Many patients with chronic pain – especially in the neck and back – are finding pain relief with minimally invasive injection therapy. The treatments offer a faster recovery time and quick 
relief from pain with up to several months of results.
Facet joint injections are an excellent treatment option for patients with chronic pain in the neck or back due to problems with the facet joints, or the small joints in each segment of the spine that help guide its motion and allow it to rotate. Your orthopedic specialist Ocean County will numb the area with a gentle local anesthetic and inject an anti-inflammatory steroid medication directly into the facet joints causing your severe pain. The procedure takes under an hour, and you will be able to go home that day. Most experience results within 3-7 days of having facet joint injection NJ treatments, and your results could last up to several months.
Side effects of the treatment are very minimal in comparison with the pain and long recovery time associated with major surgery. During the procedure, you may be slightly uncomfortable while your injections are being administered. After the procedure, you may experience:
- Numbness at the injection site for up to six hours after the injections.
- Slightly worsened symptoms for a day or two following the injections, then significant relief as the treatment begins to work.
- Less than 5% of patients could experience facial flushing, mild rises in body temperature, headaches, and bloating for 1-3 days following treatment. These are all side effects of any steroid medication and are very uncommon with facet joint injections.
These side effects are all very mild, and the benefits of minimally invasive facet joint injections far outweigh the potential negatives.
My wife Jean had eight facet joint injections three weeks ago and she is getting numbness and tingling down her right side and in her mouth. She had six injections about six months ago and everything worked well. But this time she is really feeling ill and worried. She said that the numbing injection really hurt and the eight injections that followed really hurt as well, it was as if the administer didn’t give the anesthetic time to work. We are going on holiday soon and we are concerned that the pain and numbness will not go by then.
It is important for you to call your wife’s doctor and let him or her know about the symptoms that she is experiencing. Her doctor will be able to best assess whether or not these symptoms are a result of the injections and prescribe for her the best course of treatment. Good luck.
I had injections under anaesthic 5 days ago for lower back and leg pain. The pain in my right leg is worse than ever.. There is no sign of pain reducing.
I had injections in facet joints 5 days ago for lower back and leg pain. The pain is worse than ever in my leg which was in thigh are before but is now on lower leg as well. There is no sign of pain reducing even with pain killers
It is important that you let your doctor know of the pain that you are experiencing. If your doctor is unavailable to see you, you can go to an urgent care clinic.
I had a facet injection done last week for my neck. My neck feels great but for some weird reason my knee caps and lower back hurt really bad, I have a following appointment with my doctor.
Semra, it’s great that you’ve taken the initiative to get a follow-up appointment with your doctor. It’s really important for patients to take an active role in their health and see their doctor whenever they’re having complications. Your doc will definitely have some advice/explanations for you.
I had 3 facet joint injections under general anaesthetic on 9th Feb, one week ago!
I returned to work 36 hrs later, with slight soreness at the injection sites, but little else to complain of. I did have the usual facial flushing & headache, following injectable steroids, but the surgeon gave me only HALF doses in all 3 injcetions, to avoid this. I am an insulin dependent diabetic, so blood glucose levels go sky high for at least 5 days (18-26 mmol/L (have multiple injections of insulin to combat this, but still takes it’s time to run more normal levels)!
Sadly, on that same morning at work, I had a bad fall across 2 plastic crates that had been left in a gangway, onto the floor. The same night,
I suffered tightening top of R foot, and some pins & needles lower leg. This part of my foot, + lateral llower R leg has had loss of sensation, since my fusion L4/5 surgery in 2010. My ankle since that time has been weak, resulting in my having to be selective with my footwear . With the wrong boots or shoes, the ankle would give way whilst walking.
Since this fall (which was coincidently, 36 hours post facet joint injections), the top of my R foot is feeling ‘tighter’, larger, with more extensive numbness (up to the toes now). I took a walk yesterday, in my ‘normal boots’ on FLAT ground, and my ankle gave way 6 times in during the 8 minute walk.
