Epidural Steroid Injection

Download the Cervical Interlaminar Epidural Steroid Injection treatment handout

Download the Cervical Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injection treatment handout

Download the Lumbar Interlaminar Epidural Steroid Injection treatment handout

Download the Lumbar Transforaminal Epidural Steroid Injection treatment handout

Epidural steroid injections are performed in patients with pinched nerves, usually in the neck or back. The pinched nerve can cause pain that stays close to the spine, but usually causes pain that radiates to the arm, buttocks, or leg. The pain often gets worse with certain activities, such as walking as occurs with spinal stenosis, or sitting which occurs with a herniated disc.

Epidurals are named after the region in which they are performed: cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and caudal to the area based on where the nerve is pinched. A combination of strong anti-inflammatory medication, such as a steroid and numbing medication is usually injected into the epidural space surrounding the damaged nerves. Sometimes minimally-invasive surgery or regenerative medication procedures like stem cell therapies are used to help open the stenosis, remove the herniated disc, or heal the damaged nerve.