I'M CAROL CLARKE IN NEWS FOR YOUR HEALTH. FOR MILLIONS OF AMERICANS. THEY KNOW WHAT LOWER BACK PAIN FEELS LIKE. MANY OF THEM HAVE A TYPE CALLED VERTEBRAL PAIN. IT COMES FROM DAMAGE TO THE SPINE. OVER TIME. BUT A SAME DAY, MINIMALLY INVASIVE PROCEDURE CALLED INTERCEPT IS FINALLY OFFERING RELIEF FOR MANY OF THESE FOLKS IN THE UPSTATE. YOU WON'T HEAR RICHARD FRANKLIN COMPLAINING ABOUT YARD WORK. HE LOVES IT. AND ANYTHING WHERE HE HAS TO MOVE. WHAT I CAN DO WITH MY GRANDDAUGHTER'S GRADUATION AND I HIKE DOWN, I DON'T KNOW, 100 STEPS OUT OF CONCRETE TO SIT IN THE STADIUM AND HIKE BACK UP, WHICH I COULD NOT HAVE DONE BEFORE. BEFORE MEANT YEARS OF PAIN FOR RICHARD. HE DEVELOPED A RUPTURED DISC IN HIS LOWER BACK AND THEN NECK PAIN. PATIENTS HAVE COME TO ME WITH TEN, 15, 20 YEARS OF BACK PAIN AND TRADITIONALLY HAVE BEEN TREATED WITH RUN OF THE MILL MEDICATIONS AND OTHER PROCEDURES THAT JUST HAVEN'T QUITE BEEN EFFECTIVE. THE INTERCEPT PROCEDURE IS NEW AND ALLOWS US TO TARGET DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE SPINE TO IMPROVE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE. INTERCEPT INVOLVES MAKING A SMALL INCISION NEAR THE AFFECTED VERTEBRAE, A RADIOFREQUENCY PROBE IS INSERTED USING X RAY. THE PROBE IS GUIDED TO THE BASE VERTEBRAL NERVE. RADIOFREQUENCY IS APPLIED TO THE NERVE, CAUSING IT TO HEAT UP AND BE DESTROYED. THAT ENDS ITS ABILITY TO TRANSMIT PAIN SIGNALS, AND IT BRINGS RELIEF. GREAT. YEAH, IT REALLY IS. I MEAN, LIKE I SAID, I'VE BEEN TRYING NOT TO MAKE A HOG OUT OF MYSELF AND GETTING OUT AND DOING THINGS, BUT I PUT TOGETHER A NEW GRILL. I'VE CLEANED UP THE DECK AND WHAT RICHARD AND DOCTOR SMITH REALLY APPRECIATE IS THAT THE RELIEF COMES WITHOUT DRUGS BEFORE INTERCEPT. SO MANY PATIENTS FOR DECADES WERE TREATED WITH HARMFUL OPIOID MEDICATIONS. FOR RICHARD, IT'S JUST A TREAT TO DO EVERYDAY THINGS WITHOUT PAIN. DOCTOR SMITH SAYS HE'S DONE THIS PROCEDURE ON AT LEAST 30 PATIENTS SO FAR, AND HE SAYS THE RESULTS HAVE BEEN OUTSTANDING. BUT IT'S NOT FOR EVERY BACK PAIN PATIENT. IT MAY BE WORTHWHILE T