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Chelation Treatment Medical Considerations
Medical Considerations
EDTA chelation IV therapy: EDTA has been successfully used in the treatment of atherosclerosis and arteriosclerosis for over 50 years. Yet there is a very select few Medical Doctors and even fewer Naturopathic Doctors who have received proper training in this wonderful technology. It will be difficult to find a doctor who practices EDTA because the AMA and FDA do not promote this technology to Medical Doctors. EDTA is administered directly into the blood veins and must be administered in a medical office, hopefully under the direction of a doctor who has been trained in EDTA IV chelation therapy.
Oral EDTA: Orally administered EDTA is only absorbed 5% into the bloodstream, limiting it’s use as a treatment. Therefore oral EDTA is best if only used for prevention of re-absorption of heavy metals during a regular chelation session. Most heavy metals are imbedded within various cell walls where they do their damages to those cells, and are not freely moving around in the body. All heavy metals have varying stability constants with the chelation molecules. During the normal chelation process, the chelator picks up heavy metals, then when a metal with a higher stability constant comes in contact with the chelator molecule, the chelator will drop the metal with the weaker stability constant in favor for the metal with the higher stability constant. Thus, during a normal chelation session, some unbound heavy metals will be freely moving around in the body. Due to the normal perfusion of blood and body fluids through the intestines, some heavy metals will find their way into the intestines where they will eventually be re-absorbed back into the blood stream. The very fact that oral EDTA is only absorbed 5% makes taking oral EDTA good preventative practice under these conditions. If oral EDTA is taken shortly after a normal chelation session, any unbound heavy metal toxins found in the gut will be bound (chelated) by the oral EDTA, and then safely excreted. Depending on the dosage, these oral EDTA capsules could be sold a food supplement, or a prescription. If the dose is high and a prescription is needed, it must be through a doctor who is licensed to prescribe EDTA in the state of his licensure. Oral EDTA can also prevent normal absorption of needed minerals in your diet. Therefore, taking oral EDTA on a daily basis is contraindicated. Oral EDTA is best used under the direction of a doctor who has this understanding.
EDTA suppositories: Each suppository is 1/10 a normal IV dose. Suppositories come packaged ten to a box. Therefore one box is equivalent to one medically administered EDTA chelation IV therapy. The suppositories can be administered in the privacy of your home. There are a few doctors who do not agree with this delivery method because they feel the EDTA is not very well absorbed via the rectum. (It is only minutely absorbed in the stomach, which is why the manufacturer produced the suppositories.) The manufacturer has doctors who do believe, and some evidence to back up their claims, that suppositories deliver 90% of their EDTA into the bloodstream.
DMPS chelation: An IV push form of chelation therapy which must be administered under the supervision of a doctor who is licensed to use DMPS in the state of his licensure. The Journal of Chelation Therapy, produced by the American College for Advancement in Medicine, advises that DMPS be used only as a diagnostic tool to determine current levels of heavy metal toxicity. Also, if you have old silver amalgam dental fillings, it is strongly advised you do NOT receive DMPS as DMPS has been found in saliva and is believed may actually leach out mercury from the old fillings, thus causing a RISE in mercury toxicity in the body. DMSA chelation: An oral form of chelation therapy which is the most gentle form of chelation, yet is highly effective. DMSA must be administered under the supervision of a doctor who is licensed to use DMSA in the state of his licensure.
Discussion Chelation therapy is the “chelating,” or removal, of heavy metals toxicity. There are three basic chelators in use today: EDTA, DMPS and DMSA. EDTA is administered via a 500 CC IV Drip, and usually takes three plus hours to complete. DMPS is usually administered via a 10 CC IV Push, and usually takes 20 - 30 minutes to complete. DMSA is an oral form and can be taken at home, as prescribed. Your doctor will determine which form of chelation therapy is best indicated for you. EDTA is also available in the form of a suppository. There are two manufacturers of EDTA suppositories. Both are made and available in the USA, but must be purchased through a doctor’s office. Most generally, all chelators are considered to be removers of heavy metals toxicity. EDTA is the only chelator that has been used over the last 50 years to also reverse the effects of arterial plaque, thus preventing further strokes, and / or heart attacks. This is due to how the EDTA IV is either mixed in the doctor’s office, or manufactured as a suppository. The key importance is that NO calcium is mixed with the EDTA. Why, because you want the EDTA to remove calcium from the plaque located in the arteries and veins, and also in the tissues where is does not belong. If calcium is already mixed with the EDTA, then those EDTA molecules will not remove calcium as needed. In such cases, that EDTA becomes as the any other chelators, removing only heavy metals toxicity. There is a growing lobby of doctors who are now starting to use EDTA mixed with Calcium instead of Magnesium. Their reasoning is the initial cause of arterial damage. Calcium EDTA can be administered rapidly, thus saving time. If high levels of heavy metal toxicity are removed, then the arterial damages will be greatly reduced. Perhaps a mix of both therapy ideas is in order. All chelation therapy is hard on your vitamin / mineral stores. Some type of analysis should be done prior to receiving chelation therapy. A very efficient test is a hair analysis. It is very inexpensive and easy. Determination of your vitamin / mineral status will better help your physician make a proper vitamin / mineral replacement protocol for you. A more elaborate analysis is an Erythrocyte Mineral Analysis. This tests for the amount of minerals that are actually present inside the Red Blood Cells. It is also a much more expensive test.
