Back Pain? Neck Pain? Shoulder Pain? - You may have tried everything and no treatment is working. So what about getting an injection? Yes, this my be a viable way to get some relief. Typically you will want to try medication, therapy, chiropractic care, even acupuncture, 1st. Is severe pain still present?
Your doctor may send you to an orthopedic or neurological consult. Surgery isn't usually what your PCP is thinking here. The doctors he's referring you to most likely perform a lot of pain injections. Now, don't get me wrong, if there is evidence possibly saying "surgical consult", then that's what you'll go for.
However, in many cases pain injections in the form of epidural, steroids, and the like, may help you to get out of pain, and get back to normal.
Keep in Mind that the result of getting a pain injection may only be temporary. Those injections are only a medication. They are given in a stronger dose and possibly injected directly to the necessary area. Like any other mediation it may wear off, your body becomes somewhat tolerant to it, inflammation returns, all of the above, and/or spinal misalignments may be the root cause.
Also, like any other medication, they should not be continuously given due to some nasty side effects. Steroid injections often weaken the bone, which can end up being a worse condition than you are dealing with. I recall years ago how the doctor may give a number of these shots every year. I remember someone who had six in less than a year. Now they actually only allow three per year. This gives us a little warning not to abuse these shot but to use them to precipitate healing, which should be continued with another therapy.
Additional Reading:
- Neck Pain Resulting from C5, C6, C7 or C8 Radiculopathy
- What to do for a Pinched Nerve in the Neck?
- Sinus Pain Relief Naturally
- Pain in the Neck that Is Chronic
- Shoulder and Neck Pain
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