Emsella® | The Kegel Throne
The #1 Non-Invasive Treatment for Incontinence
Emsella® by BTL is a revolutionary technology that uses high frequency electromagnetic energy (HIFEM technology) to induce pelvic floor contractions.
Stronger pelvic floor muscles lead to tightening of the pelvic floor. The pelvic floor becomes fit. A fit pelvic floor provides stronger support to the pelvic organs including the bladder and can help tilt the bladder forward greatly improving continence. With Emsella® you’ll have over 11,000 Kegel-type muscle contractions in a single 28-minute treatment session.
But there’s a bonus! Because the urogenital area includes your reproductive organs, strengthening of the of the pelvic floor frequently improves sexual function and satisfaction too.
Best yet? This treatment is completely non-invasive, painless and is delivered while fully clothed sitting on the Emsella chair.
Ideal for both women and men. Side effects are exceedingly rare and you can resume normal activities immediately. Treatment involves six 1/2 hour sessions (2 per week for 3 weeks or weekly for 6 weeks depending on medical history). Maintenance is just a couple 30-minute sessions a year. So easy!
ArtMed’s mission is to provide industry-leading non-invasive options to treat the signs and symptoms of aging. We are thrilled to be the one of the first clinics in Ontario to offer Emsella and the only clinic in the Tri-City/Hamilton region.
It’s time to get Ur⚥-Fit with Emsella® at ArtMed.
Book a consultation with our medical team.
EMSELLA® FAQ’s
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Your pelvic floor health should be entrusted to medical experts. ArtMed is a physician owned and operated clinic staffed by medical professionals – nurses, laser technicians and physicians. We believe strongly in medical oversight. Dr. Peirson has over 20 years experience caring for men and women with pelvic, sexual and reproductive health concerns. This is why we feel qualified and excited to offer Emsella.
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Do you leak urine when you cough, sneeze, laugh, jump or exercise? This is stress incontinence and Emsella treats that!
Do you leak urine when you cough, sneeze, laugh, jump or exercise? This is stress incontinence and Emsella treats that!
Do you find you have urgent need to go to the bathroom and you leak urine before getting there? Do you wake up at night to urinate? This is urge incontinence and Emsella treats that!
You get both kinds? This is mixed incontinence and Emsella treats that!
Emsella does not treat incontinence caused by non-relaxing pelvic floor muscle dysfunction. If you’re interested in Emsella contact ArtMed and we will provide you with a screening questionnaire to determine if you are a good candidate for Emsella.
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Metal implants are the main contraindication. You cannot use Emsella if you have a cardiac pacemaker, implanted defibrillator, implanted neurostimulator, electronic implant, metal implants such as artificial titanium joints, copper IUD or drug pump. Other contraindications include hemorrhagic conditions, anticoagulation therapy, heart disorders, cancer or recent surgical procedures (muscle contraction may disrupt healing in the treatment area). Pregnant or nursing women cannot undergo the Emsella treatment.
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Yes!! But the kegels you’re able to do with Emsella are ‘supramaximal’ or in other words much stronger and more effective than you can do yourself. Plus the number of kegels you can do in a 28 minute session of Emsella would take you 70 hours to do on your own. This is why Emsella is often referred to as the ‘kegel throne’.
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The pelvic floor muscles have 5 functions and by strengthening the muscles of the pelvic floor everyone of these functions is improved.
Organ support – the pelvic floor muscles support the bladder, uterus, rectum and important abdominal organs against gravity and any downward pressure. When the pelvic floor becomes lax it stretches and thins and support for the bladder and reproductive organs lessens, allowing them to tilt backward and drop lower. Strengthening the pelvic floor muscles helps improve organ support and return organs to better positions to prevent incontinence and prolapse.
Stability – the pelvic floor helps stabilize our pelvis and lower back. Muscles attach from the pubic bone to the spine and criss cross the pelvic bones to create a web of strength and stability. Strengthening these muscles improves core strength.
Sphincteric function- muscles of the pelvic floor help to control both the opening to the urethra, where urine comes out, and the rectum, where feces and/or gas comes out. The pelvic floor muscles prevent leakage of urine, feces and gas. Strengthening of the muscles leads to improved urine, fecal and gas continence.
Sexual Function – The pelvic floor plays a role in orgasm and helps achieve and maintain erection for men. Improved pelvic floor – improved sexual functioning.
