The stimulator itself may also cause pain. Any surgery will carry risks of infection and other negative side effects. Implanting the stimulator requires surgery.Some patients respond very well to neurostimulators, but others may not experience any pain relief at all. On the flip side of the coin, here are a few potential downsides of neurostimulators: If you do not experience sufficient pain relief, you can have the neurostimulator removed with a simple procedure. Though implanting the neurostimulator requires surgery, it is a less invasive procedure than other spine surgery procedures that make changes to the spinal discs or vertebra.Many patients with chronic pain conditions report a significant reduction of pain. First, here are a few of the pros of neurostimulators: Neurostimulators offer numerous benefits, as well as a few potential risks. Neurostimulators are usually best suited for patients with conditions or injuries that cause chronic back pain. The stimulator is programmed to send these electrical currents on a regularly scheduled basis. Instead of feeling pain, the patient feels a tingling sensation. These electrical signals are meant to prevent pain signals from travelling to your brain. The stimulator delivers electrical currents to the epidural space of the spine through similarly implanted wires. What is a Neurostimulator?Ī neurostimulator is a small device that is surgically implanted into a patient’s body. In this article we will discuss the pros and cons of neurostimulators for treating spine conditions and injuries. Here we want to dig a little deeper and talk about the benefits and downsides of neurostimulator technology. We have briefly touched on neurostimulators before. Cons of Spine Neurostimulators Category: Spine, Spine Pain | Author: Stefano Sinicropi The risks of inserting a spinal cord stimulator are low.Pros vs. Risks and Complications of a Spinal Cord Stimulator You should keep the wounds very clean and dry. You are generally discharged on the same day or the following day of the procedure. Postoperative Care following the Insertion of a Spinal Cord Stimulator The permanent implant will be fixed several days later if you achieve good pain relief with the trial stimulator. The initial implantation of the trial is generally done when you are awake so that you can determine if the stimulator is covering the appropriate spot of the spinal cord and is giving you pain relief.Įither a paddle lead is placed over the spinal cord through a small open incision and removal of the lamina, or a lead is placed through the skin. There are several ways of implanting the stimulator. If it does, a permanent stimulator may be implanted. Preparing for a Spinal Cord Stimulatorīefore implanting a permanent stimulator, you will undergo a trial stimulation period to see if the stimulation helps relieve the pain. When your neurosurgeon feels that open surgery to decompress the nerves is unlikely to help the pain, an operation to implant a spinal cord stimulator may be suggested. Among other causes, scar tissue around the nerves or chronic inflammation of the nerves such as arachnoiditis may cause leg and back pain. Nerve decompression can cause back and leg pain. The electrical impulses can be targeted to specific locations and, as pain changes or improve, stimulation can be adjusted as necessary. It blocks the brain's ability to sense pain in the stimulated areas, thus relieving pain without the side effects that medications can cause. A spinal cord stimulator is a device that sends electrical impulses to the areas of the spinal cord causing pain and interferes with the transmission of pain signals to the brain.
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