‘It's changed my life’: patients benefit from new back pain treatment
Barts Health is leading the way in treating chronic back pain through multifidus stimulation – a ground-breaking therapy that targets the root cause of pain by restoring control of deep spinal muscles.
A small implanted device gently stimulates the multifidus muscle, which supports the spine, helping people regain strength and mobility without the need for major surgery.
Serving patients from across east London and beyond, the pain team is one of the busiest in the UK. They carry out around 100 implants each year – more than any other centre in the country – and have earned international recognition for their expertise.
Multifidus stimulation is offered to carefully selected patients referred via spinal and community pain teams. Many are able to avoid invasive spinal surgery and return to active, pain-free lives.
Kate was one of the first patients to receive the treatment at Barts. She went from living with acute pain to running the London Marathon.
"It’s changed me as a person. It’s changed my life forever."
The service is led by Professor Vivek Mehta, consultant in pain medicine, alongside Dr Kavita Poply, an expert in pain medicine and neuromodulation, and a key collaborator in delivering and developing the therapy.
Barts Health also supports the next generation of specialists, running the world’s only university course in neuromodulation in partnership with Queen Mary University of London.
"Don’t suffer in silence," says Professor Mehta.
"There are effective, evidence-based therapies that can change your life."
The Barts Health pain service is provided by The Royal London Hospital with clinics based at St Bartholomew's Hospital.
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