FACET INJECTIONS
What is a facet injection?
The vertebra in your spine is connected to one another by facet joints, which are located on both sides of the vertebrae. When your doctor at TriMed Spine & Joint believes your back or neck pain is caused by one or more facet joints, they perform a facet block to precisely target the source of your pain and to provide pain relief.
During a diagnostic facet block, your doctor uses X-ray imaging to guide a very small needle to the suspected facet joint. Once the needle is in place, a local anesthetic is injected. If you experience a significant reduction in pain within minutes after the injection, and if you can tolerate specific movements without pain reappearing, then the facet block positively confirms that your pain originated from the targeted joint.
Once you have a positive diagnostic test, your doctor treats the pain by injecting a combination of anesthetic and steroid medications into the same area. The anesthetic produces rapid but short-lived pain relief, while steroids reduce inflammation to provide longer-lasting relief.
How long will my pain relief last after a facet block?
Although each patient has a different response, facet blocks often break the pain cycle and lead to long-lasting results. Breaking the pain cycle several times with a series of injections may produce pain relief that lasts months or years beyond the temporary anesthetic effect.
What causes facet joint pain?
The facet joints are just like every other joint in your body, which means they’re susceptible to degenerative disease, injury, and inflammation. The most common causes of facet joint pain are falls, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
Facet joint pain typically causes a dull ache in the area of your spine where the problematic facet joint resides. When the joint is in your lower back, the pain may spread to your buttock or leg. In most cases, it only affects one side of your body but could involve both legs. If it’s in your neck, the pain often radiates to your shoulders and the back of your head.
Am I a good candidate for a facet block?
If you have lower back, leg, neck, shoulder, or arm pain that hasn’t improved or has worsened despite conventional treatment, chances are you’re a good candidate for a facet block.
If you suffer from back or neck pain, call TriMed Spine & Joint or book an appointment online.
More Questions Patients Ask
How is a facet injection different from an epidural injection?
They target different structures. A facet injection places medication in or around the small paired joints at the back of the spine, which is where pain from facet arthritis and facet-mediated stiffness originates. An epidural injection places medication in the space around the spinal nerves, which is aimed at pain radiating into an arm or leg from nerve irritation. Choosing between them depends on where your pain is coming from.
Is a facet injection diagnostic, or is it treatment?
It can be both. If numbing the joint relieves your pain, that tells your physician the joint is a genuine pain source, which matters if procedures such as radiofrequency ablation or rhizotomy are being considered later. The steroid component may also provide weeks to months of relief. A short-lived response is still useful information rather than a failure.
What are the risks and side effects?
The common ones are temporary soreness at the injection site and a brief increase in pain before the relief begins. Steroid effects can include facial flushing, a few days of poor sleep, and a temporary rise in blood sugar that matters if you are diabetic. Infection, bleeding and nerve irritation are uncommon. Tell your physician if you take blood thinners or have an active infection.
How many injections can I have?
Injections are limited rather than repeated indefinitely, because repeated steroid exposure has its own effects on bone and soft tissue. Most physicians space them out and reassess whether the relief is lasting long enough to justify another. If relief is consistent but short, that usually shifts the conversation toward a longer-lasting option rather than more injections.