It’s just 2mm in diameter, but it could change the lives of those with severe back pain.
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00:00Back pain is one of the widest-reaching forms of chronic pain around, and sometimes even
00:09medication can't relieve it.
00:10But now experts have found a better way to treat severe chronic back pain with electricity
00:15and basically a tiny balloon.
00:17It's all part of what physicians call a spinal cord stimulator, or SCS, where electrodes
00:22are attached to the spinal column, issuing mild electric currents which help cover up
00:25the pain signals being sent to your brain.
00:28Recent iterations of this are rather invasive and involve cutting into the vertebrae to
00:31attach the tiny electrodes.
00:33But this new inflatable electrode device may be rolled up to just two millimeters across
00:37and then injected into the spine with a needle.
00:40At that point, it is unrolled via either a small amount of water or air, just like a
00:44balloon, spreading across the necessary area where it can begin stimulating nerves with
00:48electric current.
00:49University of Cambridge engineer and one of the researchers on the project, Christopher
00:53Proctor, had this to say about the device.
00:56Some 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
01:05they say could make the now last resort spinal cord stimulation surgery a better option for
01:09more of those with chronic back pain.