Many people suffer from back pain and pain in the legs and upper extremities that originates from the spine. Many of these patients can be successfully treated using classic conservative therapy, also including multimodal pain treatment. If conservative treatments fail, classic reparative and restorative surgical techniques work well in many cases— e.g., decompression surgery, fusion surgery, arthroplasty, stabilization surgery, or complex reconstruction.
Some pain patients may not experience substantial improvement with conservative treatment, but may not be candidates for classic surgical repair and restoration procedures because they are too ill (e.g., due to comorbidities) or they simply do not wish to undergo any classic surgery. For this group of patients, we can offer a large group of neuromodulation treatments.
These can be performed with minimally invasive therapy, often under local anesthesia. The neuromodulation treatments are not based on altering, repairing, or restoring the spine. Instead, pain is modulated by the implantation of special electrodes close to nerves, muscles, or the spinal cord, so that a permanent electric field can be set up that reduces pain without repairs to the spine itself.
Particularly for patients with multiple comorbidities, a high risk of complications with classic surgery, a history of multiple unsuccessful spinal operations, or those who are at an advanced age, these neuromodulation techniques are often a very good alternative. Unfortunately, the techniques are not widely known and are not yet available in many orthopedic hospitals. However, our experience and results with them have been very successful, and we are therefore trying to publicize this form of treatment nationally and internationally.