Here are some valuable research articles that you can use on your website or as patient education:

1. "The spinal discs are avascular, meaning they don't have an independent blood supply. So they cannot heal on their own, they require compression and decompression (pumping action found in normal motion of healthy discs) to allow oxygen and nutrients into the disc, which promote healing."View Research

> McNally DS, Adams MA. Internal Intervertebral Disc Mechanics as Revealed by Stress Profilometry. Spine 1992; 17:66-73.

2. "Abnormal stresses (e.g. decreased disc height, herniation, etc.) through the discs prevent exchange of oxygen and nutrients which causes metabolic breakdown of the disc. This breakdown leads to further breakdown of the disc."View Research

> Handa, et al. Effects of hydrostatic pressure on matrix synthesis and matrix metalloproteinase
> production in the human lumbar intervertebral disc. Spine 1997; 22:1085-91.

3. "Prolonged stresses through the spinal discs inhibit healing of the disc, and leads to
prolonged degeneration of the disc." View Research

> Liu et al. Nitric Oxide Mediates the Change of Proteoglycan Synthesis in the Human Lumbar Intervertebral
> Disc in Response to Hydrostatic Pressure. Spine 2001; 26(2):134-41.

4. "70% to 83% of spinal surgeries are FAILURES... meaning the patient has the same pain or worse pain afterward." View Research

Dvorak, J. Gauchat M., and Valach L. The Outcome of Surgery for Lumbar Disc Herniation. A 4-7 Years
Follow-up with Emphasis on Somatic Aspects. Spine, Volume 13., No 12., 1988, 1418-1427.