Facet Joint Injection

Cervical Facet Radiofrequency Neurotomy

mlepore — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 09:47:04 -0700

This minimally invasive procedure, also known as a Radio Frequency (RF), reduces or eliminates the pain of damaged facet joints by disrupting the medial branch nerves that carry the pain signals.

Radiofrequency Rhizotomy for Spinal Stenosis

Ben Parr — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 15:35:29 -0800

A physician answers patient questions about radiofrequency rhizotomy for spinal stenosis.

Question: Radiofrequency Heat for Spinal Stenosis?

My 90 year old mother suffers from spinal stenosis. A recent Wall Street Journal article mentions that in patients with back pain due to arthritis, doctors are using radio-frequency heat to deaden nerves.

Pain Management for Degenerative Spondylolisthesis

Ben Parr — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 15:35:25 -0800

A physician answers patient questions about pain management for degenerative spondylolisthesis.

Question: Treatment for facet joint pain?

What are the options for treating facet joint that has slipped slightly forward at L-4 and L-5 (as results of MRI showed)? I have tried Vioxx and stretching and strengthening exercises for 3 months.

Facet Joint Injection Results and Follow-up

Ben Parr — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 14:32:38 -0700

On the day a patient is to receive a facet joint injection, they are advised to avoid doing any strenuous activities, unless instructed by their physician. The patient should not drive the day of the injection unless approved by the treating physician. If sedation was used, the patient should not drive for 24 hours after the procedure.

Facet Block

spine-health — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 07:52:50 -0800

Definition

An injection of local anesthetic into a painful facet joint in the cervical, thoracic or lumbar spine. A facet block usually has two goals: to help diagnose the cause and location of the pain and also to provide pain relief.

Typically, a mixture of anesthetic (such as lidocaine) and an anti-inflammatory medication (such as cortisone) is injected into the joint.

Related information

Injections
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Facet Joint Injections for Back Pain Relief Video

spine-health — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 11:19:41 -0800

Facet joints are small joints at each segment of the spine that provide stability and help guide motion. Facet joints can become painful due to arthritis, back injury, or mechanical stress. A facet joint injection delivers a steroid medication which anesthetizes the joints and blocks the pain. This interactive video gives a clear picture of a facet joint injection.

What You May Not Know About Chronic Pain Relief

spine-health — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 09:06:04 -0800

If you're suffering from chronic pain it's likely that you've tried quite a variety of treatment options in search of pain relief. To help you achieve a more manageable pain level, this newsletter explores a number of options that might apply to your unique pain experience.

Radiofrequency Neurotomy for Facet and Sacroiliac Joint Pain

spine-health — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 00:10:00 -0800

Injections for Back Pain Relief

spine-health — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 00:10:00 -0800

Injections comprise another relatively conservative treatment option for low back pain. They are typically considered as an option to treat low back pain after a course of medications and/or physical therapy is completed, but before surgery is considered. Injections can be useful both for providing pain relief and as a diagnostic tool to help identify the source of the patient’s back pain.

Injections for Back Pain Management

spine-health — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 00:10:00 -0800

Selective nerve root block (SNRB) for diagnosis and back pain management

Another common injection, a selective nerve root block (SNRB), is primarily used to diagnose the specific source of nerve root pain and, secondarily, for therapeutic relief of low back pain and/or leg pain (see Figure 1).

Medial Branch Nerve Blocks

spine-health — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 00:09:59 -0800

Pain caused by the facet nerves

Medial branch nerves are small nerves that feed out from the facet joints in the spine, and therefore carry pain signals from those joints. Facet joint injections are often used to identify a pain source; however, these injections, and other treatments that may be tried, do not always provide lasting pain relief.

Cervical, Thoracic and Lumbar Facet Joint Injections

spine-health — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 00:09:59 -0800

Facet joints are small joints at each segment of the spine that provide stability and help guide motion. The facet joints can become painful due to arthritis of the spine, a back injury or mechanical stress to the back. A cervical (neck), thoracic (upper back) or lumbar (lower back) facet joint injection involves injecting a steroid medication, which can anesthetize the facet joints and block the pain.

Treatment Options for Synovial Cysts

spine-health — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:50:16 -0800

There are three main treatment choices for synovial cysts in the lumbar spine:

Observation and activity modifications
Injections
Surgery

Observation and activity modification

If the synovial cyst is not creating a lot of dysfunction or pain in the patient’s daily life, no medical treatments may be necessary. Since the pain is usually caused by certain positions, changing positions is a reasonable way to deal with the pain as long as a patient can still function adequately.