We are proud to offer Spinal Disc Decompression Therapy (DTS) at Prosia Total Health for over 8 years. Research suggests that for 8 out of 10 people DTS can alleviate disabling back pain with no drugs, incisions or surgery. That means that we can offer help to the 80% of North Americans who will suffer from back pain during their lifetime.
So what causes back/neck pain? One of the most common and disabling causes of back/neck pain is herniated and degenerated discs. The discs in our spine separate each vertebra and act like cushions, absorbing shock. They are prone to injury and degeneration through compression as we use our backs every day. They can also be overly compressed from an accident or exertion and may develop tears in the outer wall of the disc. This may cause the disc to bulge outside it’s normal area and perhaps press against spinal nerves, causing sciatica.
At Prosia Total Health we use DTS in conjunction with physiotherapy to treat both acute and chronic back/neck pain. DTS is designed to decompress the disc by reducing the pressure inside the disc to a negative value, creating a vacuum. This negative pressure gradually draws back any bulging or herniated portion of the disc into it’s original position and draws fluids, nutrients and oxygen into the disc. This allows for proper healing of the disc. An average treatment protocol involves 20 sessions of DTS, along with physiotherapist-guided exercise that focuses on streching muscles that attach to the spine and pelvis and strengthening the core musculature, as well as the use of modalities (such as cold laser, TENS, IFC). Most patients will find improvement in their symptoms within 6-10 sessions and significant or complete remission of symptoms after 15 to 20 sessions.
Education and support is an important part of treatment at Prosia Total Health. A patient’s symptoms are rarely the result of a single culprit. We believe in teaching our patients to treat the “big picture”. We focus not only on what we believe may be the main cause of symptoms, but also on how poor posture, improper use of body mechanics, repetitive activities, and sustained positions may contribute. In this way the risk of additional injury or re-injury is lowered. At Prosia Total Health we encourage our patients to continue with their unique physiotherapy stretching and strengthening programs after discharge, but also to take advantage of the additional health care providers available at our clinic. These include chiropractic, registered massage therapy and acupuncture. Many of our patients continue to receive maintenance decompression therapy once a month to maintain disc hydration and general spinal mobility, as well as returning for physiotherapy to progress their home exercise programs.
We would be pleased to meet with you to determine if you are a candidate for DTS and we look forward to sharing our expertise with you at Prosia Total Health.