BACK PAIN INJECTIONS - Ultrasound-Guided
Relieving Back Pain with Precision
Back and neck pain can significantly impact your quality of life, affecting everything from work to everyday activities. Fortunately, advanced medical techniques like ultrasound-guided back and neck pain injections provide an effective, minimally invasive solution. These injections not only deliver targeted relief but are also performed with real-time imaging, ensuring accuracy and safety.
What Are Ultrasound-Guided Injections? Ultrasound-guided injections use high-frequency sound waves to create live images of the body's structures. This allows your physician to precisely guide the needle to the exact area where pain originates, such as a joint or around nerve. By using this imaging technology, we reduce the risk of complications and increase the effectiveness of treatment.
Benefits of Ultrasound-Guided Injections
Increased Accuracy: Real-time imaging ensures the injection is placed exactly where it is needed.
Minimally Invasive: Performed as an outpatient procedure with a small needle, reducing recovery time.
Immediate Feedback: Ultrasound provides live visuals, allowing for adjustments during the procedure.
Safer Approach: The precise nature reduces the risk of damaging surrounding tissues.
Quick Recovery: Most patients can return to normal activities the same day with little to no downtime.
Targeted Pain Relief: Delivers medication directly to the affected area, providing fast and long-lasting relief.
Types of Ultrasound-Guided Back & Neck Pain Injections
We offer several types of injections depending on the cause and location of your back pain. Each type is carefully selected to target the specific area of discomfort.
Facet Joint Injections
Facet joints are small joints located between each vertebra, helping stabilize your spine. If these joints become inflamed or arthritic, they can cause significant pain.
Purpose: Facet joint injections are designed to reduce inflammation and pain in these small spinal joints.
Procedure: Ultrasound is used to guide the injection directly into the affected joint. A combination of a local anesthetic and anti-inflammatory medication (such as corticosteroids) is injected to provide relief.
Benefits: This injection can both diagnose the source of pain and provide long-lasting relief.
Medial Branch Block
The medial branch nerves carry pain signals from the facet joints to the brain. When these nerves become irritated or inflamed, they can lead to back and neck pain.
Purpose: Medial branch blocks temporarily interrupt the pain signals from the facet joints to the brain.
Procedure: Using ultrasound guidance, an anesthetic is injected around the medial branch nerves. If pain relief is achieved, this confirms that the facet joints are the pain source. In some cases, a longer-term procedure called radiofrequency ablation may follow.
Benefits: Provides immediate pain relief and helps determine the cause of chronic back pain.
Sacroiliac (SI) Joint Injections
The sacroiliac joint, which connects the sacrum (the triangular bone at the base of the spine) to the pelvis, can become a significant source of lower back and pelvic pain due to arthritis, inflammation, or injury.
Purpose: SI joint injections are designed to reduce inflammation and pain in this large joint.
Procedure: Using ultrasound guidance, a needle is inserted into the sacroiliac joint, and medication is administered to relieve pain.
Benefits: This type of injection provides targeted pain relief in the lower back and pelvis, often helping patients regain mobility and comfort.
Is Ultrasound-Guided Injection Right for You?
Ultrasound-guided injections can provide significant relief for those suffering from back and neck pain due to arthritis, nerve irritation, or joint inflammation. If you’ve tried conservative treatments like physiotherapy, medication and exercises without lasting relief, you may be a candidate for these precise, minimally invasive injections.