What is Arthritic Back Pain?
There are multiple sites in the back that can cause pain. The spine has multiple joints at each level – arthritis or inflammation in any single one of these joints can cause pain, as can “pinched nerves,” bulging discs, and compression fractures.
Symptoms
- Back and neck pain, especially in the lower back
- Stiffness and loss of flexibility in the spine, such as being unable to straighten your back or turn your neck
- Swelling and tenderness over the affected vertebrae
- Feeling of grinding when moving the spine
- Whole-body weakness and fatigue
- Pain and numbness in your arms or legs
- Headaches
How is Arthritic Back Pain treated?
There are numerous options for arthritic back pain treatment, ranging from over-the-counter medication to injections, to physical therapy to surgery. Not every option is right for every patient. See a specialist to determine what’s right for you.
If appropriate, an Epidural Steroid Injection can be performed by the physicians at ECCO.
What is Epidural Steroid Injection (ESI)?
The Epidural Steroid Injection is literally a “Spine Injection.” It is a short, image-guided procedure where steroids are delivered via a needle directly into the region of pain in the spine to help reduce inflammation. While patients are lying on their stomach on our X-ray table, a local anesthetic is applied and your physician guides the needle into the region of pain and injects steroids.
This is a minimally-invasive procedure, performed in our comfortable, office-based laboratory, which means that there is no need to take time off work or go to a hospital. Typically, no sedation is required. There is no need for recovery time and patients walk out of the office afterwards. Expect some redness and soreness in the region of treatment for up to one week.
