Non-surgical spinal decompression is achieved through the use of a mechanical traction device applied through an on board computer that controls the force and angle of disc distraction, which reduces the body´s natural propensity to resist external force and/or generate muscle spasm. This enhanced control allows non-surgical spinal decompression tables to apply a traction force to the discs of the spinal column reducing intradiscal pressure, unlike previous non-computer controlled traction tables.
History
Non-surgical spinal decompression was originally developed and pioneered by Dr. Allan Dyer, PhD, MD in 1985 and the first non-surgical spinal decompression table, the Vax-D was introduced by him in 1991.[4] This original device was controlled by a pneumatic system and gradually applied and released the traction force being applied to reduce muscle guarding and spasm. In 2004, Vax-D Medical Technologies introduced an enhanced version of this table called the G2 that replaced the pneumatic technology with more precise electrically driven components and also added an enhanced on board computer control system that instituted a logarithmic curve [5].
Many other doctors, scientists, and corporations have developed other non-surgical spinal decompression tables, each with features believed to mimic or enhance the effectiveness of the original concept. IDD Therapy[6] is a similar yet advanced technique.
[edit] Effectiveness
In a small randomized study of 44 subjects, Vax-D was shown to have a clinical success rate of 68.4%, far more effective than surgical options. In a study with a non-randomized sample of just 33 subjects, IDD Therapy was shown to have a clinical effectiveness of 86%. It is believed the addition of heat and electrical muscle stimulation therapy as well as a second variable force that generates a pumping motion within the disc increasing the amount of water, blood, and nutrients it may absorb during the therapy is responsible for the greater clinical effectiveness of this device.