Spinal Injections vs. Chiropractic Care for Back Pain

Steroid injections to relieve back and neck pain are part of a medical management to treat issues such as sciatica, spinal stenosis, and disc issues.  A needle is inserted into the epidural space of the spinal canal and a steroid medication is released with the hopes of reducing inflammation pressing on the nerve root and relieving pain in the area.  However, it is known that this procedure only works about 50% of the time according to a 2018 study published in the Journal of Spine.  This is also only a temporary solution.  The likelihood of having a second or third injection is extremely likely, and this medication is only allowed to be injected only 2 or 3 times per year.  In other words, an injection merely "covers up" symptomatic pain, and doesn't address the actual cause of the pain.  According to the Stem Cell Institute, spinal injections have no determination of preventing back surgery, and that the patient is destined for surgery of non-successful spinal injections, with the likelihood of 60% of those spinal surgery patients going back for a second surgery.  They suggest that epidural spinal injections are only a "temporary pain relief for possibly 3 months, but do not fix a bad back."    

The procedure of spinal injections also pose risks such as bleeding, spinal headaches, loss of spinal fluid, sleep disturbances, high blood sugars, stomach ulcers, loss of bladder and bowel control, numbness and tingling in arms and legs, and uncontrollable fevers to name just a few! The only way to safely and effectively treat the cause of the back and neck pain is through chiropractic care.  By correcting the cause of the nerve interference, inflammation is reduced and pain is relieved.  Chiropractic adjustments are gentle, specific treatments that correct the cause of the pain, not just temporarily cover up the symptoms.  Epidural injections are not as research supported as chiropractic adjustments are.  The injections have been a go-to medical treatment for several years without high success rates or research to support the continued use of epidurals.  

We offer a unique approach to successfully treat pain and discomfort by restoring the body's balance and health through chiropractic adjustments.  

Yours in Health,

Dr. Nicholas J. Knutson

Owner/Doctor

MOUNTAIN ISLAND CHIROPRACTIC

10917 Black Dog Ln., Suite 101 

Charlotte, NC 28214

Tel (704) 394-8556

Fax (704) 395-8556

mtnislandchiro.com

"If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something special." JV

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Carreon, L., Y., Bratcher, K., R., Ammous, F., & Glassman, S. D., (2018). Cost-effectives's of Lum bar Epidural Steroid Injections, Spine, 43(1), 35-40. doi:10.1097/brs.