Chronic low back pain is a growing epidemic that affects millions of Americans from all walks of life. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), recent studies have found that as many as 25% of American respondents report experiencing low back pain in the previous three months. Back pain is reportedly the most common type of pain and affects as many as two out of every five adults in the United States.
Despite how common it is, back pain is not a “normal” part of life or the aging process and should never be ignored. Even prominent celebrities and athletes suffer from chronic back pain and struggle to find relief for years or even decades. Recently, TV host and producer Carson Daly shared his back pain journey with The Today Show, and how the Intracept procedure is helping him find relief after almost 20 years of back pain due to a snowmobile accident.
If you’ve tried and failed to find relief for back pain, we can help. Our team of pain management specialists at Republic Spine and Pain offers a range of customized pain treatment options from three convenient locations in Georgetown, Leander, and Austin, Texas.
Intracept is a pain treatment designed to relieve vertebrogenic low back pain by targeting the basivertebral nerve with radiofrequency ablation. Vertebrogenic pain is caused by damage to the vertebral endplates (the top and bottom portion of each vertebra). Like spinal discs, the vertebral endplates can degenerate over time.
The basivertebral nerve directly impacts the vertebral endplates, so the Intracept procedure targets this nerve to control the impulses it sends to damaged vertebral endplates to alleviate pain.
Intracept is a non-surgical and minimally invasive procedure performed on an outpatient basis at Republic Spine and Pain. A small probe is placed into the nerve space through a small incision to deliver RF (radiofrequency) waves to ablate the basivertebral nerve. Nerve ablation works by using heat to short-circuit the targeted nerve to disrupt the flow of pain signals to your brain.
If damaged vertebral endplates are at the root of your chronic low back pain, chances are that other more conservative methods may have lost effectiveness over time or failed to provide significant relief. Intracept can provide relief for this type of back pain. Since Intracept is a minimally invasive and non-surgical procedure, your risk of experiencing the types of side effects associated with back surgery and more invasive procedures is much lower.
Additionally, the Intracept system isn’t an implantable device, so it can work in conjunction with other pain management treatments. If you’ve been living with chronic low back pain, chances are that your health and quality of life have diminished to some extent, from physical and social activities to taking time off work. With an outpatient procedure, your recovery and healing time is typically much shorter than with surgery and more invasive treatments.
For more information about Intracept and other back pain treatment plans available at Republic Spine and Pain, contact us today to schedule an appointment.
