Column Treatment Progress Report No. 213: A Patient Whose Walking Distance Increased Day by Day After The Treatment
August 5, 2026
The patient
A male patient in his 60s
Treated in September 2025. Approximately 9 months have passed since treatment.
Symptoms and treatments to date
This patient had disc degeneration in the areas indicated by the red frame (L2/3, 3/4, 4/5, 5/s).
Pre-treatment medical history and treatments to date
The patient experienced episodes of acute low back pain since his 20s and 30s.
Around 2015, he began feeling pain in his left buttock after walking for long periods of time. He visited an orthopedic clinic and was diagnosed with lumbar spinal stenosis.
In August 2025, he developed severe low back pain and again visited an orthopedic clinic. He was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease and was initially managed with conservative, symptomatic treatment. Although his symptoms improved with this treatment, some symptoms remained, leading him to visit our clinic and undergo treatment.
Post-treatment progress
The table below shows the results of the patient’s own evaluation of the pain in each body site on a scale of 0 to 10.
No pain at all is rated as 0 and 10 as the maximum possible pain.
| Lower back | Lower limbs | Numbness | Buttocks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before treatment | 8 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 1 week after treatment | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1 month after treatment | 4 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 3 months after treatment | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 months after treatment | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
The following is feedback from the patient when contacted for follow-up.
1 week after treatment:
He experienced some low back pain upon waking in the morning. However, his walking distance increased slightly compared to before.
1 month after treatment:
His low back pain had improved slightly. However, numbness in his knee began to appear after walking more than 1 km.
3 months after treatment:
His symptoms improved significantly, and he was able to walk up to 1.5 km without symptoms.
6 months after treatment:
He now has recovered sufficiently to play golf again. Looking back at his condition before treatment, he said that he could really feel how much he had improved.
In this patient’s case, disc degeneration was considered the main cause of symptoms.
Before treatment, he was limited to walking around 200 meters and was unable to play golf.
Thanks to the combined effect of the treatment and rehabilitation, his walking distance increased day by day, allowing him to resume golf. We are extremely pleased with his recovery.
* It generally takes 3 weeks to 3 months for treatment effects to appear.
* Effects in the treatment may vary according to individual differences. Please be aware that there is a possibility that the exact same effects may not be replicated every time.
Our Treatment Method
Supplementary Information on the Cellgel Method
Cost of the Cellgel Method:
¥1,320,000 / 1 site (tax included)
to ¥1,760,000 / 5 sites (tax included)
Risks and Side Effects:
Temporary pain may occur after treatment.
Nerve injury is theoretically possible due to the nature of the procedure, but no such cases have been reported in our own experience or in published studies.
Extremely rare risk of allergic reaction to local anesthetic.
Symptoms may temporarily worsen for 1–2 weeks after treatment, believed to be due to decompression effects of the implant pulling on surrounding tissue.
If the disc is severely collapsed or nearly gone, treatment may not be possible.
The physician will discuss suitable treatment options with each patient depending on their condition.
For more detailed information, please refer to the following links:
Blog page explaining the Cellgel Method in an easy-to-understand manner
The Cellgel Method on our treatment methods page
This article was written by the administrative Director of our clinic
