What is Superion?
The Superion Indirect Decompression System is a device that Dr. Pohlman can implant in your spine to relieve back and leg pain. It’s a small spacer that increases the room in a narrowed spinal column resulting from lumbar spinal stenosis.
Superion is suitable for patients whose skeleton is fully mature and who’ve received a minimum of six months of non-operative treatments.
While most people benefit from treatments like physical therapy, steroid injections, and regenerative medicine treatments, others continue to suffer from chronic back pain when they have spinal stenosis. Superion offers an advanced solution for these patients.
What is spinal stenosis?
Spinal stenosis is a common back problem in which the space inside your spinal column gradually narrows. This is typically a natural consequence of aging and years of wear-and-tear.
Spinal stenosis causes the narrowed parts of your spine to press on the nerves that extend from your spinal cord. This leads to a dull pain and aching in your back that often travels down through your pelvis and into your legs.
Other symptoms include:
- Pain when walking
- Numbness or tingling in your legs
- Weakness or loss of balance
- Decreasing stamina
- Having to use a cane or walker
- Spinal stenosis symptoms typically improve if you bend over, as this opens up the spinal canal temporarily.
Left untreated, spinal stenosis could worsen to a point where it causes significant physical restrictions and reduced quality of life.
What happens during a Superion implantation procedure?
Implanting the Superion device is an outpatient procedure. You have an anesthetic to numb your back and then Dr. Pohlman makes a small incision in your skin. He inserts a slim, hollow tube called a catheter and passes the Superion spacer up through the catheter. Taking great care not to damage any nearby bones and tissues, Dr. Pohlman places the Superion spacer into your spine. The Superion’s arms open when it’s in position, which keeps the space around that area open.
You don’t need to stay overnight after your Superion implantation procedure. You can go home after your anesthetic wears off, but you need to take it easy for a few weeks. When you return to your normal activities, don’t overdo it even if you’re experiencing a significant reduction in pain.
How effective is Superion?
In clinical studies, more than 80% of patients with a Superion implant for spinal stenosis report success following the procedure.
As well as experiencing improvement in their leg and back pain, more than 75% of people return to activities they’d been unable to enjoy because of their chronic pain. The results of your Superion implantation could last for five years or more.
If you have spinal stenosis or chronic back pain and want to know more about treatments like Superion, call Pohlman Pain Associates today or book an appointment online.
