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The statistics are jarring: back pain is something that will affect 8 out of 10 people at some point in their lives, representing the vast majority of people in the United States. Though some pain is fleeting, for many it becomes chronic and relentless, driving them to the use of powerful painkillers, including opioids. As…

When people seek medical help for neck or back pain, they have several different possibilities in the back of their minds. Some are hoping for a diagnosis that sets all worries aside, telling them that their discomfort will abate in a matter of days with the addition of ice, rest, and perhaps some medication. Some…

Walking. Swimming. Zumba. Lifting. Your back is killing you. What’s the first thing you think of to do to help yourself feel better? Is it: Go lay down on the couch Go to the gym and exercise If your answer was “A”, you’re likely doing yourself more harm than good. If your answer was “B”,…

It’s easy to understand why so many people retreat to their beds or easy chairs when they’re experiencing back pain. Bedrest is not only a traditional way to recover, but it also is one of our ultimate forms of comfort – after all, when you were a child and not feeling well, didn’t your mom…

Patients who live with relentless neuropathic pain have traditionally had few options for relief. Neuropathic pain is caused by damage or disease to the nervous system, and results in pain coming in response to stimuli that wouldn’t bother another person. For some people this pain is a constant while for others it happens in episodes…

If you have been suffering from chronic pain in your back, it is essential that you make an appointment with a spine specialist who can diagnose your problem and put you on the road to recovery. But if your back pain is only an intermittent thing that resolves itself quickly, there’s a good chance that…

Neck pain can be excruciating. In many cases it is caused by very real physical damage in your cervical spine, including herniated discs or degeneration or narrowing of the spinal column caused by osteoarthritis. But in some cases, neck pain is a matter of putting too much strain on the muscles that support your head,…

When a patient is suffering from a herniated disc that does not respond to conservative treatment, we frequently turn to microdiscectomy. A herniated disc puts pressure on the nerves, and this can cause sciatica pain, weakness in the legs, numbness and relentless pain, and the microdiscectomy procedure removes herniated tissue, providing almost instant relief. The…

A herniated disc is a common, painful condition that occurs when one of the rubbery cushions between the vertebrae of the spine is damaged, forcing some of the disc’s jelly-like interior to push outside of its tough exterior and come into contact with nearby nerves. This can happen in either the lower back (lumbar spine)…

Though it is several years from being available, a new imaging technology created by researchers at Dartmouth College is already being hailed as a medical breakthrough that will make back surgery even safer and less costly. The system is a 3-dimensional real-time optical tracking system that will be able to guide surgeons as they operate…