SI Joint Injections Specialist
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Southeast Spine Care & Pain Management
Interventional Pain Management Specialists & Spine Specialists located in Savannah, GA
The sacroiliac (SI) joints in your pelvis don’t move much, but you’ll feel it if they stiffen up. If you have unexplained lower back or hip pain, Ortelio Bosch, MD, and his team at Southeast Spine Care & Pain Management in Savannah, Georgia, can help. They use SI joint injections containing steroid medication to reduce inflammation and relieve pain. Find out if this treatment can be the answer to your chronic pain by calling Southeast Spine Care & Pain Management today or schedule an appointment online.
SI Joint Injections Q&A
What are SI joint injections?
Southeast Spine Care & Pain Management uses SI joint injections to diagnose and treat chronic lower back and pelvic pain.
The sacroiliac (SI) joints connect the bottom end of your spine to each of your hip bones. They don’t move very much, just enough to keep your pelvic and hip area mobile. Chronic inflammation can set in if the SI joints are injured or worn by age.
The inflammation and stiffness in your SI joints cause lower back and pelvic pain. The pain makes you stiff and can affect your ability to move around.
Why might I need SI joint injections?
If you suffer from pain and stiffness in your SI joints, Dr. Bosch at Southeast Spine Care & Pain Management first prescribes medications, physical therapy, and other conservative treatments to address the problem.
While many people find these methods effective in easing or eliminating SI joint pain, others don’t respond well to the treatment. If that’s you, Dr. Bosch might do a sacroiliac nerve block to confirm the cause of your pain.
An SI nerve block injection contains a local anesthetic that numbs the area around your sacroiliac joints. If pain is coming from your SI joints, a nerve block will relieve it temporarily.
SI joint injections containing steroid medication provide many patients with long-lasting relief from sacroiliac pain.
What happens when I have an SI joint injection?
SI joint injections are in-office procedures at Southeast Spine Care & Pain Management. Dr. Bosch injects a local anesthetic into your skin to prevent pain during your treatment.
He uses a moving X-ray (fluoroscopy) to see where the SI joint injection is going. Viewing the needle’s progress into the joint ensures that the medication gets to the right place without causing unnecessary tissue damage.
After a diagnostic SI joint injection, Dr. Bosch will ask you to move in ways that would normally make your back or pelvic pain worse. If your level drops significantly, you can have a steroid SI joint injection.
How long do SI joint injections last?
The immediate numbing effect of the local anesthetic in an SI joint injection usually lasts for several hours before starting to wear off. The steroid in your SI joint injection has much longer-lasting effects. It works by reducing inflammation over months, sometimes longer.
While your sacroiliac pain is under control, you can do physical therapy exercises to strengthen the muscles around the joints. Should your pain return, you can have further SI joint injections. However, steroid medication isn’t suitable for frequent long-term use as it can cause side effects.
To find out if your pain is caused by a sacroiliac joint problem and get effective relief, speak to the Southeast Spine Care & Pain Management team about SI joint injections. Call their office today or book an appointment online.