by Paul Chen

The juxtaposition can be puzzling, if not jarring: an eye clinic, a tanning salon and a device called HOCATT Ozone Sauna. Just to make things more interesting, the acronym stands for Hyperthermic Ozone and Carbonic Acid Transdermal Technology.

Behind all three is a traditionally trained optometrist who seeks solutions for his patients’ biggest problems.

Dr. David Grosswald, owner of the Eye Center in Conyers, has witnessed too many patients lose their eyesight to macular degeneration.

“Right now the only therapy for that is vitamin therapy, and when it converts to the bad form, then you get chemotherapy shots in your eye every eight weeks for the rest of your life,” he says.

Sensing there ought be another way— “Our body is supposed to have the ability to heal itself, right?” he asks—Grosswald joined other optometrists to figure it out. “I’ve traveled the country, and I’ve met physicians who are involved in energy medicine and regenerative medicine and anti-aging medicine, and we have come up with a protocol,” says Grosswald. “We call it macular regeneration.”

Ozone therapy was the solution, and Grosswald’s next issue was how to get ozone inside the body. He chose the sauna because he deemed it easier and less expensive than IV therapy and rectal insufflation.

With his recent purchase of the HOCATT sauna—which he installed in the tanning salon that he owns next door to his clinic—Grosswald is set to help patients with macular degeneration, and, as it turns out, much more.

“When you can make new cells in the macular, you can make new nerve cells in the brain, and you can make new cells in the kidney, and you can make new cells elsewhere in the body,” he says.

He contends that people’s bodies today are less capable of regenerating cells because of toxins in the environment. HOCATT, he says, is basically a “big detoxifier.”

So while some patients use HOCATT for macular degeneration, others use it for various conditions that Grosswald learns about during routine eye-care visits. General fatigue is a big issue, as are fibromyalgia and arthritis. One patient, however, stands out.

Louis Rabin, 71, of Covington, was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in July 2016. He started HOCATT sessions in late January, and as of this writing, has had five sessions.

“I feel better,” says Rabin. “I noticed I was a little stronger in my arms and I have more energy.”

His need for naps has decreased, and he sleeps better at night, though he is not sure to what he should credit that. Grosswald says more energy and better sleep are benefits that most HOCATT users report regardless of the reason they use the therapy.

Rabin reports other improvements as well: He is able to swallow water smoothly now, whereas he used to choke a lot. He used to struggle getting out of low-height couches and chairs, often needing assistance, but is now more likely not to require assistance. And his mobility, in general, has gotten better. Grosswald says that Rabin showed up for his first appointment in a wheelchair and that it took 20 minutes for staff to help him into the sauna. Now he arrives with a walker and enters the sauna on his own.

While most of Grosswald’s patients who use the ozone sauna do so because of a medical condition, about one in five do so for general health. In that case, Grosswald recommends three to four sessions a year.

Besides ozone therapy, the HOCATT device delivers eight other therapies. From a wellness perspective, HOCATT manufacturer Signature Health promotes anti-aging as a key benefit. Grosswald, who tries to get in at least two sessions every week, says he lost 15 pounds without changing anything else about his lifestyle.

Beyond patients’ stories, Grosswald says that he has the ability to measure before and after states to gauge effectiveness. He didn’t have information to share at the time of writing since the second measurement comes 90 days after the first, and none of his patients have reached that point yet.

 

The Eye Center, 1192 Dogwood Dr SE, Conyers, 30013, 770-860-1919, theeyecenterconyers.com.