“I had chronic back pain caused by Degenerative Disc Disease and Spinal Canal Stenosis in my lower back. … I was told I would have to have an operation on my lower back. … now I am almost completely pain free and I can work a normal work week without any trouble.”Greg F., a patient of Dr. Scranton
What disc degeneration is, and what can still be done
Discs are the cushions between the bones of the spine. With age, injury or years of load they thin, dry out and lose height. The bones sit closer together, the joints behind the disc take more of the weight, and the gaps the nerves pass through get smaller. That is degenerative disc disease. It is not a disease so much as wear, and almost everyone over fifty has some.
What decides whether it hurts is how the joints around the worn disc are moving. Dr. Scranton takes digital X-rays first, reads them with you, and shows you exactly how much height the disc has lost and what the joints around it are doing. Then he treats what can be changed: the movement, the load and the space the nerves have.
What disc care includes here
- Specific Gonstead adjustments to restore movement in the joints that have jammed around the worn disc.
- Traction and positioning to take load off the disc and open the space for the nerves.
- Exercises written for your spine so the muscles carry more of the load and the disc carries less.
- Straight talk about what the X-ray shows, what a plan can change, and when surgery is the right answer.
Why people choose Dr. Scranton for this
He looks before he treats
Digital X-rays on site at the first visit, read with you in the room. The Gonstead exam finds the joint that is actually causing the problem, so that is what gets treated.
He has done this for a long time
Palmer College of Chiropractic, class of 1999. More than 10,000 patients. Years spent teaching other chiropractors how to treat knee pain and neuropathy.
He tells you the truth
If he does not think he can help you, he will say so at the first visit. No plan is written that you have not agreed to. You will never be a number in this office.
What to expect at your first visit
1. You tell him what is happening. When it started, what makes it worse, what you have already tried. Nobody hurries you.
2. The exam, and X-rays if you need them. Digital X-rays are taken on site and read with you in the room, so you see what he is seeing before he touches your spine.
3. A straight answer. What he found, whether he can help, and what it would take. If he does not think he can help you, he will tell you. We are not going to give you false hope.
The first visit is $47, usually $180, and covers the consultation, the exam, any X-rays you need and the conversation afterwards.
Patients who came in with worn discs
“I have rods in my neck and the lower part of my back. I had an MRI and the doctor told me I would need another surgery on my back. It would be my sixth surgery and I did not want another surgery. … I can also sleep better and do my house work.”Marilyn B.
“Plus learning about chiropractic care and future regular maintenance visits will help my degenerative disk disease in my neck and lower back to stabilize.”Doreen K.
Every quote is a real patient of Dr. Scranton. Results vary from person to person.
Questions people ask about degenerative disc disease
Can chiropractic fix a degenerated disc?
No, and anyone who says otherwise is not being straight with you. A disc that has lost height does not grow back. What can be changed is how the joints around it move and how much load the disc carries, and that is usually what decides how much it hurts.
What does the first visit cost?
$47, usually $180. That covers the consultation, the exam, any X-rays you need and a sit-down with Dr. Scranton to go through what they show. No other price is quoted until you have been examined and have agreed to a plan.
I have an MRI already. Do I still need X-rays?
Bring the MRI and the report. Dr. Scranton may still take standing X-rays, because an MRI is taken lying down and a standing film shows how the spine actually carries your weight. He reads both with you in the room.
I have been told to have surgery. Should I come in first?
Several of our patients did exactly that. Dr. Scranton will tell you honestly whether a plan here is worth trying first or whether surgery is the right answer for what your imaging shows. If he cannot help you, he will say so at the first visit.
How many visits will it take?
It depends on what the exam and X-rays show, and nobody can honestly tell you before that. After the first visit Dr. Scranton lays out what he found and what a plan would look like. You decide from there. Nobody is put on a plan they have not agreed to.
Do you see patients from Taylorsville, Kearns and West Jordan?
Yes. The clinic sits on the West Valley City and Taylorsville border, a minute off the I-215, and patients come from Kearns, Magna, West Jordan and South Jordan.
Action Chiropractic is at 2964 West 4700 South #102, on the West Valley City and Taylorsville border, a minute off the I-215. We see patients from Kearns, Magna, West Jordan and South Jordan.
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