Facet Joint Injection vs. Epidural Injection: Which is Right for You?
Chronic pain in your back or neck causes more than just discomfort—it can significantly disrupt your day-to-day activities, as anyone who struggles with it knows. Simple tasks like bending down to pet your dog, getting out of bed, or even climbing into your car can become daunting and painful. Unfortunately, managing chronic pain can be complex, with no one-size-fits-all solution.
At Desert Spine and Sports Physicians, we understand these challenges and offer highly effective tailored treatment options, such as facet joint injections and epidural steroid injections, to help alleviate back and neck pain and restore your quality of life.
What is a Facet Joint Injection?
In some cases, chronic neck pain and back pain may stem from the small joints between each vertebra in your spine. These joints, which help control spinal movement, can become inflamed and painful due to arthritis, injury, or repetitive stress. A facet joint injection can provide both diagnostic value and targeted relief. These injections can also pave the way to more long-lasting relief with radiofrequency ablation (RFA).
A facet joint injection involves the precise injection of anesthetic and anti-inflammatory medication directly into this small joint. Essentially, by delivering medication directly to these problematic joints, facet injections can diagnose the root source of pain and provide significant relief, helping patients return to their daily activities pain-free.
What Are Epidural Steroid Injections?
Epidural steroid injections tackle pain differently than facet joint injections. Instead of targeting the joint directly, they target the “epidural space,” or that crucial area surrounding your spinal nerve where irritated nerves are causing all the trouble.
The epidural space serves as a highway where your nerve roots travel. When there’s inflammation or compression in this space (often from conditions like herniated discs or spinal stenosis), these nerves can become seriously irritated. That’s when you might experience that classic shooting pain, numbness, or tingling that travels from your spine into your legs or arms.
Epidural steroid injections are particularly effective for patients who have nerve-related pain (such as from sciatica or cervical radiculopathy) that radiates from their spine into their extremities, making it a go-to treatment for conditions like herniated discs, arthritis, or spinal stenosis where nerve compression is the main culprit.
Key Differences Between Facet Joint and Epidural Injections
Despite their procedural similarities, facet joint injections and epidural injections serve distinct purposes. Facet injections target the small joints between vertebrae and are ideal for diagnosing spinal pain conditions and, in some cases, helping determine appropriate treatments for longer-lasting pain relief.
In contrast, epidural injections are delivered into the space surrounding the spinal nerve roots, addressing radiating nerve pain that travels into the arms or legs, such as sciatica.
Here’s a summary of their fundamental differences:
- Facet joint injections target the small joints between vertebrae
- Epidural steroid injections target radiating spinal nerve pain
- Facet joint injections can be an extremely valuable diagnostic tool
- Epidural steroid injections commonly treat nerve pain from herniated discs, spinal stenosis, arthritis, and sciatica
Which is Right for You? Find Pain Management in Phoenix, AZ Today
At Desert Spine and Sports Physicians, we know that every patient’s needs are unique and that no two treatment approaches should be the same. That’s why we begin each new conversation with a thorough evaluation and personalized non-surgical treatment plan. Our Arizona-based spine specialists will determine if facet joint injections or epidural steroid injections are right for you.
If chronic back pain or neck pain holds you back, we’re here to help. Reach out to connect with one of our Board-Certified Physiatrists, who are fellowship-trained in Interventional Spine and Musculoskeletal Medicine, today. Together, we’ll help find the treatment plan that’s right for you.