OBJECTIVE To compare a newly developed minimally-invasive method for percutaneous transforaminal epidural injection (INJ group) with the existing method for lumbar epidural catheterization (CATH group). METHOD Through anatomical review of experimental rats, the cephalic one fourth of the neural foramen was selected as the target point for drug delivery. After the rats had undergone lumbar epi...

We read the article by Zhu et al (1) regarding an alternative approach for lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injections. We found that their work was similar to our previously reported article, “Fluoroscopically guided transforaminal epidural dry needling for lumbar spinal stenosis using a specially designed needle” (2). In our article, we introduced a minimally invasive interventional tec...

STUDY DESIGN A prospective study randomized by patient choice from the private practice of a single physician affiliated with a major teaching hospital was conducted. OBJECTIVES To compare transforaminal epidural steroid injections with saline trigger-point injections used in the treatment of lumbosacral radiculopathy secondary to a herniated nucleus pulposus. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Epi...

BACKGROUND Among the many diagnostic and therapeutic interventions available for the management of chronic pain, epidural steroid injections are one of the most commonly used modalities. The explosive growth of this technique is relevant in light of the high cost of health care in the United States and abroad, the previous literature assessing the effectiveness of epidural injections has been s...

BACKGROUND Lumbar transforaminal epidural injections have been utilized in the treatment of radicular pain with proven success. It was postulated that interlaminar epidural injections result in a dorsal flow of contrast while transforaminal epidural steroid injections showed good ventral flow limited to one single spinal motion segment. There have been no published studies evaluating epidurogra...

CASE REPORT Two cases are presented in which the complication of dural puncture is documented in the context of a lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injection. The hazard of dural puncture during transforaminal epidural injections, the anatomy of the dural and thecal sac, the potential for subdural injections, and relevant literature are reviewed. DESIGN Report of two cases. BACKGROUND ...

OBJECTIVE To critically review the best available trials of the utility of transforaminal epidural steroid injections (TFESIs) or selective nerve root blocks (SNRBs) to treat lumbosacral radiculopathy. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE (PubMed, Ovid, MDConsult), EMBASE, and the Cochrane database. Databases were searched from inception through 2003. STUDY SELECTION A database search was conducted by usin...

BACKGROUND Two major portals are available for delivery of medication into the cervical epidural space: interlaminar and transforaminal. The choice of which approach to use is commonly made by assessing the patient's structural pathology, one's skill in performing each procedure, and then weighing the advantages versus the risk associated with the particular technique. Over the past several yea...