It’s time to regenerate at Aligned Health Center and finally become pain-free
By Patricia Nugent
As the first and only Chiropractic BioPhysics clinic in Northeast Ohio, Aligned Health Center is accustomed to leading the way. Next month, they’ll expand on several fronts, moving into a new building in Westlake that’s triple the size of its current one, and growing their services to include custom scoliosis braces, massage therapy, hyaluronic acid (gel) injections for knee pain and more.
Founded by Dr. Nicholas Bigrigg seven years ago, the practice has broadened exponentially, and they’ve been looking for a larger space for years to keep up with the increasing patient load. Working with Managing Partner Maria Jeancola, the two were thrilled when the building that served as Westlake’s original post office, at the corner of Westwood and Center Ridge Roads, became available.
Over the past year and to the tune of nearly $1 million, they rehabbed it down to the studs and rebuilt a gorgeous modern healthcare center.
What is Chiropractic BioPhysics?
The goal of Chiropractic BioPhysics is to reshape the spine to its proper alignment, addressing the cause of a problem rather than just treating the symptoms. Maria uses the analogy of an HDMI cable. “Imagine an HDMI cable with a kink in it,” she says. “The signal will not pass through properly until you unkink or repair it. Compare this to compressed spinal nerves mis-firing the signal throughout your body. Using mirror image traction and adjustments, we are able to relieve the stress on spinal joints and nerves once the proper shape has been restored. The principal is similar to an orthodontist moving teeth (bone) through gums (soft tissue) back into proper alignment with braces.”
One of the practice’s newest pieces of equipment for patients is the ScoliBrace, which corrects scoliosis. “Proprietary software called BraceScan combines 3D full-body laser scanning technology, X-rays and posture photographs to develop each custom designed ScoliBrace,” says Maria. “The braces are easy to wear and have shown remarkable results in both children and adults.”
Getting the Alignment Perfect
The first step at Aligned is a one-on-one consultation with Dr. Bigrigg. He’ll record a complete history, assess your range of motion, and take a series of digital X-rays, which generates a full, printed report. A customized treatment plan is designed based on that data.
Regenerative Medicine
The medical staff at Aligned Health Center considers regenerative medicine as cooperative medicine—a way of working with the care continuum and your body.
“We’ve been seeing significant results in our patients,” Dr. Nicholas Bigrigg reports. “It’s minimally invasive. There’s no pain or downtime, and all it takes is one injection. The most common joints treated with this procedure are large joints like knees and SI (lower back) joints.”
They’ve just introduced a new breakthrough injection called GenVisc 850.
“People no longer have to suffer from knee pain caused by osteoarthritis,” he says. “This viscosupplement injection cushions and lubricates the joint with a gel-like material made from a substance that naturally occurs in the body—hyaluronan. It acts as a shock absorber and helps restore fluid in the joint to its natural state. This procedure is also fully covered by Medicare.”
“Our practice is more intent on treating the root cause of medical issues and not medicating symptoms with ‘Band Aids’ like cortisone injections and pain pills, which can actually make the joint more arthritic in the long run,” he adds. “We take time to educate our patients about how the treatments we offer fit within our preventive and proactive approach. And we view getting a spinal X-ray as part of this preventive approach to health care.”
Dr. Bigrigg recommends everyone get a healthy back check-up even if you aren’t having specific issues, noting the sooner you correct even the smallest issues, the less likely they’ll get worse over time.
Aligned Health Center is located at 2237 Crocker Road, Suite 110, in Westlake, through July, and they are scheduling appointments at the new building next month, at 26933 Westwood Road, in Westlake. Chiropractic care is covered by most health insurances.
Financing options are available. To make an appointment, call 440-385-7357 or visit AHCwestlake.com.