Back Pain

Spinal decompression is a high-tech form of traction used to treat disc bulging and degeneration and their associated pain and disability.  Spinal decompression differs from regular traction in that it uses computer-controlled motors to trick the spinal muscles into remaining relaxed and uncontracted during the treatment session.  This results in much greater reduction in disc pressure than regular traction, which usually must work against the resistance of contracted muscles.  Most people get excellent results from spinal decompression treatment, but some do not get any improvement, and a few may actually get worse.  The following is an explanation of the reasons for the failures in spinal decompression treatment and ways you can know whether or not spinal decompression is likely to help in your particular circumstances.

Spinal decompression in my San Antonio office has been quite successful for most patients, but it is not appropriate or effective for every patient.  It has been my observation that some providers of spinal decompression services will recommend it as a “cure-all” for all patients in an attempt to keep their machines full and maximize their return on investment on the equipment.  Even the best doctors don’t have a 100% success rate, because no treatment works for everyone.  The problem is when doctors accept patients who are not really good candidates for treatment, the results are lacking, and some poorly-selected patients may even temporarily get worse when they receive this form of treatment.

From my experiences in my San Antonio practice, the patients who get the best results with spinal decompression are those with one or more bulging/herniated discs and patients with mild to moderate disc degeneration.  Patients who have previously undergone disc surgery are somewhat more complicated, but most still get good results when they meet the selection criteria (no metal implantation in the spine, no spinal instability, and no impaired healing at the site of surgery). The vast majority of people who meet these criteria get very good results and are usually able to return to their normal activities without any significant pain.

Although complete disc ruptures (disc extrusions) may sometimes be helped with spinal decompression, my experience has been that people with true disc ruptures (the term “rupture” is often used incorrectly even by doctors to describe disc bulges and herniations - actual disc ruptures are relatively rare) do not tend to get good results. 

In addition to the importance of applying spinal decompression only in the appropriate cases, it is extremely important for the doctor or technician operating the machine to set the patient up properly for the treatment.  Several factors are involved, and every spinal decompression system has its own unique set-up procedure.  Ongoing training of any personnel who operate this type of equipment is essential.  It is very easy to get sloppy with setting up patients on the equipment, and this leads to ineffective treatment.  Overall, because of the design of the better spinal decompression systems, even very poor patient set-ups rarely lead to patient injury, but mistakes in the use of the machine can definitely prevent the patient from getting the desired results and might cause a temporary flare-up in symptoms.  To help avoid this problem, I recommend asking any potential spinal decompression provider you may be considering seeking treatment with about his or her training for the operators of the equipment.  A one-time training done when the equipment was first received is simply not sufficient.  I strongly recommend working with providers who perform re-training on the equipment on at least a quarterly basis. 

One other consideration is the fact that some patients are not good candidates for spinal decompression treatment because of their inability or unwillingness to follow the recommended treatment protocol.  In my experience, the primary reasons why a patient can’t or won’t follow the treatment recommendations are usually related to money and/or time. 

A complete spinal decompression program of care that inclues decompression as well as additional treatments may seem expensive to some people.  Since spinal decompression is an alternative to disc surgery though, a cost comparison with surgery will show spinal decompression to be much less expensive with statistically much better resuts, making it a good value in most cases.  Even so, some people try to lower the cost by attempting to reduce the amount of treatment they get.  In my experiences from my San Antonio office, this approach is often a very big mistake.  The people who discontinue care prematurely will often feel better and return to activities before their disc condition is stable.  This can lead to re-injury and even worse problems.  In my opinion, it is far better to invest in the recommended treatment in order to get maximum benefits.

The other reason that some people don’t follow the recommended spinal decompression protocol is time.  Some will frequently skip appointments or discontinue treatment altogether because they have busy schedules and just can’t or won’t take the time to get the treatment they need.  The key to lasting results with spinal decompression lies in having the recommended number of treatments at the recommended frequency to allow for maximum correction, stabilization, and healing of the disc.  The treatment just doesn’t work as well when patients don’t make it a priority for their time.  Some people can get away with neglecting themselves for a while, but in my experience, if you don’t make time for your health, sooner or later your health condition will absolutely force you to take the time (by means of a severe pain crisis), and this usually occurs when it is least convenient in your schedule.  You are far better off to simply make your treatment a high priority and get the problem taken care of properly. 

To summarize, spinal decompression can be an extremely effective treatment for people suffering with pain from bulging and degenerated discs, but it is important that doctors select patients for this treatment carefully and make sure that the technicians operating the equipment get refresher training regularly to be sure patients are being set up on the machine properly.  Patients need to take the responsibility to follow the treatment recommendations to allow for maximum correction and healing. 

Dr. George Best has been providing spinal decompression in San Antonio, Texas since 2006 with the DRX9000 system.  For additional infomation, visit his website at www.spinesanantonio.com.