A Breakthrough in Painless Hemorrhoid Treatment

Serene Lake Tahoe - rimmed in white steepled peaks and ponderosa pines - seems an unlikely place for a medical breakthrough. But the breathtaking scene was the site of a collaboration between two doctors and an electrical engineer, nearly thirty years ago, who reinvented and perfected an almost forgotten 19th century medical procedure. Now their technique has been used to treat tens-of-thousands of patients suffering for a condition that causes embarrassment and extreme pain.

No one likes talking about it but for the millions of Americans that have ever suffered from hemorrhoid irritation, putting the problem out of their minds is easier said than done. Hemorrhoidal disease is one of the most frequent, disabling and painful conditions of mankind.

It's estimated that over three quarters of the U.S. population has some degree of hemorrhoidal disease, and more than half the people affected - over 50 percent - suffer from symptomatic hemorrhoids. Patients frequently delay examination due to concerns about pain, hospitalization, loss of work and climbing medical costs. Fortunately, there's a newly developed technology that answers those concerns.

'The technology is reasonably simple,' says gastroenterologist Daniel A. Norman, M.D., the Lake Tahoe physician who helped perfect the hemorrhoid treatment. Dr. Norman practices gastroenterology and internal medicine at Barton Memorial Hospital in Lake Tahoe. According to Dr. Norman, the procedure uses a low level of electric current applied in the comfort of the physician's office.

'In 1983, Dr. Glenn Nicholas brought me information about a procedure to effectively treat hemorrhoids,' recalls Norman. 'He also had some data on patients he had treated. I was impressed.'

With the goal of establishing their technique as an alternative to invasive surgical treatments, they teamed up with local electrical engineer Ron Newton to research and design what is known today as the Ultroid Hemorrhoid Management System.

According to Dr. Norman, the technology is simple. The body is 98% salt water. 'When a minute electric current is applied to the hemorrhoid tissue, a biochemical reaction takes place in the salt water in the tissues changing the water to sodium hydroxide,' he explains. Patients may experience tolerable discomfort but seldom anything more.

'Patients hop-up and go on their way, with hemorrhoid resolution in 3 to 10 days,' says Norman. Most patients have found no recurrences in hemorrhoids treated with the Ultroid System, according to the doctor.

Norman and his partners found the technique effective on Grades I, II, III and even some of the most severe - Grade IV hemorrhoids, where the hemorrhoid extends outside the body and cannot be eased back in.

Until now, treatments - including rubber band ligation, laser surgery, hemorrhoidectomy - involved pain, risk, costly procedures, and higher insurance premiums. The Ultroid System is Medicare approved, accepted by most major insurers and continues to grow in popularity with doctors and patients worldwide.

'About four years ago,' Dr. Norman explains, 'I was approached by a group wanting to buy the patent and the instrument. They wanted to take it to those who would benefit most - patients suffering with hemorrhoids.'

Now Ultroid Technologies, a St. Petersburg, Florida company, continues to refine the technique and improve on the design and function.

Physicians using the Ultroid System can expect to see significant financial boosts in their practice. An average of 5 new patients a week can gross a physician's practice $500,000 or more per year. Because the procedure is non-invasive, requires no anesthesia, and is performed in eight to twelve minutes, thereÕs an uncommonly low risk. The Ultroid¨ Hemorrhoid Management System creates a situation where everyone wins - patients, doctors, and insurers.