The Difference Between Epidural Steroid Injections and Nerve Blocks

It’s time to start dealing with your chronic pain — but where do you start? The wonderful thing about modern medicine is that you have more options than ever before; however, that also complicates the journey to less pain. 

Dr. Raul Lopez and our West Texas Pain Institute are here to clarify the options and help you better understand which is best for you. In this blog, we highlight the key differences between two of the most popular minimally invasive pain management treatments: epidural steroid injections and nerve blocks.

Nerve blocks go where the pain is

Nerve blocks involve injecting a local anesthetic (or a local anesthetic with another medication) into painful areas of the body to prevent nerves from picking up and sending pain signals to your brain. 

You can get a nerve block virtually anywhere in your body, making it an incredibly versatile treatment. There are many types of nerve blocks; each addresses different pain conditions in various parts of your body. Some of the most common pain conditions nerve blocks can help include: 

• Arthritis
• Migraines
• Cluster headaches
• Facial pain
• Knee pain
• Peripheral neuropathy
• Diabetic neuropathy
• Complex regional pain syndrome

Nerve blocks often last days, weeks, months, or longer, depending on whether another medication is used with the anesthetics. 

If a nerve block reduces your pain, we can better pinpoint which nerves are causing your symptoms and address them with more targeted treatment, like radiofrequency ablation, to provide longer-term relief. 

Epidural steroid injections target the spinal nerves

Epidural steroid injections target pain conditions that stem from problems in your spine, namely the epidural space. 

The epidural space is between your vertebral wall and the dura mater membrane. It contains fatty tissue and blood vessels. 

Injuries and degenerative conditions trigger inflammation in the epidural space. The resulting swelling compresses the spinal nerves passing through, causing pain, stiffness, and even radiating numbness and weakness. 

With epidural steroid injections, we deliver a strong anti-inflammatory medicine called corticosteroid directly into the inflamed tissues, almost instantly relieving your pain and symptoms. 

We recommend epidural steroid injections for a variety of pain conditions, including; 

• Low back pain
• Sciatica
• Numbness and tingling in your legs
• Spinal stenosis
• Herniated discs
• Degenerative disc disease

We can also use epidural steroid injections to relieve post-surgical pain. You can have epidural steroid injections anywhere in your spine, but the most common injection site is the lower back. 

Depending on your needs and pain condition, you may also benefit from our other pain management services, including:

• Regenerative medicine (platelet-rich plasma or stem cell therapy)
• Epidural injections
• Radiofrequency ablation
• Spinal cord stimulation

We also encourage our patients to live healthy lifestyles that promote musculoskeletal health. These include maintaining a healthy weight, having good posture, building strength, and eating a balanced diet. 

The bottom line

Nerve block or epidural steroid injection — one isn’t better than the other. Each injection plays a different but equally important role in effective pain management. That’s why we encourage you to see our pain management specialist. Only experts like Dr. Lopez have the experience to accurately diagnose your pain condition and recommend the right treatments. 

If you’re ready to end your battle with pain once and for all, schedule a consultation with our expert online or over the phone at our El Paso, Texas, office today.