The first study of its kind in the US, this multi-center, randomized trial will compare degenerative disc disease patients who receive the Wallis implant to those who are treated using conservative, non-surgical methods of back pain management.
“A very large number of adults in their 20’s to 60’s suffer from lower back pain, but their degenerative disc disease hasn’t yet progressed to the point they require spinal fusion surgery,” said Dr Paul McAfee, of Orthopaedic Associates, and lead investigator in the trial.
The Wallis system has been in use in Europe for more than 15 years. It was developed by physicians in France and first used to treat degenerative disc disease in the 1980’s. Since then, it has been used in thousands of patients outside the US.