Nerve Blocks for Back Pain

For those who suffer from Spinal Stenosis the cause of their pain is often due to a compressed or pinched nerve. This pain would begin as the spaces in the spine become smaller and smaller due to other conditions or acuminated debris. When this is the case oftentimes the only reliable way to reduce back pain is to numb the nerves in that area blocking the signals they send to the brain. There are many different ways you can do this but they will depend on the area that is causing you to have pain as well as other symptoms.

The different types of spinal epidurals that can be administered are:

Epidural

This is the most commonly used epidural; it is a combination of an anesthetic and steroid or just a steroid. The most commonly used steroid would be cortisone. Success rates for epidural injections (including statistics from other specific epidural methods) generally run from 60-70% and would of course depend on the underlying cause of your back pain and how severe it is. All three of these injections would be performed on an outpatient basis and only take about an hour to do. For this injection it would be administered in the epidural space where your spinal cord and nerves are located.

Caudal Epidural

This epidural is administered through the caudal canal. Your caudal canal is located at the base of your spine just above your tailbone. One of the reasons why doctors like to use this area if at all possible is the chances of puncturing the Dura during the injection are lower than the other two types of epidurals.

Transforaminal Epidural

For this injection your doctor would administer the medications through your foraminal canal. These canals are located between each of your vertebrae and are small openings that allow the nerves to exit out of the back and into the body.

Selective Nerve Block

This procedure can be used for two different reasons, it can be a diagnostic tool or it can be a pain reliever. These injections are most often a mixture of a local anesthetic to numb the pain and a steroid (cortisone) to reduce inflammation.
When used as a diagnostic tool your doctor injects you where they suspect your nerve damage is. If your pain is reduced this nerve is likely the cause of your back pain or symptoms and treatment can then begin.

When used to reduce pain your doctor would know ahead of time which nerve is causing you problems and would place the injection in that area.

Radio Frequency or Laser Nerve Ablation

This is actually not an injection at all but a minimally invasive procedure that can be used to reduce back pain. What happens during this procedure is your doctor would make a very small incision into the back and by using various surgical tools would locate the nerve that is being compressed or pinched. Once this is done they would abate or deaden it using radio frequency or lasers.

By doing this you can turn off the nerve so it can no longer send pain signals to the brain. The downside to this procedure is that these nerves may grow back in a few months and then begin to cause problems again.