Epidural steroid injections (ESI) are among the most powerful and effective minimally invasive treatments available for relieving pain and reducing nerve inflammation. Pain Management NYC provides expert care in performing lumbar injections, integrating them into comprehensive, modern treatment plans. In addition to ESIs, our patients have access to cutting-edge global advancements, including neurostimulation, body composition analysis, and high-tech interstitial laser therapy.
When you’re dealing with upper leg or lower back pain, your top-rated pain doctor at pain clinic may recommend a lumbar epidural steroid injection as part of your rehabilitation treatment plan. A time-tested method of treatment, the lumbar epidural injection reduces both pain and inflammation. Although the effect is usually temporary, lasting from one week to up to several months, the benefits can literally get you back on your feet, especially when you’re in acute pain.
As you progress through your back pain rehabilitation program, strengthening and stretching injured muscles and tissue, you can receive relief from a lumbar epidural steroid injection up to three times a year. But make sure you receive your injection from an experienced professional who uses a fluoroscopy or x-ray for accurate placement. You can trust the pain management doctors in New York because they use the latest tools and equipment available.
How a Lumbar Epidural Works
Your spinal cord, cerebrospinal fluid and nerve roots all rest inside the dural sac. Encasing your dural sac is a space filled with small blood vessels and fatty tissue that act as a type of buffer. This area is called the epidural space.
Using a solution that usually consists of steroids, lidocaine or some other local anesthetic, and saline, your doctor carefully inserts a needle into the epidural space of your lumbar spine. Because inflammation is chemically induced and often a significant factor in your pain, the saline flushes out the aggravating components while the lidocaine numbs the pain. The steroids reduce the inflammation.
Conditions that Benefit from Lumbar Epidural Injection Treatment
All steroid injections are designed to reduce pain and inflammation. Where the injection is administered determines the conditions your doctor hopes to provide relief. Some of the conditions lumbar epidural injections help include:
Avoid lumbar injections if you are pregnant, have a bleeding disorder, have been diagnosed with tumors or have a local or systemic infection. Your doctor recommends that you cease taking any medications that may cause bleeding concerns, such as aspirin or anti-platelet drugs. If you have known allergies to any of the components used in the injection, make certain to tell your doctor.
Procedure for a Lumbar Epidural Injection
Your pain doctor in Manhattan uses a fluoroscope, a type of live x-ray, to carefully guide the needle to the correct spot. To make sure he’s got the right spot, your doctor first injects a contrast dye. Although not painful, you may feel a little pressure when he injects the steroids because of the amount of solution injected — three to 10 milliliters worth.
After your lumbar epidural steroid injection, the pain doctor monitors you for 15 to 20 minutes to make sure there are no adverse reactions or unexpected pain. While sedation is available for anxiety, you don’t often need it. And if you don’t take any, you’re able to go home once the doctor releases you.
Lumbar Epidural Steroid Injection Recovery
When administered by a trained professional, the side effects of a lumbar epidural are minimal. Beyond a brief sensation of pressure during the procedure, some patients experience slight tenderness at the site, which can be easily alleviated with cold packs.
Your physician will recommend resting for the remainder of the day, with a return to normal activities the following morning. Our specialists will also advise you on when to resume any medications that were temporarily paused. Research indicates that 50 to 80 percent of patients experience significant pain relief following treatment. Results depend on the underlying condition, which your NYC pain specialists will evaluate thoroughly.
The Benefits of a Lumbar Epidural Injection
Many patients report a renewed sense of optimism after a lumbar epidural injection procedure due to a feeling of finally having control over their pain. You’ll likely reduce the amount of pain medication you consume too, as a consequence. You may be able to delay or avoid surgery altogether after an epidural injection.
Do you suffer from leg or lower back pain and want to discuss if spinal epidural injections are right for you? Our top-rated spine specialists in Midtown, Brooklyn, and Bronx are here to help. At Pain Management NYC, we take an individualized approach to every patient, providing the most effective treatments and utilizing the latest technology available in the United States. Call us at (212) 224-9555 today!
Written by Dr. Leon Reyfman, MD, FIPP, RPh
(Pain Management Doctor)