New Technology to Alleviate Chronic Back Pain

SadaNews - Researchers in the United States have announced the development of an innovative therapeutic method that may represent a glimmer of hope for patients suffering from chronic and severe back pain that does not respond to traditional treatments.

The researchers from the University of Texas Medical School explained that the technique relies on delivering medications directly to the source of pain through a catheter inserted into the blood vessels. This approach has shown promising preliminary results in pain relief and reducing dependence on opioid analgesics. The results were presented Thursday at the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Society of Interventional Neuroradiology (SNIS), currently taking place in Seattle, USA.

Chronic back pain is among the most common health issues worldwide and is one of the leading causes of disability and reduced quality of life. This type of pain is diagnosed when it persists for more than three months and can limit patients' ability to move, work, and engage in their daily activities. Despite the availability of various treatment options, including medications, physical therapy, injections, and surgery, some patients do not respond to these treatments, leading to prolonged use of opioid analgesics, along with associated addiction risks and side effects. This highlights the need for more effective treatments that directly target the source of pain.

According to the researchers, the new technique is based on catheterization procedures widely used in treating strokes, but it is being employed for the first time to target the arteries that supply the area causing pain in the spine.

The study included a preliminary trial conducted on six patients who experienced severe pain in the chest and lower back and did not respond to available treatments.

The medical team performed the intervention by inserting a catheter through the femoral artery and then directing it to the arteries supplying the region suspected to be the source of pain, where a mixture of "lidocaine," a local anesthetic, and "dexamethasone," an anti-inflammatory medication, was injected directly into the target area.

The results showed significant improvement, with the average pain intensity decreasing from 9.5 out of 10 before treatment to zero immediately after the procedure.

The need to use opioid analgesics also decreased, and two patients were able to stop taking them completely during their hospital stay.

The improvement was not limited to the immediate effect, as pain levels remained low three months after treatment, indicating the procedure's short-term effectiveness.

Pain relief also helped improve mobility, with four patients able to participate in physical therapy sessions after the procedure, something they could not tolerate previously due to severe pain.

The principal investigator of the study, Mathias Costa, from the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Texas Medical School, stated that interventional neurosurgery techniques have made a significant shift in treating strokes, aneurysms, and brain and spinal diseases. He added that researchers are now beginning to explore the possibility of utilizing these minimally invasive techniques to assist patients suffering from chronic and severe pain.

He clarified via the university's website that the results are still preliminary but suggest that endovascular treatment may become a promising option in the future to help relieve pain, improve functional performance, and reduce dependence on opioid analgesics.