Pain Down The Leg - What Not To Do About It
Wednesday March 7, 2007
Sterioid epidurals for back pain are injections of medication into the center of the spinal column, outsite the spinal cord. By delivering the steriod at the site of the lesion, it is thought that epidurals can be effective treatment for reducing inflammation, and therefore, pain.
Very recently, the American Academy of Neurology recently issued a report recommending against the use of epidurals for lower back pain and leg pain, often called sciatica. (Another name for pain that radiates is radiculopathy.) The report concludes that while there may be some pain relief associated with epidural steriod injections 2-6 weeks after, for the most part there is not enough evidence in terms of improved function or long term pain relief (beyond 3 months) for them to recommend it.
| Radiculopathy | Sciatica | Inflammation | Types of Injections | Botox for Pain | Prolotherapy |
Comments
This may be true for some people but I had 3 epidurals 5 years ago and have not had disc pain since that time. I’d highly suggest it to anyone with low back and leg pain as an alternative to surgery any day.
Thanks for commenting, Melinda. It is always good to hear from people who have had actual experience with the treatment.
The recommendations by the AAN were based on assessment of current scientific literature. In their report, the AAN acknowledges that their recommendations were not intended to cover a probable solution for every patient care decision.
It’s great to hear that your treatment solved your problem with back and leg pain!
Here’s an article
from SpineUniverse about alternative treatments that may reduce sciatica. Hope it helps someone.