Radiofrequency Ablation

Procura Pain and Spine

Pain Management located in The Woodlands, Shenandoah, TX

If you struggle with chronic pain, it’s time to learn about a safe and long-lasting treatment called radiofrequency ablation. At Procura Pain and Spine, board-certified physicians Kenneth Wu, MD, Thomas White, MD, and Yoann Millet, MD, have extensive experience performing this innovative and minimally invasive treatment. If you’re ready to return to a pain-free, active life, call the office in Shenandoah, Texas, or book an appointment online today to learn if you’re a good candidate for radiofrequency ablation.

713-352-0949

Radiofrequency Ablation Q & A

What is radiofrequency ablation?

Radiofrequency ablation relieves your pain by preventing nerves from sending pain messages. Your provider uses controlled heat from radio waves to create a wound on one or more nerves.

The wound stops the nerve from transmitting pain signals. When your brain doesn’t get the signal, you can’t feel the pain. As a result, radiofrequency ablation significantly reduces or eliminates pain.

When would I need radiofrequency ablation?

Procura Pain and Spine considers radiofrequency ablation when other medical treatments fail to ease your pain. Since they can target nerves throughout your body, this treatment works for many different types and causes of pain.

Radiofrequency ablation helps people with peripheral neuropathy, arthritis, and degenerative spine disease, for example. Procura Pain and Spine frequently performs radiofrequency ablation to relieve pain caused by problems in the facet joints.

The facet joints allow movement between spinal vertebrae. These joints may develop inflammation and cause pain due to arthritis, degenerative disc disease, or when an injury damages the joint. Your provider uses radiofrequency ablation to relieve facet pain in every part of your spine.

How do I know if radiofrequency ablation will work?

Before you have radiofrequency ablation, your provider does a diagnostic nerve block, injecting a local anesthetic into the nerve suspected of causing your pain. If the nerve block relieves your pain, it verifies that radiofrequency ablation will work.

What happens during radiofrequency ablation?

For radiofrequency ablation, you lie on an X-ray table so your provider can use real-time X-rays to guide the needle to the targeted nerve. They give you a sedative to help you feel comfortable, apply a topical anesthetic at the injection site, and insert a hollow needle containing a radiofrequency probe.

Once they place the needle against the nerve, they send radio waves through the needle tip to the nerve.

You stay in the office for a short time to be sure you’re ready to go home. Most people go back to work 1-3 days after their procedure, depending on their results.

What results should I expect after radiofrequency ablation?

Some patients experience immediate pain relief; others feel the improvement in a few weeks. On average, it takes about 10 days to achieve optimal results.

Once your procedure takes effect, your pain relief may last from nine months to two years. After that, the nerve slowly regenerates and heals, and your pain may return.

To learn if radiofrequency ablation can help relieve your pain, call Procura Pain and Spine or schedule an appointment online today.