Intradiscal Therapy
21 Intradiscal Therapy Steven Helper and Curtis W. Slipman The term “internal disc disruption” syndrome (IDDS) was coined by Crock1,2 to identify the syndrome of low back pain (LBP) and…
Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy
17 Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy Ronald Donelson Selecting the appropriate nonoperative treatment for low back pain (LBP), with or without sciatica, or selecting appropriate patients for lumbar disc surgery are…
Clinical Presentation of Disc Degeneration
13 Clinical Presentation of Disc Degeneration Andrew P. White, Eric L. Grossman and Alan S. Hilibrand The intervertebral disc (IVD) is a vital and dynamic component of spinal architecture (Fig….
The Biology and Biomechanics of the Spinal Degenerative Cascade
6 The Biology and Biomechanics of the Spinal Degenerative Cascade Kern Singh, Daniel K. Park and Frank M. Phillips More than 25 years ago, Kirkaldy-Willis et al presented the concept…
Nucleus Augmentation
22 Nucleus Augmentation Thomas J. Raley, Qi-Bin Bao and Hansen A. Yuan Low back pain (LBP) is a common condition that affects the majority of the population1,2 and economically impacts…
Presurgical Psychological Screening
16 Presurgical Psychological Screening William W. Deardorff Someone once said, “There is no medical condition that cannot be made worse by surgery,” and this certainly holds true in the area…
Biologics for Spinal Fusion
30 Biologics for Spinal Fusion Wellington K. Hsu and Jeffrey C. Wang Spinal arthrodesis presents several obstacles to even the most experienced spine surgeon. Despite the use of internal fixation,…
Provocative Testing (Discography)
15 Provocative Testing (Discography) Eugene J. Carragee and Angus S. Don Lumbar back pain is extremely common, but most cases are self-limiting with no functional deficit. Nevertheless, even when diagnostic…
The Role of Education and Back Schools
18 The Role of Education and Back Schools Gunnar B. J. Andersson All physicians should be educators. Our patients deserve to know about their health and diseases, diagnosis, treatments, and…
Cognitive Therapy for Symptomatic Disc Degeneration
19 Cognitive Therapy for Symptomatic Disc Degeneration Donna D. Ohnmeiss The importance of psychological factors in chronic back pain patients has been consistently well documented for many years. They affect…
