Spinal Injections are recommended when oral medications for neck and back pain are insufficient. Spinal injections are becoming popular all over the world. Specialty Care Clinics provides the best stem cell and PRP injection treatment in Texas.
The PRP therapy uses the patient’s own blood cells to elevate healing in a damaged location. Joint and trauma-related wound healing can be enhanced by using PRP injections. Other conditions which can be managed are male pattern baldness, fastening the growth of hair transplants and aesthetic surgeries.
Stem cells are single cells that have the ability to differentiate into many different cell types. Brain cells and muscle cells are among them. In specific cases, they can also repair damaged tissue. In this article, we will discuss how spinal injections will help reduce neck and back pain in six ways.
Epidural steroid injection
This type of spinal injection is injected into the irritated epidural space in an area of the spine to reduce pain and inflammation. The epidural space contains nerves, fat, and blood vessels and surrounds the dura. Pain often radiates from the spine to the arms and legs.
Prior to injection, the spinal cord area is washed and numbed with an anaesthetic. Epidural steroid injections can be administered as pure steroids or anaesthetics, or as a combination of steroids and saline. When the injection is administered, the following things happen:
- The inflammatory response is reduced by removing the chemical and mechanical causes of pain.
- Immune system activity is reduced to reduce the formation of inflammatory cells in the body.
Side effects of epidural steroid injections include headache, dizziness, nausea, fainting, and flushing. Side effects disappear after a while. Side effects are rare, but if something goes wrong, bleeding, spinal cord infections, etc. can occur.
Medial branch nerve blocks
A spinal injection, known as a medial branch block, is used to silence pain signals from the medial nerve. The medial nerve traverse across the facet joint. Facet joints in the spine allow movement between the vertebrae.
Although medial branch blocks can provide temporary pain relief, they are often used as a diagnostic tool to identify the cause of back pain and subsequent steps in the treatment plan. It means the pain will reoccur a few years later if the proper medication is not given. Short-term side effects include numbness and tenderness at the injection site, headache, and insomnia.
Facet Injections
Pain relievers and anti-inflammatory drugs are injected directly into the facet joints to reduce the pain of facet joint injections. Facet joints are a pair of small joints between each vertebra at the back of the spine. These joints can become painful from time to time due to wear and tear from trauma or from years of use.
Pain can come from the back or neck. Steroids are available in spinal remedies to help reduce inflammation in the affected area. Local anaesthesia is administered during the injection process.
After the pain relievers wear off, you may feel pain for several days. Other side effects include temperature, weight gain, anxiety, mood swings, swelling, and fluid retention. Side effects are rare, but if they persist, talk to your doctor for a remedy.
Radiofrequency ablation
Radiofrequency ablation is a minimally invasive process that reduces the size of growths in the body. Radiofrequency ablation treats chronic, benign and cancerous back and neck pain. During surgery, a needle-like probe is inserted into the body. The probe sends high-frequency waves into the surrounding tissue, killing cells in the area. The immune system eliminates these dying cells as soon as they appear, triggering an internal reaction that causes the nodule to shrink.
Inserting the tip of the probe into the correct position is delicate and requires the use of ultrasound or another imaging technique by the healthcare provider. The process does not require general anaesthesia, but medications can be given to help relax and numb the area receiving the injection. Rare side effects include bleeding or infection at the injection site. After radiofrequency ablation vaccination, you can return to normal activities.
Sympathetic nerve blocks
Sympathetic nerve blocks are a type of spinal injection which is administered to treat chronic pain in the back and neck. The spine is the source of sympathetic nerves. They control bodily processes such as blood flow and digestion and send pain signals. If the spine malfunctions, all these processes will stop functioning properly.
All over your body, these nerves gather in structures known as ganglions, where nerve blocks are applied. If you have pain in your upper body, blocking the stellate ganglion in your neck area could offer pain relief. If you have discomfort in your lower body, a lumbar sympathetic block may be directed at a ganglion near the lower spine.
Regenerative therapy
Utilizing your body’s powerful growth factors, regenerative injections boost, expedite, and advance the body’s natural healing process. While many forms of regenerative medicine research are still being conducted, some, such as stem cell and PRP treatment, have already been effectively used in clinical settings.
Platelet-rich plasma therapy employs platelets in your blood in contrast to bone marrow concentrate therapy, which uses stem cells from your bones. These essential growth factors lessen discomfort through cellular damage repair when injected into an inflamed neck and back area.