Can you heal disc herniation with the back traction/decompression therapy?
A herniated disc is one of the most difficult and dangerous diseases of the musculoskeletal system. A herniated disc is a common spinal disorder, and it typically responds well to conservative treatment like gentle exercise or over-the-counter pain medication. But some ruptured disc symptoms warrant a trip to your doctor to prevent serious—and potentially permanent—nerve complications.
There are many reasons leading to the occurrence of disc herniation: trauma, improper posture, excessive stress on the spinal column, underdevelopment of the muscular corset, age-related changes. When the membrane of the intervertebral disc collapsed and its contents (nucleus), like a paste from a tube, crawled into the spinal canal, crushing the spinal roots, or even the spinal cord, then the doctors ascertain the formation of a true hernia.
There are hernias in which the integrity of the disc shell is not violated, but only its protrusion into the spinal canal is noted, which is called protrusion. What is the cause of the bulge? Numerous observations have convinced that the root cause of a hernia is overstrain in a certain part of the biokinetic chain, the links of which are the vertebrae and all joints of the legs. Overstrain occurs due to the presence of residual effects of spinal trauma, consisting in the form of subluxation of certain vertebrae, which entails an asymmetric contraction of the paravertebral muscles and muscles of the lower extremities.
Therefore, the muscles of the extensor (ischiocrural) group of the lower extremities lose their ability to fully recover after contraction, they develop the so-called rigidity. A concrete example: Imagine that you are trying to reach the floor with both hands, and the rear leg muscles are not able to stretch to 50 percent of their normal state, as intended by nature. You can reach the floor only due to the fact that the posterior intervertebral ligaments of the lumbar spine stretch twice as much as nature programmed – this way they compensate for the limited stretching of the muscles of the lower extremities.
Multiple additional sprains, which are not typical for these parts of the spine, lead to painful stretching of the posterior longitudinal ligament of the spine and, as a result, to its weakening. The intervertebral disc is no longer so firmly fixed by the ligaments and during physical exertion can shift towards the weakened posterior longitudinal ligament, acquiring the properties of an intervertebral hernia with all its clinical manifestations. Despite the fact that in most cases, conservative treatment of a herniated disc is preferable, only a small number of clinics offer a real way to treat hernia, considering conservative treatment to be laborious and time-consuming.
Of course, surgery gives a quick result, but it is fraught with the threat of the development of the disease in other parts of the spine, since it does not eliminate the cause of the herniated disc, carries the risk of postoperative complications, and requires a long rehabilitation period. Herniated disks get better on their own over time or with nonsurgical treatment for 9 out of 10 people. And our advice is to consider the spinal surgery as the last resort. If other treatments don’t relieve your symptoms, then go to surgeon for consultation.
What is the difficulty of treating a herniated disc? The problem is that the intervertebral disc “bulging” is overgrown with connective tissue “sticking” in the bulging position. In nearly all cases, surgeons can remove just the protruding portion of the disk. Rarely, the entire disk must be removed. In these cases, the vertebrae might need to be fused with a bone graft. To allow the process of bone fusion, which takes months, metal hardware is placed in the spine to provide spinal stability. That is why it is impossible to cure a herniated disc only with the help of traction therapy techniques, an integrated approach is needed: manual therapy, massage, and physiotherapy with the obligatory use of the Lumbarest therapy method.
Treatment of a herniated disc is quite long. It will require your will, perhaps a change in habits, but the result will reward you many times over.
