An enduring back or neck pain can cause a number of ailments. Having tried all types of treatments and medications (even surgery), you can also give a try to spinal stimulation for relief. Spinal stimulator therapy is a process where mild electrical stimulations are provided to the nerves along the spinal column in a non-medicinal way.
This process was first initiated in year 1967. The process has been found to be highly effective in relieving pain from legs, trunk, arms and other body joints.
Who can benefit from spinal stimulator
Spinal Stimulator helps eradicate pain that generates because of the following conditions:
- Chronic back pain accompanied by or without leg pain.
- Arachnoiditis – a disorder caused due to inflammation of arachnoid membrane that surrounds and protects the nerves of the spinal cord.
- Chronic neck pain.
- Complex regional pain.
- Peripheral neuropathy.
- Refractory angina.
- Complex regional pain syndrome.
Trial period in spinal stimulator therapy
Before the therapy, the patient first undergoes a trial period. In this period, thin wires are inserted with contacts near the spinal cord. Unlike in long-term therapy in which the current transmitting device is implanted in the body, in trial period, an external transmitter is used to send electrical pulses to contacts. The trial period lasts five to seven days on an average.
The different stages of Spinal stimulator trial period
- At the initial level, local anesthesia is applied to the site and sedation may be given
- Next the doctor inserts a hollow needle in the epidural space. The needle contains insulated thin wires.
- After the procedure, feedback is taken from the patient regarding current pain sensations to find out how much relief he or she has attained out of the therapy.
This is the period when the side effects of the therapy are noticed and pondered upon. This is, however, one of the most common processes that is being used in current times and is mostly safe for patients of all age and health conditions.