Location
2097 Compton Avenue,
Suite #102
Corona, CA 92881
ecently Miguel has been seen in our clinic for sciatic pain from his low back down his leg. The pain was described as sharp, shooting constant pain down the back and side of his leg to his foot. The pain was disabling him and affecting his work and life style. After we examined him we ordered an MRI of his Lumbar spine which showed a L5/S1 disc bulge pressing on his left L5 and left S1 nerve. We performed a type of epidural called a trans- foraminal epidural where we inject steroid around the nerve root of the L5 and S1 nerve. This reduces the inflammation and the pressure on the nerve. This resulted in pain relief for Miguel. He was able to resume his normal activities with less pain.
This type of injection is very specific to a nerve that has been identified as causing the pain, the nerve is identified by patient history, site of pain complaints and also MRI of his spine totfesi determine what disc is pressing on what nerve. This type of procedure allows us to deposit high concentrations of steroid at a particular site without having all the side effects of taking oral steroids like a Medrol dose pack or having an epidural that is not proximate to the site/cause of pain. The procedure is done with live x-ray (fluoroscopy) guidance and contrast material is used to ensure that the nerve in question is identified and no medicine is injected into blood vessels or into the spinal fluid. Once absolute confirmation of needle location is established, the steroid medicine is injected. Our results have been promising for this type of injection. If you suffer from similar complaints then this procedure might be beneficial to you. Each procedure has its own unique sets of risks and benefits that your physician will discuss with you.
Posted on 03/31/2013 at 12:00 AM
