Radiofrequency Ablation Clearwater

Minimally Invasive Procedure to Relieve Back Pain

70 million⁷ Americans experience back pain at any given time.⁸ Facet joints are a well-recognized source of pain in patients with persistent back pain.⁹¹¹

There are options for relieving facet joint pain. Radiofrequency ablation is a minimally invasive procedure that can provide lasting relief to those suffering from facet joint pain.¹² In fact, multiple clinical studies show that radiofrequency ablation significantly reduces pain severity and frequency for one year in the majority of patients.¹⁴

Benefits

• Significant and longer-lasting pain relief compared to steroid injections¹
• Low complication and morbidity rates¹⁵
• Appreciable pain relief compared to surgery: Nearly half of back pain sufferers are not helped by surgery⁶
• Greater range of motion²³
• Lower use of analgesics²³
• Improved quality of life²
• Short recovery time

Inflamed nervous tissue in facet joint

Needles are inserted into treatment area

Radiofrequency current heats surrounding nerve tissue to create lesions

Treated nervous tissue

Before your procedure

A doctor will confirm the patient's diagnosis by making sure that they've had at least two successful medial branch blocks.¹²If the patient is a good candidate, the doctor will ask for the following information:

• Current medications, including herbal supplements and their dosages
• Drug, iodine or latex allergies
• Current health conditions

During your procedure

Radiofrequency ablation is performed under anesthetic of the physician’s choice. To begin, the area to be treated is numbed with a local anesthetic. Using x-ray guidance, the doctor will insert a needle and electrode into the treatment location. After confirming correct placement, a high-frequency electrical current is passed through the electrode, heating up and lesioning the sensory nerve. Once the procedure is complete, the needle and electrode are removed.

After your procedure

Typically patients go home within one to three hours. The patient may experience some initial discomfort immediately after the procedure, but most patients are able to return to work and their normal daily activities within 24 to 38 hours. After a few days, the patient should notice a marked decrease in pain and continued improvement over the next several weeks. The patient can expect long-lasting pain relief. Because nerves do repair themselves, the pain may return, but the procedure can be done again with similar results.