The disc is a joint (synchondrosis) between two vertebrae. For your disc to gain nutrients your vertebrae must move.
In a Danish study (1) the natural progression of a disc herniation showed that being careful for 8 years did not change the disc condition. Rest and moving in the same muscle patterns leads to the same symptom of disc injury. Chiropractic care helps your spine by teaching it to move differently. A disc problem is a product of how you move in your body.
In an MRI study in Taiwan (2) the effect of conservative care (bodywork and exercises) showed that a ‘natural’ resolution of disc herniation is entirely possible in 70 – 96% of cases dependent upon disc herniation type. A complete resolution as seen on MRI was achieved without surgery in 15-43% of cases depending upon type of disc herniation.
Yes it is entirely reasonable, with the help of your Chiropractor, if you have a sequestered type disc herniation to achieve an improvement 96% of the time, 70% of the time with disc extrusion type herniation, and 41% of the time with disc protrusion type herniation.
Research suggests you do not have to live with disc disease for the rest of your life. A resolution of your symptoms in 3 -6 months and a correction of your movement patterns within a 12-18 month period could be achieved. If these time scales seem long you could do nothing and always have disc disease.
References:
- Danish Study: Kjaer P, Tunset A, Boyle E, Secher Jenson T (2016). Progression of lumbar disc herniations over an eight-year period in a group of adult Danes from the general population – a longitudinal MRI study using quantitative measures. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders 17:26
- Taiwan Study: Chiu CC, Chuang TY, Chang KH, Wu CH, Lin PW, Hsu WY. The probability of spontaneous regression of lumbar herniated disc: a systematic review. Clin Rehabil. 2015;29(2):184–95