Dayna Nevar, IDET Procedure Patient Success Story

In 2002, Dayna Nevar, 22, of Chesterfield, Missouri, was involved in a car accident that left her in extreme pain.

Dayna, under the care of an Osteopathic surgeon, attempted traction which became too uncomfortable to continue and then tried a regimen of steroidal injections. Despite her love of basketball, she opted to take two months off to heal but the pain did not go away. Dayna was unable to sit for more than 30 minutes at a time, so she also had to forgo regular fun activities, like going to the movies with her friends. After the other treatment options failed, Dayna worked with her doctor to evaluate her options and to determine the best next course of treatment.

Dayna worked with her doctor to determine the best next step. Spinal fusion was ruled out because of her young age. Dayna was referred to Dr. Nagy Mekhail in the Department of Pain Management at The Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Her best option was Intradiscal ELECTROTHERMAL Therapy™ (IDET), a minimally invasive outpatient procedure for patients suffering from chronic disc-related lower back pain that delivers controlled levels of thermal heat to the affected disc. An estimated 7,000 to 10,000 IDET procedures are performed annually in the U.S. by pain management specialists, interventional radiologists and spine surgeons.

For Dayna, the IDET procedure took approximately an hour to complete, and she was given a local anesthetic and mild sedation to help to reduce discomfort. Using X-ray images as a guide, Dr. Mekhail inserted a hollow needle into each of the lumbar discs that were causing the pain. A SPINECATH catheter (or electrothermal heating wire) was then passed through the needle and positioned along the annulus (the inner wall of the disc), and the catheter was slowly heated to 90 degrees Celsius for 15 minutes. The heat contracted and thickened the collagen fibers along the disc wall, potentially closing the cracks and tears and cauterizing the nerve endings that caused the pain.

“With IDET and of lot of rehab work as well as a spinal care regimen, I am able to live a relatively pain free life.”

Today, Dayna is studying Chiropractic medicine and is able to enjoy activities like Intramural volleyball. She takes care to listen to her body and continues to rehab her back. The world is now a different place for Dayna without the chronic and constant lower back pain she used to tolerate. “It takes a lot of work and the IDET procedure was an integral part of the solution for me to get my life back.

Anthony Sartoris, IDET Procedure Patient Success Story

Like many chronic lower back pain sufferers, Anthony Sartoris, 47, of Coal City, Illinois, endured his condition as long as he could. More than 14 years ago, Anthony – having had no previous symptoms – unexpectedly found that he was unable to physically move after pulling weeds in the garden.

Anthony sought medical attention from his family doctor and was prescribed non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), a treatment that has pain-relieving (analgesic) effects and reduces inflammation when used over a period of time. While this treatment helped to relieve the pain, the frequency with which Anthony experienced severe pain increased, and without an incredible amount of exertion. Activities as simple as turning around to speak with his wife left Anthony immobile and in pain.

Anthony was eventually referred to a spine surgeon. The surgeon was hesitant about doing a spinal fusion surgery and referred Anthony to Dr. Ira Goodman, of Pain Specialists of Greater Chicago. “The surgeon thought I was too young for such an invasive procedure. For me, I didn’t want to have the fusion surgery because it meant I would have to take too much time off from our family.”

Initially Dr. Goodman started Anthony on steroid injections to reduce inflammation which provided months of relief. However, over time, those too stopped working. A discography showed that Anthony had tears in the L4 and L5 discs. This was causing Anthony shooting pains in his legs, stiffness, difficulty sitting and standing.

Dr. Goodman then recommended that Anthony consider the Intradiscal ELECTROTHERMAL Therapy™ (IDET), a minimally invasive outpatient procedure for patients suffering from chronic disc-related lower back pain that delivers controlled levels of thermal heat to the affected disc. An estimated 7,000 to 10,000 IDET procedures are performed annually in the U.S. by pain management specialists, interventional radiologists and spine surgeons.

For Anthony, the IDET procedure took a little more than an hour and he was given a local anesthetic and mild sedation to help to reduce discomfort. Using X-ray images as a guide, Dr. Goodman inserted a hollow needle into each of the lumbar discs that were causing the pain. A SPINECATH catheter (or electrothermal heating wire) was then passed through the needle and positioned along the annulus (the inner wall of the disc), and the catheter was slowly heated to 90 degrees Celsius for 15 minutes. The heat contracted and thickened the collagen fibers along the disc wall, potentially closing the cracks and tears and cauterizing the nerve endings that caused the pain.

“When I went to bed after the procedure, I assumed I would be sore the next day but when I woke up, I almost forgot that I had anything done to my back.”

Today, Anthony is able to enjoy all the activities that he hadn’t been able to do for so long. He exercises six days a week, plays tennis with his son, does moderate weight training and runs five miles at a time. As president of his family’s business he was recently able to participate in the opening of a new store, something he would not have been able to do before the IDET procedure.

Anthony takes care to not re-injure himself but the world is a different place without the chronic and constant lower back pain he used to tolerate. “I feel like I got my life back.”