Disc Tear Management Without Surgery In Miami, FL

4960 Southwest 72nd Avenue, Suite 408 Miami, FL 33155

Spinal discs act as shock absorbers between the vertebrae (spinal bones) in your neck and back. They have a tough outer covering called the annulus fibrosus and a softer, gel-like center called the nucleus pulposus.  The annulus can tear from wear and tear or trauma and can cause mild to severe pain, depending on the location. And although many are asymptomatic, they are more likely to be painful if you’re under age 50.

Annular tears can be overlooked as a cause of pain and are often lumped in with degenerative disc disease (DDD). The only reliable way to find out if a tear is causing your back pain is via discogram. During a discogram, pressure is injected into the disc. The doctor uses this pressure to see if the disc is painful.

In many cases, given enough time and rest, torn discs will heal on their own. However, the area will be more prone to repeat injury and degenerative disc disease (DDD). 

If the pain and other symptoms don’t lessen over time, physicians often recommend a high-dose epidural steroid injection that can temporarily help the pain. But this can also lead to severe side effects and reduce your body’s natural ability to heal itself. 

If the steroid injection doesn’t work, the next common orthopedic option is spinal fusion, a procedure in which two vertebrae are screwed together, or fused. Spinal fusions have been shown to be no more effective than placebo surgeries (also known as sham surgeries), while complications occur in 25% of fusion patients and often lead to further issues, including adjacent segment disease (ASD).

That’s why we’ve developed a different approach.

4960 Southwest 72nd Avenue
Suite 408
Miami, FL 33155

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Doctors

Dan Marin, MD grew up as an athlete in the outdoor sunshine, playing every stick and ball sport possible as a kid. When not doing that he was fishing and diving in the South Florida Paradise.

His fascination with this environment, lead him to high school at MAST Academy where he excelled in Science and Math. In sport, he migrated toward rowing where he was a stand out leader and athlete. He was recruited to row in college, and was a division, 1A varsity collegiate rower at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts.

His interest in science and the human condition led him to obtain his first degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Miami, where his lab work focused on protein analysis of intercellular GAP junctions. He wanted to be engaged with humans and science, which drove him to medical school at the University of Miami, where he was accepted and matriculated.

His interest in the surgical and medical side of being a physician led him to a transitional internship at Yale New Haven Hospital.

His interest in sport, biomechanics, and treating “the whole human” led him to residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, where he excelled and was elected Chief by his peers and faculty.

Spending much time as a resident at the world renowned Emory Orthopedic & Spine Center, and being exposed to mentors like Michael Schaufele MD and Kenneth Mautner MD, led him to a fellowship and career focusing on Interventional Spine, Sports and Non-Operative Care. While there he performed and published research in the area of outpatient interventional outcomes and safety.

Eventually, after being a faculty member at the University of South Florida in the Department of Neurosurgery, as well as consulting and in development of the arena of the human component in Motorsport; he and his wife moved back to South Florida where Dr. Marin, began private practice. Here he had the great opportunity to form a clinic based the musculoskeletal model/ chain, of which we all naturally live by. This was the foundation of ProformMD.

Dr Marin believes “deep down, we are all athletes, our cells/ body, want us to exercise, and this is the key to longevity… it’s our job as clinicians to provide the tools and remove obstacles for our patients to meet their goals and live better.” His professional directive has been to build an environment with all the highest quality professionals to accomplish this task.

Dr Marin has said, “When someone suffers an initial injury this can be an obstacle for function for the rest of their life.”

Proform ACTIV, aka ACTIV, was started to address this specific issue. Knowledge of regenerative tissue science and use of Orthobiologics through interventional orthopedic techniques to un impede patients and put them on the path to recovery is the philosophy of this component of the clinic. This is the first step to get back to your “athletic-self” if you have encountered injury, degenerative wear, or overuse. After treatment, focus can then be on getting back into normal motion, and then on raising the performance bar.

Dr Marin remains passionate everyday about making his patients the best musculoskeletal version of themselves science, technology and training can provide.

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Dr. William J. Bonner was born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA. He attended Georgetown University in Washington, DC where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Physics with a minor in Mathematics. After college, he earned his Doctor of Medicine from Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia, PA. He completed an internship in Internal Medicine at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, NJ, and subsequently he completed Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residency at the Temple University Hospital and Moss Rehab program in Philadelphia, PA where he was elected Chief Resident during his final year of training. Following residency, he pursued a fellowship in Spine, Sports, and Musculoskeletal Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. Dr. Bonner is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. He is also board certified in Pain Medicine by the American Board of Pain Medicine.

In his practice, he provides comprehensive, interventional spine and musculoskeletal care. He performs ultrasound-guided and fluoroscopically-guided interventional procedures for various causes of pain. He has taken a special interest in the exercise-based rehabilitation of spine and musculoskeletal injuries and uses his knowledge of these methods to provide patients with long term solutions to their ailments.

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Areas Treated

Cervical Spine (Not Upper Cervical or CCI)*, Elbow, Foot & Ankle, Hand & Wrist, Hip, Knee, Lumbar Spine, Shoulder, Thoracic Spine

*This provider is NOT authorized by Regenexx to treat the C0-C1 or C1-C2 levels of the neck or CCI (craniocervical instability).

During Regenexx’s outpatient procedures, custom concentrations of your body’s natural healing agents are injected into the exact areas of damage in the spine. Treatments use only your own blood to make super-concentrated platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or your own bone marrow concentrate (BMC), which contains stem cells.

Best of all, your downtime will be a fraction of what it is with surgery and generally requires little to no opioid pain medications or time off of work.

Am I a candidate?

Watch a real Regenexx spinal procedure performed by a certified Regenexx physician:

Our goal is to use the least invasive, least expensive procedure to get the desired results. Your Regenexx physician will work with you to determine whether that would be a platelet procedure or a BMC procedure.

At Regenexx, we are dedicated to giving you the information you need to make an informed decision about your best treatment option.

During your initial appointment, your Regenexx doctor will use our four-part SANS (stability, articulation, neuromuscular, and symmetry) evaluation to identify the underlying causes of your pain. Your doctor will examine your injury through a full range of motion and may use ultrasound to observe the inner workings in real time. 

Once the evaluation is completed, your doctor will determine if Regenexx is right for you and will discuss your customized treatment plan based on your specific needs.

Am I a candidate?

Join Chris Centeno, MD, founder of Regenexx, to learn how Regenexx procedures can help treat your back pain without surgery and lead to a faster recovery.

During this free webinar you’ll learn:

  • How procedures using bone marrow concentrate (BMC) and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) compare to surgery and other spine pain treatment options
  • Procedure expectations
  • Answers to the most common questions about regenerative medicine treatments
Watch Webinar
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