When the soft, cushion-like discs in the spine become injured or start to bulge, the
\n effects can be debilitating. \u00a0
\u00a0
Cervical discs help stabilize the neck and allow for smooth movement. But when damaged,
\n they can cause numbness, tingling, loss of grip strength and sharp pain that travels
\n down into the arm, hand and fingers.\u00a0
\u00a0
Medication and physical therapy can help provide some relief, and if symptoms do not
\n improve, surgery is often considered the next step. But for patients with neurological
\n conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), invasive surgery can carry additional
\n risk, including potential neurological injury. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
USF Health researchers are working to address this gap by highlighting a promising \u201cPatients can suddenly find themselves asking, \u2018Will I be able to live my life the Using the specialized computer\u2011controlled device DRX9000C, researchers treated a 35\u2011year\u2011old “In roughly 20 to 25 percent of patients, surgery often doesn\u2019t help pain, it makes \u201cThe goal is to broaden care options, ensuring patients receive individualized treatment The FDA has cleared the device for use and is becoming increasingly available across Schilaty is hopeful about the impact it could have for other patients with disc herniation
\n non-surgical alternative for treating cervical disc herniation, commonly referred
\n to as a slipped disc.\u00a0
\u00a0
In a recent case study published in the Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation<\/a>, Dr. Nathan Schilaty<\/a>, associate professor in the Department of Neurosurgery, Brain and Spine<\/a> and Medical Engineering<\/a> at the Morsani College of Medicine<\/a> and College of Engineering<\/a>, demonstrated the successful use of a non-invasive approach. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\n way I did before?\u2019\u201d Schilaty said. \u201cHaving a conservative and reliable treatment option
\n that avoids surgery is incredibly valuable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n woman with MS and severe cervical disc injury who was experiencing debilitating pain,
\n weakness, sensory loss and disability. Unlike traditional traction methods, this device
\n works by gently stretching the neck to relieve pressure on damaged discs using a process
\n called targeted traction. The programmed, cyclical pulling motions adjust force in
\n real time, helping clinicians target specific areas of the spine and tailor treatment
\n to the patient.\u00a0
\u00a0
Instead of surgery, she underwent 20 sessions over a 15-week period, helping her fully
\n return to daily activities and reported no pain after just five treatments.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n it worse. Our lab focuses on studying alternative options,\u201d said Jacob Connolly, an
\n MD\/PhD<\/a> candidate in the Morsani College of Medicine working alongside Schilaty in the Center for Neuromusculoskeletal Research<\/a>. \u201cThe patient\u2019s MRI scans showed the disc herniation shrinking and nerve compression
\n decreasing over time, dropping her disability score to zero.\u201d
\u00a0
Beyond relieving pain, the treatment also led to measurable structural improvements.
\n Imaging showed the size of the herniation decreased by more than 30 percent, while
\n spinal canal space increased by more than 80 percent following treatment.
\u00a0
Most significantly, at her one-year follow-up exam, the patient remained pain-free
\n and fully functional with no worsening or flare-ups of her MS symptoms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n and only move to surgery when it\u2019s truly necessary,\u201d Connolly added. \u201cBy gently decompressing
\n the spine, this approach may allow the disc to return to its proper position and relieve
\n pressure on the nerves.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n the United States and in more than 50 countries.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n who may not be ideal candidates for surgery or who want to avoid the invasiveness
\n of spinal interventions.\u00a0
\u00a0
\u201cPatients aren\u2019t focused on the metrics we measure. They\u2019re wondering if they\u2019ll get
\n their lives back,\u201d Schilaty said. \u201cWhen we can restore quality of life with a conservative,
\n non-surgical approach, that\u2019s an incredibly meaningful step forward. This is just
\n one of the tools in the toolbox that we\u2019re using, but we hope that it\u2019s utilized more
\n often.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When the soft, cushion-like discs in the spine become injured or start to bulge, the effects can be…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":324838,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-324837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=324837"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324837\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/324838"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=324837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=324837"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=324837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}