Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) continues to make advancements and offers exciting possibilities for patients suffering from chronic pain to live better, have less pain, and improved quality of life. These minimally invasive devices are helping many Americans achieve a better quality of life by treating back, leg, and arm pain.
Conditions Spinal Cord Stimulation Can Treat
Patients who can benefit from Spinal Cord Stimulation include those with:
- back pain
- leg pain
- arm pain
- painful neuropathy
- patients who have previously had back surgery
How Spinal Cord Stimulation Works
Spinal cord stimulation is minimally-invasive and requires no hospital stay. The technology has been around since 1969 but has made advancements by leaps and bounds since 2015. Exciting new electrical waveforms have provided better pain control, and patients no longer feel any of the electrical stimulation.
Unlike surgery, which is permanent, the device is trialed for about a week to make sure the device is right for you before having it implanted. The procedure requires two small incisions, can be done without general anesthesia and without a hospital stay and is an outpatient procedure. If the trial was a success, a permanent implantation of the device can be scheduled. This is typically done with IV sedation in an outpatient surgical facility.
Prior to undergoing a trial, patients will need MRI imaging, and many insurance companies require a psychiatric evaluation. If the patient is on blood thinning medications, those will need to be held.
Both Dr. Pollard and device experts who work for the medical technology company will work with you to continually optimize the device and personalize it to your needs. This exciting technology can help patients suffering from chronic pain due to low back pain, failed back surgery syndrome, post-laminectomy syndrome, lumbar spondylosis, lumbar disc degeneration, painful neuropathy, neck and arm pain, complex regional pain syndrome, and more. The small electrical leads can be placed in the epidural space or alongside the dorsal root ganglion to provide level specific stimulation.