Integral Med Bridges the Best of Complementary and Traditional Medicine

Dimitrina Vizinas, doctor of osteopathy, was frequently exposed to both Western and Eastern Traditional Chinese Medicine approaches while growing up in Bulgaria. When Vizinas and her family moved to the United States when she was 16, she found that osteopathic family medicine emphasized the holistic approach to medicine with which she grew up.

She earned a doctorate degree from Midwestern University/Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed her family medicine residency at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital. In addition, Vizinas has trained in integrative and functional medicine, acupuncture and homeopathy. In 2017, she co-founded Integral Med, in Elmhurst, to bridge the gap between the wisdom of ancient natural medicine and the latest scientific technologies.

“For me, it was never a question of one type of medicine versus another, but instead using the best approach for each patient,” she says.

An Array of Modalities for Every Patient

For more than a decade, Vizinas has worked to shift one’s physiology to function optimally via a blend of biohacking technologies—devices that aid those making incremental body, diet and lifestyle changes to improve their health—all aimed at addressing multiple complex chronic conditions at the same time.

Offerings at Integral Med include full-spectrum laser and light therapy, electromagnetic therapy, acoustic therapy, and oxygen and ozone administration. Tailored programs help patients with women’s health conditions, hormonal imbalances, fatigue, metabolism inflexibility, immune dysregulation and oncologic conditions.

The Hyperthermic Ozone and Carbonic Acid Transdermal Technology, better known as HOCATT, is a noninvasive way to use ozone along with 11 additional biohacking technologies to rejuvenate the whole-body terrain and essentially release energy for repair and metabolic toxins removal.

“With HOCATT, we see inflammation go down quickly,” notes Vizinas. “It is an amazing technology—we see fibroids and cysts shrink, along with improved focus, reduced pain and fatigue, and improved immunity.”

Thermography is growing as a popular noninvasive risk assessment tool to detect inflammation and abnormal metabolism that may lead to conditions such as breast cancer. The visual images easily demonstrate complications of conditions such as neuropathy, diabetes, hypertension and arthritis. The technology uses quick and easy infrared thermal imaging that measures body temperature.

Vizinas notes that thermography provides opportunities to offer on-the-spot education and intervention. By seeing the images, patients realize where and how much their body needs help, and they often become motivated to act early.

Patients new to Integral Med can begin their wellness journey by using one of the biohacking programs or therapies, or have an in-depth consultation with Vizinas. She performs a multimodal evaluation and recommends applicable advanced testing to create each patient’s unique toolbox of interventions.

“It’s all about looking under the hood and customizing a focused treatment plan for each patient,” Vizinas describes. “I meet each patient where they are.”

Vizinas observes more patients struggling these days to keep their bodies in optimal condition. She sees more advanced chronic conditions presenting at younger ages, even in people that are already living what they believe are healthy lifestyles. She emphasizes that proper evaluation is key to preventing and recovering from illness.

“Being healthy by simply avoiding bad things has not worked out well. Most people need more help than they realize,” Vizinas affirms. “Practicing functional family medicine is interesting because I’m very much a puzzle person and enjoy the intellectual challenges of each case. Each person is so unique and has their own presentations. Once I figure them out, and that person starts to get better, it’s amazing to see the ripple effect—they are happier, their families are happier, they regain creativity and it elevates everyone in their circles.”

As one who is always adding beneficial modalities and programs to best serve her patients, Vizinas promises exciting new offerings coming to Integral Med over the next six months.

Integral Med is located at 340 W. Butterfield Rd., Ste. 3C, in Elmhurst. For more information, call 847-852-7124 or visit IntegralMed.us. 

Sheila Julson is a freelance writer and regular contributor to Natural Awakenings.