When it comes to back pain, millions of Americans seek out all types of treatment options in hopes of lasting relief. However, more and more people are looking for treatment options that are less invasive and hoping to avoid expensive surgeries that come with long recovery periods and medications that can do more harm than good. Doctors and specialists are seeing more interest in treatments like spinal decompression because of its reputation for a non-invasive approach to effective pain management.
Treating Back Pain
Before you begin any kind of treatment, including spinal decompression, it is important that your doctor diagnose the reason for your back pain. Understanding the reason and the source of your back pain will help in determining whether this treatment will be most effective for you. Back pain can really start to affect your ability to go about your daily routine and start to disrupt your life. You shouldn’t have to live with chronic back pain or only experience temporary, short-lived relief with pain medications or other less effective treatment methods.
Your doctor may want to use diagnostic imaging to get a clearer picture of what is going on with your spine and to determine the root cause of your pain. An X-ray will provide your doctor with images of your spine, which can help identify misalignments and other injury or damage to your bones. An MRI or CT scan may be more effective if your doctor suspects your muscles, tendons, and other soft tissues are also involved or contributing to your pain. These types of diagnostic images will show not only bones but also the soft tissues that support your spine. Depending on what is causing your back pain, spinal decompression may be recommended.
How Spinal Decompression Works
Spinal decompression is a non-surgical approach to treating your back pain by using motorized traction. One treatment of spinal decompression may take less than an hour, you can wear your own comfortable clothes, and no medications are required. You will either lie face up or down on a specialized table for spinal decompression and rest your legs on a bar. The actual spinal decompression you experience is slow and gentle as the machine actually helps to lengthen your spine. The machine is driven by a doctor who is licensed in providing spinal decompression and uses a computer to customize your treatment.
The goal of spinal decompression is to relieve pressure on your spine. As your spine lengthens it relieves pressure that has built up along your neck and back, helping to relieve pain and discomfort. It can also help allow nutrients and blood to more effectively flow through your spine, joints, and soft tissues. Improved circulation can help your body to more effectively heal any injury or damage to your spine. Restoring a healthy flow of blood, oxygen, and nutrients to the affected area is all part of the healing process so you can experience lasting relief from pain.
What Spinal Decompression Helps
You may experience pain along your spine in your neck and in specific parts of your back. Some injuries that result in pain along your spine include herniated discs, osteoarthritis, degenerative disc disease, and old injuries that may have led to chronic back and neck pain. Before resorting to surgical options to help with back pain, spinal decompression offers a far less invasive and more safe, natural approach to addressing your pain. A herniated disc refers to a disc that normally absorbs shock and separates two vertebrae but has slipped out of place and is causing pain. Through spinal decompression, the gentle stretching of your spine can help the disc naturally slip back into place and stop putting unnecessary pressure on nearby nerves. Some back and neck pain includes symptoms related to pressure on your nerves, like tingling and numbness. Spinal decompression can help ease pressure on your spine and nearby soft tissues and nerves to help bring about relief from pain.
Benefits of Spinal Decompression
Spinal decompression comes with significantly fewer risks and time commitments than a serious surgery would. It is a non-invasive type of treatment that has hardly any recovery time and does not involve any pain. It also does not require any medications or anesthesia. The time it takes for a treatment can be as short as thirty minutes and you can start experiencing pain relief right away.
If this sounds like a good option to you then contact our spinal decompression specialists at AICA Orthopedics. Our doctors can talk with you about the pain you are experiencing and provide you with a diagnosis and treatment plan for exceptional spine care, that will offer you safe, natural, and effective lasting pain relief.