Re: Medical and non-medical uses of placenta
From: Taryn D (TarynD@nni.com)
Tue Oct 8 10:29:35 1996
Here is another current use for placentas. As a nursiong student, I would
be interested in everyone's comments.
--
Taryn Draxler
> From: Harris L. Coulter, Ph.D. <hlcoulter@msn.com>
> Subject: Govallo Treatment for Miscarriage
> Date: Saturday, July 20, 1996 12:46 PM
>
> The following is a description of the Govallo treatmentfor
> miscarriage. It is not available in the United States because we have not
> applied for a license from the FDA. Freeport, Bahamas, is only about 100
> miles from the Florida coast. Please contact me if you have furtherinquiries.
> Harris L. Coulter, Ph.D.
>
> The V.I. Govallo Method for Preventing Miscarriage
>
> V.I. Govallo is a Russian physician and immunologist, born in 1933 and
living
> in Moscow, who for more than thirty years has conducted research on
> immunologic techniques for preventing miscarriage. Empirical Therapies,
Inc.,
> is now offering his latest technique for women in North America andelsewhere
> who have a tendency to miscarry.
> In the 1960s, Dr. Govallo discovered the technique of making apreparation
> of the father's white blood cells (lymphocytes) and injecting it into the
> mother. This technique strengthened the immune system of the fetus and
> enabled it to survive the nine months of pregnancy without being expelled
> (miscarriage). Treating over 600 women in this way Govallo had a success
rate
> of 91% (resulting in 550 live births). His colleagues in Russia adoptedit
> subsequently, and to date more than 10,000 babies have been born usingthis
> lymphocyte technique.
> However, it is cumbersome and expensive, and Dr. Govallo refined a
better
> approach in 1992 -- employing an extract of human placenta obtainedafter a
> normal pregnancy and a healthy, live birth (never from abortions). Inthe
> past five years, he has treated about 100 women, including 15 who hadnever
> conceived at all, resulting in over 70 live full-term births, indicating
a 70%
> success ratio.
> Dr. Govallo has noted that, starting in the 1960s and continuing up to
the
> present day, for reasons not yet adequately understood, all theindustrialized
> countries of the world have seen a striking increase in the incidence of
> miscarriage. He attributes this to a general impairment of the humanimmune
> system caused by environmental factors.
> Thus, miscarriage reflects a certain immunologic weakness of the mother
which
> disturbs the normal progress of a pregnancy. The immune reactions ofpregnancy
> start immediately after conception and continue until the baby is born.As the
> fetus grows in the uterus, it works out a relationship of immunologic
> compatibility with the mother, for the fetus is 50 percent geneticmaterial
> from the father, and the natural reaction of the mother's immune systemis to
> reject it, just as the body will tend to reject an organ transplant. The
> placenta is the organ which moderates this tendency of the mother toreject or
> suppress the fetus. It responds by developing substances which "block"the
> maternal suppressor mechanisms and protect the fetus from maternalassault.
> If the production of "blocking factors" by the placenta is inadequate,
the
> mother's suppressor mechanisms will be too powerful for the fetus, andthe
> outcome is miscarriage. The injected placental extract increases theamount of
> "blocking factors" and thereby protects the fetus from miscarriage.
> Thus, in Dr. Govallo's view, the immune system is central to the origin
of
> life. The founders of immunology thought of immunity purely as adefensive
> mechanism, but immunity is also a reaction which guarantees and assureslife.
> It enables all the cells which contribute to life to work together inharmony.
> Preserving this process, not just protecting it from outside intrusion,is the
> principal task of the immune system.
> This treatment is far less expensive and less complicated than other
> contemporary treatments for miscarriage. Further, the cost of treatmentcovers
> a period of 1 year, so any booster shots are provided free of charge.The
> therapy consists primarily of one to three injections of a small quantity
of
> placental extract, manufactured according to strict standards of quality
and
> purity, and is administered by a licensed physician in the Bahamas. The
> treatment is given on an out-patient basis and requires one to threetrips to
> the Bahamas at one-month intervals, staying a day or two each time. The
> frequency of treatment is determined by each patient's individualcondition,
> that is, whether she is already pregnant, is in imminent danger of
> miscarriage, or has previously had several miscarriages. The course of
> treatment will be established at the time of diagnosis.
>
> For further information, please contact:
>
> Harris L. Coulter, Ph.D., President
> Empirical Therapies, Inc.
> 4221 45th Street, NW
> Washington, DC 200l6
>
> Tel. (202) 364-0898
> Fax: (202) 362-3407
> E-mail: hlcoulter@msn.com
> Also see website: http://home.earthlink.net/~emptherapies/index.html
>
