Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/surgery-nonoperative-care-relieve-herniated-disc-pain-equally-study-says Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Non-surgical treatments, such as physical therapy and painkillers, are as effective as surgery in alleviating back pain for herniated discs, a new study from the Journal of the American Medical Association says. Correspondent Susan Dentzer discusses the findings. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. JIM LEHRER: Now, new word today on treating back pain, with or without surgery. Our health correspondent Susan Dentzer is here with the details.A new study. What was its basic findings, Susan? SUSAN DENTZER, NewsHour Health Correspondent: Jim, the basic finding pertained to surgery for a herniated disc. This is what happens when the little doughnut-shaped things in between your vertebrae actually rupture.It's kind of like a worn tire that develops a little bubble. You get this little bubble in the disc. A little jelly-like fluid leaks out. It impinges on the nerves and actually gets quite inflamed, and that's what gives you these sensations of sciatica, these shooting pains down your back side or in your leg.The question has been: Should you get surgery for that? Or could you treat it non-operatively, that is, with physical therapy, with injections of steroids, with medications like ibuprofen that you can get over the counter, et cetera? The studies published today said you can get both and you'll have roughly equal outcomes with either surgery or with non-operative care. JIM LEHRER: First of all, how common is this particular ailment? SUSAN DENTZER: It's very common. It tends to strike people in their thirties to fifties, in middle age. It's due in part to genetics, probably also to some wear and tear. One out of four people actually… JIM LEHRER: There's no single cause of this, right? SUSAN DENTZER: No, no single, but there's obviously a genetic predisposition. JIM LEHRER: Sure. SUSAN DENTZER: And interestingly enough, about one in four middle-aged adults will actually have herniated discs… JIM LEHRER: One of four? SUSAN DENTZER: One out of four. JIM LEHRER: Wow. SUSAN DENTZER: Not anywhere near that are symptomatic. Basically, only one out of every 100, three out of every 300, roughly speaking, have these horrible, painful symptoms…