Steroid Injections Offer Short Term Relief, study shows

The pain associated with sciatica can be intense, often shooting pains down one leg due to pressure being put on the sciatic nerve. It can also involve numbness, tingling and weakness.

Study Shows that Steroid Injections
Offer Only Short Term Relief

One of the treatments that an Orthopedic Doctor may recommend for sciatica is an epidural. This involves the injection of a steroid into the joint spaces of the spine.

A new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine on Nov 13, showed that these steroid injections often only provide short term pain relief. This study involved 3100 patients who were followed for over a year. 23 Clinical trials were measured.

"The review showed that [epidural injections] offered only small, short-term improvement in pain and disability for people with sciatica and had no long-term effect," said Dr. Chris Maher, a professor of physiotherapy at the School of Public Health at the University of Sydney in Australia (co author).

The results showed that at 2 weeks and 3 months after treatment, 10 trials showed leg-pain relief and 14 reported improvements in disability. But after a year or more, no differences were found in leg pain, back pain or disability for those given injections compared to those given a placebo.

"Given that the treatment effect is likely to be small and short term, patients with sciatica should discuss the potential risks involved in [steroid injections] with their doctor before agreeing to the procedure" said Maher, who also is director of the George Institute for Global Health, in Sydney.

These findings are very similar to an earlier study that showed that the steroid injections are no better than anti inflammatory medications.

At our Glastonbury chiropractic Office we offer non surgical spinal decompression treatments for patients with sciatica and leg pain. Call our office to see if you are candidate for this treatment.

The Glastonbury Chiropractor is located in central Connecticut- CT Spine and Disc Center specializes in patients who suffer from sciatica, disc degeneration, bulging disc or herniated disc in the lumbar spine. Call our chiropractic office at 860-633-8756 to schedule an appointment and to see if you are a candidate for non surgical spinal decompression

Source: Steroid Shots for Sciatica: Benefits only Brief, Analysis Finds US News 11/12/2012

Additional Reading Resources:

• Traction Products for the Lower Back Pain Relief
• Lower Back Supports - Lumbar Belts
• Do Your Suffer from back and leg pain due to sciatica
• Non Surgical Spinal Decompression in Connecticut
• Contact the Glastonbury Chiropractor

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