BACKGROUND There is uncertainty in the literature over the relative effectiveness of lumbar epidural interlaminar (IL) steroid injection versus transforaminal (TF) steroid injection for lumbar radiculopathy. Most studies to date have been retrospective, or technically focused. OBJECTIVE To complete a randomized, blinded, prospective outcome study of the short-term benefit for IL versus TF epi...

OBJECTIVE Regarding the efficacy of joint lavage in the treatment of knee OA, we evaluated reports of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to assess the efficacy of joint lavage alone or joint lavage combined with IA steroid injection to alleviate pain and improve function in knee OA. METHODS We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials for all reports pub...

There have been several case reports in the literature of neurolytic transversus abdominis plane (TAP) blocks being used for malignant abdominal wall pain. However, most used phenol as a neurolytic agent. We found only a single case report by Sakamoto using alcohol for TAP neurolysis. Unfortunately this patient passed away only 5 days after performance of the block. We attempt to extend upon th...

BACKGROUND Tennis elbow is an overuse injury affecting people performing repetitive forearm movements. It is a soft tissue disorder that causes significant disability and pain. The aim of the study was to establish that an intramuscular steroid injection is effective in the short-term pain relief and functional improvement of tennis elbow. The severity of pain at the injection site was monitore...

BACKGROUND The pathophysiology of lumbar radicular pain is a subject of ongoing research. The prevalence of sciatica or radiculitis ranges from 1.2% to 43%. Epidural injections are one of the most commonly performed interventions in the United States in managing chronic low back and lower extremity pain secondary to disc herniation and radiculitis. There is a paucity of evidence with contempora...

BACKGROUND Enthesopathies are a common cause of axial pain that is amenable to "minimally invasive" therapy. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effectiveness of injection therapy for enthesopathies. DESIGN Single blinded, randomized, and cross-over study. METHODS Thirty-five patients diagnosed as having painful enthesopathies as a major pain generator were studied. Of the patients studied, 86% of ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Vertebral augmentation is an established treatment for painful osteoporotic vertebral fractures of the spine. Nevertheless, patients may continue to have significant back pain afterward. The purpose of this study was to assess the source of persistent or recurrent back pain following vertebral augmentation. MATERIALS AND METHODS Our institutional review board approved t...

PURPOSE To review treatments for osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK) received by patients across five European countries, and to obtain patients' perceptions and willingness to pay for current treatments. PATIENTS AND METHODS A prospective, internet-based, double-blind survey of adults with OAK was conducted in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The questionnaire included que...

Introduction: Involvement of the skeleton can cause an excruciating pain in two-thirds of terminal patients with a history of malignancy. Due to several limitations of other therapies, such as analgesics, bisphosphonates, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy and external beam radiotherapy; bone-seeking radiopharmaceuticals have an important role in palliation of pain from bone metastases. Although th...