Epidural Steroid Injection

Dr. John Arbuckle, will give a presentation entitled "Minimially Invasive Spine Treatments".  This presentation at our continuing medical education program for primary care physicians and practitioners, Back Talk, will address minimally invasive spine treatments. When medical and non-operative treatment options are ineffective or not a treatment option for back pain and spinal problems – interventional therapies may be a treatment option.

During this presentation Dr. John Arbuckle, a minimally invasive spine specialist with Indiana Spine Group, will highlight the different minimally invasive treatment options. He will discuss the indications and efficacy of these treatment options; including IDET, epidural steroid injections and rhizotomy. 

This blog entry will answer a few common questions asked about spinal cord stimulators. 

What are spinal cord stimulators used for? 

Generally spinal cord stimulators are used to treat chronic / ongoing lower back pain that continues following back / spine surgery. Back pain following spine surgery is a condition called post-laminectomy syndrome, also referred to as failed back syndrome.

When are spinal cord stimulators considered as a treatment option?

Spinal cord stimulators are a treatment option for lower back pain, when other medical management treatment options are ineffective; i.e. epidural injections and/or medications. 

What is a spinal cord stimulator?

A spinal cord stimulator is also called a neurostimulator – and this is a device that is a programmable generator that is the size of a stop watch, which has electrical leads/electrodes. The electrodes are placed in the epidural space near the spinal cord.

How does a spinal cord stimulator work?

With spinal cord stimulation electrical impulses are generated to relieve the chronic pain. The electrical impulses that are created interfere with the transmission of pain signals to the brain, and eliminate the sensation of pain that the patient would normal feel. Rather than pain, the patient feels a tingling sensation - which is called paresthesia. 

For patient’s suffering from degenerative disc disease in the lumbar spine – surgical treatment options are either a lumbar spinal fusion or an artifical lumbar disc replacement.  The artifical lumbar disc has recently been approved by the FDA.