This Tiny Balloon Could Bring Relief to People With Chronic Back Pain.mp4

It’s just 2mm in diameter, but it could change the lives of those with severe back pain.

Transcript

00:00Back pain is one of the widest reaching forms of chronic pain around, and sometimes even

00:09medication can't relieve it. But now experts have found a better way to treat severe chronic

00:13back pain with electricity and basically a tiny balloon. It's all part of what physicians call

00:18a spinal cord stimulator, or SCS, where electrodes are attached to the spinal column, issuing mild

00:24electric currents which help cover up the pain signals being sent to your brain. Current

00:28iterations of this are rather invasive and involve cutting into the vertebrae to attach

00:32the tiny electrodes. But this new inflatable electrode device may be rolled up to just

00:36two millimeters across and then injected into the spine with a needle. At that point, it is unrolled

00:41via either a small amount of water or air, just like a balloon, spreading across the necessary area

00:46where it can begin stimulating nerves with electric current. University of Cambridge engineer and one

00:51of the researchers on the project, Christopher Proctor, had this to say about the device.

00:55Thin-film electronics aren't new, but incorporating fluid chambers is what makes our device unique.

01:00This allows it to be inflated into a paddle-type shape once it is inside the patient, which they

01:05say could make the now last resort spinal cord stimulation surgery a better option for more

01:10of those with chronic back pain.