Cathryn Jakobson Ramin, an investigative journalist, is author of “Crooked: Outwitting the Back Pain Industry and Getting on the Road to Recovery.” Herself a back pain sufferer, she chronicles her odyssey, touching on virtually every option, conventional and alternative, for back pain. She claims that “back pain care is a microcosm of everything that’s wrong with our health care system.” How have perverse incentives created a self-perpetuating back pain industry, and sustained unproven and dangerous modalities? What are the downsides of surgery? Why is “PT” (physical therapy) not always the answer to avoiding unnecessary surgery? What are the pitfalls of “minimally-invasive” or laser spinal surgery? What about spinal injections for pain? How has back pain spawned an epidemic of opiate addiction and disability? Are there rogue surgeons who game the insurance system and prey on vulnerable patients? Why might it be a mistake to get an MRI? What role does exercise play in forestalling back problems? How does prolonged sitting set the stage for back problems? It’s not all bad news: Ramin presents a wide array of possible natural, non-invasive solutions to permanently address back pain that she has personally field-tested. Click HERE for part 2.
Dr. Hoffman continues his conversation with Cathryn Jakobson Ramin, an investigative journalist and author of “Crooked: Outwitting the Back Pain Industry and Getting on the Road to Recovery.” Click HERE for part 1.