Treatment Options:

Spinal Cord Stimulator

What is a Spinal Cord Stimulator?

Spinal cord stimulation is a device implant designed to provide a mild electrical shock to the nerves that travel along the spinal column. Its purpose is to change the way the nerves act or completely block their activity. With spinal cord stimulation, the small electrical pulses that are delivered prevent the nervous system from sending pain messages to the brain.

One benefit of this procedure is that it is able to help many people minimize the amount of pain they feel while at the same time avoiding the use of medicine. It can provide relief for individuals whose pain is not relieved by surgery or conservative treatment options. It is also good for individuals for whom surgery is not an option.

Annually, more than 14,000 individuals undergo spinal cord stimulator implants. Spinal cord stimulation has more than four decades of experience behind it. It was first used for pain management in 1967. In 1989, the FDA approved its use for pain relief. Now, the vast majority of individuals who have neuromodulation treatments done are having spinal cord stimulation implants.