward, relaxation after a stressful day, or mental clarity.

Athletes often like it, and in fact, public records related to Tiger Woods’ home in Jupiter, Florida, refer to an oxygen therapy room being built into his home gym. It’s easy to understand why athletes gravitate toward a health trend like simple oxygen. Hyperbaric oxygen chambers have significant research backing up their health benefits. The book, Oxygen Revolution, is a great resource.

Ozone, is made up of three molecules of oxygen (O3), which is much less stable than O2. The 2 therapies can have very similar effects on the body. However, ozone therapy tends to shine with quick results that are affordable. Ozone can be used to help clear up acne, improve exercise tolerance and stamina, and modulate the immune system. There are thousands of research articles regarding the health benefits of ozone therapy.

Ozone Therapy for Athletes, Performance & Recovery

Athletes, in particular, can benefit from ozone therapy for both performance and recovery. According to Nathaniel Altman’s The Oxygen Prescription: The Miracle of Oxidative Therapies, ozone therapy can increase an athlete’s performance by boosting the oxygenation of tissues while escalating the body’s production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which will lead to speedy recovery from sports injuries and will yield more energy to be expended. In addition, sore muscles can be prevented by ozone therapy after exercise. Ozone slows down the cells’ anaerobic fermentation and helps scale down the buildup of lactic acid.

Ozone Therapy works by increasing blood flow to the muscles. In addition, blood flow to the heart is also increased, which reduces strain during the same workload. In one study, male runners who engaged in an average of 12- to 30-minute sessions twice a week immediately after an intense run, resulted in a 32 percent increase in the distance they could run before reaching the point of exhaustion.

Benefits Ozone Therapy Can Have On An Athlete:

• Increases tissue oxygenation.
• Increases production of ATP, resulting in more energy and faster recovery.
• Delays the onset of anaerobic fermentation of sugar in the cell, reducing lactic acid build-up.
• Oxidizes lactic acid, helping prevent sore muscles.
• Reduces swelling, bruising and pain from injuries, and speeds healing.
• Prevents and treat colds and flu and enhances immunity.
• Can eliminate the need for antibiotics, protecting intestinal flora.
• Increases hormone production to optimum levels, eliminating need for artificial steroids.

Ozone Therapy Speeds Up Healing

Many sports injuries involve strains and sprains that cause swelling and an accumulation of excess fluid in connective tissue.

Ozone Therapy for athletes soothes muscles and calms nerves, and it causes oxygenation of tissues at a cellular level. Therefore, nutrients are delivered to the site of injury and inflammatory fluid is removed more rapidly.

Ozone therapy cleans arteries and veins, improves brain function and memory, purifies blood and lymph, and scavenges free radicals. Overall, ozone therapy is a very healthy oxygen treatment for everyone from the exercise enthusiast to the professional athlete.

What’s The Catch?

No catch. Ozone therapy has been used since the late 1800’s all over the world. It is currently extensively used in Cuba in hospitals, in parts of Spain, and the list goes on.

Ozone is a very reactive gas that is toxic to the respiratory system. However, under controlled conditions, it can be therapeutically useful in several human diseases. An unfavorable combination of factors (ozone is one of the worst troposphere pollutants) and past misuse have led to misgivings about Ozone therapy. However, basic and clinical work developed over the past 10 years has clarified the fundamental mechanisms of action of ozone in biology and medicine. Interestingly, judicious doses of ozone dissolved in blood trigger a cascade of well-defined chemical compounds acting on multiple cellular targets according to well-known molecular, biochemical and pharmacological pathways. Ozone therapy is proving to be very useful in age-related macular degeneration, ischemic and infectious diseases, and in wound healing disorders, where conventional medicine has failed. Critical evaluation of the potential therapeutic utility of this simple, inexpensive medical application by national and international health authorities is warranted and may lead to clinical benefit for a large proportion of the world’s population.

Sources

Department of Physiology, University of Siena, via Moro 2, 53100, Siena, Italy. bocci@unisi.it. “The Case for Oxygen-Ozonetherapy. PubMed.gov. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17444419