If you’re living with chronic pain from compressed or irritated spinal nerves, you know how it disrupts every aspect of your life. Pinched nerves can cause intense pain in your legs and back, inhibiting you from doing things you love. At OC Wellness Physicians Medical Group, we offer several non-surgical treatments for those living with chronic pain. Transforaminal epidural injections are one treatment we offer that could help relieve your back and leg pain.
WHAT ARE TRANSFORAMINAL EPIDURAL INJECTIONS?
A transforaminal epidural injection delivers medication through the opening on the side of the spine. This opening in the vertebrae is known as foramen, and it’s where the nerve root exits.
During this procedure, medicine is injected into the space outside the membrane that protects your spine. The medicine contains an anesthetic and a steroid. The anesthetic works by numbing the pain, and the steroid works by reducing inflammation that’s causing pain.Together, they directly target the area around your nerve root to minimize pain at the source.
WHAT DO TRANSFORAMINAL EPIDURAL INJECTIONS TREAT?
Transforaminal injections can effectively treat back and leg pain caused by conditions such as:
- Herniated discs
- Sciatica
- Degenerative disc disease
- Spinal stenosis
- Failed back surgery syndrome
- Arthritis in the spine
Countless patients have found effective pain relief with transforaminal epidural injections. Epidural injections are minimally invasive and low risk. And these injections can be used alongside other healing modalities to further increase your quality of life.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR TRANSFORAMINAL EPIDURAL INJECTIONS TO WORK?
You may feel some relief immediately after the injection due to the numbing medicine. Once this wears off, it may take a couple of days for the steroid to begin relieving the painful inflammation in your spine. It may take up to two weeks to start feeling results.
HOW LONG DO THE EFFECTS LAST?
How long your transforaminal epidural injection lasts will depend on your unique condition. Many patients experience pain relief for anywhere from two to six months. If needed, we can repeat the injection. Injections can also be used with other pain-relieving therapies, including physical therapy, acupuncture, and chiropractic care.
WHAT TO EXPECT AT YOUR VISIT
Your in-office transforaminal epidural injection procedure will take about 30 minutes, and you’ll go home the same day after a short monitoring period.
Once you’ve changed into a gown, we’ll clean the injection site and provide a local numbing agent. We may also give you sedative medication to help keep you calm and comfortable.
Next, your doctor will insert a small needle into the foramen using x-ray guidance to ensure proper placement. You may feel some pressure or discomfort while the pain-relieving medicine is being injected into the targeted space.
We’ll monitor you for a short time, and you can go home the same day. You’ll need to arrange to have someone drive you home afterward. For any lingering discomfort, you can use an ice pack on the injection site. You can also take acetaminophen. You’ll need to avoid anti-inflammatory medications like ibuprofen for 24 hours after the injection.
We’ll follow up with you to evaluate your pain levels. We may ask you to keep a daily diary to track the pain-relieving effects following the procedure to help us further personalize your pain-management treatment plan.
Our goal is to help you find healing and improve your chronic pain so you can get back to doing the things you love.
A transforaminal epidural injection is a fast, low-risk procedure that could help you find substantial pain relief.
Schedule a consultation with one of our pain-management specialists to see if transforaminal epidural injections are right for you.