Marshall Protocol to treat chronic diseases

People suffering from chronic diseases have had to rely on Steroid adn Methotrexate for yours.

These drugs do not cure - they merely damp down the immune response - often with horrible side-effects.

The Marshall Protocol has been used now for years in the USA, curing people who previously were thought to be "incurable".

Now there is a new blog starting from a UK girl who has been going through the Marshall Protocol herself - it is well worth following: http://memyselfandmicrobes.blogspot.com/

New research fellow into Varicose Veins

We are delighted to have George Badham, a second year medical student, join us for this summer as our veins research fellow.

George is spending the summer working at The Whiteley Clinic. His research is aimed at improving our understanding into our keyhole techiques for treating varicose veins.

His work will be presented both nationally and internationally - and will then be published.

As his work progresses, the results of his research will be used to continualy improve our treatments a keep us in our position at the forefront of venous surgery.

The Telegraph Magazine

We are delighted with the article in The Telegraph Magazine today entitled "Pioneering help for Veins".

Page 21, The Telegraph Magazine, 10 July 2010.

Article in The Times - Treatment of Excessive Sweating

Today there was a very good article on the treatment of excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis) in the Times.

The article ran through the GP view of excessive sweating, the hormone expert's view (endocrinologist) and then the Surgeons View on how to treat it.

Mark Whiteley was the surgeon interviewed. He is quoted talking about his treating of underarm sweating with botulinum toxin for temporary relief and then LSA (Laser Sweat Ablation) for the permanent cure of underarm sweating.

The Times: Tuesday July 6, 2010. Page 8

Embarrassing Bodies - TV

Well it has been so very busy that we have fallen behind with keeping up with this blog.

Today we filmed a case of Laser Sweat Ablation (LSA) the treatment for under-arm sweating that was brought into the UK by Mark Whiteley in March 2009, for the TV show "Embarrassing Bodies".

The case went very well and the patient left very happy.

Hopefully the film will reach the TV screens in the not to distant future.

10,000 th Patient at The Whiteley Clinic - News Story

Having been lecturing in Europe for the last 10 days, it was very pleasing to see the news story about our 10,000th patient:

http://www.guildfordeye.com/visitor/news/more.detail/news.php?record_id=471

In the same month that we had our 10,000 th patient come to see us, we also performed our 4,000 th local anaesthetic procedure at The Whiteley Clinic, keeping us at teh very forefront of excellence in walk-in walk-out varicose vein surgery.

The A List: Leg Experts - Harpers Bazaar

Mark Whiteley was delighted to be announced in Harpers Bazaar (June 2010) as the varicose vein and thread vein expert.

Harpers Bazaar produced "The A-List: Leg experts" which covered all areas of treatments to improve legs - including sections on cellulite treatment, toning and leg shaping.

The section on Mark Whiteley quotes the fact the he is a leader in the field and the techniques that he has developed or invented and brought to The Whiteley Clinic not only give the best possible results, but have the lowest chances of allowing veins to return in the future.

Please see Harpers Bazaar, June 2010, page 156

Chess for relaxtion

Another very busy week!! However I have re-started playing chess for relaxation.

I play chess at Chess.com!

MrSurgeon
Rating: 1472

Challenge me!

View my games

Clincial Exchange - Teaching Office Based Veins Surgery

This weekend Mark Whiteley from The Whiteley Clinic and Matt Jago, from the Clinical Exchange, are at The Charing Cross Vascular Symposium, showing the new traing available through The Clinical Exchange.

Courses being offered are:

Veins:

• EVLA (Endovenous Laser Ablation) both introductory and advanced courses
• RFA (Radiofrequency Ablation)
• TRLOP (Transluminal Occlusion of Perforators)
• Foam Sclerotherapy
• Ambulatory Phlebectomies
• Thread vein courses

Non-vein courses:

• Laser Sweat Ablation (LSA)

For more details www.theclinicalexchange.com

Tatler's "go to guy for vein free legs"

Mark Whiteley was highlighted in Tatler's Beauty and Cosmetic Surgery Guide 2010, that is included in the May edition of Tatler.

Under the heading of "Spider Veins" Mark Whiteley was given a 10/10 ranking for his results and it was noted how Mark and his team are very thorough in looking for underlying causes for the spider veins, to ensure complete treatment and the best possible results.

In the "Carry on, Doctor" section, Mark is recommended as "Best for Legs" and is called the "go-to guy for vein-free legs".

"Top Treatment" in The Daily Mail

Yesterday, The Whiteley Clinic was quoted in the Daily Mail as the Top Treatment choice by Eve Cameron, one of the top beauty editors in the UK.

A selection of the top beauty editors were asked for their top treatments - and least favorite treatments - and the results were published. Eve quoted our treatment of her varicose veins as her "Top Treatment" and also said it was "the most life changing thing" that she had done:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1262706/Secrets-experts-Which-treatments-beauty-editors-recommend--NEVER-again.html

Whiteley Clinic director in the Press

Vicki Smith, the aesthetics director of The Whiteley Clinic, was featured in the South East business magazine in their "Boss" feature.

