![]() Thin wires from the device are placed in the spinal column near the nerves which carry pain signals. The device is often positioned just underneath the skin of the back or the buttock. “They used to be the size of a hockey puck, but now they’re the size of batteries in our iPhones.” “The devices are very, very tiny,” he says. The procedure is not very intrusive, according to Leong. It stays with the patient so it can treat the pain continuously. Burton compares the implanting process with getting a heart pacemaker. People with chronic back pain who are interested may first trial the technology for 7 to 10 days, and if it feels beneficial, the device can then be implanted. “If a device can ease not just physical pain but the emotional pain that goes along with it, that’s a huge benefit.”Īs mental and physical health improve, so do quality of life and productivity. “A lot of people with chronic pain develop symptoms of depression and anxiety,” he says. ![]() Leong adds that significant reduction of physical pain as provided through this type of stimulation can also help reduce emotional symptoms. “With these newer waveforms, you can't feel the sensation.” “Other previous systems used something called ‘tonic stimulation,’ which created a tingling that patients could feel,” says Dr. Michael Leong, MD, a pain specialist at the Stanford Cancer Center in California, who was not involved in Abbott research, notes that the pulse systems are different from previous spine stimulation technologies, in that the patient does not feel the stimulation. It wasn’t until 1968, however, that the Medtronic company introduced the first commercially available spinal cord stimulator.Ībbott’s latest SCS devices use proprietary BurstDR stimulation technology, the first to use pulses of mild electrical energy to mimic the body’s normal electrical signals, masking those that signal pain as they travel to the brain. While the use of electrical stimulation to relieve pain may seem modern, research indicates the idea dates back to ancient Rome, when physician Scribonius Largus found that gout pain could be relieved by contact with the torpedo fish (also known as an electric ray), which can stun other animals with a natural electrical charge. However, even a combination of these conservative measures may not be enough to provide relief from chronic pain for some people. Burton notes that doctors may recommend more conservative approaches to managing chronic back pain through exercises, physical therapy or chiropractic care, pharmaceutical management, and injections. While many people experience chronic back pain as result of arthritis, spinal stenosis, or disk problems, the cause of chronic back pain can sometimes be hard to pinpoint, often making it difficult to identify a clear treatment plan. Pain Foundation estimates that about 50 million Americans live with chronic back pain. People who suffer from chronic back pain - and do not fit the typical surgical criteria - tend to forgo future treatment, ultimately resign themselves to living with debilitating chronic pain.” “However, these options are not effective for a significant subset of people who previously did not have other therapies available, while causing the treatment journey to feel complicated and uncertain for others. “Historically, people who have no options for corrective surgery to address their chronic back pain are usually treated with combinations of therapies: physical therapy and chiropractic care, injections, and pain relievers,” says Allen Burton, MD, the divisional vice president and chief medical officer of Abbott’s neuromodulation business. On average, people who received SCS therapy experienced about a 70 percent reduction in pain. Participants were not eligible for corrective back operations because they were either medically frail or they had numerous degenerative changes in their spine, none of which were severe enough to qualify for corrective surgery but are nonetheless causing significant symptoms.Īfter half a year, 85 percent of those implanted with Abbott’s SCS devices achieved significant back pain reduction, compared with only 7 percent receiving conservative medical management. Those enrolled in the trial had experienced an average of nearly 13 years of disabling chronic back pain. Approval was granted after a six-month study of 200 participants showed that spinal cord stimulation provided significant relief and improvements in pain, function, quality of life, and mental health. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved spinal cord stimulation (SCS) devices from the pharmaceutical company Abbott to treat chronic back pain in people who have not had or are not eligible to receive back surgery, per a press release from Abbott.
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