Calmare NJ USA

Hi Susan,

Thanks so much for reaching out.

Firstly, I am sorry to hear about you on going battle with pain. In order to give you a better feel about the possibility of success with the Calmare I welcome an opportunity to speak to you directly. Feel free to call me at 201-933-444zero.

There are no treatment centers utilizing Calmare in Canada. It is still considered experimental and either private or public insurances are not covering it at this time.

In order to get a Calmare MC5A machine, you must be a Physician; they do not sell or allow operation by private individuals. Keep in mind, this therapy is “provider dependent” meaning your doctor will determine the placement of the treatment pads according to your injury. This factor is key in successful treatment. I hope this information has offered some assistance!

Kind regards,
Dr. Michael J. Cooney
Clinical Director
Calmare Therapy NJ

Dear Liz,
That’s an excellent question. Please see below:

This is one of the most common questions we are asked by patients living with chronic pain and I tell my patients, “It is like driving on a one lane road compared to a well- paved super highway with 16 lanes…”

Below, we explain the difference between the two machines:

Calmare® Pain Therapy’s MC-5A Technology

This technology creates a low energy electrical impulse which travels through the patient’s nerves delivering a “no-pain” signal to the brain. This process “tricks” the brain that the area of pain is normal and eventually results in prolonged pain relief. Calmare uses primarily “C Fibers” to transmit randomized ‘no pain’ signals to calm the brain. It operates at 40 to 50 hz. and 16 different algorithms deliver five duel channel signals to restart the brain and disrupt the chronic pain loop.

There is never a repeated cycle during a treatment, so there can be no accommodation by the brain (as with drugs or a tens unit). Here’s a very important point ─ pain relief using Calmare technology is of a significantly longer duration (often months, years or more) as opposed to using a tens unit, where the pain returns soon after discontinuation of the unit.

TENS unit

This small, hand-held machine is self-administered so the placement of the pads is determined not by a medical professional, but at the best judgment of the patient or loved one self-administering the treatment at home. This machine stimulates A-beta sensory nerves thereby blocking transmission at the spinal cord. The machine operates at 80-100 hz. It is a single signal using a duel channel. Therefore, pain relief is of short duration. Treatment is performed on the pain site and the purpose could be relaxation, exercise or pumping fluid through the area. Most importantly, the machine has been designed with the goal of temporarily suspending pain.

RSD and CRPS Patients

The main challenge with RSD/CPRS is the complicated change in the nervous system which can be traced to changes in the receptors in the brain. As a result, therapy to resolve this kind of pain must reach the brain. The use of electricity for the management of pain is not unique to Calmare. In fact, many RSD/CRPS sufferers have probably tried traditional TENStherapy.

But let me be clear ─ Calmare Therapy does not function like a TENS unit. Injury or other noxious stimulus in the body creates pain chemicals. These chemicals in turn get converted into electrical impulses by your nerves which are transmitted to the brain and INTERPRETED by the brain. When physicians use the Calmare system, they “control” the electrical impulses that the brain is receiving. By manipulating the input into the brain they “convince” the brain that the area of the body where pain was present is now normal. We know that the brain can be “taught.” In medicine we refer to those changes as neuroplasticity and there is quite a bit of interesting reading on that topic.

Measuring Calmare Results

In most cases, we can determine after the first Calmare treatment if this technology can reduce a patient’s pain. You should be almost completely pain free during the treatments and each time you are treated your duration of pain relief will increase until the pain level is alleviated or greatly decreased.

Liz, feel free to contact us at the office if you have additional questions about the difference. We talk with people about the Calmare scrambler therapy every day and are happy to do so.

Dr. Cooney

Dear Ms. Stewart,
Thank you for reaching out to us. We would like to know more about your medical history, current medications and other neuropathic pain treatments you have undergone. Might you call us, please? Thank you.

