Avoid Sciatica Surgery With Chiropractic

Dr. Cyr works with many sciatica patients here in our Rutland office, and quite a few of these men and women were afraid that they might require surgery to relieve their pain. The latest research reveals that many people don't require surgery for this prevalent problem, and that chiropractic is more successful at resolving sciatic nerve pain.

A common surgery for sciatica is microdiscectomy, and in a 2010 study, researchers looked at 80 patients 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 received chiropractic care.

Both groups improved; however, no obvious difference in outcome was reported one year post-treatment between the surgery group and the chiropractic group. Additionally, roughly 60% of the participating patients who could not find relief from any other treatment method "benefited from spinal manipulation to the same degree as if they underwent surgical intervention."

Simply put, chiropractic provided the same positive benefits as surgery without having to go through the increased levels of surgery-based pain or suffer through lengthy recovery times often associated with that type of treatment method. Additionally, 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 option for sciatica pain. If you live in Rutland and you're suffering from back pain or sciatica, give Dr. Cyr a call today at (802) 775-6961. 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.