In recent years, we have seen a lot of promising news related to spinal cord stimulation and its ability to help people suffering with paralysis. And in fact, the FDA recently approved a revolutionary spinal cord stimulation device for home use. This device he specifically unintended to help paralytics regain function. But spinal cord stimulation is not just effective as a paralysis treatment. It can also alleviate some types of pain.
Spinal cord stimulation was first introduced as a treatment for back pain in the 1960s. For over 50 years, pain medicine doctors have been recommending it to patients unable to find relief from their back pain in any other way. It is on the list of services at Weatherford, Texas-based Lone Star Pain Medicine.
Lone Star doctors have access to a variety of treatments they can recommend. Some of their patients seem to do quite well with injection therapies. Others might require a surgical procedure. Still others are ideal candidates for spinal cord stimulation. It is really up to the doctor and patient to figure out together which treatments represent the best options. As for spinal cord stimulation, it’s a unique kind of treatment unlike anything else pain medicine doctors offer. Visit Lone Star website for more information.
Relief by Interrupting Pain Signals
As a treatment for paralysis, spinal cord stimulation is about opening new pathways for the nervous system to interact with the paralyzed part of the body. But in a pain management setting, both the goal and mechanism are different. The goal is to relieve pain by interrupting pain signals so that they never make it to the brain. Its mechanism is one of stimulating targeted nerves with slight electrical pulses.
Some patients describe the sensation as a tingling feeling. Others feel a vibration or a warm sensation. Regardless, the sensations are not uncomfortable. They certainly are more tolerable than the back pain they are intended to relieve.
How the Procedure Works
A patient for whom spinal cord stimulation is recommended would undergo a trial before any permanent decisions are made. The trial would involve an external device taped to the patient’s back for a predetermined amount of time. The device would be connected to the targeted nerves via two wires inserted into the back through a minor incision.
Once the device is deployed and activated, electrical pulses can be controlled externally. The patient wears the device for a specified amount of time before reporting the results back to the doctor. Assuming the trial is a success, the patient returns to the doctor’s office where a permanent device will be implanted just under the skin.
The beauty of modern spinal cord stimulation is that patients have direct and external control over implanted devices. They can turn the devices on or off as needed. When on, they can control the frequency of the pulses. They can also control pulse intensity and pattern. This creates a highly customizable solution for relieving pain.
Ideal for Treating Neuropathic Pain
Spinal cord stimulation is ideal for treating neuropathic pain brought on by damage to either the central or peripheral nervous systems. Lone Star Pain Medicine’s website specifically mentions the neuropathic pain associated with diabetes. The thing about neuropathic pain is that it makes a person exceptionally sensitive to even slight touches. But by blocking pain signals with electrical impulses, a person not only begins to feel better, they also regain some function.
It’s great that the FDA has approved a new device designed to treat paralysis with spinal cord stimulation. But for more than five decades, spinal cord stimulation has been a legitimate treatment for various types of pain.