Dear Daniella,

Thank you for your message. Good question. I’d be happy to explain how Calmare and a tens unit differ:

This is one of the most common questions we are asked by patients living with chronic pain and I tell my patients, “It is like driving on a one lane road compared to a well- paved super highway with 16 lanes…”

Below, we explain the difference between the two machines:

Calmare® Pain Therapy’s MC-5A Technology

This technology creates a low energy electrical impulse which travels through the patient’s nerves delivering a “no-pain” signal to the brain. This process “tricks” the brain that the area of pain is normal and eventually results in prolonged pain relief. Calmare uses primarily “C Fibers” to transmit randomized ‘no pain’ signals to calm the brain. It operates at 40 to 50 hz. and 16 different algorithms deliver five duel channel signals to restart the brain and disrupt the chronic pain loop.

There is never a repeated cycle during a treatment, so there can be no accommodation by the brain (as with drugs or a tens unit). Here’s a very important point ─ pain relief using Calmare technology is of a significantly longer duration (often months, years or more) as opposed to using a tens unit, where the pain returns soon after discontinuation of the unit.

TENS unit

This small, hand-held machine is self-administered so the placement of the pads is determined not by a medical professional, but at the best judgment of the patient or loved one self-administering the treatment at home. This machine stimulates A-beta sensory nerves thereby blocking transmission at the spinal cord. The machine operates at 80-100 hz. It is a single signal using a duel channel. Therefore, pain relief is of short duration. Treatment is performed on the pain site and the purpose could be relaxation, exercise or pumping fluid through the area. Most importantly, the machine has been designed with the goal of temporarily suspending pain.

RSD and CRPS Patients

The main challenge with RSD/CPRS is the complicated change in the nervous system which can be traced to changes in the receptors in the brain. As a result, therapy to resolve this kind of pain must reach the brain. The use of electricity for the management of pain is not unique to Calmare. In fact, many RSD/CRPS sufferers have probably tried traditional TENStherapy.

But let me be clear ─ Calmare Therapy does not function like a TENS unit. Injury or other noxious stimulus in the body creates pain chemicals. These chemicals in turn get converted into electrical impulses by your nerves which are transmitted to the brain and INTERPRETED by the brain. When physicians use the Calmare system, they “control” the electrical impulses that the brain is receiving. By manipulating the input into the brain they “convince” the brain that the area of the body where pain was present is now normal. We know that the brain can be “taught.” In medicine we refer to those changes as neuroplasticity and there is quite a bit of interesting reading on that topic.

Hi Laura,

Thank you for posting and I am sorry to read about your long battle with RSD. Many doctors still don’t know about Calmare scrambler therapy. More often than not, patients are discovering it themselves through their own research after other treatment efforts (medications and nerve blocks) have failed.

I’ve found this therapy to be particularly helpful to RSD and CRPS patients. You are more than welcome to contact us for more information and we’d be happy to discuss your medical history as well.

Wishing you a low pain day,

Dr. Michael J. Cooney

Dear Patricia:

Thanks so much for posting your query. The majority of patients we have treated to date were for chronic pain symptoms from RSD.

If you look at our Patient Video Stories page, you can watch several patients tell their stories, many of whom were treated for RSD. We have also published in-depth articles about some of our RSD patients’ experiences here.

Dr. Cooney recently appeared on *News 12’s “To Your Health”* with one of his patients who were successfully treated for her long-term RSD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPgMxd0uOWU

Please call our office at *(201) 933 – 444zero* and ask to speak directly to Dr. Michael Cooney, who manages the Calmare program at Rutherford Allied Medical Group.

We look forward to talking with you!

With kind regards, Stephanie Duncan Rutherford Allied Medical Group 323 Union Ave. Rutherford, NJ 07070 (201) 933-4440 http://www.calmaretherapynj.com

Dear Christine,
First, thank you for your comment and visiting our website.
In response to your question: The tens machines are singular current machines meant to treat an acute (short term) condition such as spasm or adhesions. The Calmare MC-5A has 16 different algorithms which send a “no pain” signal through the pain site from no pain areas. There is no accommodation or development of a tolerance to the MC-5A as the machine does not repeat any sequence during the treatment.
I hope this information helps you! You can always feel free to contact me directly here in NJ at 201-933-444-zero.
Wishing you a pain-free day,
Dr. Michael J. Cooney
Rutherford Allied Medical Group