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Anyone had steroid injections into the lumbar area? Relief? How long?
Recently I had X-rays and MRI of the lower back after about a very severe pain for weeks. The diagnosis was osteoarthritis and moderate to severe degeneration of L4, L5 and S1. I can't control the pain somewhat with medications but do not like taking too much of these. My orthopedist has suggested I try steroid injections which may give relief for up to 6 months, but if the relief turns out to be short-term it is not a good option. Has anyone had the steroid injections into the lumbar area? If so, what were the results and how long did the relief last? I am 78 years old and have been very active all my life, and maybe this is the problem. The only other option suggest it was Fusion but I had rather stay away from that as long as I can.
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@jenatsky
Maybe you could invent one or suggest it to a pain doc. I've recently been sewn up at least twice [maybe 3 times] with one that I can recall.
@bajjerfan ah were speaking of two different types of needles. The curved needle you’re speaking of is only used for suturing and come in various sizes for suturing skin back together to breast bones when they are cracked for surgery. The needle for spine injections have hollow centers or lumens that come in various sizes and lengths.
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1 Reaction@jenatsky I’ve been getting lumbar injections for 1yr. The needle is straight and they have a florascope that directs them to the right location. They do help.
@jmc50 I’m glad that you’ve found benefit as I did not. Plus my stainless steel bars prevent an injection from occurring. They just didn’t have a better fusion substance back in 1990.
I have had good relief from a lumbar epidural for up to 6 years following 2 herniated discs. But after developing lumbar and foraminal stenosis later on, an epidural partially helped for only a couple of months. I was headed for a multilevel decompression laminectomy and fusion by one neurosurgeon.
Then I got a 2nd opinion from a different neurosurgeon and he put me on a double course of Medrol (prednisone). (If you are diabetic, this might not be an option due to blood sugar effects.) The usual Medrol treatment is a 6 day descending course: 6 tablets on day 1, 5 tablets on day 2, 4 tablets on day 3, etc. Instead, my course was 6-6-5-5-4-4-3-3 and so on, over 12 days. Made all the difference in the world. Started feeling better around day 5 and the improvement continued well after I finished the Medrol. Also made several lifestyle changes: took up swimming, retired, lost 40 lbs. That was 8 years ago and so far I have been able to avoid surgery. Keeping fingers crossed.
@jenatsky Ok, well that I didn’t know.