About
Dr. Mangala Shetty understands taking care of another human being is a privilege. With 35 years of experience in the medical field, she is driven in her work by helping to make positive patient outcomes.
“Improving the well-being of the patients you take care of is what gives me the greatest joy,” she said. “...Chronic pain can be devastating to the lives of patients and their loved ones. The joy you derive from diminishing, if not eliminating, their pain and suffering is priceless.”
For more than 20 years, Dr. Shetty has served as president of the Marion Pain Management Center in Ocala. She helped to establish a comprehensive interventional pain management center and emphasizes a multi-disciplinary approach to chronic pain management.
Dr. Shetty earned a bachelor’s degree from Mount Carmel College, the University of Bangalore in India. The University of Nigeria served as the site for her master’s in education and medical degree as well as her internship.
After completing an anesthesiology residency at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, MI, Dr. Shetty decided to do a pain management fellowship at the University of Texas in San Antonio because she missed the satisfaction of being able to partake in the continued care of patients especially those suffering in pain.
Before her current position and studies, Dr. Shetty was a post-doctorate research fellow at Columbia University studying the molecular mechanisms in the metabolic control of glucose transporter. For six years, she was also department head for the Nigeria-based College of Immaculate Conception’s Chemistry Department.
When looking toward the future of pain management, Dr. Shetty is excited by the discovery of non-opioid medication with minimal side effects and dependence as well as minimally invasive procedures to reduce disc protrusions, enhance disc integrity and decrease inflammations involving nerves and joints.
Dr. Shetty takes a comprehensive approach to treatment which includes rehabilitation therapy, home exercises, psychological support, and injections. “I like to educate patients well on their condition and the preventive aspects to improve their condition and make them as proactive as possible in their care,” she said. When medications are needed, she prefers to use adjuvant medications that inhibit pain.
In her downtime, Dr. Shetty can be found enjoying Broadway shows and singing. She recently took up golf lessons and likes traveling to take in the beauties of other cultures.