See page 18:

http://migration.edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/launch.aspx?referral=other&pnum=3&refresh=M0y51i7Z8Gf1&EID=2669feb2-19f1-49cf-b971-206eca7bd873&skip=true&p=3

Many congratulations to Vicki on her recognition.

Bernie Nolan opens the new Absolute Aesthetics

Last night, Bernie Nolan (of the Nolan Sisters and star of "Popstar to Opera Star") was our special guest.

We had a second birthday party for Absolute Aesthetics (www.absoluteaesthetics.co.uk) which is the aesthetics division of The Whiteley Clinic, and also combined the celebration with the opening of our new Absolute Aesthetics building.

Absolute Aesthetics, based in Stirling House in Guildford, now has a "first class lounge" type frosted glass entrance, leading into a relaxing area for clients to have coffee, tea or other drinks, whilst reading papers, magazines or having a chat - and two new treatment rooms lead directly off to this area providing some of the latest treatments in aesthetic medicine (Thermage, Liposonix, fillers, IPL etc) as well as mole screening for people who worry about moles and melanoma.

The party was hosted by Vicki Smith, the director of Aesthetics at The Whiteley Clinic, who introduced Bernie Nolan. Bernie was utterly delightful, making everyone laugh not only with her very witty speech, but then spending the evening mixing with all of our guests and attending our demonstrations of IPL, advanced electrolysis for facial thread veins, and Botox and filler treatments.

Bernie, with her easy conversation and fantastic sense of humour made a really good evening into a fantastic night to remember - a true star to launch our new facility!!

4000th Local Anesthetic Varicose Veins Patient

In the same month that we celebrated our 11 year anniversary of doing the first keyhole surgery operation for varicose veins in the UK, we operated on the 4,000th patient to have walk-in walk-out local anaesthetic surgery for varicose veins at The Whiteley Clinic.

This picture shows the official photograph being taken - Mr Mark Whiteley on the left, Mrs Jennifer Rothera in the middle, and Mr Barrie Price (who performed the operation) on the right.

When Mark Whiteley performed the first VNUS Closure operation in the UK in March 1999, it was performed under general anaesthetic.

This continued to be the practice until about 4 years ago when The Whiteley Clinic built a specialised "walk-in, walk-out" operating theatre for local anaesthetic varicose vein operations.

Not only do patients get the very latest techniques that reduce the risk of getting veins back again, but they also get tiny incisions (usually only 2 - 3mm called "keyhole" surgery), low risks of complications and a long lasting result. Being under local anaesthetic, they are back to full mobility straight away - albeit wearing a stocking or occasionally a bandage. Gone are the days of 2 - 3 weeks off of work after vein stripping!!!!

Mrs Rothera wrote the following:

A few weeks after my treatment I received a 'phone call from The Whiteley Clinic informing me that I was their 4000th patient and would I like to write a testimonial. Without hesitation the answer was "yes".

Years ago I had had my veins stripped and increasingly over the last few years, I have suffered from very painful bouts of phlebitis. Until now I had only ever been offered anti-inflammatory oral medication. I had varicose veins over my right ankle and inside my thighs, but visually they didn't look too bad.

However, in June 2009, the pain became so excruciating that something had to be done (an NHS scan gave me a clean bill of health, but they left me with the pain!!). Fortunately, I was quickly able to attend The Whiteley Clinic where a scan showed a diagnosis of extensive thrombophlebitis, running from my thigh to my calf. Six months of anticoagulation medication followed before treatment could begin. The consultant surgeon, in my case Mr Barrie Price, explained everything to me in words and diagrams. He proposed three procedures, pioneered by the Clinic: laser, radio-frequency and ligation techniques. I was given The Whiteley Clinic booklet, which is excellent.

The day of the first procedure finally arrived and naturally I had my qualms, which immediately began to fade when I walked into the friendly, calm, confident atmosphere of the Clinic. All of the nursing staff with whom I had contact were amazing; as individuals they each showed a caring attitude and collectively in the operating theatre there seemed to be a great team spirit. If you want to know what is going on they will tell you (I always want to know everything, but I gather some people don't want to know anything). All you feel are the initial injections. You can lie back and listen to the music, watch the procedure is on the monitor screen, or join in the conversation!

You are given a post operative patient information leaflet, which is only double sided A4, but so well put together and so explanatory that any bruise, lump or bump you might experience is explained away. They telephone you the day after to see how you and there is a 24-hour helpline available.

I have had 3 procedures over 3 weeks. My left leg has recovered well; my right leg, with all the major problems got all the side-effects in the book, but even now after only 6 weeks the bruising, swelling and the pain have gone and my legs are looking better than they have for years and I can wear strappy sandals again! Maybe veins are like icebergs, a few visible blue or prominent veins are an indication of possible problems below the surface. If anyone reading this has these, or similar symptoms, I recommend a visit to The Whiteley Clinic; don't leave it as long as I did, 'phone them today!

BBC Southern Counties Radio Interview

Eleven years since the first Keyhole Surgery for Varicose Veins in the UK

Today is the 11 year anniversary of the first keyhole operation for Varicose Veins in the UK.

