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Facet Arthritis Treatment Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How common is surgery for facet arthritis?

Surgery for isolated facet disease is common. There simply is not a consistent and predictable result. Surgery in the form of facet and spinal segment fusion is available and the results have been generally good especially when coupled with a fusion of the disc space using fusion cages and spinal instrumentation.

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A caudal epidural injection is similar to a regular epidural except that the injection is performed very low in the spine at a location called the sacral hiatus.
An epidural block is one of the most common pain management procedures and has been around for quite some time.
A transforaminal epidural injection is similar to the standard epidural but differs in that access to the epidural space is gained through the foraminal canal.
Radio frequency nerve ablation can be performed to destroy, or ablate, the nerve endings around a certain structure when other attempts at pain management have failed.
OTC meds for back pain (over the counter medicine) may be used to combat some of the inflammation and pain felt in the early stages of back injury.
Back traction can come in many forms. Cervical traction and lumbar traction are believed to work by stretching the back muscles to relieve chronic spasm as well as reversing the effects of gravity.
Participating in water exercises in a low or zero gravity environment allows individuals to work muscles or joints without having to support them at the same time.
Ranging from anti-inflammatory to anti-spasm medication, prescription medication for back pain can help alleviate this pain.
Minimally invasive percutaneous fusion surgery involves placing screws into the vertebral pedicles percutaneously through small incisions using television x-ray.
Spinal fusion surgery is considered one of the “gold standard” operations in spinal surgery and has been performed for close to 100 years.
If a spinal fusion needs to be performed, we know that screw instrumentation increases fusion success rates. This is the procedure performed by the majority of spinal surgeons today, especially if a laminectomy is also performed.
Laser Ablation uses very high heat and energy of a laser to ablate the nerve endings and the adjacent affected soft tissue.