Ablation in the back

May I ask how long ago he had the ablation? Was his pain caused by arthritis? I’m glad he found relief.

Yes his pain was from arthritis but also from a fall which broke vertebrae and his sacroiliac joints. First back ablation
: Feb 27, 2024, Second back ablation
: April 2, 2024 and Sacroiliac ablation was July 23, 2024.
He has been able to do many things he could not do before. Insurance did not cover the SI ablation saying it is still experimental. It was worth the price to him.
So far the pain has not returned. I hope ablation works for you. Be sure doctor does them all the time, they have the best record of success in correct placement.

Thank you for the information. It’s so interesting that the sacroiliac ablation was not covered by insurance. What makes that so different from other types of back ablation? Did he get immediate relief of some sort after each ablation? I did not and I’m wondering if they’re finding the “right nerves”! Most of my pain is in my sacrum and is definitely all arthritis related. I have an additional complication with nerve damage on the opposite side of my back as an aftermath of shingles. Sometimes the pain gets all mixed together and I’m not sure if it’s the shingles damage or arthritis. Different treatments I’m told by the orthopedic surgeon. I honestly don’t know anymore. I’m frustrated and just would like to be without pain. I do appreciate your input.

His pain relief was not immediate. doc said it takes a few weeks for the nerve to die after it is burned. He got relief always within 2-3 weeks. I think the reason the sacroiliac isn’t insurance covered is because of the rate of failed ablations. His Dr said it is the hardest to get the exact spot and many attempts fail. My husband is fortunate all 3 ablations worked for him. Dr gave him no grantee it would help. I hope you can get pain relief. I too mix up my pains, bone on bone joints, arthritis and PMR auto immune disease pain. It’s not easy being a senior citizen.

Thank you. Please let us know how it’s turning out. I’m doing the prelim diagnostics before ablation. At 79, I hope it works for me/and for you!

@ferret911 Well, day 4 now. I am not sure if nerve ablation recovery/success is dependent on the area where procedure was done? With my right knee, there is the weight-bearing issue of movement, as opposed to shoulder or spine. Just a thought. Using a soft knee brace [suggestion from a friend] and a cane to move around. Very careful not to twist or change direction suddenly.

I've read here that it can take time for the nerve to die, and that the discomfort from before the procedure may increase before it gets better. The procedure paperwork they supplied to me states that possibility, with full recovery taking as long as 6-8 weeks. They also suggested keeping a "pain diary" to take back on my 2 week check-up.

Wishing you success on the preliminary testing. I am 71, and really want this to last a long time!
Ginger

Hi Ginger! I wish you very good luck. Yes, it can take up to two months to figure how successful the ablation is. And yes, it can get worse in the first two weeks as the Area treated may be swollen and healing. I have done a Malaysia for 25 years and I’ve had a variety of successes over the years some permanent and some I have to go back for a couple times and some not successful at all because it wasn’t the root problem, the pain diary is to let the doctor know if he was in the right area. They’re supposed to do a diagnostic injection before they do the real thing to figure that out. They bring you in they inject you with a numbing agent and then they see if your pain was relieved. If your pain was relieved, then they know they were in the right area and they can go back to that area and do the ablation . If they didn’t do a diagnostic on you, then the pain diary will tell them still if they were in the correct area. Because normally what they do is inject you with a numbing agent in order to do the ablation. So if you get pain relief for the first couple days , they will still know they were in the correct area. If it wears off within the first couple days, they will know that they didn’t dead in the nerves. They just found the area. I wished they told people why they were doing these diaries, I used to think they were very idiotic , but please keep them for yourself they are really helpful over the years. Ablation worked for me until I needed lumbar surgery, which took about 20 years. Later, it did not work at all for me, which is also diagnostic because it lets me know where my pain is not originating from. It can be a slow go, but it can be a wonderful wonderful thing. Good luck.

@loriesco Yes, I had the preliminary trial, the injection to see if they had the correct spot. That was in July and it took until last week to get back on their schedule and get insurance paperwork done. The diagnostic trial went great.

Thank you for the good wishes. I do not mean to take away anyone else's story, as this thread is speaking to ablation in the back.
Ginger

Hi Ginger, may I ask what you are having the ablation procedure for?

I’ve had the ablation done in the past which it helped until I had a failed back surgery last year. A lot of my pain is the sacrum so I went thru pelvic therapy which helped a lot! Just a tip I was shown to make my own ice pack with rubbing alcohol and water which I still don’t have the mixture right it’s not getting slushy, but she had me use 2 condoms for extra thickness and fill them since no other ice pack is skinny to fit against the butt crack. ( Just give the spouse a heads up why you’re buying condoms I’d hate to see somebody getting a divorce over an ice pack ) I wish you the best of luck!