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When is an Epidural Steroid Injection the Best Option for Chronic Back Pain?

When your back is hurting, you’ll do whatever it takes to feel better, because you lose too much time at work and at play when you’re injured. Sadly, low back pain is a common problem and affects nearly everyone at some point in their life. It’s not only professional athletes who suffer from chronic back pain, but also weekend warriors and nonathletes, too. Those of us who love to play sports and be outdoors especially dread missing a single minute of activity. Staying active is important for our health and well-being, both physically and mentally.

Here at Interventional Spine & Pain, Dr. John Michels, Jr. treats patients in the Dallas area who suffer from chronic back pain. As a former NFL player and Super Bowl Champion whose career was cut short due to injury, he understands what you're going through with chronic pain. Managing this pain and getting you healed is his top priority.

Conservative treatment options first

Dr. Michels starts with a comprehensive physical examination a spinal pain mapping procedure, which means he’ll know all about your specific pain and trigger points. Dr. Michels cares about every patient and loves to share his knowledge, experience, and training in order to best treat each person’s pain. That’s why he uses a conservative and multidisciplinary approach to deal with his patients’ chronic pain and pain management. He believes in trying the least invasive options first.

He also keeps up to date on the most advanced diagnostic techniques and treatments. Having a deep and thorough understanding of a variety of treatments means that many options are always on the table. His goal is to find what works best for you, and this may include therapies like NSAIDS, muscle relaxants, ultrasound, physical therapy, or TENS. But sometimes these treatments or combinations of treatments don’t fully relieve the pain.

When to consider an epidural steroid injection (ESI)

If you have chronic back pain that’s not responding to other forms of treatment, an ESI may be the ideal solution for you. It can be used for chronic back pain caused by a variety of conditions, such as herniated or bulging discs, slipped vertebrae, or spinal stenosis. Once Dr. Michels has tried more conservative treatment options and you’re not experiencing enough relief, he may suggest interventional pain treatments, such as ESI.

An epidural steroid injection delivers a local anesthetic and steroid medication into the epidural space around the spinal cord. This bathes the nerves with medication to decrease inflammation and relieve your pain. Dr. Michels explains everything about this minimally invasive procedure to you beforehand so you know what to expect.

When you come to visit Dr. Michels, he discusses all of the options and provides you with the necessary information to make the best decision. So come in and get treated like family. You can call the office or make an appointment using the convenient online booking tool here on the website.

 

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