MILD^® – An Innovative Treatment for Lower Back Pain

An innovative surgical procedure is giving great hope and relief for people who experience lower back pain due to a condition called Lumbar Spinal Stenosis (LLS). The condition can greatly impede a person’s quality of life. It causes pain and numbness and sometimes a tingling sensation in the lower back or upper legs while standing, walking, or sitting.

Physiologically, spinal stenosis is the narrowing of space within your spine, brought on by thickening of ligament tissue, formation of excess bone, or compression/bulging of the discs. Less space means less available room for your spinal cord and nerves. The tight space causes the nerves to become compressed, which presents as pain and sciatica. Pain management specialists use imaging to diagnose spinal stenosis. Spinal stenosis typically develops slowly over time, caused by osteoarthritis or wear and tear brought on by aging. This is why spinal stenosis is most common in men and women over the age of 50.

Contact National Spine & Pain Centers to schedule an appointment with an affiliated pain specialist today.

That’s what brought Bernard to National Spine & Pain Centers. Hoping to enjoy his retirement, Bernard was instead experiencing tremendous back and leg pain. Often, when pain management specialists see conditions like Bernard’s, they may consider over-the-counter medications, steroid injections, or physical therapy to alleviate the discomfort. However, spinal stenosis does not heal on its own and may worsen over time.

But a treatment option being used by the National Spine & Pain Centers, called MILD, or Minimally Invasive Lumbar Decompression, is helping patients like Bernard and showing great results. In fact, according to the National Institutes of Health, after a two-year study, observing patients who sought pain relief through the MILD procedure, the NIH declared this treatment an excellent choice for first-line therapy for patients with spinal stenosis.

Here’s how it works. MILD, the minimally invasive decompression surgery, relieves pain and pressure from pinched nerves by creating more room in the spinal canal. This video shows how the doctor, using fluoroscopic (x-ray) guidance, locates and removes small pieces of bone and excess ligament tissue. That restores space in the spinal canal and decreases the compression on nerves that were causing the pain.

MILD is a relatively quick outpatient procedure requiring no general anesthesia. The “minimally invasive” term is very true, as the procedure requires only a tiny incision in the back, needing no stitches — only a band-aid, post-op. It’s been performed safely on thousands of patients and has shown significant reduction of pain and restoration of mobility. Clinical studies show it’s a safe, effective procedure that helps LSS patients stand longer and walk farther with less pain. Most patients are able to resume light activities within just a few days.

It’s important to be properly diagnosed by one of the board-certified pain management specialists at the National Spine & Pain Centers. Book an appointment today, so we can help get you on the road to recovery.