Living with chronic pain in the back or neck can be very disruptive and it can limit one's activities considerably. Spinal decompression therapy is a treatment option that can provide effective relief from pain in many patients, and it can be done both non-surgically and surgically. Before deciding to undergo spinal decompression Shavano Park, TX patients should first find out what's involved and if it's suitable for them.

This procedure gently stretches the spine, altering its force and position. The non-surgical approach uses motorized traction to accomplish this. Pressure on the spinal disks is alleviated, allowing easier movement with less discomfort, and improved flow of oxygen and nutrients which encourages healing of the affected areas.

If indicated, both medical doctors and chiropractors will suggest this treatment to their patients who are experiencing persistent pain in the spine due a long-standing disorder or acute pain from an injury. Typically a non-surgical approach will be used first and if this does not help, a surgical technique may be needed. Patients with worn spinal joints, spinal nerve root conditions, sciatica, and herniated or bulging disks have all shown improvement following this procedure.

During the treatment, patients can wear their usual clothes, and will be positioned either face up or down on computer-controlled table. The doctor will secure them by fastening a harness around both the pelvis and upper torso. Decompression is controlled to specifications for the patient's case and it will last between 30 and 45 minutes. It is most often necessary to attend 20 to 28 treatments over a 5 to 7 week length of time. Other therapies may be implemented as well such as electrical muscle stimulation and hot and cold therapy.

There are some patients which will not be considered good candidates for this form of treatment due to the nature of their particular condition. These people will be referred for another pain management approach. If a patient is pregnant, has a tumor or fracture, metal implants in the spine, or suffers from an abdominal aortic aneurysm or advanced osteoporosis, decompression is contraindicated.

Some types of back pain, in particular that which is caused bony growths of the spine known as osteophytes or disk problems that do not respond favorably to non-surgical therapy, may be addressed through surgery. Patients who continue to experience numbness, tingling, weakness, and pain can often get relief by undergoing surgery to relieve pressure on the nerves of the spine.

There are different types of surgical spinal decompression which may be performed depending on the particular symptoms the patient is experiencing. Sometimes it is necessary to excise a small portion of either a disk or bone, or it may be necessary to increase the size of the space through which the nerve roots run, or totally remove a disk altogether. All of these measures are done to relieve pressure in the spine.

It is not always possible for doctors to tell if a patient will benefit from surgical decompression, so they opt to proceed with the operation with the hope that it will. Some will enjoy a better outcome than others. Risks are relatively small, but as with all types of surgery they exist and include clots, infection, bleeding, nerve or tissue damage, and an adverse reaction to the anesthesia.