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Several experimental treatments are controversial and not widely used. These include:

• A traction-like treatment called vertebral axial decompression.
• Percutaneous disc decompression such as intradiscal electrothermic therapy (IDET).
• Radiofrequency ablation.
• Botulinum (Botox) injection.
• Prolotherapy.

Facet joint injections and spinal traction are not considered to be safe and effective treatments for chronic Low Back Pain.⁶

Treatment if Low Back Pain gets worse or comes back

If you have moderate to severe Low Back Pain that lasts more than a couple of days, back or leg symptoms that have gotten worse or have not gone away after 2 weeks of home treatment, or improved symptoms that flare up again, see your doctor. A physical exam and possibly an imaging test may produce new information about your condition and help direct your treatment decisions.

• If no serious cause of mild to moderate Low Back Pain is apparent (as in 85% of cases), your health professional will probably advise you to continue with home treatment.⁹ Consider seeing a physical therapist for back-healthy exercises to use every day, as long as they don't make your symptoms worse. A medicine to reduce swelling, moist heat application, massage, cognitive-behavioral therapy, learning how to best use your back in a "back school" program, chiropractic therapy, or biofeedback may also help prevent your symptoms from becoming chronic.
• If your pain is severe, your doctor may recommend short-term use of an opiate painkiller, epidural steroid injection, or muscle relaxant. These medications have potential harms and side effects, but these may be balanced out if the medicines help you. Talk with your doctor about the expected benefits and side effects of any medicine.
• If your pain is caused by another health problem, such as a Herniated Disc, spinal stenosis, ankylosing spondylitis, osteoarthritis, cancer, or infection, your doctor will make specific treatment recommendations.

If you have a herniated disc, your doctor may recommend surgery. Most doctors will wait to consider surgery until after you have tried nonsurgical treatment for 1 to 3 months without improvement (but usually before more than 6 months have gone by). Surgery is eventually considered for about 1 out of 10 people who have a Herniated Disc.¹⁰ For more information, see:

 Should I have surgery for a herniated disc?

For more information about specific conditions, see:

• Lumbar Spinal Stenosis.
• Ankylosing Spondylitis.
• Osteoarthritis.
• Herniated Disc.

At one time, traction was a common treatment for low back pain. Traction was thought to stretch the spine and reduce pressure on the spinal discs. Recent research does not prove that traction will reduce acute Low Back Pain.³ For chronic Low Back Pain, traction will probably not help and may even be harmful.⁶