A herniated disc is one of the primary indications for spinal decompression therapy. When disc material pushes through a crack in the outer layer and presses on nearby nerves, the result is pain, numbness, or weakness that often doesn't respond to rest or standard care alone. Decompression therapy creates the conditions the disc needs to retract. OKC Pain Relief treats disc patients from Edmond and across the OKC metro.
Your spinal discs are designed to absorb shock and allow movement between vertebrae. Each disc has a tough outer ring called the annulus fibrosus and a gel-like center called the nucleus pulposus. A herniation occurs when the nucleus pushes through a crack or tear in the outer ring, often from a combination of age-related degeneration and mechanical stress.
Once herniated, that disc material can press directly on the nerve roots that exit the spine at that level. Depending on where the herniation occurs, this can cause lower back pain and sciatica when the herniation is in the lower back, or neck and arm pain when it is in the neck. The pain is often made worse by sitting, coughing, sneezing, or bending forward.
Conservative approaches, rest, anti-inflammatories, physical therapy, work for some herniated discs. But when they don't, surgery is often presented as the next option. Spinal Decompression Therapy sits between those options. It's non-surgical, non-invasive, and targets the disc directly by creating negative pressure that may allow the herniation to retract.
Herniated disc symptoms that include progressive weakness, loss of coordination, or bowel/bladder changes require immediate medical evaluation.
Spinal decompression creates a negative pressure environment inside the disc that may draw herniated material back toward center and decompress the nerve root. It also promotes the inflow of fluids and nutrients that support disc healing. Most lumbar herniation protocols involve 20 to 30 sessions over several weeks.
Learn MoreClass IV laser therapy applied to the involved level addresses the inflammatory response that surrounds herniated discs. The nerve root irritation that causes radiating pain and hypersensitivity can be difficult to resolve without directly targeting the inflammatory cascade, which photobiomodulation is specifically suited for.
Learn MoreBring your MRI to a free consultation. We'll review the imaging, tell you where the herniation is, and give you an honest assessment of whether decompression therapy is a viable non-surgical path.
Individual results vary. Treatment is recommended only after clinical evaluation.