Pathway to Pain-Free

Before visiting Dr. Valente, you will surely have a host of questions.

What happens first? Will there be X-Rays? What will my diagnosis be?

Every patient and every condition is treated differently. Dr. Valente believes in the body’s ability to heal. At DISC, we follow a general patient pathway to make sure you are properly cared for, based on your individual needs.

Pre-Diagnosis

Dr. Valente will study your previous medical history. Often times, clues about your pain can be found if you’ve had any previous medical condition.

During your exam at DISC, we’ll collect your registration forms and other information. At this time, you’ll also meet with a physician to discuss your pain and/or other symptoms.

The physician will also determine if additional tests, including X-Rays or MRIs, are needed. Typically, Dr. Valente will order special spine x-rays called flexion and extension views to see if your spine is unstable. This problem is not detectable on routine x-rays that your primary care physician may have done and is not detectable on a CT or MRI scan where you are lying flat. You will typically get these x-rays done just before meeting with Dr. Valente.
After all steps have been completed, we’ll have enough information to completely diagnose your pain.

Post-Diagnosis

Based on the diagnosis of your pain, Dr. Valente will provide the best course of action to move forward.

DISC believes in the best possible course of action to heal your pain. Surgery is only used as a last resort – we attempt to heal your pain using a process of non-surgical methods first, from medication, to chiropractic, to physical therapy or injections.

If these methods don’t work, or if surgery is the most feasible option, then it will typically be done in the most minimally invasive way possible.