Spine Injections
Spinal Injections are a great way to relieve pain and discomfort in patients with neck or back pain. Spinal injections help reduce or resolve pain and inflammation so that patients can regain strength and stamina through physical therapy.
Injections frequently used at Athletic Orthopedics and Knee Center include:
Epidural Steroid Injections (ESI)
Epidural Steroid Injections can be a great solution to remove pain associated with herniated discs or spinal stenosis. The steroid is injected into the epidural space surrounding the spinal cord to reduce inflammation and pain in that area to allow healing and participation in strength building exercises.
Interlaminar Epidural Injection
Interlaminar Epidural Injection is like an epidural steroid injection in that it delivers steroids into the epidural space. However, the needle itself is inserted into space between the vertebrae. It is commonly used in patients with low back pain.
Facet Joint Injections
The Facet Joints are small joints in the back that may become inflamed due to injury, overexertion or preexisting conditions. Facet Joint Injections are local anesthetics and steroids that are injected into the facet joints to relieve pain and discomfort. In some cases, pain is relieved almost immediately.
Medial Branch Block
Medial Branch Block Injections target the nerves which supply the facet joints throughout the spinal area. Blocking these nerves allows determination of whether the facet joints are the source of pain and discomfort allowing treatment of these areas with appropriate pain management solutions.
Sacroiliac Joint Injections
Sacroiliac Joint Injections target the SI joint at the base of the spine. The pain associated with this joint is commonly noticed in the lower back and buttocks region. Anesthetics and steroids are the solutions used in the injection to relieve pain and reduce inflammation.
Selective Nerve Root Block Injections (SNRB)
Selective Nerve Root Block Injections may provide relief for specific nerve roots that are compressed, irritated or inflamed. This injection administers specific medications near the nerve root which is affected. Additionally, this injection can provide doctors with valuable diagnostic information regarding sources of pain and discomfort.
Trigger Point Injections
A trigger point injection typically involves injecting local anesthetics or steroids into the trigger points which are causing pain and discomfort. This injection can be very effective for relieving pain in patients who have a muscle knot, muscle tightness or other muscle discomfort.
Lumbar Spine Injection
A lumbar epidural steroid injection (lumbar ESI) is an injection of inti-inflammatory medicine (a steroid or corticosteroid) into the epidural space around the spinal nerves in the low back. These injections are mainly used to manage chronic pain caused by irritation and inflammation of the spinal nerve roots in the low back (the lumbar region of the spine) due to certain conditions or injuries. This type of chronic pain is called lumbar radiculopathy or radicular pain. It can radiate down from the low back to the hips, legs and/or feet. This procedure is commonly used to relieve chronic pain caused by conditions like localized low back pain, lumbar herniated disc, lumbar spinal stenosis, lumbar degenerative disk disease and lumbar osteoarthritis.
Thoracic Spine Injection
Thoracic epidural injections are a minimally invasive procedure used to alleviate spine pain by delivering medication (typically corticosteroids or local anesthetics) directly into the thoracic epidural space. This space surrounds the dura mater, the protective membrane covering the spinal cord, and contains nerves, blood vessels, and fat. By targeting this area, thoracic epidural injections aim to reduce inflammation and alleviate pain from conditions such as herniated discs, spinal stenosis, degenerative disc disease and radiculopathy.
Piriformis Muscle Injection
A piriformis injection delivers a potent combination of a steroid and anesthetic medication directly into the piriformis muscle. The steroid, often a corticosteroid, is designed to reduce inflammation and calm the irritated muscle, easing pressure on the sciatic nerve. The anesthetic medication brings not just immediate but also prolonged relief from the pain while the steroid goes to work.
The goal of the injection is to break the muscle spasm and nerve compression so that the patient can move, sit, and sleep without pain. Because it’s an injection, the medication is administered directly to the source of the pain and often achieves quicker and more focused results than oral medications.