Lumbar Epidural Injection

So I'm having a procedure done tomorrow known as an "lumbar epidural injection". It's supposed to reduce swelling and irritation in the nerve roots that are being affected by a herniated disc that I suffered while golfing. Basically what it entails is a steroid being injected into the herniated disc in my back. Has anyone else had this procedure done? If so, what were your results?

 

Yes I have.

I got a barrage of injections at my lower spine. I was told it's basically an x-ray machine used to pinpoint the spot.

It hurt worse than when I went in....initially. I can't really say it felt better overall either.

I got mine for sciatica and two minor slipped discs..

I actually stopped (luckily) before that meningitis outbreak happened from tainted material (I think it was NECC).

 

Had ESI done twice.....Epidural Steroidal Injection on lower lumbar

I have herniation at L4-L5-S1

I assume they'll do yours in three parts, which is usual (If they haven't said so yet) each one week apart

As for my results, it was odd....I noticed a bit of relief after the first treatment, then after the second, not so much and then after the third, I felt better overall, but it was not long lasting

Had it done again about 9 mos later or so, same results.

I moved, changed doctors and he turned me on getting done what's called a Facet Rhizotomy, that has worked the best. This is a procedure where they actually sever a nerve in your back at the point of pain. Easy explanation....there's a daisy chain of nerves that goes from vert to vert, so what they do is use this needle that heats up with radiowaves to cut the nerve. Works for 12-18 months for me. It's not permanent because the nerve endings find their way back to each other.

I get way better relief from the Rhizotomy than I ever did with the ESI

So, there is a next step if your ESI doesn't do the trick

Oh, after your ESI, take it easy for a few days, regardless of how you feel. You can easily strain it. It'll feel tender, but not really hurt

 

Thanks for this good info. My husband is having a similar procedure in his neck day after tomorrow. I had no idea what to expect. Maybe the Rhizotomy might work for him in the future

 

I had a series of 3 injections 8 years ago and I've been pain free since then (knock on wood). Good luck.

 

Thanks for the replies, hopefully it goes well!

 

Best of luck

In my circle of friends a couple of guys have had the injections. One ,it worked great,the other no. Maybe it depends on what the actual back issue is.
Sorry to hear you did that golfing,you did that swinging a club or did you take a bad fall(I've seen guys do that on the course) ?
GOOD LUCK!

 

It happened swinging a club....a practice swing at that! Felt instant pain on the follow through. Thinking it was just a pulled muscle, I went ahead and finished the round (happened on the 4th hole). Probably would have quit but it was a bachelor party outing, so I just popped a couple Advil and drank faster. It wasn't until the pain started down my leg a couple weeks later that I visited my doc, who ordered the MRI.

 

i have had it, but not under xray and not 3 together though i have had the 3. when i saw the specialist and he suggested a 4th one under xray i just stopped going. the first 3 did not work for me and in fact i am worse now i feel as i have more nerve pain. I have had to see the chiro 3 x in the last 3 weeks and this is a 10 year old injury.

Because of my age my doc will not even let me see someone who would dream of doing any surgery/procedure with my back as the damage will be far worse if something goes wrong and my husband agrees with him.

They tell me even though i want it and it could be beneficial if i was parayzed i would not think it was good. I said i would rather take my chances of having no pain but my doc has been my doc for 20 years now, since i was a teen and could not live with that decision so he refuses. For now i have accepted this as my life lol.

I hope you have good results. Make sure you get the lorazapam before hand as that makes a big difference in how you feel.

 

I had a sciatic problem for several years.

The first thing they had me try was therapy and it did nothing.

Second thing was a pain doctor and while the pills were kind of fun it didn't help my pain.

Third thing was epidurals using Xray. Total epidurals was 5 with the first one giving me relief from the pain for about three months, second one lasted about two months, third and fourth one was about one week and the last one did nothing.

Fourth was to visit a surgeon and he tried some different pain meds that at least let me sleep more than a couple hours a night but still had major pain. He then suggested an operation and it worked great. He told me after the procedure that it wasn't my disks at all. He said that when he opened me up he saw some arthritis deposits that my sciatic nerve was touching and he just scrapped them off and Bingo, I was all better. That was tens years ago and all is fine as of today.

