If you stumbled across this blog chances are either you or a loved one are probably in a good deal of pain or discomfort, and to that I say “OUCHIE”! The purpose of this blog is to show some of the benefits behind traction therapy, what is actually happening, and why it is fast becoming the first choice for treatment with conditions like: disc bulge, herniation, sciatica, leg numbness, and back pain. This type of pain can be one of the most painful, debilitating, and frustrating issues that most people have to deal with. If anything, I hope this blog gives you hope that for one, most people with the condition do not need an invasive surgery, and two that it can and will get better with proper treatment.
So first off, what is traction therapy? Traction therapy is a medical table that produces a distractive force to the spine or to word it another way it gently pulls the spine apart. The benefits of traction therapy is 
that it produces a negative intradiscal pressure. This negative pressure has been shown in studies to reduce the size of bulges, reduce pain, and alleviate pressure on spinal nerves. Spinal traction also brings more nutrients to the disc by a process called “imbibition”. By increasing nutrients to the disc, as well as reducing pressure we are able to help heal the disc.
What does the evidence say? According to the Gionis Study 86% of people who completed the therapy reported immediate resolution of symptoms, while 84% remained pain-free after 90 days post-treatment. That’s huge, 8 of 10 people had no pain at 3 months! Furthermore in the journal Spine, the authors noted that in 82% of patients using pre-post MRIs they were able to see healing of disc herniation in the lumbar spine, along with symptomatic improvements. To summarize not only did help reduce or eliminate pain, it also was able to fix the issue to prevent it from happening in the future.
So what does this mean for you? Traction therapy has been shown to work extremely well as a non-surgical decompression therapy. It works to reduce the size of the bulge, as well as increase nutrients to the area that allow the disc to heal. For the patients it means less pain, numbness, and a way fix the issue that doesn’t require risky surgery.
If you have any questions about traction therapy, or if your condition could be helped by using it give us a call at (952)456-6611 or visit Brooks Chiropractic Website for more information.