ESIs are a key tool for easing pain in spinal conditions. They are an essential part of the arsenal. Use corticosteroid injections. Doctors inject them around the membranes that cover your spinal cord. They go into the bony canal in your lower back that contains your nerve roots. The epidural space is known as the area. The injections reduce inflammation and pain. The epidural steroid injection can benefit patients with chronic pain due to a variety of conditions.
- Herniated Discs happen when the soft inner part of a spinal disc pushes through its outer shell. This material then presses on a spinal nerve. It can lead to severe pain, numbness, and weakness in the affected areas. The epidural steroid injection can reduce the inflammation of the nerve roots. This inflammation causes pain and reduces mobility.
- A common cause of spinal stenosis is osteoarthritis. It weakens the spine’s ligaments and presses into the spinal canal. This happens as the discs between the vertebrae shrink with age. These ESI’s reduce swelling or inflammation from this compression. This eases the symptoms and lets our patients function longer without major limits.
- Degenerative Disc Disease: The spine’s discs lose water and stretch as we age. This can cause pain because they can’t absorb shock as well. If chronic pain is due to this process, it’s recommended to reduce the inflammation. ESIs take hold, providing brief pain relief.
- Sciatica itself is not a condition, but a symptom of another problem in the spine or with the nerve in the area. Nerve compression often stems from herniated discs or bone spurs. ESI’s can reduce the inflammation and pain along the nerve pathway for some time.
- Spondylolisthesis occurs when a vertebra slips forward onto the one below. This compression presses on nerves, causing pain. ESI’s can reduce the inflammation and nerve irritation from this slippage. This causes the pain to go down and function to get better.
- Patients have FBSS when they still feel pain after spine surgery. ESIs provide a way to ease pain and reduce inflammation. Some patients need pain management after their surgery for knee pain. Others need it for chronic inflammation that continues after the surgery.
ESIs do not cure these conditions. They skillfully control pain, enhancing life’s quality. They are often part of a full treatment plan. The plan includes physical therapy, medications, and lifestyle changes.