On 12th March 1999, Mark Whiteley performed the first VNUS Closure in the UK using a "keyhole" technique, under General Anaesthetic in Guildford.

In the last 11 years, Mark and his team have:

• moved the keyhole surgery for varicose veins from General Anaesthetic Surgery to a walk in walk out local anaesthetic procedure,
• set up The Whiteley Clinic aas a centre of excellence for Varicose Veins Treatment
• set up The Clinical Exchange - a teaching facility to teach office based vein techniques to doctors and nurses
• invented TRLOP a procedure to treat perforator veins
• won several prizes and published many papers
• proven that Stripping of the Veins only causes them to grow back again and shouldn't be done
• developed treatment for pelvic varicose veins and vulvar / vaginal varicose veins
• integrated treatments to get the best results possible for patients with Varicose Veins using combinations of RFiTT (radiofrequency ablation), EVLA (laser), ultrasound guided foam sclerotherapy, coil embolisation, TRLOP, phlebectomy and microsclerotherapy

By introducing this revolutionary approach to treating varicose veins to the UK and by continuing research and development into the subject, The Whiteley Clinic is truly "The Home of Keyhole Surgery for Varicose Veins in the UK".

As more and more of our patients benefit from our developments, Mark Whiteley and The Whiteley Clinic are becoming increasingly recognised nationally (an internationally) as the centre of excellence for people with varicose veins and venous diseases.

There are several articles and announcements coming this year from The Whiteley Clinic - keep an eye on this blog where they will be announced.

Mark Whiteley mentioned in Red Magazine about Thread Veins

Mark Whiteley was quoted this month in Red magazine in an article called "I need to put in the leg work" that was written by Rosie Green.

Rosie tells of her thread vein treatment at The Whiteley Clinic in Harley Street by Mark Whiteley and says her thread veins disappeared in 4 weeks - which is excellent. We usually expect the results to show by 3 months - and earlier is very good healing and an excellent results.

You Tube Channel - The Whiteley Clinic

Having survived 2,000 Km thorough India on a 350 cc Royal Enfield (1950's design) and then got back from England v Italy (a very disappointing performance from England) I am thrilled to find that our You Tube Channel has been launched:

http://www.youtube.com/TheWhiteleyClinic

Sponsorhip of Guildford Rugby

This is the last post for 2 weeks as I am about to embark on our charity ride through India - http://www.india-2010.co.uk/.

However, before we leave this weekend, we will be out in force at Guildford and Godalming rugby club, supporting Guildford against London South Africa.

This week sees the the introduction of the new Guildford Rugby Club shirt - with The Whiteley Clinic logo on each arm.

We hope to see our team running in another victory - keeping up our very good showing this year.

Our main sponsorship deal was announced last year (link at bottom of this article) - and we have also just agreed to sponsor the youth rugby events coming up in February and March.

This is an area very dear to our hearts - helping promote not just rugby but sport and physical activity to the next generation.

http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/sport/rugby/s/2056713_rugby_30000_sponsorship_deal_for_guildford

Charity 2000 Km motorbike ride through India

Our 2000 Km motorbike ride through India is almost here:

http://surrey.greatbritishlife.co.uk/people-and-places/charity/article/pioneer-surrey-surgeon-set-for-charity-motorbike-marathon/17072/

Filming at The Whiteley Clinic

On Sunday, we continued filming at The Whiteley Clinic.

Having filmed the interviews on Saturday (see last blog) we spent the day (and a lot of the evening) filming clinical footage and also some of the patient experience at The Whiteley Clinic.

Filming is continuing this week when we will be filming patients and procedures - showing some of the minimally invasive keyhole vein surgery for which we are famous.

Filming with Journalist - Eve Cameron

Today I have been filming some information videos with the lovely Journalist, Eve Cameron.

With the new techniques that we have pioneered for Varicose Veins surgery, there has been increasing interest in local anaesthetic "Walk in, walk out" vein surgery.

Over the last decade, The Whiteley Clinic not only introduced keyhole surgery for Varicose Veins into the UK, but has kept at the cutting edge of technological developments in veins surgery.

Indeed, we are currently using a brand new radiofrequency catheter to treat varicose veins through pin-hole incisions under local anaesthetic, but with far less bruising and pain than EVLA (laser closure). In addition, we are also looking at a new laser for EVLA which might well reduce bruising as well ....

Things are advancing so fast in the world of vein surgery that it is essential to keep the pressure up on the research and development as we have always done at The Whiteley Clinic.

However it can be very confusing for the general public to know what they should accept and what they shouldn't - for instance Stripping has shown to be a very bad option for vein treatments - but most people in the UK are still offered it!!!!

The filming that we are doing today is part of a project that aims to make these new, and often confusing, medical facts and advances more accessible to the public and to people who need the knowledge to decide what treatment they should actually have.

Eve Cameron is such a professional Journalist and interviewer that she made sure the questions brought out the facts that should be most useful to people with vein problems.

IMCAS in Paris

Well I am off to present 2 research papers in Paris with weekend - weather permitting!!!

