Low back pain is the biggest musculoskeletal issue affecting the world today. At any given moment, up to 33 percent of the population is dealing with low back pain. It is one of the most common reasons people see a doctor or miss work.
Of patients suffering from chronic low back pain, two-thirds will not be candidates for surgical intervention. These patients will be treated conservatively with treatments such as physical therapy, injections, medication and other palliative therapies. Palliative therapies treat the pain the patient is experiencing, but not the source of the pain.
A high number of these patients suffer from a symptom called multifidus dysfunction. The multifidus muscles are the deep, stabilizing muscles of the lumbar spine (lower back). Having an unstable spine leads to uncontrollable movement, which results in many pain generating factors.
While they are the most important stabilizing muscles of the human body, the multifidus muscles are also involuntary by nature. This means that you cannot make them contract on your own. The brain controls them automatically without conscious thought. Mutifidus dysfunction means that the brain has stopped contracting these muscles due to a prior injury. They are inhibited from stabilizing the spine.
A typical patient has had between one and 30 years of persistent chronic low back pain. They have experienced multiple palliative therapies and gone to various care providers to address the pain. While the pain may have subsided for a short period of time, it always returns. These patients may have a little pain radiating down as low as their knee, but the majority of their pain in their low back.
Until recently, there were no surgical options for patients suffering from multifidus dysfunction.
ReActiv8 is a first-of-its-kind therapy that treats the source of the pain.
ReActiv8 is a neuromodular implant, which is about the size of a small dental floss box. It restores the function to the lumbar spine by stimulating the nerves that control the multifidus muscles. This restorative therapy retrains the brain how to fire those muscles again on demand. Over time the brain takes over and contracts the multifidus muscles on its own. The results have been quite remarkable.
The most recent study -- conducted in 26 hospitals across the United States, Australia and Europe -- showed undeniable success at the three-year follow-up. 77 percent of the 204 patients in this study had a greater than 50 percent reduction in pain. 67 percent of these patients had their pain completely cured.
Patients who have had a ReActiv8 implant have noticed that their function improves before they start having pain relief. Certain movements no longer generate pain like they did before receiving a ReActiv8 implant. As patients' function continues to improve, their pain continues to decrease. The typical ReActiv8 patient realizes their greatest improvement from the six to 18-month mark after implantation. Unlike other palliative treatments, ReActiv8 patients show pain relief and functional improvement yearly. (As evidenced in the three-year follow-up of the most recent ReActiv8 B-Trial).
Dr. Jeff Lehmen, MD, is the first spine surgeon in the greater Midwest to implant ReActiv8 in his patients. Dr. Lehmen provides surgical treatment for spine conditions at SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital. His office is located at SSM Health Spine & Pain Management Center, 2505 Mission Drive in Jefferson City. To make an appointment, call 573-681-3759.