BACKGROUND Radiofrequency ablation (RFA), a procedure using heat to interrupt pain signals in spinal nerves, is an emerging treatment option for chronic low back pain. Its clinical efficacy has not yet been established. OBJECTIVE To determine the efficacy of RFA for chronic low back pain associated with lumbar facet joints, sacroiliac joints, discogenic low back pain and the coccyx. METHODS...

BACKGROUND Facet (zygapophysial) joints may be clinically important sources of chronic cervical spinal pain. Previous studies have demonstrated the value and validity of controlled, comparative local anesthetic blocks in the diagnosis of facet joint pain, and reported an overall prevalence of 36% to 67% facet joint involvement in cervical spinal pain. The reports of lumbar facet joint-involveme...

Facet joints, as a source of low back pain, have attracted considerable attention and been a source of controversy in recent years. Significant progress has been made in precision diagnosis of chronic low back pain with neural blockade. In the face of less than optimal diagnostic information offered by imaging and neurophysiologic studies, and in the face of mounting evidence showing lack of co...

BACKGROUND Spinal zygapophysial, or facet, joints are a source of axial spinal pain and referred pain in the extremities. Conventional clinical features and other noninvasive diagnostic modalities are unreliable in diagnosing zygapophysial joint pain. STUDY DESIGN A systematic review of the diagnostic accuracy of spinal facet joint nerve blocks. OBJECTIVE To determine the diagnostic accurac...

STUDY DESIGN Retrospective, observational, open label. OBJECTIVE We investigated the efficacy of facet debridement for the treatment of facet joint pain. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Facet joint disease, often due to degenerative arthritis, is common cause of chronic back pain. In patients that don't respond to conservative measures, nerve ablation may provide significant improvement. Due to ...

CONTEXT Facet or zygapophysial joint blocks are used extensively in the evaluation of chronic spinal pain. However, there is a continuing debate about the value and validity of facet joint blocks in the diagnosis of chronic spinal pain. The value of diagnostic facet joint injections may have been overlooked in the medical literature. OBJECTIVES To determine the accuracy of facet joint blocks ...

Objective. To develop a novel animal model of persisting lumbar facet joint pain. Methods. Sprague Dawley rats were anaesthetized and the right lumbar (L5/L6) facet joint was exposed and compressed to ~1 mm with modified clamps applied for three minutes; sham-operated and naïve animals were used as control groups. After five days, animals were tested for hind-paw sensitivity using von Frey fila...

OBJECTIVE To review the literature and assess the comparative effectiveness of ultrasound-guided (USG) versus computed tomography (CT)-/fluoroscopy-guided lumbar facet joint injections in adults. DATA SOURCES PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid Embase, EBSCO, and Web of Science. STUDY SELECTION Randomized or nonrandomized controlled trials comparing the clinical effectiveness between USG and CT-/flu...