frequently asked questions

Each IDD treatment lasts for one hour. Sessions begin with 10 minutes of heat therapy using TherMedic to warm the tissues and get blood flow into the injured area. You then have IDD Therapy which lasts for 25 minutes on the SPINA machine. Afterwards we give you 10 minutes cold therapy. This is just to calm the treated area before you go home. You remain comfortable throughout.

Each session lasts for one hour and is billed as a one hour osteopathy treatment. The price is £85 which is in line with standard treatment charges.

This is an important question and one which the team will discuss with you. It really does depend on the duration and severity of your condition. People with mild back pain may experience symptomatic relief within a few sessions, but for long term problems, most patients will need a course of treatment.

Most patient with lower back pain (and / or leg pains) will require 20 IDD sessions over a 6 week period. For patients with neck pains (and / or pains radiating into the arm) 10 sessions is often enough over a 4 week period. These may vary but please use them as a guide.

When patients have back pain or neck pain for some time, spinal segments become stiff and immobile. The discs in the spine rely on movement for their hydration and nutrition. To undo the compression and immobility of an injured disc, IDD Therapy uses computer-controlled pulling forces to open the spinal segment and then mobilise it. To do this we have to use comparatively higher forces than can be achieved with manual therapy. Therefore we need to progressively increase the pulling forces to achieve the goals.

So rather like exercising requires more than one session for the body to adapt and become fitter/stronger, addressing the causes of back pain means the body has to gently adapt to treatment. This simply cannot be achieved overnight or in just a couple of sessions, hence the requirement to have a course of treatment.

We would all like a simple solution but the reality is, chronic back pain takes time.

The only similarity between IDD and traction is the plane of the pulling forces. The 2 main differences are that IDD is a dynamic treatment where as traction tends to be a static pull.

The other difference is that the forces being applied during IDD can be adjusted to specifically to target the segment that is causing your symptoms so it is much more specific than traction.

IDD is an excellent treatment option for the right patient at the right time. It doesn’t work for everyone which is why we offer an initial consultation to discuss whether you might be a suitable candidate for IDD treatment. The majority of our patients have been struggling with lower back pain, sciatica, stenosis, neck pain or lower back stiffness often for many months or even years.

The patient we see tend to have often tried numerous other treatments, medications, exercises etc before coming to see us. These patients are often the most difficult cases with stubborn symptoms.

Your chances of improvement will be determined by many factors and these will be discussed with you during your initial consultation.

If you have an  MRI report and images please bring these with you.

If you don’t have an MRI, we can arrange for you to have an MRI scan undertaken locally.

No, you remain fully clothed throughout. You can wear normal clothes, so long as they are comfortable. Ladies should wear trousers, leggings or loose fitting clothes.

No. The treatment is intended to be comfortable. If there is pain felt, this will be discussed at the time.

Whilst considerable pulling forces are used, they are delivered in a way that the body is comfortable. Much better than the traction machines of old. Many patients go to sleep because the treatment is relaxing.

Spinal injections are given to help ease inflammation which is a cause of pain. They are intended to create a window for rehabilitation. An injection is not intended to address the problems of compression of discs or stiffness in the spine. Spinal injections are not a long term solution for most patients.

Patients who have had surgery can opt for IDD Therapy. We prefer our patients to wait at least 6 months after surgery before commencing treatment. Patients who have any metal work in their spine are unsuitable for IDD Therapy.

In the past 5 years over 37,000 treatments have been carried out in the UK alone and IDD Therapy is the first choice non-invasive disc treatment when manual therapy is not working, in areas where it is available. There are over 1,000 clinics internationally providing IDD Therapy, including surgeons, physiotherapists, osteopaths and chiropractors.