The father of modern biochemistry was the French-Swiss chemist, Alfred Werner; who in 1893 developed the theory of coordination compounds, today referred to as chelates. For this turning point in reclassifying inorganic chemical compounds, Werner received the Nobel Prize in 1913. He went on to create accounting for the process by which metals bind to organic molecules, which is the basis for chelation chemistry. The first applications of Werner’s monumental discovery were in the field of industrial production. Starting in the 1920’s, many new materials such as paints were introduced, and in their manufacturing the elimination of heavy metal contamination was crucial. Citric acid was found to be helpful, but in the mid 1930’s Germany was motivated to develop its own chelating material and not be dependent on importing citric acid. The synthetic substance they invented was EDTA (Ethylene-diamine-tetra-acetate). While creating EDTA for their own use, the Germans manufactured so much and the product gained such a reputation that they began selling it on the global market foe industrial use. Medical applications were not yet being considered for EDTA, but with war approaching military workers were afraid of poison gas being used, and they searched for antidotes. England especially had experienced poison gas in World War I, and at Oxford University researchers invented their own chelating substance to diminish the effects of exposure to poison gas. After World War II the new threat was atomic warfare, and the United States of America began producing and stockpiling large quantities of EDTA, which was recognized as more effective than the British chelation material. While this manufacturing of EDTA for protection against radioactive fallout was going on, no one paid attention to the first medical application in real life that had been carried out in 1947 by Dr. Charles Geschickter at the Georgetown University Medical Center. A patient undergoing chemotherapy had accumulated toxic nickel complexes in her system. In trying to save her, Dr. Geschickter thought of EDTA as the only thing that could work, and he successfully used it. This did not however lead to widespread use. In the 1950’s EDTA was tried with equal success in curing people with lead poisoning who were working in a battery plant and the U.S. Navy used it on people who had acquired lead poisoning in repainting old ships. In both of these applications, not only did EDTA eliminate the poisoning, but also the patients were relieved of atherosclerosis, chest pains, arthritis, memory loss, inability to concentrate, etc. Hearing of these cures, heart specialists at Wayne State University used EDTA on a group of patients that were believed to have incurable conditions – even the most seriously ill of the group were restored to near normalcy. From the 1950’s on, many doctors continued, with conference based on their experience, to utilize chelation therapy in a wide variety of medical applications with great success. Published articles regarding successful treatment of atherosclerosis with EDTA began appearing in medical journals in 1955, and many more since then. In 1973, the American Academy of Medical Preventics was formed to educate physician and promote the utilization of EDTA chelation therapy in the treatment of cardiovascular disease. This organization was renamed the American Academy of the Advancement of Medicine in 1986. In 1983, the formation of the American Board of Chelation Therapy was formed to set parameters for the education and testing of physicians for competence in the administration of EDTA chelation. Chelation, while absolutely legal, is limited in advertising claims for treatment of lead poisoning, hypercalcaemia, and ventricular fibrillation secondary to digitalis toxicity. The FDA has not approved claims for conditions other than these. Dr. Ray Evers, however, in 1978 won a precedent case regarding a physician’s legal use of a drug approved by the FDA for a specific condition, may be used for another condition for which it has not been approved. Many non-alternative doctors have since enjoyed and employed the benefits of this ruling in the distribution of their prescription drugs. The American Medical Association, while not yet endorsing chelation therapy for atherosclerosis, does approve its use in the treatment of lead and other heavy metal poisoning. It is most unfortunate that the EDTA patent expired in 1969, resulting in the loss of interest in research by major drug companies. Patients who use chelation are those who have heart disease, a family history of heart disease, or heavy metal toxicity. Fully half of the bypass operations performed in the United States are unnecessary. A decade of scientific study has shown that except in certain well-defined situations, bypass surgery does not save lives or even prevent heart attacks: Among patients who suffer from coronary-artery disease, those who are treated without surgery enjoy the same survival rates as those who undergo open-heart surgery. MD Magazine, Feb. 1995. Many diabetics and macular degeneration patients believe using chelation helps increase peripheral circulation. Chelation is also frequently used and found beneficial in the treatment of osteoarthritis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, organic poisoning, and heavy metal reduction. One of the greatest attractions of chelation therapy is that it is very safe. There are very few medical procedures that can report, as can chelation, no fatalities at all. Every year, in contrast, prescribed drugs, hospital accidents and mistakes result in many deaths. By now, modern medicine has the benefit of a long history of chelation in heavy application, and those who specialize in it are sure of what it can do and the very best ways of using it. In early experiments, EDTA was often used in doses up to 10 times the amount now recommended. This resulted in serious