Non Surgical Spinal Decompression - A Promising Cure for Chronic Low Back Pain

Millions of people, young and old suffer from debilitating low back pain. It is said to be the most popular reason for doctor visits, and a leading cause of lost work days.

Low back pain can be caused by several conditions. One of the most common is degenerative disc disease (DDD), also referred to as degenerative joint disease. This refers to the degradation of the disc and surrounding tissue. It is believed that DDD is triggered by one or more traumatic events, such as a car accident or sports injury. However, many DDD sufferers interestingly deny having been involved in such trauma. In DDD, the collagen fibers of the disc deteriorate, allowing the jelly-like center (called the nucleus pulposus) to gravitate to the edge, thus forming a bulge. This is where the laymen's term "disc bulge" comes from. The nucleus, when exposed can trigger an auto-immune reaction, where the body initiates an inflammatory response. The chemicals of inflammation irritate surrounding nerves, causing much of the pain. If the bulge presses on a spinal nerve root, it can cause pain to travel down the leg.

Statistically, back surgery is known to have limited success in totally eliminating disc related back pain. Many orthopedic surgeons tend to advise the patient to seek non-invasive procedures first, unless there is a clear-cut need for surgical intervention. Surgery requires destruction or alteration of critical muscle groups that are involved in spinal movement. This often leads to abnormal kinematics (joint movement) and reduces protective reflex pathways, which may lead to advanced degenerative changes.

Now there is a new procedure called non-surgical spinal decompression (NSSD). NSSD basically distracts, or pulls apart and releases spinal vertebra in a cyclical fashion, much like an accordion. This creates a negative pressure inside the disc, which helps to retract the disc bulge. The negative pressure also draws in surrounding fluids and increases blood flow to the weakened disc, in effect rehydrating it. The increased blood flow brings in collagen-synthesizing cells called fibroblasts, which begin to lay down layers of collagen, strengthening the disc.

NSSD utilizes a special table with a frictionless gliding section and computer chip controlled traction head. The patient is secured to the table either face up or face down. A harness is attached to the pelvis that is connected to the traction mechanism. The doctor inputs the settings (maximum pull and minimum pull (lbs.), hold and rest durations, pull patterns (static or intermittent), and treatment time. Usually, it takes 30-40 minutes per session and between 20-30 sessions for most cases. The results tend to be long lasting, and in some cases, permanent.