What are the Facet joint Injections or blocks?
Facet injections are used for patients with low back pain and leg pain stemming from inflammation or irritation of the facet joints. These patients normally do not respond to other conservative means, such as oral anti-inflammatory medication, rest, lumbar corsets or physical therapy. Facet injections may provide relief of pain and inflammation as well as provide more diagnostic information for your physician. Facet blocks can be used as a diagnostic test to determine if the patient will benefit from a facet radiofrequency rhizotomy. The pain relief can last from days to years, or in some cases, permanently. The physician uses a relatively short-acting anesthetic to temporarily numb nerves to relieve pain. A long-acting steroid medication is frequently added to the anesthetic to reduce swelling and inflammation, and to provide more lasting pain relief. The procedure takes just a few minutes; fluoroscopy (x-ray) is used so that the exact location of pain can be pinpointed.