The papers are on our figures for Laser Sweat Ablation and the Ultrasound results of Liposonix treatment .....

Guildford Rugby Club top of table - and shows Whiteley Clinic sponsorhip

Saturday 5th December this year was a very enjoyable day for me for several reasons.

Guildford Rugby club unveiled the new Whiteley Clinic post protectors. These blue and white padded structures with The Whiteley Clinic logo stamped on them, protect the players from injuring themselves on the post during the game.

The match was a great success - Guildford were playing Effingham and Leatherhead, with Guildford winning 25 - 14.

This keeps Guildford at the top of their division - London 2 South West.

The day was also marked with a lunch at the Club at which The Whiteley Clinic sponsorship was announced - and as it was also my birthday, the club sang Happy Birthday to me !!! Quite an experience to have a rugby club singing a birthday song ..... My previous experience of Rugby songs has been quite different .....

We are looking forwards to the next home match with a meal which will take place on 23rd January 2009. On this occasion, the new Guildford Rugby Club shirts should be worn, with The Whiteley Clinic logo on the sleeves.

To keep an eye on Guildford's progress, watch http://www.rfu.com/fixtures/MatchByDivision.aspx?DivID=17119918

Guest Speaker at the Venous Forum, Vascular Surgical Society Meeting 2009

Today I gave a guest talk on "Vein Screening" at The Venous Forum, the specialist vein meeting held at the Vascular Surgical Society AGM. The meeting was in Liverpool and was very well attended.

It was a very interesting subject to speak on.

In the USA, there are large numbers of hospitals and clinics offering vein screening for free. In these hospitals and clinics, people who are worried that there veins might not be working and might be going to cause a problem in the future can go along for a simple Doppler or Ultrasound test.

If found to be positive, then they can go ahead with treatment to prevent varicose veins or the other problems venous reflux causes - Aching legs, venous eczema, swollen ankles, brown discolouration of the skin, ulcers etc.

In the UK, currently we don't offer this sort of service. In general UK doctors tend to wait until a patient has a problem before checking their veins to see if they are working or not.

Having looked at this in detail, I think we will be seeing an increase in Venous Screening in the UK in the near future.

Alvin Stardust, Jules and a Great evening

Last Thursday night we had our Charity Auction for India 2010 (See http://www.india-2010.co.uk/).

My colleague and I are joining the Enduro India event next January and February and are riding classic 1950's design 350cc Royal Enfield "Bullett" motorbikes 2,000 km through India.

With the state of the roads that we will be travelling over, many dirt tracks or stone tracks, this will be a real test of endurance - up to 16 hours a day in the saddle!!

However, as it is in aid of UNICEF, The Rainbow Trust and the Wildlife Conservation Society, this will all be worth it.

The Charity Auction itself was a wonderful event. We met at The Talbot in Ripley and over 85 people turned up - making the event a sell-out.

The meal (curry of course for an India trip!!) was served whilst Jules sang to entertain us. Jules is a West-end singer, having been in may productions including being the narrator in "Joseph" and having been in "Cats". Each song was strongly applauded and it set the whole evening up as a real extravaganza.

At this point it must be said that Alvin Stardust and Jules supplied and set-up the lighting and sound system ... a mark of a pair of real entertainers.

After the meal, we had a very moving talk and video from Sue Cocks of The Rainbow Trust. This wonderful charity provides essential family support work and doesn't often get the profile of some of the bigger charities.

Alvin Stardust then rose and showed his talents as a very amusing Auctioneer, both keeping everyone laughing whilst pulling on the heart-strings to get the best prices that he could for the Charities.

The evening was then completed with Alvin and Jules entertaining us with many great songs ... Including Alvin singing his "My Coo Ca Coo" ... with almost all of the audience joining in - whether dancing or not.

Overall, the Charity Auction raised over £5,500 ... far higher than our target of £3,000.

Our thanks go to Vicki Smith and Liz Smith who have worked tirelessly for 3 months to get everything organised and to encourage the wonderful donations for us to auction - and of course to Alvin Stardust and his wife, Jules, who were stars in every sense of the word.

See us on the Rainbow Trust website

See our India-2010 appeal on the Rainbow Trust website:

http://www.rainbowtrust.org.uk/

Return to Harley Street

I am delighted to be returning to Harley Street after an absence of several years.

I had Harley Street rooms from 2000 until 2004, but then had to give them up due to pressure of work through our main clinic and teaching centre at Guildford.

However, since having expanded our team in Guildford, I have now managed to find the time to start consulting again in Harley Street. Judy Holdstock, our senior vascular technologist, and my co-author and researcher for most of the innovative veins work we have been producing over the last 10 years, will be coming to perform the Duplex ultrasound scans.

Initially we will be consulting on alternate Monday mornings.

For further details please see http://www.thewhiteleyclinic.co.uk/clinics/Harley-Street-Whiteley-Clinic.htm

Blue Chromhidrosis "Smurf Syndrome" by Miss Xi Chen - Presentation in a Prize session at The Royal Society of Medicine

Last night our researcher, Miss Xi Chen, presented a fascinating case of Blue Chromhidrosis (blue coloured sweat) at the Prize Session of the Clinical Section of the Royal Society of Medicine.