The one thing that all the doctors told me was that there are many things that cause back pain and an operation should be your last choice.

 

I think mine happened from carrying a really heavy bag on my left arm for awhile. I lift weights and left arm was always little weaker so I constantly carried this bag on that arm. I'm assuming that was the problem. I really dunno.

I started getting a pain in my "buttbone" Lol. It shot down my leg.

Got an MRI, got the shots, didn't do much, started waking early in the morning to do these certain exercises, worked better, now I'm back to weightlifting, running, and playing bball.

The sciatica at one point was so bad, I couldn't get a comfortable position to go to sleep.

 

I also had a series of 3 shots. Two did nothing the third one gave me blessed relief for an hour and then the pain was back.

I ended up getting spinal surgery. I had spinal stenosis, arthritis in L3-4-5. The surgeon went in and scraped all that crap out and delicately cleaned around my nerves. Now I feel really good except when I have to stand still for a period of time. Then I have to shift weight and move about a bit.

 

IMO, surgery is a last resort. My doctor(s) agree. They also say this in regards to any patient. Exhaust every avenue of therapy, meds, needles, whatever before you consider surgery.

My father had a procedure on his back (herniated disc issue) and he came out worse than he went in and now lives in daily pain worse than it was before.

 

I looked that up and i have every single issue associated with that. I have not seen a back doc in years as the one i had just wasted my time and money on having to drive to the city (we do not pay the doctors here). I think it may be time for me to find a good one. I have neck, bladder, bowel issues as well as my back and arthritis all over my back. L5-S1 region is my herniated disc.

The main reason surgery is last resort is because of the nerves. Mistakes can happen so very easy and it would not take long or much for you to be screwed for life. Many people come out fine but the risks are high.

Hope you feel relief from the procedure today.

 

Procedure was a piece of cake, noticeable reduction of pain as well. Let's see how long it lasts....

 

Dont want to be a downer, but my mom had this done a few weeks ago. They were able to determine that the pain was in her SI joint. The first shot lasted about a week, she was completely pain free. Then without any warning, the pain was back, way worse than before. We had her in the emergency room a couple of times. Finally they did a second shot, and it did not help at all. Before the shot, she could walk, but not for any distance at all. Now she cannot even turn over in bed without yelping. She cannot put any weight at all on her leg. She cant get in and out of bed or a chair alone, and barely can get to the bathroom with a walker. She cries constantly. It truly is awful.

Next week they are going to "fry" the nerves to give her longer lasting relief. At this point, I think she would be better off paralyzed than in pain, as she is not really mobile anyway. I wish we had just left well enough alone, and not tried to find her relief with that first shot. I have done a good bit of reading online, and returning pain that is worse is not unusual.

I hope yours lasts longer, but be prepared to seek help at the first sign of the pain returning.

 

Sounds like they hit a nerve, which unfortunately happens. The risks are high, and her doctor should have explained them to her.

 

I would also strongly suggest getting your mom into a physio therapist asap. They can do shock & heat therapy or ultrasound therapy which might help.



To the op, glad to hear it went well. i hope it stays that way.

 

I wish you good luck with it. Pain sucks. Not being able to do stuff is boring and also sucks. Let us know how it goes.

 

Thanks. I had her into Physio care, as well as an osteopath, her general practioner, the hospital pain specialist, and the pain clinic where she had the epidural done. Her general practioner, and both pain specialists think the Ablation (or Radiofrequency lesioning) is the way to go, and at this point I don't have much choice, so she is scheduled for one next Thurs. Its more complicated because of her inability to tolerate any narcotic, her age (83), diabetes, and being on blood thinners. I do wish the doctor had explained that it could be made worse. About the only risks he associated with the shot was infection and minor irritation at the puncture site, as well as maybe allergy to the medicine. He didn't even explain that the steroid cause blood sugar spikes in diabetics.

It is especially frustrating because she had such great results at the beginning. When he asked her pain level after the shot, she said it was the first time she could remember that it was down to a 1 or 2, and held steady for about a week at a 5. Then just overnight it jumped to a 12 on a 10 scale.

On a lighter note, its kind of funny that a topic like this came up during my ordeal on my favorite message board where I go to unwind. Its always good to hear other people experiences, and I truly hope OP has long lasting relief.