ESI on Tuesday--what to expect?

**nursechicrn** · 02-25-2011, 10:54 PM

Hi all!

I have only posted in the introduction section before but have been reading through the forums and have found them to be quite helpful! I just had a second opinion for my L4-S1 DDD and low back pain on Wednesday. I was so glad I got the second opinion, and although his recommendation was the same as the first, ALIF, he also recommended a trial of ESI, hence why I am perusing this forum.

I have never seen one of these done and have no information on them. The neuro I saw referred me to an anesthesiologist at a pain clinic that I won't meet until the day of the procedure. I am wondering if anyone can give me details/blow-by-blow of the procedure so I know what to expect i.e. how long the entire process takes, what they do during the procedure, recovery after, etc.

I declined sedation, partly because I don't have a ride home and partly because my inclination is that it just won't be that big of a deal, but tell me if I am way off base!

The pre-op nurse I spoke with on the phone said that they will start an IV anyway for safety purposes, but that seems like a little overkill to me.

Anyway, any information you can provide would be most helpful. Fingers crossed it will provide some relief, at least temporarily.

Thanks!

**KBear** · 02-26-2011, 09:22 AM

With injections, some don't mind doing it without sedation (my husband) and other prefer sedation (myself.) I always preferred sedation because it was a break from the chronic pain and I'm a wimp- LOL. It's a pretty quick procedure, maybe 20 minutes max (and probably more like 5-10 minutes). Very routine thing to do as far as conservative spine treatment goes. In some people these work so well that all of your pain will be gone (this is the case for my husband), in others (me) they never helped and then there are the ones who fall in between and get some but not complete relief.

**Justin** · 02-26-2011, 09:44 AM

Hi Valerie,

This should really help answer a lot of your questions: Spine Patient Society Educational Materials -- A Patient's Guide to Pain Management: Epidural Steroid Injections.

Good luck!

**nursechicrn** · 03-01-2011, 02:58 PM

*update*--Everything went great! I was asked about 10 times if I was doing sedation and I got a little nervous that maybe I had overestimated my bravery but it went very smoothly! It was no worse than getting an epidural in labor. They did two injections, one on each side. We'll see if it works!

Thanks for the info. Very helpful.