Chiropractic Relieves Disc Herniation Related Pain Often Without MRI

MRIs are cool. They display some amazing images of the body. Chiropractors like looking at spinal MRI images. Why? The spine is your Oxford chiropractor’s realm! Satterwhite Chiropractic appreciates the MRI image study for what it is: a a piece of the diagnostic puzzle. But MRIs are not always clinically necessary. Can MRI help determine whether to use non-surgical care or surgical care for back pain relief? Read on for the latest findings.

The Usefulness of MRI

When a Oxford patient’s back pain, neck pain, arm pain or leg pain symptoms denote the demand for an MRI, Satterwhite Chiropractic requests one for such a Oxford back pain patient. MRI may add to your Oxford chiropractor’s clinical perception of the condition oftentimes (but not always!).  Pre-treatment and post-MRI studies are interesting. Did the disc herniation shrink now that the pain disappeared? Oxford chiropractic patients will often ask that of Satterwhite Chiropractic. And researchers will consider MRIs for their research studies on just such a question.

The Curiosity of MRI

Researchers are not the only ones who curiously study MRI images of low back pain sufferers to ascertain if there is any correlation between pain and no pain and the MRI pre and post treatment for back pain. Patients wonder, too. Satterwhite Chiropractic is well aware that our Oxford back pain patients wonder!

In noticing that doctors and patients dealing with back pain like MRIs, some researchers set out to determine if MRI is of value in determining how treatment outcomes will be for patients with sciatic leg pain due to a herniated lumbar disc. They questioned if MRI could help decide whether to do back surgery now or stay the course with conservative care. Satterwhite Chiropractic and the Oxford chiropractic low back pain patients we treat would love such a simple indicator! Study participants were randomized to surgery or prolonged conservative care. Two findings – a disc extrusion and nerve root compression on MRI in patients with less severe leg pain – suggested a satisfactory outcome with either form of care. Another noteworthy finding:  the size of the disc herniation at the beginning of care didn’t affect the outcome. There was no significant difference in outcomes between them – surgical and conservative. (1) Satterwhite Chiropractic sees similar reports more and more in the back pain research.  Remember the Atlas studies of surgical and non-surgical interventions for back pain and sciatica? There wasn’t much difference in those landmark studies either: 50% vs. 53% non-surgical versus surgical for back pain due to spinal stenosis (2) and 69% vs. 61% surgical vs. non-surgical for sciatica (3).

Satterwhite Chiropractic Offers Chiropractic Non-Surgical Care of Disc Herniation

Satterwhite Chiropractic asks you to make a Oxford chiropractic appointment today. Trust Satterwhite Chiropractic to provide evidence-based chiropractic care that relieves your spine pain many times without an MRI. Together, we can set a non-surgical (and even potentially non-MRI!) treatment plan to lessen your back pain.

Schedule your Oxford chiropractic appointment today.