Spinal Epidural Steroid Injections – Cervical / Thoracic / Lumbar

Overview

Cervical Epidural Steroid Injection (cervical ESI) is a procedure where anti-inflammatory medicine, like a steroid or corticosteroid, is injected into the epidural space around the spinal nerves in your neck. Its primary purpose is to manage chronic pain caused by irritation and inflammation of the spinal nerve roots in your neck, known as cervical radiculopathy. This pain can radiate from your neck to your shoulders, arms, and hands.

The spinal cord, a bundle of nerves connecting your brain to your lower back, sends signals to and from your body. When nerve roots in the cervical spine are pinched or inflamed, often due to conditions like herniated discs, they can cause pain that radiates down the shoulder and arm

During a cervical ESI, the steroid coats the irritated nerves, reducing swelling and pressure, and allowing the nerves time to heal. While these injections typically provide temporary pain relief, not everyone experiences relief from them.

Healthcare providers use cervical epidural steroid injections to manage cervical radiculopathy, a chronic pain condition caused by inflammation and irritation of spinal nerve roots in the neck. Symptoms of cervical radiculopathy include pain, numbness, muscle weakness, and tingling that can radiate from the neck to the shoulder, arms, and hands.

Cervical Epidural Steroid Injections are a common therapy for specific causes of chronic neck pain. Cervical Radiculopathy affects around 1 in 1000 adults annually, and neck pain ranks as the fourth leading cause of disability in the United States. Over the last decade, the rate of cervical ESIs has doubled among Medicare beneficiaries in the United States.