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According to 2 recent government-funded studies in the United States, on back surgery for painful herniated disks,
there is no clear-cut reason to choose an operation over other kinds of treatment.
For people suffering from a condition called
Sciatica
, the pain and physical function improved significantly after two years whether or not they had surgery. However, neither of the treatments offered complete relief.
Dr. James Weinstein of Dartmouth Medical School says, “In back surgery for this particular condition, there’s actually a choice, if you don’t want the risk of surgery, you can do watchful waiting and still get well”.
Nearly about 250,000 Americans undergo disk surgery for sciatica every year, while a quarter-million choose physical therapy, painkillers or rest until they feel better. The surgery costs around $6,000.
So if you are one of those suffering from a back ache, and can’t afford the costly surgery, you don’t need to feel bad now. Painkillers and physical therapy are equally good, if not better.
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