Circulation – The pelvic floor muscles act as a sump pump to help pump blood back up towards the heart. This leads to improved circulation in the pelvis and better cardiac return.
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A series of six Ur⚥-Fit with Emsella treatments costs $2000. All six appointments must be scheduled at the time of purchase.
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No it does not hurt. You will experience the feeling of all your pelvic floor muscles contracting and maybe some tingling. There is no down time and you can resume normal activities immediately after treatment.
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Your Ur⚥-Fit with Emsella treatment cycle will require 6 appointments over 3 weeks or 6 weeks depending on your medical history. You should allow at least 3 days between appointments to give your pelvic floor muscles a chance to rest in between treatments. Your appointments will be about 40 minutes, and time spent on the Emsella chair itself is exactly 28 minutes.
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You can read, watch Netflix on our clinic TV’s, or simply relax while being treated (no cell phone use while in treatment). The best thing to do is relax! The mind body connection is important to being mindfully present during treatments may be beneficial. The treatment cycle is variable with periods of more intense pelvic floor contracting and periods of less throughout the 28-minute cycle. For your first treatment a nurse or laser technician will stay with you for the entire 28 minutes. For subsequent treatments your nurse or technician will set you up and then allow you to go through the treatment cycle on your own. A pager will be provided if you need assistance at any time.
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Emsella is made by BTL a well-known and well-respected European manufacturer of medical equipment. Emsella is Health Canada and FDA approved. In research studies the one noted side effect was improved sexual function. Not all side effects are bad! Very rarely a patient may notice muscular pain, temporary muscle spasm, temporary joint or tendon pain, local erythema or skin redness after treatment.
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Optimal results are typically seen 2 weeks after your final session. For a few patients with more severe symptoms additional sessions may provide further improvement.
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While any medical treatment will have results that vary from person to person depending on the severity of their symptoms and their unique physiology, with Emsella clinical studies found that 95% of study participants reported a significant quality of life improvement and 2/3 of patients totally eliminated or very significantly reduced the use of urinary incontinence pads/diapers.
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Yes, it is recommended to do a single maintenance treatment a couple times a year. Frequency of maintenance sessions may vary from person to person. You will get to know what’s ideal for you.
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OHIP does not cover Emsella. However, you may be able to get partial coverage of your treatment if you have third party medical benefits that provide physiotherapy coverage. Please see our FAQs on Insurance coverage for Emsella for more details. A Health Spending Account may also provide some coverage for Emsella.
If you do not have third party insurance, or a Health Spending Account, you can claim treatment for incontinence as a medical expense on your tax return.
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No! You can wear your street clothes during treatment. We recommend wearing loose, comfortable clothing.
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Men can also suffer from incontinence and pelvic floor weakness. Pelvic surgeries such as prostatectomy, or bladder surgery in particular can cause incontinence or erectile dysfunction. Incontinence in men typically presents as a small amount of dribbling during workouts or at the end of the day. A career involving heavy lifting, chronic cough and obesity can put pressure on the bladder and lead to stress incontinence. Ur⚥-Fit with Emsella is useful is helpful for all these situations. Emsella is less likely to be successful if incontinence follows pelvic radiation treatment for cancer.
Some men suffer from urge incontience – a need to urinate frequently or dribbling when the bladder is full and Emsella can help improve symptoms. Treatment will Emsella can lead to increased sensitivity during sexual intercourse and possibly offer relief from erectile dysfunction.
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You can undertake Emsella treatments after delivery as soon as your physician or midwife has cleared you to return to exercise and sexual intercourse. However, if you are still nursing you must wait until your infant is weaned to begin Emsella treatment.
Emsella® For Men
The #1 Non-Invasive Treatment for Incontinence
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Pelvic floor weakness in men can lead to erectile dysfunction (difficulty attaining or maintaining erection) and premature ejaculation. Pelvic floor strengthening with Emsella can increase penile rigidity and hardness in men with ED and improve control over time until ejaculation.
Men also suffer from incontinence related to pelvic floor weakness. Pelvic surgeries such as prostatectomy, or bladder surgery in particular can cause incontinence or erectile dysfunction. Incontinence in men typically presents as a small amount of dribbling during workouts or at the end of the day. Chronic cough and obesity can put pressure on the bladder and lead to stress incontinence. Ur⚥-Fit with Emsella is helpful for all these situations. Some men suffer from urge incontinence – a need to urinate frequently or dribbling when the bladder is full and Emsella can help improve symptoms. Treatment will Emsella can lead to increased sensitivity during sexual intercourse and possibly offer relief from erectile dysfunction.
