Injections are not that desirable, but they can help relieve pain. Many conditions can cause us excruciating pain. From arthritis to degenerative disc disease, herniated disc, spondylosis, spinal stenosis, etc., pain from illnesses can become intolerable. Unfortunately, finding a long-lasting solution to your discomfort can be difficult if you’re dealing with chronic pain. Fortunately, there are injections for pain relief in Greenville, SC, that you can try.
According to the CDC, 20.4% of adults suffered chronic pain in 2019. 7.4% of that number had an excruciating ache that limited their life or work activities. In another report, chronic pain is one of the most common chronic conditions in the United States of America.
Also, 50 million adults in the U.S. are dealing with this discomfort, and it causes wage loss of up to $80 billion yearly. While chronic pain cannot kill you, it makes life unbearable. It can cause stress that increases your risk of committing suicide. Intolerable pain can also get you addicted to painkillers and other harmful substances.
This article discusses how injections for pain relief work and how effective they are. Visit our health professionals at Carolina Spine and Pain Center if you need help with excruciating pain.
How Do Injections for Pain Relief in Greenville, SC, Work?
Pain management jabs are minimally invasive procedures that provide pain relief by administering liquids to patients through needles and syringes. Minimally invasive procedures refer to medical processes requiring small incisions in the patient’s body, resulting in minimal body tissue damage. They’re a less invasive alternative to surgery and can be more effective against pain than medications.
There are different types of injections for pain relief. These injections work differently depending on their purposes. We’ll discuss the various types of pain management shots and how they work below:
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Epidural Steroid Injections
Epidural corticosteroid injections (or epidural steroid injections) inputs anesthetics and steroids directly into the epidural area. The epidural space surrounds the spinal cord and spinal nerves to protect them from damage.
This injection is one of the most common types for treating pain. When injected, it helps to reduce inflammation while opening spinal nerve passages to relieve ache.
Epidural steroid injections are typically for persons with pain resulting from narrowed spinal nerve passages. Signal nerve narrowing can be due to bone spurs, herniated discs, slipped vertebrae, spinal arthritis, etc. This pain management injection typically starts working within 1 to 3 days.
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Trigger Point Injections
A trigger point is a hyperirritable area in the muscles or fascia (connective tissue) that becomes painful upon compression. This happens when knots of muscles (that you can feel under your skin) form because they cannot relax.
These trigger points can irritate surrounding nerves and cause referred pain (pain felt in another part of the body). Trigger point injections can help to treat this type of pain.
With this pain management procedure, the medical personnel injects the patient’s trigger point with a small needle containing saline. It may also include a corticosteroid.
Upon injection, the liquid relieves the pain by deactivating the trigger points. If the patient is allergic to specific drugs, the doctor can use the dry-needle technique that doesn’t require medications.
Common conditions that require trigger point injections include pain associated with fibromyalgia, myofascial pain, and tension headaches. It can also heal pain from numerous musculoskeletal disorders.
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Selective Nerve Root Block (SNRB) Injection
SNRB injections are among the most common injections for pain relief in Greenville, SC. This pain management injection is helpful when your distress results from a pinched or inflamed nerve. Selective nerve root block injection targets the specific nerve causing your pain and numbs it.
The nerve-numbing medication is deposited at the point when the targeted spinal nerve leaves the intervertebral foramen. The intervertebral foramen is a bony space separating adjacent vertebrae. This interrupts the nerve signals just before they can get to the brain to register as pain.
Doctors can also use SNRB injections to pinpoint the source of your discomfort. They may keep numbing nerves until they can determine the one controlling your pain.
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Facet Joint Injections
Facet joint injections are another common type of injections for pain relief. Facet joints are the connections between the vertebrae on your spine. They provide stability and facilitate bending, twisting, etc. Pain can arise from a specific facet joint if you suffer from degenerative conditions like arthritis or traumatic injuries.
When this happens, you may feel excruciating pain when bending, lifting, and twisting. The ache will also typically worsen with any spinal movement you make. While this facet joint pain may go away, the chances of self-healing drop drastically as the pain exceeds two weeks. In such conditions, facet joint injections can help to numb the pain.
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Facet Rhizotomy
While some patients receive adequate pain relief from facet joint injections, others may only feel better for a short while. That’s why, sometimes, facet joint injections are just diagnostic. That means they help the doctor determine the source of the pain or dismiss facet joints as the pain originator. So if the facet joint injection relieves your pain, it means the health care professional can determine what joint caused it.
In that case, they will recommend facet rhizotomy. Instead of temporarily numbing the target nerves, facet rhizotomy destroys or disables them completely. You will receive long-term pain relief after a successful procedure.
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Sacroiliac Joint Block Injections
The sacroiliac joint (SI joint) is between the opium and sacrum in the pelvis. That is, the SI joint connects your spine to your pelvis. They help absorb shock and transmit weight between your upper limbs and legs.
When pain originates from the sacroiliac joint, you’ll feel it in the lower lumbar spine, buttocks, and the upper leg. You may also feel this pain in your hip. The sacroiliac joint block injection helps relieve this type of pain.
Sacroiliac joint injections can be diagnostic or therapeutic. They can detect the source of the pain and treat it by reducing joint inflammation.
The relief from pain management injections often begins in a few hours or days. However, they may also take weeks. So, again, your doctor will typically combine these injections with physical therapy and other pain management procedures for the best results.
Do You Need Injections for Pain Relief in Greenville, SC? Call Us at Carolina Spine Center Immediately!
Regardless of the source, pain can be debilitating and negatively affect the quality of your life. Fortunately, many procedures can help to alleviate your discomfort. A spine health specialist will assess your condition and proffer the correct solution for you. In some situations, you will need injections for pain relief.
Our Greenville injury care center specialists will provide you with the best care. With a personalized treatment plan, you can expect to feel better in a short while. Start your treatment by dialing our hotlines now.
