Is decompression painful?

No. Decompression in our office is gentle, relaxing, and often, our patients will fall asleep while undergoing treatment.

Is decompression effective?

There was a study published in the Orthopedic Technology Review of 219 patients, which is a large number of patients as far as studies go. The patients had a variety of different problems. Some had single-level disk herniations, and others had multiple levels that were bulging. Some had more back than leg pain and others had mostly sciatica. The results were that about 86% of the patients obtained substantial relief. That is a very large percentage in terms of anything else that is out there. There are currently studies ongoing to more fully evaluate the effectiveness of spinal decompression. We have found in the four years we’ve been using decompression in our office, a success rate of 90% (9 of 10 patients) when combining decompression with treating the patient’s muscle imbalances (like we spoke of earlier).

How long does it take?

Each decompression session takes less than an hour. 15 minutes is spent with the doctor prior to decompression, then 30 minutes on the decompression table.

How much will it cost me?

Unfortunately, no insurance plan currently pays for decompression. And there are doctors in the greater Wilmington area that are charging upwards of $4,000 for their decompression programs which require patients continue for 20 visits. Not us. Since we don’t have a crystal ball, we tell our patients to take it one visit at a time. If they continue to make the improvements we expect, then they continue with treatment until their injured discs are healed. And, very importantly: We reasonably charge just $50 per visit for decompression services.