VAX-D treatment helps eliminate lower-back pain

Individuals suffering from lower back pain caused by a bulging, ruptured or herniated disc might find relief in a good stretch with the help of VAX-D.

Technician John Swift uses VAX-D which stands for vertebral axial decompression at Spinal Care Centers Inc., 3026 S. National, which opened in July 1999.

VAX-D is a nonsurgical procedure that relies on an old tried and true technology medical traction and is jokingly referred to by some medical personnel as "the rack."

Swift said the treatment was developed by Allan Dyer, MD, former Canadian deputy minister of health and inventor of the heart defibrillator. Research to develop VAX-D was conducted over a period of six years at teaching hospitals, and the treatment was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in June of 1996.

Designed to treat low back pain by relieving pressure on structures that may be causing the pain, Swift said that VAX-D is recommended as first-line therapy, to come before surgery and after all conservative measures have been considered.

"If there's a protrusion, a bulge in one of the lumbar discs causing the pain, the VAX-D treatment pulls the bulge away and heals the outer part of the disc," Swift said.

"The problem is not the nerve," he added, "it's the disc itself."

To determine if a patient will benefit from VAX-D treatment, the patient undergoes a thorough exam and consultation with Clyde "Kip" Parsons, MD, FACS, an orthopedic surgeon of more than 25 years' experience. Following the exam, Parsons designates an appropriate treatment plan and the patient meets with Parsons on a weekly basis.

Swift said VAX-D treatment takes four to eight weeks to complete. "It takes the body time to heal a normal cell," he said. "This is a healing process."

The patient receives treatment for half an hour a day for 20 to 30 days.

During the procedure, the patient lies on the VAX-D table in a prone position. The upper body is on the stationary portion of the table and is restrained by the patient, who holds on to adjustable hand grips.

"It's actually stretching the spine by pulling the lower five lumbar vertebrae," Swift said. "It takes pressure off the nerve that's causing the pain."

During treatment, the back is monitored by a computer attached to a pelvic belt worn by the patient. The output from the computer is shown on a digital gauge and captured on a printout, which becomes part of the patient's chart.

The cost of treatment is $4,500 to $6,500 depending on the severity of the patient's condition and the length of the treatment plan.

The center accepts insurance, but it does not yet take Medicare or Medicaid.

"We're too new for Medicare and Medicaid," Swift said. "When we've been around longer, we'll be able to accept them as payment, as well."

Swift said most of the company's business has come from word of mouth and from its print and television advertising.

"We don't get a lot of referrals from doctors because we're not affiliated with a hospital," he said.

The Spinal Care Centers location in Springfield was developed as the first in a chain of five, Swift said.

Additional locations will be added in the future.