Avoid Sciatica Surgery With Chiropractic

Dr. Ernst works with many sciatica patients here in our Arlington office, and quite a few of these individuals were afraid that they might require surgery to treat their pain. The most recent research reveals that many people don't need surgery for this prevalent problem, and that chiropractic is more successful at resolving sciatic nerve pain.

A typical surgery for sciatica is microdiscectomy, and in a 2010 study, specialists examined 80 individuals with sciatica who were referred for this procedure.

Forty patients were then randomly placed in one of two groups. The first group was to receive surgical microdiscectomy and the second group was given chiropractic care.

Both groups improved; however, no noticeable difference in outcome was reported one year post-treatment between either group. Furthermore, around sixty percent of the participating subjects who could not find assistance from any other treatment approach "benefited from spinal manipulation to the same degree as if they underwent surgical intervention."

Simply put, chiropractic delivered the same positive advantages as surgery without needing to undergo the increased amounts of surgery-based pain or suffer through drawn-out recovery times often affiliated with that specific treatment choice. Plus, you also don't run the risks linked to surgical microdiscectomy, including nerve root damage, bowel or bladder incontinence, bleeding, or infection.

Surgery should be the last resort for sciatica pain. If you live in Arlington and you're suffering from back pain or sciatica, give Dr. Ernst a call today at (360) 659-8464. We'll help identify the origin of your pain and work hard to get you relief.

References

• McMorland, G et al. Manipulation or microdiskectomy for sciatica? A prospective randomized clinical study. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2010;33(8):576-584.
• Solberg TK, Nygaard OP, Sjaavik K, Hofoss D, Ingebrigtsen T. The risk of "getting worse" after lumbar microdiscectomy. European Spine Journal 2005;14(1):49-54.