FAQs

Is bone marrow cell therapy a "miracle cure"?

No. While bone marrow cell therapy shows promise in the rapidly growing body of scientific data, it has not been scientifically proven to be effective. Based on full-time bone marrow cell therapy experience since 2010 and regenerative medicine experience since 2002, we are very careful to only treat patients that we think we have a chance of helping. Namely; patients who are in overall good health who suffer from chronic pain caused by damaged or degenerated musculoskeletal tissues (such as joints, spine, or ligaments), that is not “too far gone”. We do not treat any systemic disease at all. While we have helped many people, there are people we have treated that we have not helped at all. Our experience is that overall, we help more people than we don’t help, but there is nothing about stem cell therapy that is either a “miracle” or a “cure”.

What are the risks of the procedures?

There are very few risks involved. You are certain to be sore for a few days after the procedure, but that is a side effect, not a risk. Infection is a serious risk, but is extremely rare. Regenerative injection therapy and bone marrow cell therapy are conservative approaches to treating pain unlike surgery that might help, but it might make it worse. You can always have surgery, but you can’t “un-have” it. The biggest risk of these therapies is that it won’t help your condition, however, performed properly, they will not make your condition worse.

Does insurance cover these procedures?

Short answer: no. Long answer: bone marrow cell therapy and activated PRP are considered elective procedures. While some insurance companies will pay for platelet rich plasma or bone marrow aspirate concentrate when used by a surgeon in conjunction with certain orthopedic surgeries, they generally do not pay when used as an injection. For this reason, Docere Clinics has a ‘payment at the time of service’ policy. Some clinics that offer regenerative injection and cellular therapies list on their websites the insurance plans they accept, but usually these clinics will only submit for the consultation and anesthetic/steroid injections.

