Dr. Gerald Mattia doesn’t simply practice innovative, non-surgical therapies. When he was young his life was saved by them.
When he was only 15 years old, he was told he had a heart condition that gave him a few months left to live. Rather than spending what little time he had left in a hospital, his mother took him home to spend quality time with her son. Open heart surgery meant a near 100% chance of death – it was simply too risky. It was then that young Gerald began to receive non-surgical therapies with a chiropractor. Miraculously, after several sessions, Gerald’s heart started working properly again.
Nineteen years went by until Dr. Mattia was told he would need surgery again. But this time, his chance of surviving open-heart surgery had gone from 1% to 98% due to improvements and massive advancements in medical technology. For this reason, Dr. Mattia believes that non-invasive, chiropractic saved his life. In fact, it bought him almost two decades of quality life before needing a surgical procedure.
To this day, Dr. Mattia applies his extensive experience and specialized knowledge with non-invasive and regenerative therapies to help his patients achieve better health outcomes without resorting to surgery. At ViscoGen®, he practices innovative, non-surgical and regenerative protocols to relieve chronic, debilitating knee pain and joint pain.
We sat down with Dr. Mattia to learn more about him and his philosophy of treating joint pain without surgery.
Q: Tell us about ViscoGen® and why you started this practice.
I always look for non-surgical ways to help people. I have a special passion for helping senior citizens with chronic knee and joint pain when they are facing the prospect of surgery or a full joint replacement. Any joint replacement, especially a full knee replacement, can be risky as it brings the possibility of developing an infection. If an infection sets in, especially for seniors, there is the risk of pneumonia or even death.
Of course, most all joint surgeries are painful and the recovery process can be long and challenging. Even then, after months of rehab, the full range of motion may never come back. That was a major reason for launching ViscoGen®. We wanted to further develop and improve ways for people of all ages to avoid unnecessary knee and joint surgeries and all the risks involved.
Q: At ViscoGen® you have become a leader in the use of Exosomes and Regenerative Therapies. Tell us more about your innovative Regenerative treatments to reduce knee and joint pain.
Regenerative medicine has revolutionized the way we approach joint repair and joint pain relief from injury, wear and tear or osteoarthritis. One of the most promising developments in this field is exosome therapy, which uses tiny vesicles to stimulate the body’s natural healing mechanisms, repair damaged tissue and dramatically relieve knee and joint pain. At ViscoGen® we use Exosomes in all our Regenerative Therapies for knee, hip, shoulder, elbow, wrist, ankle and more.
Exosomes are small, naturally occurring vesicles that play an important role in cell-to-cell communication. They contain a variety of bioactive molecules, including growth factors, signaling proteins, and nucleic acids, which work together to promote tissue regeneration and repair. By isolating exosomes from healthy cells and injecting them into damaged joints and tissue, our team at ViscoGen® can harness the body’s own healing mechanisms to promote tissue repair and dramatically alleviate joint pain.
One of the most significant advantages of exosome therapy is its safety profile. Because the exosomes are isolated from healthy, young cells, there is virtually no risk of rejection or adverse reaction.
One last point: when it comes to Regenerative Therapy, it’s crucial to know the details behind the regenerative products you receive. This is especially important given the potential for some clinics to hide the treatment they perform or use inferior products. At ViscoGen®, we want all our patients to be fully informed and assured that we use only the highest quality exosome products.
Q: Tell me about KneeVisc 5® and JointVisc, your proprietary non-surgical treatments that have helped so many patients get relief from chronic knee pain, joint pain and osteoarthritis?
KneeVisc 5® and JointVisc are similar injection therapies. The key difference is KneeVisc 5® is designed specifically for knee pain, and JointVisc for hips, shoulders, elbows, and other joints of the body. Both are comprehensive, multi-injection programs that use an all-natural lubricant called hyaluronic acid, together with a series of complementary therapies and treatments. Each injection helps to lubricate the joint, increase range of motion, and reduce stiffness, pain and inflammation. The complementary therapies works to enhance the long-term results of the injection treatments.