I am very concerned that this worsening damage is permanent, just as the initial numbness/ankle weakness was, after my initial spinal surgery?
I also would like to know, if possible, if thsi current complication id due to the facet joint injections, or more likely to be as the result of the fall? I rang the GP the morning after the fall, explained the foot tightening/increased numbness, but was told he did NOT need to see me. He said it was muscle sprain from my twisted fall, and advised pain relief
Could you please give me any help regarding 1. cause of increased numbness or 2. cause of this?
Many thanks
Judith McDonald
Hi Judith,
If you wish to get a diagnosis for the numbness you are experiencing, the best idea is to see your G.P. They will take into account all your past history. If your G.P. is unavailable you should consider attending an emergency care clinic.
I wish you all the best.
I had 6 ingections nearly 7 weeks ago ive had no pain relief. And i have had a heavy menstral bleed ever since , the same happened. After i had spinal injections 18 months ago prior to having a disc removed , is the bleeding related to the injections as it has only ever happend following. Those were procedures.
Ask your doctor if your treatment isn’t working or if you’re having uncomfortable side effects like heavy bleeding.
As a nurse practitioner who has participated in many facet injections, I have to say they they rarely work and they can be quite dangerous. Many back pain patients who are in agony are routinely refused safe and effective pain meds (Vicodin etc) and are coerced to endure painful, dangerous and useless facet injections just to make a buck for an unethical doctor. I have NEVER seen a facet injection help any patient
Hi Judy,
Facet injections are usually performed as a secondary treatment for chronic back pain. They are recommended after more conservative treatment – such as oral medications – have failed. The North American Spine Association, only suggests to consider this treatment if you have unresolved chronic back pain for 4-6 weeks. I am very sorry to hear you experienced patients receiving this treatment under coercion, this is considered mal-practice and unethical. Facet injection can benefit some patients, although, like any treatment, they will not work for everyone. Each patient should be assessed on an individual basis.
Here is some more information from the North American Spine Association:
http://www.spine.org/Documents/facet_joint_2006.pdf
I just had six injections very recently due to my Juvenile Degenerate Disk disease and spinal stenosis. I’m experiencing major weakness in my legs and almost through my entire body, absolutely making me miserable. I didn’t know if this was a regular symptom from what I have read I’ve had the itching and nausea. Should I be worried about the weakness or just wait it out? Oh and something else of concern I’ve been experiencing major chest pain…it doesn’t last for very long but when it occurs it is super painful. Any input?
Hi,
I am so sorry to hear you are experiencing these symptoms. We cannot give out medical advice over the internet, your best choice would be to make an appointment with your healthcare provider to further investigate your symptoms. I wish you the best.
I had 4 facet injections over a week ago. 8 days after the procedure, i experienced a severe migraine and called the doctor after I was made aware that one of my pupils even though it reacts to light is larger than the other. They assured me that these didnt cause this issue im not soo sure
Hi Tammy,
I’m so sorry to hear that you experienced a migraine post your facet injections, no doubt it was painful. Physicians sometimes examine pupils as part of an assessment of neurological (brain) function. If you’re concerned about your pupils, make an appointment to see your physician, as they may need to examine you (and your pupil function) in person, not just over the phone.
Best of Luck and I hope you feel better.
I had facet injections 10 days ago for low back pain related to arthritis.
While there was some improvement in pain/stiffness on right side of lwer back I now have excruciating pain on left side including shooting pain down my left leg that leaves me in tears. My doc followed up with a prescription for an oral steroid, but there is no improvement and I am basically disabled. I can’t walk or stand for more than 10 minutes.
I have follow up appointment on Monday. What questions do I ask?
Hi Robin,
Sorry to hear that you are experiencing so much pain. What questions you should ask really depends on how the pain is affecting your everyday life. How has the pain affected your ability to sleep, eat, work etc? Once you have established this, you can develop questions to ask your doctor about what is their plan to manage your pain, so integral parts of your everyday life are not affected.
Tip: It is also a good idea to write down your questions before seeing your doctor so you don’t forget to ask anything.
Hope it all goes well.