Xi Chen is an anatomy student in Liverpool who gave up her summer to do research at The Whiteley Clinic.

She spent 3 months with us and has several research projects underway - the first to bear fruit was this case report.

It is a fascinating case of a lady in her 60's who started sweating blue coloured sweat last Christmas - a condition called Chromhidrosis and we have called "Smurf Syndrome" for obvious reasons. This is very rare and has not been reported in a post-menopausal lady before.

The full case report and literature review is being prepared by Miss Xi Chen for publication in the peer reviewed journals.

Liposonix - New ideas with non-invasive liposuction

On Saturday evening I sat on the Liposonix Advisory Board in Berlin.

We had a very interesting discussion between the main users of the Liposonix system in Europe.

There does seem to be some variation in the methods that different clinics use - and this is to be expected when using such a new technique.

The discussions we had between the expert users and the company scientists, and the shared experiences that the expert users have had, have lead to a great many new ideas on how to make the treatments more comfortable and more effective.

We are now introducing some new research through Absolute Aesthetics at The Whiteley Clinic to make sure the treatments that we provided are optimised to give the best possible results from this exciting new technique.

Liposonix in Berlin; LSA and EVLA in Romania

I have been rushing around the place - hence the poor number of entries on the Blog.

Having given 2 guest lectures in Timisoara, Romania the previous week - one on EVLA (Endo Venous Laser Ablation for Varicose Veins) and one on LSA (Laser Sweat Ablation for Axillary Hyperhidrosis - arm-pit sweating) I then went to run my clinic in Ibiza last weekend.

Today I am flying to Berlin and tomorrow have been asked to speak about out early results and experiences with Liposonix - the Ultrasound fat removal device (www.ultrasoundliposuction.co.uk).

In addition, on the charity side, the India 2010 Charity Auction has been looking better and better. We are going to be having it on 12th November at the Talbot in Ripley - with Alvin Stardust as the guest auctioneer and singing by his wife - Jules. We have some wonderful donations to auction - see www.india-2010.co.uk.

Alvin Stardust and his wife Jules starring at Charity Auction

In January and February 2010, my friend Graham Smith and I are riding 2,000 Km through India on classic British bikes for a Charity. The event is co-ordinated and arranged by enduroindia and the 3 charities we are doing it for are:

• UNICEF


• The Rainbow Trust


• Wildlife Conservation Society

As part of our fund raising appeal, we have arranged a Charity Auction to be held on the evening of 12th November 2009, in Guildford (see: http://www.india-2010.co.uk/ and click on Charity Auction).

Today we received confirmation that ALVIN STARDUST and his wife JULES are going to star at the auction - Alvin Stardust is going to be our celebrity auctioneer and Jules is going to sing and entertain us.

Bidding on our top items is already available by internet bidding for anyone who can't get to the auction itself.

Invited Lectures at Timisoara, Romania

This week I have lecturing at the International Conference of Lasers in Medicine in Timisoara, Romania.

I was invited to give 2 lectures:

Endovenous Laser Ablation (EVLA) or Varicose Veins, and
Laser Sweat Ablation (LSA) for Axillary Hyperhidrosis

Timisoara is a lovely town and the meeting has been a great success.

The Whiteley Clinic Stakes - Goodwood 12th Sept 2009

The Whiteley Clinic Stakes - see it on Channel 4

We are pleased to be sponsoring:

"The Whiteley Clinic Stakes" - 2:10pm race at Goodwood on Saturday 12th September 2009.

You can watch this live on Channel 4

2nd Early Report of Success in Bromhidrosis

This afternoon we had a report from our second patient who had LSA for Bromhidrosis.

She has not noticed any smell at all since she had the LSA procedure some 2 weeks ago.

Although early days, it is very reassuring that both of the patients we have treated with LSA for Bromhidrosis have so far reported successful outcomes at 2 weeks with no smell noticeable.

The Whiteley Clinc Sponsorship of Guildford Rugby Club announced

Today in the Surrey Advertiser, there is to be the announcement the The Whiteley Clinic is going to be a major sponsor of Guildford Rugby Club for the next 3 years.

Having played rugby myself in Bath as a teenager, I have always loved the game. For the last few years I have gone back to Bath to watch them whenever possible.

However, now I have settled in Guildford and my main clinic is here, I looked around for a local team to support.

Guildford Rugby Club is a growing club, determined to include as many people locally as possible. They regularly field 19 teams - not only the firsts and seconds - but also junior teams, vet teams and ladies teams.

With such an appeal, I am very happy to support them - and with their first sponsorship money, have already bought a new scrum machine.

I look forwards to seeing them put it to good use this season!

New information about Liposonix - Ultrasound Fat Removal

We introduced Liposonix fat removal to our clinic last week and have just had our first two patients come back for their one week follow-up.

Both of them said the treatment itself was mildly uncomfortable - but not anywhere near as bad as any surgery. Both were able to go back to work the next day and - using our perioperative process to reduce pain and bruising - both stopped wearing the compression after a few days.

