NeuroMD Back Pain Device – Does it Work?

Last Updated on October 10, 2023 by Stone

Here is my review of a newly FDA-approved device that has personally helped and might help you too. It’s called NeuroMD, and it’s a back pain device. Please note that it is not a tens unit.

Why Review this? Let me ask you…

Do you love camping and hiking, but lately, a back injury has been limiting you? Does the thought of sleeping in a tent on an air mattress and how your back will feel afterward make you not want to go camping in the first place?

The twisting motion of paddleboarding recently aggravated my back pain. Loading and unloading heavy kayaks and paddleboards on and off of truck racks also didn’t help. This device has helped me greatly.

What is Neuro MD?

NeuroMD is an electrical device that you place on your back via a butterfly-shaped electrode gel pad. It looks like two giant EKG electrodes merged. You simply stick it on your back and turn it on. It comes with a remote that has two modes, M1 and M2. You can control the intensity on the machine itself or by using the remote. It stimulates the motor nerves.

It is an FDA-cleared device, and the website states the completion of over 1 million treatments. Five clinical studies validate its effectiveness (especially when the user does the accompanying 6 stretches/exercises). They claim to be a surgery and drug-free option that can restore the health of your lower back. NeuroMD can treat conditions such as:

Just a Back Pain Device? Where Else can you Use it?

NeuroMD can also be used anywhere else you have pain except the head, front of the neck, or across the chest.

How is it any Different than a TENS machine?

NeuroMD uses neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES), whereas TENS uses transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. Both target different nerves. TENS targets the sensory nerves and works by blocking the pain signals to the brain.

NMES targets the muscle itself through the motor nerves⸺it creates a muscle contraction. The stimulus mimics the brain’s signal to the muscle during a workout.

NeuroMD claims it can target hard to get to muscles that contribute to lower back pain. These muscles are difficult to reach using physiotherapy or other methods. The stimulation strengthens the muscles, lessens the pain, and helps to prevent re-injury.

What have my Results Been?

I hurt my back on labor day of this year. I had been doing a bunch of work around the house the day before, and my back was stiff. The next day we took the kids paddle-boarding. My favorite paddleboard is made of fiberglass and weighs a ton. I got it, and my wife’s kayak down from the storage rack and secured it to the truck rack by myself. That was my first mistake.

We drove to the Tualatin river, and I unloaded everything and dragged it all down to the boat ramp. Drifting down the river with the current was fine. I was towing a couple of kids behind me on an inflatable toy. Coming back up, pulling the kids against the current was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

I then had to drag everything back to the truck and load it on the rack. Once I was home, I had to unload everything and put it away.

Something felt quite wrong with my back. I iced it and went to bed with a few ibuprofen. The next day the pain was worse, and it continued that way for a solid 2.5 weeks before easing up. I went to the chiropractor, and the physical therapist had a massage and started acupuncture. All of this helped, but the relief came slowly.

What really sped up the recovery was when I received my NeuroMD in the mail. I started using it daily with the recommended exercises. Slowly but surely, I was getting a little better each day using a drug-free alternative.

When I finally was able to have an MRI and X-rays taken, the doctor didn’t see anything concerning. He was worried about inflammation around my vertebrae that protects the spinal cord. He prescribed me prednisone 40 mg for five days. I felt great, but that was just a bandaid.

After the prednisone effect wore off, the aching returned. Luckily I had been using Neuro MD the whole time, and the aching that returned was less intense. I am about halfway through the 12-week program now, and I plan to keep going with the maintenance after that. I will also be smarter with my back going forward. A bad back is debilitating in so many ways. Even putting on socks can be a challenge.

How do You get one?

NeuroMD can be ordered online directly from the company. It costs about $199, and on the emailed receipt, you will find all the relevant codes that will get you a reimbursement if you are lucky enough to have a Flex or Health Spending Account (FSA or HSA). If not, and you don’t want to shell out $200 all at once, you can use Affirm (available to most states in the United States) and make equal payments over 3 months at 0% interest. Either way, you can take advantage of the promotional code I have to offer.

Click this link to sign up for our newsletter check your email for special discounts and take 10% off your order as a way to say:

“Thank you for subscribing!”