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Emsella is less likely to be successful if incontinence follows pelvic radiation treatment for cancer.
FAQs Emsella Third Party Insurance Coverage
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Emsella is a non-invasive high-tech treatment for stress and urge incontinence. OHIP does not cover this treatment modality at this time. Emsella would be considered a type of physiotherapy treatment. There is hope that OHIP may cover this procedure at some point in the future but that is likely many years from now.
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At present, treatment with Emsella is not covered by third party insurance. However, most third-party insurers do cover the cost of pelvic floor physiotherapy. At ArtMed you can access a pelvic floor physiotherapist and submit a portion of your Emsella fees to your insurer (the portion that represents the care provided by a pelvic floor physiotherapist who may recommend Emsella as part of a comprehensive treatment plan).
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Emsella involves an initial consult followed by 8 treatments and the cost for this is $2000 which reflects the high cost of this cutting-edge technology (similar to an MRI machine).
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For individuals with third party insurance:
Initial consultation: $160 ($160 can be submitted for insurance coverage)
2X per week Emsella treatments X 4 weeks plus one visit with pelvic floor physiotherapist each week. Cost: $500 per week of which $140 can be billed to insurance.
OR
1X per week Emsella treatment X 8 weeks and biweekly visits with the pelvic floor physiotherapist Cost: $250 per week of which $140 can be billed every other week to insurance.
Total cost: Initial consultation $160 + Emsella Treatments $2000 = $2160
Total portion that can be submitted to insurance = $160 + 4x$140 = $720*
*Note that this is the portion that you can submit to your insurer. How much your insurance plan will reimburse depends on the coverage and the co-pays of your plan. Check with your insurer to determine your overall coverage for physiotherapy and what % will be reimbursed.
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You will receive two separate receipts if you are planning to submit the physiotherapy portion for reimbursement to your insurer. One receipt will reflect the physiotherapy visit portion (submit this to your third-party insurer) and the other receipt will be for the Emsella treatment itself which you cannot submit to your insurer. However, the Emsella receipt will reflect that it is a medical treatment so you can claim it as a medical expense at tax time.
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The schedule above indicates the maximal number of pelvic floor physiotherapy appointments (consult and check-ins) you could have during your Emsella treatment series. You may elect to have fewer appointments at your discretion and in discussion with the physiotherapist. However, this also means that you will claim less of the total expense of treatment with your third-party insurer. But you can still claim the portion not covered by your third-party insurance as a medical expense for tax purposes.
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ArtMed does not provide direct billing. You will pay for your treatment at the time of service and then submit the receipt for appointment with the physiotherapist to your third-party insurer. Many people submit through phone apps or online these days so this process should be relatively straightforward.
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It is possible that the full cost of Emsella treatments may be covered by your HSA (up to the limit of your HSA coverage). Check with your plan to see if will cover the cost. Since Emsella is being provided in a medical facility and your receipt will reflect that it is likely to be eligible for coverage. You would pay for your treatment up front and then submit the receipt for reimbursement under your HSA.
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The combination of Emsella plus the expertise of a pelvic floor physiotherapist is optimal when treating issues of incontinence. Your therapist will provide expert guidance to optimize Emsella results and may recommend additional treatment options to further address your unique continence/pelvic floor concerns. Many people have reported that working with a pelvic floor physiotherapist while undergoing Emsella treatment has provided an exceptional improvement in symptoms.
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Your initially consult with the pelvic floor physiotherapist will be in-person at ArtMed. The consult will be 45 minutes long and you will have an opportunity to try the Emsella machine at this initial visit. **Please note that the in-person initial consultations are only available on Wednesday mornings between 9am and 11am.
Follow up visits with the physiotherapist can be done virtually through video link and will be 30 minutes in length. Your physiotherapist will schedule those follow up virtual visits with you directly. Receipts for those visits will be provided when you come to ArtMed for your Emsella treatments.
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Your physiotherapist will determine your treatment plan and decide whether you will be treated twice weekly or once weekly or if any adjustments to your schedule should be made.
You will arrange your appointments for Emsella with the administrative staff at ArtMed once you have your treatment schedule.
Please note that twice weekly treatment should be done at least 2 days apart and ideally 3 days apart - for example Monday/Thursday or Tuesday/Friday.