Both have a few small bruises only on the lower abdomen.

Both patients also said the treated area feels softer, as there is "fluid" under the skin. They are both also passing more urine than usual - presumably the effect of passing the broken down fat out of the body. This is called an "osmotic diuresis".

Using some sophisticated measuring devices at Absolute Aesthetics and The Whiteley Clinic, we have also found out some very useful information showing how effective the Liposonix treatment is. We will keep collecting our figures from our patients and so we will be able to publish our success rates and also some of the science related to getting good results.

Liposonix - Ultrasound fat removal - Now available

Today we finished the installation and final training for the Liposonix ultrasound fat removal system at Absolute Aesthetics - the aesthetics division of The Whiteley Clinic.

Our first patient is already booked in for next Wednesday and we will be booking in suitable patients from now on for treatments.

Please see the website - www.ultrasoundliposuction.co.uk - for more information.

Grand return to the UK ...

I have just returned to the UK following being to Bangkok for a medical aesthetics conference followed by starting a practice in Ibiza.

I had been approached about starting to take some of our techniques in veins and aesthetics to the island and so ran a trial clinic to see how it would work.

It seemed to go well and I saw some lovely patients in a clinic near Ibiza town.

With a 3 months provisional registration, we are now looking at how to develop the practice in Ibiza to give our patients there the same standards of care that we provide in The Whiteley Clinic Guildford and Absolute Aesthetics Guildford.

New teaching unit at The Whiteley Clinic

Today we signed contracts for the floor above The Whiteley Clinic.

We now have 2 floors - the clinic itself and the floor above.

The upper floor is going to house our teaching a research areas - being directly above our operating theatre and treatment rooms for both The Whiteley Clinic and Absolute Aesthetics, we are able to have an interactive video link for live demonstrations with 2 way questions and answers as we operate and teach.

The unit should be built and be open by Mid September.

Liposonix - ultrasound removal of Fat without any incisions

I am thrilled to announce that we are getting a Liposonix machine at Absolute Aesthetics - the Aesthetics division of The Whiteley Clinic.

The Liposonix machine dissolves fat away using ultrasound only. There is no need of any surgery, cuts or anaesthetic.

For more information see www.ultrasoundliposuction.co.uk.

Improved results from LSA - Laser Sweat Ablation

The new changes to the LSA - laser sweat ablation - operation that I have made (see below in this blog) have given a much better outcome in our last 4 patients.

See http://lasersweatablation.blogspot.com for more details.

Invited expert clinical lecturer to LAHA - Fotona

I am very pleased to have been invoted to be an expert clinical lecturer at the LAHA - Laser and Health Academy.

http://www.fotona.com/en/center/news/?id=606

http://www.fotona.com/en/laser_health/academy/lecturers/

Having worked with Fotona, a company with an excellent history of research and development in lasers, I was very proud to be asked to speak at their meeting in Slovenia and then invited onto the LAHA.

This will help us at The Whiteley Clinic and Absolute Aesthetics to keep at the cutting edge of laser treatments - especially for veins, sweating, skin and hair treatments.

Laser Sweat Ablation - LSA - Official Blog

We are pleased to announce that we have now set up the official Laser Sweat Ablation (LSA) official blog on:

http://lasersweatablation.blogspot.com/


The history of the early introduction and early cases are listed on this blog and will stay on this blog - however all of our new results and research will now be posted on the new official blog.

Laser Sweat Ablation - LSA - Further Update

Our 3rd and 4th patients who have had Laser Sweat Ablation came to The Whiteley Clinic to be seen for their one week follow up today.

The third patient is a young lady who is actually 9 days post procedure today - (see photo).

The hair of her arm pits has fallen out as expected and she has not had any sweating from the armpits at all since the operation - although the official test will be performed at 6 weeks post procedure.

She has full range of movements of her arms without problems and the only adverse thing she has noticed so far is that the area has a few lumps under the skin - which is normal in the early stages after an operation.



The patient is back to a fully normal life - and has been for several days now. She will now not need to be seen again until her 6 week follow-up and sweat test.


The 4th patient is a young man who had very severe sweating. He had to come back today (third day after the operation) as I am away presenting research for the rest of the week.

He has had a bit more bruising - particularly of his left arm pit - the right one has very little bruising.

He took of his compression garment yesterday and some of the redness is left over from the compression.

He hasn't felt any sweating from either arm-pit and has good range of movements of both arms. He only needed some pain-killers the day after the surgery.

We are going to call him back to check him in a week or so but, as with all of our patients, he can call us at any time should a problem develop.

Interestingly, I have noticed another clinic in the South East offering "Laser Sweat Ablation". It is a GP run clinic and certainly the practitioner was not trained here.

As we introduced the procedure to the UK, and are still perfecting it, I would suggest anyone interested in having LSA - Laser Sweat Ablation - be very careful as to who is offering it and exactly what their training is - and what their results are.

Celebrity varicose vein diary - Eve Cameron in SHE magazine

The beautiful Eve Cameron (beauty editor and author) has written up her experiences of having her varicose veins treated at The Whiteley Clinic in this month's SHE Magazine - June 2009.