With KneeVisc 5®, we do one injection a week for five weeks. This allows a gradual buildup of hyaluronic acid to continually reduce swelling and gradually increase the lubrication of the knee. Woven into each treatment is a combination of exercise and physical therapy, consultations on diet and nutrition and therapy on our innovative Alter G Anti-Gravity Treadmill. With the final injection we administer a combination of Hyaluronic Acid and PRP, which has regenerative properties to further enhance the results.
Injections in all joints are performed with the latest image guidance technology. This is done to make sure the injection is delivered with pinpoint accuracy to precisely the area where it is needed the most. It’s stunning how many clinics provide injections without image guidance. If the injection is not delivered to the right part of the joint, it’s just a waste of time and money.
KneeVisc 5® has been achieving phenomenal results with almost 98% of our patients reporting a significant reduction in pain. Making it even more attractive is that the treatment is covered by Medicare and most major insurances and can be repeated every 6 months for a long as necessary.
As every expert will tell you, surgery should always be your very last option. For anyone who suffers from knee or joint pain and does not want surgery, both KneeVisc 5® and JointVisc are excellent safe and effective alternatives.
Q: You do not provide Cortisone Injections. Why not?
It’s pretty basic. Yes, cortisone injections into the joint can temporarily relieve pain, and the pain relief can be substantial. But there’s a huge downside. Because with every injection, the cortisone permanently destroys the ligaments. What that means is, while you’re getting short term pain relief, you are ruining any chance of long-term recovery. Patients who chose this option can get the cortisone only three times a year. If you destroy the tendons using this method, you’ll be left with no other options but pain and possibly a knee or joint replacement surgery.
That’s another reason we created a new, non-surgical treatment program. We do not believe in short term pain relief that permanently destroys tendons and ligaments. That is not a positive solution. What we strive to provide for our patients is long-term joint pain relief with no downside or damage to the ligaments or joint.
Q: You’ve talked about the Alter-G, an anti-gravity treadmill and its remarkable results for knee patients. Tell me more.
Injection based knee pain therapies are always a two-step process. Step one is reducing the swelling, pain, and inflammation. Step 2 is strengthening the knee joint for true long-term relief. That’s where the Alter G Anti-Gravity treadmill comes in. This innovative piece of equipment helps to dramatically reduce the body weight and stress on a tender knee allowing a patient to walk and exercise with little or no impact on the joint.
For example, if I have a 200-pound man, I can set the treadmill to take off 50% of his body weight. In that way, he’s only carrying 100 pounds instead of 200 pounds. This provides the opportunity to exercise and strengthen the knee joint with far less stress or pounding. We’re one of the only clinics in the Orlando area that has invested in this state-of-the-art technology and we’re glad we did. It has helped to produce great results for our clients.
Q: Is there a time when knee or joint surgery is necessary
Yes, of course. Again, as every expert will tell you, surgery is always your very last option. I can’t emphasize this strongly enough. Always, always carefully explore all non-surgical options before choosing surgery.
But if you’ve tried several high-quality injection or regenerative therapies with no relief, surgery may be the only alternative. Our goal is always to avoid or delay surgery as long as possible. However, when we realize a patient is not getting the relief they need through non-surgical therapies, we will do all we can to put them in contact with the best surgeons in the region.
Q: What are some of the biggest challenges you face with patients?
Well, we can educate our patients, but we can’t make their decisions. Ultimately, the final decision about which therapy to choose, and whether or not to have surgery, is always up to them.
At ViscoGen®, our team of medical specialists is here to provide the best medical advice and most advanced non-surgical and regenerative therapies available today. If we can help a patient get back to an active and pain free life without surgery, it’s the most rewarding feeling in world.
A great deal has happened in the many years since a non-surgical approach helped save my life. Indeed, every day there are new developments in non-surgical and regenerative therapies for knee and joint pain. All I can promise is that all of us here at ViscoGen® will continue to do all we can to provide the best, and most advanced non-surgical therapies available to every patient who walks through our doors. To learn more, contact us today.