adverse side effects including renal failure. With the use of laboratory testing, including kidney function tests, and by following recommended protocols, a physician can chelate safely. Chelation is administered in I.V. form and each session takes from three to four hours at a medical facility or clinic. Oral EDTA is not an acceptable form of treatment because only about 5% of the EDTA gets into the bloodstream. In I.V. form, EDTA is recovered at 99.5% in the urine. Side effects may occur including vein irritation, mild pain, headache, fatigue, hypoglycemia, or other detoxification symptoms; although many patients have no problems at all. Fortunately, theses and other side effects can be controlled. Following the guidelines of the American College of Advancement of Medicine (ACAM), estimates are at least 500,000 patients have received over 10,000,000 treatments without a single fatality attributed to EDTA. This cannot be said about surgical procedures or even taking aspirin. You will need to see a doctor to get started on your chelation program. The necessary laboratory tests vary from patient to patient, but there are a few tests everyone will need. These tests include: CBC and Chem Screen plus magnesium; Creatine clearance to establish kidney function; Hair analysis to determine mineral status and implied levels of heavy metal toxins. Other tests may include a pre and post-provocative challenge for heavy metal toxins, and rarely ordered are EKGs or Doppler study. Some tests will be repeated periodically, usually every tenth EDTA chelation. EDTA chelations for vascular problems vary from 20 – 30 EDTA treatments. These can be spread out over a number of months. Chelation for heavy metals are monitored and re-evaluated usually after 10 chelation treatment intervals.
No specific claims are made
Think about why? If any of the above conditions are a result of decreased blood flow to specific tissues / organs, decreased due to arterial plaque that is reducing the blood flow; now if that plaque is removed and blood flow increases, that same tissue can operate closer to normal once again.
DMPS (2,3-dimercapto-1-propanesulfonic acid sodium), also known as Dimovol, is a synthetic amino acid chelating agent of toxic heavy metals, which forms a water soluble complex with toxic heavy metals and is believed by many to lead to their removal through the kidneys, liver, gastrointestinal tract. DMPS has been use in West Germany where it has been studied and is available as a commercial drug for the treatment of heavy metal toxicity. Studies in West Germany report safety in animals and humans in the doses given. DMPS does not appear to be toxic. Because DMPS has not been studied in the United States of America, it is considered "experimental" by the FDA. DMPS chelation can be administered either by intravenous (I.V.), intramuscularly (I.M.), or by subcutaneous injection (S.Q.). The preferred administration is via an I.V. "push," pushing about 10 CC of solution. The I.V. push uses a syringe in which the nurse inserts the catheter into the patient’s vein, the catheter is connected with clear tubing to a large syringe containing the DMPS solution, and the patient usually takes charge to slowly push the solution into their vein over about a 20 – 30 minute period of time. In contrast, EDTA chelation is very "hot" to the veins, is mixed usually into a 500 CC solution, and must be administered via a very slow I.V. "drip" which will take about 3 – 4 hours to administer. Possible side effects include: temporary lowering of blood pressure or tackycardia, vertigo, general weakness or paleness 5 – 10 minutes after injection, and infiltration into the soft tissue which may create local itching that can last 30 minutes. Symptoms have been shown to generally be reversible after discontinuation of the drug. Aggravation of the metal related symptoms may result from the mobilization of heavy metals over the following several days after receiving DMPS treatment.
DMSA (meso 2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid) is also known as Chemet, Succimer, or Captomer. DMSA is an FDA approved chelating agent for lead toxicity, but has been shown clinically to detoxify other heavy metals as well. This medication binds with metals such as lead, arsenic and mercury, excreting them through the liver, kidneys and bowel. DMSA comes in capsule form and is given orally. Care must be taken to drink 6 – 8 glasses of water a day while receiving DMSA treatments. The amount of DMSA per treatment is calculated according to body weight. Other factors are also considered which may lower the prescribed treatment dose. The usual treatment plan is five days of DMSA oral consumption, followed by a seven-day break, and then a second five days of oral DMSA is taken. After each five day DMSA treatment period, vitamin / mineral I.V.s must be administered to replace loses as a result of the chelation treatment. An evaluation will be conducted and repeat series may be indicated. The evaluation of any chelation treatment involves a urine test, which is testing for excretion of heavy metals. Side effects are few but may include flu-like symptoms such as headache, rash, itching, tingling, dizziness and transient elevated liver enzymes. Also, a loss of appetite and a metallic taste in the mouth may be experienced. DMSA is the gentlest method of chelation of the three presented. It is considered safe for children in the proper doses.
DISCLAIMER This information is provided for Educational Purposes Only and has NOT been designed to diagnose, treat or cure any health conditions. Please consult a qualified Health Care Professional with Nutritional Training to diagnose your health conditions and avoid self-diagnosis. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration have not evaluated statements about these health topics or any suggested product compositions.
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