Persistent neck pain or back pain can make everyday activities like work, exercise, or walking through the grocery store feel like a challenge. While many people find relief with physical therapy, medications, and other conservative treatments, these approaches don’t work for everyone.
If your pain continues despite these efforts, an epidural steroid injection is a possible next step. This minimally invasive pain management option targets inflammation around irritated spinal nerves to help reduce pain and improve function.
At Orthopedic & Wellness in Frederick, Waldorf, and Germantown, Maryland, Dr. Ojedapo Ojeyemi understands that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution for chronic pain. That’s why our team offers a range of treatment options, including epidural steroid injections, to help patients regain comfort and mobility.
Is an epidural steroid injection the right solution for you? Here’s what you need to know.
An epidural steroid injection is an interventional pain management procedure that delivers a corticosteroid medication into the epidural space surrounding the spinal nerves. The medication reduces inflammation, relieving pressure on the irritated or pinched nerve that’s causing your neck or back pain.
An epidural steroid injection doesn’t fix the underlying cause of your pain, but can significantly reduce the discomfort, making it easier to participate in physical therapy and other treatments that support long-term recovery.
Our pain management specialists use epidural steroid injections to treat several conditions that cause nerve-related neck or back pain. Conditions that may benefit from the injection include:
Epidural injections aren’t a first-line treatment. We only recommend injections when you continue to have pain after exhausting more conservative treatment options.
Not every type of neck or back pain gets better with an epidural steroid injection. These injections work best when inflammation surrounding the spinal nerve is the primary source of pain.
You may benefit from the steroid injection if you have persistent pain for weeks or months and experience symptoms such as:
For some people, an epidural steroid injection may help postpone or prevent the need for surgery.
An epidural steroid injection is an outpatient procedure that usually takes less than 30 minutes.
During the procedure, you lie face-down on an exam table while we clean and numb the treatment area. Using live X-ray imaging, called fluoroscopy, we carefully insert the needle into the epidural space and administer the medication.
Afterward, we monitor you briefly before sending you home. Because you may receive medication that affects your ability to drive, you need someone to take you to and from your appointment, and you should plan to rest for the remainder of the day.
You may notice immediate pain relief from the local anesthetic used during the procedure, but that temporary relief wears off within a few hours. The corticosteroid usually starts working within a few days as it reduces inflammation.
Pain relief varies. Some people experience improvement for several weeks, while others enjoy relief for several months, or up to a year. Results depend on the underlying condition and individual response to treatment, and it’s important to have realistic expectations.
The epidural steroid injection is a short-term pain treatment used in combination with physical therapy and other treatments that help you get longer-lasting improvement. If you have good results, we can repeat the injection up to three times per year.
If you’ve been living with neck or back pain for months despite physical therapy, anti-inflammatory medications, or other medical treatments, an epidural steroid injection may help you get back to doing the things you enjoy.
Schedule an appointment with our pain specialists at Orthopedic & Wellness. Call the office nearest you today or book an appointment online.
