Spine / Vertebrae
Neuro-Interventional Radiologists are able to treat many painful conditions of the spine using imaging guidance with fluoroscopy (x-ray) or computed tomography (CT). Spinal nerves and joints may be accessed percutaneously (by placing needles through the skin) allowing injection of anesthetic and anti-inflammatory medications that relieve pain and reduce inflammation.
Spinal augmentation procedures where needles are placed into the vertebrae (spine bones) allowing delivery of bone cement can also be performed on an outpatient basis for pain relief, spinal stabilization, and restoration of spinal biomechanics. The procedures we perform include:
- Vertebroplasty (stabilizing painful fractures or tumor containing vertebra by injecting bone cement)
- Kyphoplasty (creating cavities within the fractured or tumor-containing vertebra using balloons prior to injecting bone cement)
- Coblation of Spinal Tumors (vaporization and removal of tumor tissue prior to injecting bone cement)
- Sacroplasty (stabilization of painful fractures of the sacrum by injecting bone cement)
- Epidural steroid injections (injection of corticosteroids, an anti-inflammatory agent ± local anesthetic around spinal nerves as they exit the spinal cord)
- Selective nerve root blocks (targeted injections of steroid ± local anesthetic around individual nerve roots as they exit the spine)
- Facet joint injections (targeted injections of steroid ± local anesthetic into the small joints of the spine)
- Sacroiliac joint injections (injection of steroids ± local anesthetic into the joint between the sacrum and pelvis)
- Intercostal nerve blocks (targeted injection of steroids ± local anesthetic around nerves of the thorax for palliation of rib fractures and costochondritis)
- Greater occipital & third occipital nerve blocks (targeted blocks of the respective nerves for treatment of occipital neuralgia)
