Prescriptions of Opioids Pre and Post Back Surgery for Tonawanda Back Pain, Chiropractic Care May Reduce Rxs and Pain
The use of opioid pain medication for pain has been a familiar treatment. Its use is a little too common as medicine today is even trying to slow its prescription. For back surgery patients, it’s been quite common, both before and/or after back surgery. Though today the use of opioids is being less supported, many back pain sufferers find themselves with opioid prescriptions from their healthcare providers. Chiropractic Spine Sports And Rehabilitation would enjoy being the first healthcare provider Tonawanda back pain and neck pain patients see and truly embrace the opportunity to take care of the post-surgical continued pain patients - with or without opioid prescriptions - who come to us with the same or returned pain in the same spinal area where their surgery was. We are ready to help.
BACK SURGERY OUTCOME PREDICTORS: # of Rx Prescribers and # of Rx Prescriptions
Very few rush into back surgery. Back pain sufferers often look for relief from various healthcare providers before surgery is considered and/or scheduled. 66.9% of patients in a retrospective study of patients who had single-level fusion surgeries employed one or less opioid prescription prescribers before surgery while 33.1% had more than one opioid prescribers. The more pre-surgical opioid prescribers in a back surgery patient’s case was a predictor of increased improvement of post-surgical back pain. The more pre-surgical opioid prescriptions a patient used was a predictor for poorer surgical outcomes including lower improvement in back VAS pain scores, leg VAS pain scores, Oswestry Disability Index scores, and for more post-surgical opioid prescriptions, prescribers, and morphine milligram equivalents. An interesting and seemingly side point of the study was that if a nonoperative spine provider was included in the case, an increased improvement in leg pain VAS scores was noted. (1) Chiropractic is a profession of nonoperative spine providers! We chiropractors are ready and well-trained to help contrain back pain before and after surgery and give patients a chance to lower their opioid use for pain management.
CHIROPRACTIC POST-SURGICAL CARE AND OPIOID USE
For patients who underwent back surgery to find that they got the same pain in the back area that the surgery was supposed to relieve, the return of pain can be vexing. Some return to the medical model and get new pain medication prescriptions or extended prescriptions for the post-surgery meds. Others seek chiropractic care. A new study of such patients who turned to chiropractic care with chiropractors who are certified in Cox® Technic spinal manipulation (manual spinal decompression manipulation) reported that of the 59 participants in the study, 11 entered the study with opioid medications. Eight of them self-reported that they reduced or quit their use. Three said they maintained their use. (2) This holds hope for many post-surgical continued pain patients that not having to take pain meds as the only means to pain relief may be possible. Chiropractic Spine Sports And Rehabilitation is Tonawanda’s post-surgical back pain provider to visit for Cox® Technic treatment.
CONTACT Chiropractic Spine Sports And Rehabilitation
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Marc Baker on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he shares his use of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management in delivering relief for a military veteran with back pain after back surgery.
Make your Tonawanda chiropractic appointment soon. If you’ve had back surgery - currently take pain meds, opioids, or not - we look forward to working with you.
