Despite these problems, new drugs are constantly being introduced to reduce the side effects. A relatively new NSAID named etoldac has shown good results after testing. In a test done with one hundred and eighty one patients suffering from disc herniations fifty four percent showed a “slight” to “marked”, though short lived, improvement, while only one of these patients complained of gastro intestinal side effects(Hatori, 1999).A more invasive procedure with similar goals to the NSAID’s is an epidural injection into the exact location of the origin of the pain. The goal is to reduce inflammation in the foramen through direct application of strong anti inflammatory medications. This option is not very popular for the obvious reason that the prospect of injection is intimidating to most people. The overall success of the injections is generally short lived with most symptoms returning within three to four days. Long term relief from epidural injections, for more than three months, is only gained in under five percent of the recipients(Traynellis, 1997).The persistent nature of lumbar disc injury is such that it affects every aspect of a persons life from tying one’s sneakers to getting in and out of a car, to standing on line at the grocery store. Such constant pain draws people to search for relief in any form they can. When conservative treatments do not provide relief, the only answer is to opt for the surgical repair of the disc. The surgery, however is not guaranteed to be effective due to the many complications of the area, thus there is somewhat of a “taboo” aura associated with back operations.One of the main problems associated with a disc operation is the inconclusive nature of the diagnostic images. A surgery candidate will undergo a computed tomography scan (CT scan) and a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test to help determine the cause of sciatica. Although the imag...
