Non Surgical Treatments
Surgical Treatments
Radiofrequency Coablation
Radiofrequency ablation or lesioning is a term used when radio waves uses to produce heat to destroy tissue, usually a nerve.
It is a non-surgical option to treat your spine pain. In the case of spinal pain, radiofrequency wave transmits through a needle placed near the nerve under x-ray guidance. This procedure is also known as RF rhizotomy.
It uses in pain coming from facet joint, Trigeminal neuralgia, Sacro-iliac joint, herniated disc, Sympathetic chain, etc.
Radiofrequency ablation therapy is one of the best procedure available until today to provide long lasting pain relief. It is very safe, done under local anesthesia, & usually requires few hours at the pain clinic.
Why does Radio Frequency Ablation require?
Radiofrequency ablation intends to decrease or stop pain originating from facet joints of the spine. Radiofrequency ablation uses to help patients with chronic (long-lasting) low back and neck pain related to the degeneration of joints from arthritis.
It is mostly performed after the patient has demonstrated pain relief from a diagnostic facet injection, which involves using a local anesthetic. If so, the patient is a good candidate for radiofrequency ablation.
During the radiofrequency ablation, an electrode inserts in the area near the irritated nerve in the facet joint. The electrode heats up a small area of nerve tissue, decreasing the pain signals from that specific area. The specific degree of pain relief varies, depending on the cause and location of the pain.
Pain relief from a radiofrequency ablation can last from 6-12 months, and in some cases, relief can last for years. Nerves do regenerate after a radiofrequency ablation has been performed. The time it takes to regenerate itself varies in time.
Pain may or may not return once the nerve regenerates itself. After this procedure, it is not uncommon to experience an increase in pain symptoms for 1-2 weeks after. If the pain does return, another radiofrequency ablation can repeat.