Chiropractic More Effective for Sciatica Than Surgery

Dr. Dalton works with countless sciatica patients here in our Rochester Hills, MI office, and quite a few of these men and women were afraid that they might need surgery to eliminate their pain. The most recent research indicates that many people don't need surgery for this widespread issue, and that chiropractic is more effective at resolving sciatic nerve pain.

A typical surgery for sciatica is microdiscectomy, and in a 2010 study, physicians examined 80 patients with sciatica who were referred for this procedure.

Forty patients were then randomly placed in one of two groups. The first group was to receive surgical microdiscectomy and the second group was given chiropractic care.

Both groups improved; however, no obvious difference in results was reported one year post-treatment between the surgery group and the chiropractic group. Additionally, around 60 percent of the participating patients who could not find relief from any other treatment approach "benefited from spinal manipulation to the same degree as if they underwent surgical intervention."

Put another way, chiropractic provided the same positive benefits as surgery without needing to go through the increased levels of surgery-based pain or suffer through extended recovery times often associated with that specific treatment method. Plus, you also don't run the risks associated with surgical microdiscectomy, which includes nerve root damage, bowel or bladder incontinence, bleeding, or infection.

Surgery should be the last option for sciatica pain. If you live in Rochester Hills, MI and you're being affected by back pain or sciatica, give Dr. Dalton a call today at (248) 977-7039. We'll help pinpoint the source of your pain and work hard to get you relief.

References

• McMorland, G et al. Manipulation or microdiskectomy for sciatica? A prospective randomized clinical study. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2010;33(8):576-584.
• Solberg TK, Nygaard OP, Sjaavik K, Hofoss D, Ingebrigtsen T. The risk of "getting worse" after lumbar microdiscectomy. European Spine Journal 2005;14(1):49-54.