How do Docere Clinics' prices compare to other US clinics doing cell therapies?
At first glance, our prices appear higher than most other US clinics offering cell therapy. Upon closer examination, we offer a far greater value because of our comprehensive approach. Most clinics offer one type of needle guidance (ultrasound or fluoroscopy), or none at all. Docere Clinics uses either fluoroscopic needle guidance or ultrasound needle guidance for every injection (depending on which is superior for that particular injection). Most notably in regard to price, all our procedures are done under sedation provided by a board-certified anesthesiologist. Most clinics don’t even offer sedation as an option; it’s included in our prices. So this to say, our procedures are vastely more complex and as such, more valuable.
Do you have an Anesthesiologist so I can sleep through the whole thing?
Yes. We contract with board certified anesthesiologists to offer our patients ‘deep sedation’. Deep sedation uses much gentler medications than general anesthesia, but you are very much asleep, you don’t feel anything, and you don’t remember anything afterward. It is the same type of sedation used for colonoscopies or dental procedures. It is our experience that we get better outcomes when people sleep through it. As such, our prices are structured so that sedation is included in the cost of treatment; you are not required to be sedated, but you are paying for it, so why not do it?
How many treatments will I want to do and how often will I receive them?
Results vary, and unfortunately we don’t help everyone. Based on our overall experience and close follow-up, at the one-year mark after a bone marrow cell treatment, a sizable portion of our patients are happy with their outcome and do not request a second treatment at the one-year mark. Others have had mild improvement and may request a second treatment at the one-year mark. Once we get people where they want to be, most people require tune-up treatments every two to six years. A small portion of our patients are “non-responders” and have no improvement at all. Factors include patient health/habits, adherence to post-treatment guidelines, and severity of the condition. If someone does not have improvement by the one-year mark, we do not recommed a second treatment.
How soon might I notice improvement?
Unlike a steroid injection, there is rarely immediate pain relief. Our experience based on close follow-up has been that patients who experience improvement, notice improvement after two to eight months and continue to notice continual improvement for the entire first year after the treatment and the results, according to close follow-up, generally last two to six years (unlike a steroid injection that typically wears off after a period of weeks or months). Unfortuately, we do not help everyone, however.
How will I feel immediately after the procedure?
After the procedure, you will have localized soreness and discomfort, especially after disc, hand, foot, and shoulder injections. Most patients find over-the-counter medications and rest sufficient to help with the pain. Some other clinics scrape the surface of the joint with the needle while injecting stem cells in order to cause a localized irritation. This causes a great deal of post procedure pain that can last weeks or months. We have not found this necessary to do, subsequently our treatments produce very less soreness after.
Are the results permanent?
Unless you are a vampire, nothing in this life is permanent. Total joint replacement surgery is not permanent; even the latest prosthetic devices must eventually be replaced. The procedures we offer are attempting to reverse tissue damage and degenerative changes and turn back the hands of time (this statement has not been scientifically validated), but by no means do they stop the hands of time. Our overall experience based on close follow-up has been that one year after the procedure, a sizable portion of our patients are “happy” with their outcome and do not feel like they need another treatment at the one-year mark, a portion have had some improvement, but elect to undergo a second treatment at the one year mark, and a small portion have no improvement at all, in which case we do not recommend a second treatment. Most people require a “tune-up” procedure every two to six years.
Is this even legal? Are you at risk of being shut down?
Despite the vitriolic rants of my very zealous detractors, yes, this is legal and no, we are not at risk of being shut down. Please click here to read the letter from the State of Utah Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing stating that after two thorough investigations triggered by complaints made to my licensing board by a high-profile stem cell competitor in Colorado who resents my success, I am indeed practicing within my scope and in a lawful manner. Please click here to read a blog article I have written explaining how it came to be that as an innovator in this brand new field of naturopathic medicine, I am a natural target for criticism from a small number of stem cell MDs and “quackbusters”.
Where did Dr. Adelson learn to inject?
In 1995 and while in naturopathic school, Dr. Adelson was cured of an injury with RIT/Prolotherapy by the since deceased and very much missed Rick Marinelli, N.D.. He decided from that experience that he would devote himself to Regenerative Pain Medicine. He underwent training in RIT/prolotherapy from the American Association of Orthopeadic Medicine, the American Academy of Musculoskeletal Medicine, the American Academy of Osteopathy, and from his mentors, Rick Marinelli, N.D. and Richard Bachrach, D.O.. During his years in Connecticut in 2000 – 2002, he volunteered after working hours in a large homeless shelter in Bridgeport offering RIT/Prolotherapy to its residents. In addition to providing Regenerative Pain Medicine to those living in pain that could otherwise not afford these services, this allowed him to perform several hundred RIT/Prolotherapy procedures before he opened the doors of Docere Clinics in 2002. Since that time he has treated thousands of patients and performed over ten thousand procedures.
Where did Dr. Adelson learn to harvest and prepare bone marrow cells?

In February of 2010, Dr. Adelson visited the clinic of orthopedic surgeon and leader in the field of clinical stem cell medicine, Joseph Purita, M.D. in Boca Raton, Florida to learn regenerative cell therapy for musculoskeletal pain conditions. Upon return to Docere Clinics, Dr. Adelson began utilizing these therapies right away and has enjoyed years of successfully helping people with these elegant and safe modalities. 

 

Why Choose Docere Clinics?

There is only one reason why you should choose Docere Clinics. It is this: if after researching your options, you decide you want to be treated by us. We are not for everyone, and we will never ‘sell’ you on coming to us. In the meantime, consider this: Dr Adelson opened Docere Clinics in 2002, and since day one his practice has been 100% regenerative injection therapy procedures for the treatment of musculoskeletal pain conditions. In 2006 he began injecting PRP with ultrasound guidance. He began performing bone marrow cell procedures in February, 2010, making him one of the very early doctors providing this therapy. Since that time, his practice has been 100% adult bone marrow cell procedures for chronic pain conditions. It’s all he does; he doesn’t do anything else. He has performed over six thousand bone marrow cell procedures with X-ray or ultrasound guidance that have produced zero serious adverse outcomes and many satisfied patients. This places him among the most experienced in the world with bone marrow cell procedures for the treatment of pain.

Docere Clinics also offers a tithing program. Please click here to learn more.

Tithing Program