Common Types of Pain Injections

by | Feb 23, 2022 | Pain Management

For those who don’t know, pain is a protective mechanism. Its purpose is to communicate to your brain that you’ve got to react. Unique nerves find tissue damage and send pain signals from your spine to your brain. After you are wary of the pain, you can choose how to react to keep yourself safe.  

You probably know the frustration it can cause if you have struggled with pain for a long period. People want relief when they’re in pain. That is why pain injections exist.  

Today, we’re going to share with you some of the most common types of pain injections. 

Transforaminal Epidural Injections 

If you are experiencing pain in your legs or back, you might need a transforaminal epidural injection. Professionals do this the same way as a regular epidural injection. However, the needle is tinier.  

Experts use this type of injection to treat disc herniations and foraminal stenosis.  

Selective Nerve Lumbar Sympathetic Block 

A couple of your involuntary body functions is controlled by your sympathetic nervous system. This includes blood flow and digestion.  

To block the pain signals, a selective nerve lumbar sympathetic block focuses on this nervous system. It treats particular pain conditions. This includes complex regional pain syndrome, chronic stomach pain, and Raynaud’s syndrome. 

Sacroiliac Joint Steroid Injections 

For those who don’t know, you can find your sacroiliac joint where the sacrum connects to the hip bones or iliac bones. An expert will insert a needle into this joint and inject steroid medication when you get a sacroiliac joint steroid injection. 

During the process, you might notice a burning or stinging sensation. However, you should not feel pain. Before you feel relief from the discomfort, the steroid can take up to 2 days before it works.  

Epidural Steroid Injections 

A lot of professionals recommend ESI (Epidural Steroid Injection) if you are experiencing arm pain, sciatica, or lower back pain due to issues in your neck.  

This type of pain injection can treat swelling of the spinal nerves that are under a lot of pressure. Pressure can happen if there’s a narrowing of the space where your nerves travel out or down the spine.  

There are a lot of reasons why this narrowing occurs such as disc herniations, poor alignment of the vertebrae, thickening of ligaments, and bone spurs.  

If you get an ESI, you will begin to feel the effects in as little as 24-48 hours.  

Facet Joint Injections 

Your spine is made up of a lot of tiny bones. These bones protect the nerves that control your movements.  

The tiny joints at every portion of your spine are called facet joints. The job of these joints is to provide your spine stability and enable you to freely move.  

If you’ve got pressure, stress, or arthritis on your spine, the facet joints can be extremely painful. To help relieve the pain, you will need a facet injection. A professional will inject a steroid drug or numbing agent into the facet joint. Oftentimes, professionals will inject both. This can help lower swelling in your spine.