6. What should I expect after the injection?
You may notice an immediate reduction in your pain for the first 1-2 hours after the injection due to the local anesthetic injected with the steroid. When the anesthetic wears off, your pain will likely return as it was before the procedure. Although no major improvement generally occurs for several days, you may notice a slight increase in your pain before you notice any improvement. Diabetic patients should be on the alert for a rise in blood sugar during the first few days after the injection.

7. What should I do after the injection?
Following discharge home, you should plan on some simple rest and relaxation. If you have pain at the injection site, apply an ice pack to this area as instructed by your doctor. If you received intravenous sedation, you should not drive for at least eight hours. You may return to work the following day and resume your normal activities. After the injection, you may continue with physical therapy, biofeedback, acupuncture or any other therapy the next day providing that your doctor agrees.

8. How many injections will I need during my treatment?
A typical injections series consists of three injections with an interval of one or two weeks between each injection. However, the number of injections that you will require will depend on your response. If you have no pain following one injection, your doctor may not recommend a second or third treatment. Alternatively, if you have absolutely no pain relief after two injections, your doctor may want to try a different type of procedure or may decide to discontinue treatment. It is important to note that some patients do not have any improvement until after the third injection. If you are not sure whether you should have a second or third injection or if you feel that a different type of injection should be considered, please contact your doctor at least two days before your next injection.

9. Could there be side effects or complications?
Minor side effects from the injected medications are not uncommon and can include nausea, itching, rash and sweating among other things. Headache can also occur on occasion, sometimes requiring further treatment. Fortunately, epidural steroid injections have an extremely good safety profile and serious complications are rare. Just like any other procedure, there are always potential complications and your doctor will discuss them with you before you decide to proceed.

10. What are the chances that this treatment might help my pain?
Most studies show that this treatment help relieve pain in at least half (50%) of the patients treated. The degree and duration of pain relief are variable and depend on many factors, including the underlying diagnosis or condition being treated, duration or symptoms before treatment, and whether previous back or neck surgery has been performed. Several conditions that may improve with epidurals include but are not limited to: chronic neck pain, chronic back pain, sciatica, pinched nerves, headache from cervical spine disease, bulging or herniated discs, failed back surgery, shingles or post-herpetic neuralgia, lumbar thoracic and cervical radiculopathy.

11. Can these injections be repeated if my pain returns?
Yes, this procedure can definitely be repeated if it was helpful to your pain in the past. Although there is some flexibility with a repeat injection series, your pain management specialist will probably wait for at least three to six months after your last series of injections to avoid undesirable side effects.