“You have to know where you came from to know where you are
going.”
It’s true for all of us personally,
domestically, and professionally. It is true for
medicine – allopathic and alternative - too. It is true for the understanding
of the disc and the spine it holds. Understanding
of Colorado Springs back pain continues to evolve, and
one of the major milestones was rather new
in our human history. The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR discloses
old and new findings on the disc
and the back pain it causes as well as the
Colorado Springs chiropractic care that reduces that back
pain.
HISTORY OF THE DISC HERNIATION
The understanding of disc herniation as a
compressive force on spinal nerves resulting in back pain and leg
pain is a relatively recent phenomenon. Keep
in mind that the spine changes as it grows older. The spinal disc’s shape and tissue
composition changes. The center part of the disc,
nucleus pulposus, changes and decreases in size. (1) We know
better today, but in 1909, the disc herniation was assumed
to be a tumor. In 1930, a neurologist (T Alajouanine) and surgeon (D
Petit-Dutaillis) explained their surgical experiences with disc
herniations that were initially studied by a pathologist
named CG Schmorl. But it was not until 1934 when WJ Mixter and JS
Barr circulated the first report of surgically removing disc herniations in 19 patients. (2) (Unless it is
published, it did not happen…and you do not get credit
for it!) So it was fewer than 100 years ago that
the disc herniation was termed a disc herniation and recognized
as such! Allopathy and alternative medicine like chiropractic have risen
to the challenge in those intervening years.
ALLOPATHY and ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
Allopathic medicine is usually centered
on the disease and tends to concentrate
on symptom-specific treatment (usually pharmacological or invasive) to get
rid of the cause of pain. Alternative medicine usually
focused on a whole-body approach and has a tendency to focus on treatments that stimulate
the body’s capability to heal itself (herbal supplements, Reiki, chiropractic, Tai chi, acupuncture, etc.) to decrease pain. (3) Today, integrative medicine is growing in its appreciation and utilization of the best of both.
CHIROPRACTIC TREATMENT FOR DISC HERNIATION
Chiropractic care is all-encompassing
care for spine pain conditions. For the disc herniation resulting in
low back pain, neck pain, leg pain and/or arm pain, gentle flexion distraction
spinal manipulation is relieving. A new report points
out that horizontal traction was quite helpful
in causing a significant increase in
average lumbar spine disc height and decrease in lumbar
lordosis. (4) Such is available with the Cox Technic System of Spinal Pain
Management causing long-y axis distraction. The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR concentrates
in this treatment. Cox Technic is described as a non-thrust low
velocity variable amplitude spinal manipulation that takes care of low
back pain non-pharmacologically. It is shown to
reduce pain in chronic low back pain patients. (5) It reduces
intradiscal pressure in the disc to as low as -192mmHg, widens the
spinal canal area by 28%, and enlarges disc height by 17%. (6)
The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR relieves back pain due to disc herniation very
effectively.
CONTACT The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR
Listen to this PODCAST
by Dr. Jake Bohnen on The Back
Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson. He discusses a
case of a disc herniation he treated with Cox® Technic and reduced pain…and the
herniation on MRI!
Schedule a non-surgical Colorado Springs chiropractic care
appointment with The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR today. Together, we’ll determine where you’ve been on your back pain journey
and set a path of correction and control for its
future with the most proper treatment possible.