RFA made my lower back pain worse. Anyone else?

Posted by mads20 @mads20, Jan 22, 2024

I had an RFA (radio frequency ablation) done in my lower back at L3 and L4 on my right side. My local Dr told me that I have degenerative joints. The RAF made everything worse! When I told my local Dr that he gave up on me and said that there is nothing else that can be done. Anyone ever experienced this before?

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yaya1215 | @yaya1215 | May 31 5:44pm

In reply to @sandyg67 "I’ve had two already and I highly recommend it. It will help with pain." + (show)

Got it.

Lisa Lucier, Moderator | @lisalucier | Jun 1 8:40am

In reply to @yaya1215 "Having it done for arthritis in back and disc problems" + (show)

@yaya1215 - welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I am sorry to hear you've had back and disc problems.

I moved your post to this existing discussion on radio frequency ablation (RFA) so you could talk to others here discussing a similar topic:

- RFA made my lower back pain worse. Anyone else? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/rfa-made-my-pain-worse/

Hoping members here in this discussion such as @jmaclellan @gently @mads20 and others will chime in about their experiences with RFA.

How has this treatment gone for you so far?

gp5416606755 | @gp5416606755 | 5 days ago

Yes, I actually have more pain and can't feel my bladder issues or bowel issues, it got me very constipated now I have had to do 4 colonoscopy preps to just get large intestine cleaned out.
Can't lift our of bed same using stomach muscles, going to pt to retrain muscles to work again inside.

yaya1215 | @yaya1215 | 5 days ago

In reply to @gp5416606755 "Yes, I actually have more pain and can't feel my bladder issues or bowel issues, it..." + (show)

❤️

cmbaczenski | @cmbaczenski | 3 days ago

I am very confused as well. Suffering from lower back pain. 2 years ago fracture the L1 T12 vertebrae. So far I have had the EPI, lumbar interlaminar with Fluro. Then Lumbar Medial Branch Block bilateral - 6 injections. Next week that will be repeated but just 2 injections. This is to exactly locate the area..?? Then the RFA, then viaDisc which the doctor requested 2 years ago after my accident when the fractures were healed and the Xrays show the discs are compressed and grating. The insurances, I am told, will not cover the procedure for the disc compression until I exhaust all the other above mentioned. What a waste of time and $$$$ since none have accomplished anything. What a system.

yaya1215 | @yaya1215 | 3 days ago

In reply to @cmbaczenski "I am very confused as well. Suffering from lower back pain. 2 years ago fracture the..." + (show)

Thank you.

joycelen | @joycelen | 2 days ago

In reply to @erdocsmom "I have had ablation for that once and it helped. I'm having it again June 9th...." + (show)

@erdocsmom These people with severe problems are scaring me so much. Perhaps they should definitely talk to their doctors. I am sorry I asked the question as I am already nervous. But some of these people sound like terrible outcomes and makes me want to cancel appointment!

yaya1215 | @yaya1215 | 1 day ago

In reply to @joycelen "@erdocsmom These people with severe problems are scaring me so much. Perhaps they should definitely talk..." + (show)

👍

erdocsmom | @erdocsmom | 1 day ago

Well, I had my second one yesterday. I do wish I had insisted on pain medicine before it. The good news is it only lasts a few minutes. I was quite sore when I got home last night but today I'm already feeling better. It helps a lot of us. I understand what you mean about being scared though. I need to have cervical fusion surgery and I canceled mine after reading a bunch of comments on it.

Lisa Lucier, Moderator | @lisalucier | 18 hours ago

In reply to @joycelen "@erdocsmom These people with severe problems are scaring me so much. Perhaps they should definitely talk..." + (show)

@joycelen, you're asking good questions. I can understand your being nervous. Surgery is a big decision and it is important to ask questions to guide your informed decisions. No surgery is without risk. Discuss specific risks related to your personal situation with your surgeon. We are all different.

Also, keep in mind that online forum like this one can give an unintentional biased opinion of outcomes. As you can imagine, people for whom surgery is successful get on with life. People who want support and tips to manage unexpected challenges seek answers from others who have been there. That can make it look like there are more problems than successes.

For that reason, I'm grateful for members like @erdocsmom who shared with you that their procedure went well yesterday.