In the article - "Vein Hopes" on page 101 and 102 - Eve explains what made her decide to come to The Whiteley Clinic for her vein surgery.

She then goes on to describe the process that she went through - using EVLA (Endo Venous Laser Ablation), TRLOP (TRans Luminal Occlusion of Perforators - invented at The Whiteley Clinic), phlebectomies (removal of the surface veins) and finally sclerotherapy injections under ultrasound guidance.

Eve has published her own before and after photos as part of the article - showing the improvement that she obtained.

In the article, Eve Cameron does point out all of the things that are usually left out - the bits she didn't like and the cost!!!

However, the article is well worth the read as an unbiased diary of someone who has gone through The Whiteley Clinic protocol and seen our results for themselves.

LSA - Laser Sweat Ablation - Early success of our improvements to technique

I have just seen the third laser sweat ablation patient treated here at The Whiteley Clinic.

Despite being only 48 hours after her procedure (picture on left 48 hours after surgery), she has minimal bruising, no pain and almost completely normal movement.

The changes in our technique as outlined in the previous post have made a huge difference to the post-operative recovery.

There is no sweating from either arm-pit - but of course this is still very early to be sure that the sweating has gone for good.

The most important finding now is the modification away from the procedure as taught has resulted in a completely different recovery - with almost no pain and bruising at all.

We will be repeating the sweat test in 6 weeks to check exactly how much the sweating has reduced by.

Laser Sweat Ablation - LSA - Update

Following all of the publicity surrounding the introduction of a new technique, there comes a time to sit back and reflect on the results.

In medicine, this is usually done through presenting cases and case series at research and clinical meetings - followed by publishing papers on the results in the medical press.

Nowadays, as there is such easy access for patients to find information via the internet, it is important that the public are also informed in addition to the more traditional methods of presenting results, as outlined above. It is essential that patients, prospective patients and the public in general have sufficient information to be able to make a decision as to whether a certain treatment might be suitable and so whether it might be worth booking an appointment with a specialist to find out more about that treatment or procedure.

This morning we have performed our third Laser Sweat Ablation (LSA). The patient left the clinic fit and well after a cup of tea, some 30 minutes or so after completion of the surgery.

However, shortly afterwards, I met our second LSA patient who has had a difficult post-operative course - hence the reason for this posting.

Although the original papers on this procedure have published the results and made the claims as outlined previously in this blog and associated websites (and hence in a lot of the press), our first two patients have not had the very quick recovery that appears to have been reported elsewhere.

Some of this may be learning curve of a new procedure. Some may be due to expectations having been raised higher than surgery can provide - after all, if you are having surgery on a sensitive area of skin, it is not going to heal instantly and so there will be a variety of symptoms of different severity that may continue until healing is complete - at about 3 - 6 months.

So then, without going into the same level of detail that we will be doing when we present our series at medical meetings, what have we learnt so far - and what have we changed already?

Our early findings:

Firstly - Laser Sweat Ablation (LSA) is a true walk-in walk-out procedure that can be performed under local anaesthetic in an operating theatre. There is no need for sedation or anything more than local anaesthetic.

Secondly - recovery is very variable. Both of our first two patients had considerable pain once the local anesthetic wore off.

Thirdly - both of the first two patients had a break down of the skin in the middle of the arm-pit after a few days. The scar tissue then thickened and tightened in both - in one patient excessively so causing a "pulling" sensation down the arm. Both found it hard (if not impossible) to raise the arm for the first few weeks post-operatively due to this tight scar tissue and the discomfort it caused.

One patient is through the early healing and four weeks later went off onto a year away, able to move without discomfort and with only a little sweat from the skin next to where the operation had been performed. The second has pulled a muscle on one arm which is probably an unrelated event, but this clearly hasn't helped the mobility nor discomfort on this side.

So how have we modified our approach?

Naturally we would not continue this procedure if we thought that all patients would get this level of discomfort from the procedure. In addition, other workers in this field have found they get good results - so therefore there must be modifications to the technique that can improve results and decrease complications.

So far we have:

1] Laser power - we reduced the laser power after the first case.

2] Delivery of laser energy to skin - we have changed the instruments we use and also the method of delivery of the laser energy to the sweat glands in the skin

3] Skin cooler - we now use a laser skin cooler that cools the outside of the skin whilst the laser heats the inside of the skin where the the sweat glands are situated

4] Clinical measurements - we are noting several measurements as we perform the LSA procedure, to identify the optimal treatment

5] Long acting local anaesthetic - we have introduced a final local anaesthetic injection at the end of the procedure that should last for several hours and give a better first night's sleep.

Conclusion:

As with all new medical procedures, there is a learning curve. Despite a full and thorough training, the first procedure for a particular surgeon and team rarely goes without hitch.

By listening to our patients feedback and discussing any complications or problems with:
- our whole team
- the manufacturers of the laser and equipment
- Dr Blugerman who developed the technique
- other workers in the field
we aim to make the learning curve as short as possible, and to optimise the Laser Sweat Ablation procedure to give our patients the best possible results with the minimum of complications or discomfort.

