Chiropractic Reduces Disc Herniation Related Pain Often Without MRI
MRIs are fascinating. MRIs display pretty pictures of the body. Chiropractors like looking at spinal MRI images. Why? The spine is where chiropractors like your Easley chiropractor live day in and day out. Young Chiropractic values the MRI image study for what it is: a tool. But MRIs are not always a clinical necessity. Can MRI help determine whether to use non-surgical care or surgical care for back pain relief? Read on for the latest news.
The Usefulness of MRI
When a Easley patient’s back pain, neck pain, arm pain or leg pain symptoms denote the demand for an MRI, Young Chiropractic orders one for such a Easley back pain patient. MRI may enhance your Easley chiropractor’s clinical understanding of the condition oftentimes (but not always!). Pre-treatment and post-MRI studies are interesting. Did the disc herniation reduce now that the pain is gone? Easley chiropractic patients will often ask that of Young Chiropractic. And researchers will examine MRIs for their research studies on just such a query.
The Curiosity of MRI
Researchers aren’t the only ones who curiously study MRI images of low back pain sufferers to check if there is any correlation between pain and no pain and the MRI pre and post treatment for back pain. Patients wonder, too. Young Chiropractic is well aware that our Easley back pain patients wonder!
In noticing that doctors and patients find MRI images a curiosity when there is back pain and leg pain, some researchers set out to determine the value of MRI in predicting treatment outcomes in patients who had a herniated lumbar disc with sciatica. They speculated whether MRI could help decide whether to do back surgery now or stay the course with conservative care. Young Chiropractic and the Easley chiropractic low back pain patients we treat would love such a simple guide! Study participants were randomly sent to surgical care or a course of prolonged conservative care. Two findings – a disc extrusion and nerve root compression on MRI in patients with less severe leg pain – indicated a satisfactory outcome with either form of care. Another interesting finding: the size of the disc herniation at the beginning of care didn’t affect the outcome. There was no significant difference in outcomes between them – surgical and conservative. (1) Young Chiropractic sees similar reports increasingly in the back pain research. Remember the Atlas studies of surgical and non-surgical interventions for back pain and sciatica? There wasn’t much difference in those classic studies either: 50% versus 53% non-surgical vs. surgical for back pain due to spinal stenosis (2) and 69% vs. 61% surgical versus non-surgical for sciatica (3).
Young Chiropractic Offers Chiropractic Non-Surgical Care of Disc Herniation
Young Chiropractic asks you to make a Easley chiropractic appointment today. Trust Young Chiropractic to provide evidence-based chiropractic care that alleviates your spine pain many times without an MRI. Together, we can set a non-surgical (and even potentially non-MRI!) treatment plan to lessen your back pain.
Schedule your Easley chiropractic appointment today.
