Most people will experience low back pain at least once in their lifetime. The cause of pain can be degenerative, trauma or multifactorial. When low back pain doesn’t resolve after three months, it’s considered to be chronic.
While many patients respond to conservative care such as physical therapy, medications and injections, for some, the pain can be debilitating and interfere with quality of life. But now, an innovative treatment method offers a promising outlook for chronic pain sufferers.
It’s called restorative neurostimulation. This treatment option involves a minimally invasive implantable device that stimulates a targeted nerve which controls a large back muscle, reactivating muscle control, restoring spine stability and reducing back pain. Dr. Mansoor Aman, an interventional pain management physician at Aurora Health Center – Oshkosh, performed the first implants in the state of Wisconsin on August 23.
“This is an innovative way to treat back pain using restorative stimulation of the lumbar multifidus muscle, a key spine stabilizing muscle,” he explains. “The device delivers a treatment that is 30 minutes, twice daily and essentially rehabilitates the multifidus muscle and reduces pain.”
Dr. Aman says the implanted device is unique because unlike other spinal pain implanted devices which treat the pain but don’t fix the problem, this implant rehabilitates the muscle. He likens it to a built-in physical therapist.
In order to determine if the implant is appropriate for a patient, a combination of MRI and physical exam findings are used. Placing the device is considered minimally invasive, with patients experiencing on average three to five days of acute post-procedure pain.
“I’m thrilled to offer such an innovative treatment option for our patients,” says Dr. Aman. “This therapy strengthens an inactive or atrophied muscle and helps lead to better, painless days ahead.”
Original source can be found here.
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