Effect of Nonsurgical Spinal Decompression on Intensity of Pain and Herniated Disc Volume in Subacute Lumbar Herniated Disc
27.6% Disc Volume Reduction
SOURCE
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9553669/
REFERENCE
43
NICE
REFERENCE
123
organisation
International Journal of Clinical Practice
TITLE
Effect of Nonsurgical Spinal Decompression on Intensity of Pain and Herniated Disc Volume in Subacute Lumbar Herniated Disc
27.6% Disc Volume Reduction
SOURCE
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9553669/
DISC COMMENTARY
This randomised controlled trial, published in the International Journal of Clinical Practice, examined whether non-surgical spinal decompression could measurably shrink a herniated lumbar disc and reduce pain. It used MRI scans to directly measure disc volume before and after a course of treatment.
What was studied?
60 patients with subacute lumbar herniated disc were split into 30 receiving decompression and 30 who did not, over 10 sessions across 8 weeks. MRI scans measured disc volume before and after treatment, alongside leg pain and disability scores.
What did they find?
The decompression group showed an average disc volume reduction of around 27.6 percent, compared to about 7.1 percent in the comparison group. Roughly 27 percent of decompression patients achieved more than a 50 percent reduction in herniation size, compared with none in the comparison group.
Why it matters
This matters because it goes beyond symptom reports to an objective, measurable outcome, an MRI-confirmed reduction in the disc herniation itself, not just a change in how pain felt, a meaningfully stronger type of evidence.
Why we included it
It illustrates the value of objective, scan-confirmed evidence over symptom reports alone: showing a treatment can measurably affect the underlying structural problem, not only change how symptoms feel to the patient.
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What was studied?
60 patients with subacute lumbar herniated disc were split into 30 receiving decompression and 30 who did not, over 10 sessions across 8 weeks. MRI scans measured disc volume before and after treatment, alongside leg pain and disability scores.
What did they find?
The decompression group showed an average disc volume reduction of around 27.6 percent, compared to about 7.1 percent in the comparison group. Roughly 27 percent of decompression patients achieved more than a 50 percent reduction in herniation size, compared with none in the comparison group.
Why it matters
This matters because it goes beyond symptom reports to an objective, measurable outcome, an MRI-confirmed reduction in the disc herniation itself, not just a change in how pain felt, a meaningfully stronger type of evidence.
Why we included it
It illustrates the value of objective, scan-confirmed evidence over symptom reports alone: showing a treatment can measurably affect the underlying structural problem, not only change how symptoms feel to the patient.