Whiteley Clinic opening in Basingstoke - 28th April 2009

The Whiteley Clinic is opening a branch in Basingstoke - with the first clinic to be held on the morning of Tuesday 28th April 2009.

Building on the success of the clinic in Guildford, the Basingstoke clinic will start off with a once a week clinic, increasing as demand requires it.

At first, The Whiteley Clinic in Basingstoke will offer:

• Consultations for Varicose Veins , Thread veins, Phlebitis, DVT and Leg Ulcers
• Consultations for Hyperhidrosis (sweating) - including our new LSA
• Consultations for Arm and Leg swelling (lymphoedema)
• Vascular Health Screening - Ultrasound screening for Aneurysms and risk of stroke
• DVT scanning
• Specialised duplex scanning for varicose veins and vein diseases

In addition, our sister company Absolute Aesthetics, will also be opening at the same time. Consultation slots are available for assessments for:

• Fillers and other injectables for wrinkles and rejuvenation
• Removal of lumps and bumps and skin lesions (moles, warts, spots, cysts, lipomas etc)
• Facial red vein treatments
• Skin tightening with Thermage
• Laser liposuction
• Liquid face-lift (Sculptra)
• Hair removal (IPL and Electrolysis)
• Macrolane breast enhancement

Appointments:

The Whiteley Clinic and Absolute Aesthetics
Basingstoke at Assura Health and Wellness Centre
Dickson House Medical Centre
Crown Heights, Alencon Link
Basingstoke RG21 7TX
Tel: 01256 869407
e-mail:
info@thewhiteleyclinic.co.uk
and
info@absoluteaesthetics.co.uk

Me and my surgeon - Laser Sweat Ablation in the Daily Mail

This morning an article appeared on our Laser Sweat Ablation procedure in The Daily Mail under the "Me and my surgeon" section.

You can click on the picture on the left to read it in full.

Stripping varicose veins - who would have it done?

In the last week I have seen many patients who have re-grown their varicose veins after having had them stripped. It is unbelievable that in this day and age, surgeons still strip veins and patients still let them - and what shocked me more is that a recent study showed that despite our research, about 80% of surgeons still perform this barbaric (and often useless) procedure Click here for paper.

Tying of varicose veins was invented in the 1890's by Trendelenberg - and stripping the veins away was added the the procedure to make it more complete. Unfortunately, although it would seem logical to "remove the vein" to stop it coming back, this isn't what happens.

Unlike organs, such as the gallbladder, which you can remove permanently, veins are part of the body's connective tissue. This means that they are involved in the healing process. Thus when you injure yourself, the skin and connective tissue heals.

When a vein is stripped away, the body doesn't know it has been taken away by a surgeon - it thinks that the body has been damaged - and so it tries to grow the vein back again.

Prize winning research by us at The Whiteley Clinic, which was published in 2007 Click here for paper, shows that almost a quarter of people start growing the stripped veins back again within one year - and we are just about to present our latest research showing that well over three-quarters of people have grown the whole vein back again 5 years after stripping!!!

Put against this, we have already shown that 5 years after closing the same veins with heat using Whiteley Clinic procedures, NONE of the treated veins have re-opened.

With such a huge difference at 5 years between stripping (over 75% veins regrowing) and closing the veins with heat using Whiteley Clinic protocols (0% reopening), it would probably be unethical to perform a randomised study to re-prove the obvious - and which patients if told about the difference, would ever let anyone perform a stripping procedure on them?

It is very hard to understand why so many surgeons still offer stripping. Presumably most have not learnt how to perform the new techniques such as EVLA (endovenous laser ablation), VNUS Closure FAST, RFiTT etc.

It is even harder to understand why patients, with such ready access to information on the Internet, both through simple sites such as veinstripping.co.uk and veins.co.uk as well as scientific papers Click here for paper allow surgeons to offer such damaging surgery with such poor long term results.

Of course there is no law against this, nor is the doctor doing wrong, provided each patient has been fully informed of the alternatives to their stripping - even if the surgeon does not offer the alternatives themselves - and they are satisfied that stripping is really the best for them.

For my part, we have produced proof that stripping causes regrowth of the veins, and our alternatives have much smaller scars, allow return to work quicker, are under local anaesthetic and so allow walk-in walk-out procedures AND stop the treated vein opening up again in the future.

Certainly the patients that seek us out at The Whiteley Clinic having got their varicose veins back again having had stripping elsewhere have seen the problems that stripping can cause.

BBC Online today - and an Italian article .....

Today the video of the first LSA - Laser Sweat Ablation - was put up on BBC online. You can view it on the link http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7939141.stm .

There was also an article that appeared about me in the Italian press:
http://www.repubblica.it/2009/03/sezioni/scienze/sudore/sudore/sudore.html?ref=hpspr1 although my Italian is unfortunately somewhat limited!!!

I put all of my research publications, prizes and lectures on http://www.markwhiteley.co.uk/ but haven't managed to complete the laser sweating website - I had some questions e-mailed to me and I would like to have the answers to them up on the site before I publish it.