New Approach to Low Back Pain

Low back pain affects approximately 80% of people at some point in their lives.  Often times it is recurrent and as time goes on, episodes tend to increase in their severity.  While all age groups are affected, it is most prevalent in the third to sixth decades of life.  While some back pain may resolve on its own, it can be an indicator of a more serious issue within the spine.

Most people are familiar with traditional chiropractic care and chiropractic adjustments, but few people are aware of a relatively new procedure in the world of healthcare known as Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression.  This is a very safe and gentle therapy that use a specialized traction table to apply distraction to the spine in a precise and graduated manner.  This breakthrough therapy is used for conditions such as: sciatica, herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, low back pain, and spinal stenosis.

The goal of spinal decompression therapy is to relieve pressure on spinal discs by gently creating a separation of adjacent vertebrae and creating a vacuum effect with the disc.  This vacuum inside of the discs may induce retraction of herniated or bulging disc material back inside of the disc.  Along with this, the goal of the therapy is to introduce water and nutrients back into the damaged disc.  The sessions are very comfortable and patients feel nothing more than a gentle tug.

For people who have long suffered from low back pain, this therapy may be the answer for you.  Too often people opt for surgery before exploring all available options for management of their low back pain.  According to a 2002 paper on low back pain from Johns Hopkins, “fewer than 5% of people with back pain are good candidates for surgery,” and “surgery ought to be used when all other measures have been explored.”  Complication rates from surgery for degenerative disc disease were found to be as high as 55% including: hematoma, neurological adjacent segment degeneration, hardware/instrument related issues, and infections.  There are even now insurance diagnosis codes for failed back surgery syndrome.

If you’ve explored other options or think this type of therapy may help someone you know, I’d be glad to answer any questions you might have.  My office is Loganville Family Chiropractic, and our phone number is 770-554-5292.  I also check my e-mail regularly at jsedlock@loganvillefamilychiropractic.com.  

Kind Regards,

Dr. Jeremy Sedlock