In 1997, West Hills Chiropractic Pain Center in Huntington became one of the first practices on Long Island to offer VAX-D spinal decompression therapy. At the time, most patients with severe disc herniations had two choices: endure the pain and hope for the best, or go under the knife. We believed there was a third path — and nearly three decades later, that belief has been validated thousands of times over.
I’m Dr. Tom Oddo, and I’ve been treating spine patients at West Hills since before VAX-D existed on Long Island. What follows isn’t a marketing pitch. It’s what I’ve genuinely learned from watching patients walk in hunched over and walk out standing straight — and from watching some patients not respond at all. Both lessons matter.
Why We Chose VAX-D in 1997
When VAX-D technology emerged, I was skeptical — as any responsible clinician should be. The mechanism made physiological sense: controlled, computer-regulated distraction of the spine to create negative intradiscal pressure, drawing herniated material back toward the nucleus and promoting fluid exchange within the disc. But mechanism alone doesn’t prove clinical results.
What convinced me was the patient population I was already seeing. Long Island has an aging, active workforce. Dock workers, contractors, office professionals sitting at desks for 40 years. People with disc problems who didn’t want surgery and couldn’t get adequate relief from chiropractic adjustments alone. VAX-D offered something those patients desperately needed: a non-surgical option with a real physiological rationale and an FDA clearance.
We brought in the equipment, trained the team, and treated our first VAX-D patient in the spring of 1997. We’ve been running it ever since — making us one of the longest-continuously-operating VAX-D providers on Long Island by a wide margin.
Who Actually Responds to VAX-D
After nearly 30 years, I can tell you that patient selection matters more than the machine itself. VAX-D produces consistent, meaningful results for a specific kind of patient. Understanding who that is will save you time, money, and false hope.
Ideal VAX-D candidates share these characteristics:
- Disc herniation confirmed on MRI — bulge, protrusion, or extrusion at one or two levels
- Radiculopathy (arm or leg pain following a nerve distribution) or axial pain that has not resolved with conservative care
- Symptoms present for at least 6 weeks, ideally longer — acute herniations often resolve on their own
- No prior spinal fusion at the level being treated
- Motivation to complete the full protocol — typically 20 sessions over 5–6 weeks
The patients most likely to struggle with VAX-D are those with spinal instability, advanced osteoporosis, severe spinal stenosis with multiple levels affected, or hardware from prior surgeries at the treatment level. These aren’t absolute disqualifiers, but they require a careful clinical conversation before starting.
What a Course of Treatment Actually Looks Like
Here’s what nobody tells patients before they walk in the door: VAX-D is not a passive treatment. You lie face-down on the table, a pelvic harness is fitted, and the machine applies gentle, rhythmic traction forces that cycle between distraction and relaxation. Each session is approximately 30 minutes. You feel a gentle pulling sensation in the lower back. Most patients find it comfortable — many fall asleep.
The full protocol at West Hills is 20 sessions across 5 to 6 weeks, followed by a progressive return to activity. We reassess with clinical examination at session 10 and again at session 20. If a patient isn’t showing measurable improvement by session 10, we have a frank conversation about whether to continue or pivot to a different approach.
This matters because I’ve seen patients elsewhere who were kept on decompression for 40 or 50 sessions with no meaningful progress. That’s not evidence-based care — that’s billing. At West Hills, if it’s not working, we tell you.
What the Research Actually Shows
VAX-D has been studied since the early 1990s, and the evidence base, while imperfect, is meaningful. Multiple peer-reviewed studies have documented significant pain reduction and functional improvement in patients with lumbar disc herniations treated with non-surgical decompression. A landmark study in the Journal of Neurological Research reported that 86 percent of patients with herniated discs experienced good to excellent results after a course of VAX-D treatment.
More recently, imaging studies using MRI before and after decompression have documented actual changes in disc morphology — reduced herniation size, improved disc height — in a subset of patients who responded clinically. The mechanism works. Not for everyone, not every time. But for the right patient, the results can be dramatic and durable.
The Question I Get Most Often
Patients ask me all the time: “Will this fix my disc permanently, or is this just temporary relief?”
Honest answer: it depends on what you do after treatment. VAX-D can reduce or eliminate the source of your pain by improving disc hydration, reducing herniation, and taking pressure off compressed nerve roots. But the disc doesn’t get younger. If you return to the same mechanics that created the problem — sitting 10 hours a day with no core support, lifting wrong, carrying excess weight — you risk re-injury.
The patients I’ve seen maintain their results long-term are the ones who take the post-treatment rehabilitation seriously. At West Hills, we don’t discharge you after session 20 and wish you luck. We build a movement and lifestyle plan around what your spine actually needs.
How West Hills Is Different from Other Decompression Providers
There are decompression tables in chiropractors’ offices, physical therapy clinics, and pain management centers across Long Island. Here’s what distinguishes West Hills:
- We’ve been doing this since 1997. Most providers on Long Island have been offering decompression for 5 to 10 years. We have nearly 30 years of clinical experience with VAX-D specifically — not a generic decompression table, but the original FDA-cleared VAX-D system.
- We do our own clinical evaluation. Before your first session, I personally examine you, review your imaging, and determine whether you’re an appropriate candidate. We don’t put everyone on the table and hope for the best.
- We integrate chiropractic and rehabilitation. VAX-D produces better outcomes when combined with targeted soft tissue work, spinal manipulation of adjacent segments, and progressive core rehabilitation. We do all of this in-house.
- We tell you the truth. If after 10 sessions you’re not responding, I will tell you. If surgery is genuinely your best option, I will tell you that too. My job is your outcome, not my census.
Is VAX-D Right for You?
If you’re dealing with a herniated disc, sciatica, degenerative disc disease, or radiating arm or leg pain that hasn’t resolved with standard conservative care, VAX-D may be worth a serious conversation. Not a sales conversation — a clinical one, based on your actual MRI, your symptom history, and your goals.
We’ve been having that conversation at 400 W. Jericho Turnpike in Huntington since 1997. If you’re ready to have it, we’re here.
Schedule Your Evaluation and let’s look at your case honestly.