Final Thoughts

NeuroMD has been working for me, and it has worked for many others. They back up their claims with 5 clinical trials, and the device itself is FDA approved. When your back is hurting, you’re willing to try anything. With NeuroMD, it’s definitely worth a shot, and if it’s not for you, there is a 60-day risk-free guarantee. Give it a try; you just might heal yourself.

UPDATE Sept 2022

It’s been over a year since my initial back injury on labor day in 2021. I’m happy to say that I am pain-free in September of 2022 and have been for a while. If I feel the slightest beginnings of pain, I use NeuroMD again, rest, and I’m good to go. It’s all the pain relief that I need.

I have not been to my chiropractor at all this year. This summer I was paddle boarding and kayaking again. I recently went back to the gym and even re-started martial arts. Last year this time, I never thought the pain would ever go away – it hurt even to pull up my socks. I thought I was destined to suffer from chronic back pain. I really think NeuroMd is the best device for lower back pain relief.

What about neuroMD replacement pads?

Of course, you can’t use the same pads that come with the device indefinitely. Each electrode lasts for about 30 treatments. You can extend the life of an electrode pad by blotting a wet face cloth on it, but at some point, you will need replacements.

NeuroMD replacement gel pads are reasonably priced at about $49 for a one-time purchase of a three-pack and $44.10 if you go with a subscription. A three-pack should last a minimum of 90 treatments working out to $0.54/treatment. Pretty good, I’d say. I recently bought a three-pack as a one-time purchase since I no longer have to use this device that often.

UPDATE March 2023

We had quite a few bad winter storms this year in Oregon. With the big Douglas Fir trees in our backyard, there are a lot of broken branches scattered around. I went out to clean it up and decided to use an axe to remove a partially broken tree limb. I made the mistake of swinging the axe side to side (which my chiropractor said is a no-no, only go up and down).

I reinjured my back the same way I did at the beginning of this post with the paddleboard- it was the rotational motion. Anyway, I went right back to my NeuroMD and used it for a solid week and a half and had one chiropractor visit. I can say I am nearly pain-free again. I suspect another week will do it. I know I’d still be in pain if I didn’t have this device to turn to.

Alternative Devices to NeuroMD for Back Pain

Disclaimer: I am an affiliate for NeuroMD as of Sept 9, 2022, and may receive a small commission on any sales.

Clinical Trials

• Neuromuscular electrical stimulation training results in enhanced activation of spinal stabilizing muscles during spinal loading and improvements in pain ratings.
  
  “Analysis of results revealed clinically and statistically significant improvements in indicators of both muscle groups’ performance, as evidenced by ultrasound evaluation of activation during voluntary activity. These improvements were associated with significant improvements in self-reported pain levels, suggesting that NMES has an important role to play in Chronic Lower Back Pain rehabilitation.”
  Coghlan, S., Crowe, L., McCarthypersson, U., Minogue, C., & Caulfield, B. (2011). Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nml.nih.gov/pubmed/22256103

• The effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation on the activation of deep lumbar stabilizing muscles of patients with lumbar degenerative kyphosis.
  
  “In conclusion, lumbar stabilizing muscles of patients with Lumbar Degenerative Kyphosis were significantly activated by NMES. Protocol A+B maximally stimulated all the studied deep spinal stabilizing muscles (LM, TrA and OI) as evidenced by RUSI. The protocol A+B may aid the development of practical NMES systems for LDK patients who suffer from postural deformity and Lower Back Pain”
  Kim, S. Y., Kim, J. H., Jung, G. S., Baek, S. O., Jones, R., & Ahn, S. H. (2016, February. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4792980/

• Clinical effects of electrical stimulation therapy on lumbar disc herniation-induced sciatica and its influence on peripheral ROS level.
  “In conclusion, in the treatment of lumbar disc herniation-induced sciatica, electrical stimulation therapy can effectively reduce the pain degree, relieve the clinical symptoms and signs, improve the peripheral ROS level and prevent the oxidative damage of myocardial tissues and other complications, so it is worthy of clinical application and promotion.”
  Wang, L., Fan, W., Yu, C., Lang, M., & Sun, G. (2018, September). Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6146184/