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Medial Branch Nerve Blocks in Rancho Santa Margarita, CA

Get long-term pain relief with medial branch nerve blocks at Maasumi Headache & Spine Care.

Medial Nerve Blocks to Reduce and Prevent Chronic Pain

Chronic pain, despite its origin and root cause, can impact your physical and emotional well-being, performance, peace of mind, and quality of life.

This is why treating chronic pain on time is crucial. At Maasumi Headache & Spine Care, we offer medial branch nerve blocks. This minimally invasive procedure targets the medial branch nerves responsible for transmitting pain signals from the facet joints to the brain. By blocking these nerves using a combination of local anesthesia and corticosteroids, a medial branch block injection can provide effective pain relief and help you regain control over your life.

What Conditions Are Treatable with a Medial Branch Block?

Medial branch blocks are used to treat medical conditions that cause inflamed facet joints, including:

  • Scoliosis
  • Degenerative spondylolisthesis
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Facet joint osteoarthritis
  • Ankylosing spondylitis
  • Spinal osteoarthritis

Besides, they are also used to diagnose injuries involving facet joints and the cause of back pain.

Who Are the Ideal Candidates for Medial Branch Nerve Blocks?

Who Are the Ideal Candidates for Medial Branch Nerve Blocks?

Medial branch nerve blocks are suitable for those:

  • Experiencing severe back and neck pain caused by herniated discs, facet syndrome, degenerative disc diseases, sciatica, and arthritis.
  • Who has frequent flare-ups due to a slipped disc
  • Who did not get favorable results from other treatments for pain management
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Types of Medial Branch Nerve Blocks

  • Therapeutic Medial Nerve Blocks - To treat acute and chronic pain.
  • Diagnostic Medial Nerve Blocks - To diagnose the root cause of the pain.
  • Prognostic Medial Nerve Blocks - To predict the effectiveness and success of given treatments. For example, a medial nerve block may be performed to determine whether permanent treatment (surgery) would be successful in treating pain.

How Long Does the Procedure Take?

A medial branch nerve block is an outpatient procedure that requires just 30 minutes for completion, including preparation time. However, a 30-minute observation is necessary before discharge to see whether you develop any complications from the medication.

What Are the Benefits of Medial Branch Nerve Blocks?

What Are the Benefits of Medial Branch Nerve Blocks?

Medial branch nerve blocks offer exceptional pain-management benefits, including:

  • Immediate and lasting pain relief
  • Helps diagnose the source of pain, guiding further treatment plans
  • Effective and safe
  • Minimal risks or side effects
  • Quick recovery

What Happens During the Medial Branch Nerve Block Procedure?

Our medial branch nerve block injection procedure involves the following steps:

  • Preparation
    We will ask you to lie on your stomach on the procedure table and inject the local anesthesia to numb the skin on the facet joint and superficial tissues around it. We will usually avoid sedatives as they may interfere with the results, but we may give a calming medication to those with significant anxiety.
  • Needle Placement
    We will use an x-ray (fluoroscopy) or ultrasound imaging technique to guide and oversee the precise placement of two thin needles near either side of the medial branch nerves supplying the targeted facet joint. In some cases, we may use a single-needle technique.
  • Confirmation of the Right Placement
    We will inject a small amount of contrast dye through the needle(s) to confirm the medication is delivered near the medial branch nerve, not into a blood vessel.
  • Injection of Medication
    We will slowly inject the medication, combining local anesthesia and steroids onto each medial branch nerve to reduce your pain.
    You will be observed for 30 to 60 minutes following the injection. During this time, we may ask you to do some movements that stimulate facet joint pain to assess the degree of your pain relief.

Why Choose Maasumi Headache & Spine Care for Medial Branch Nerve Blocks?

Maasumi Headache & Spine Care is a renowned medical facility in Santa Margarita, CA, serving the entire Orange County, CA community with comprehensive solutions for pain. We offer industry-standard medial branch nerve blocks to help you eliminate your long-term pain and discomfort. Our physician, Dr. KC Maasumi, specializes in interventional pain management with expertise in administering medial branch nerve blocks, ensuring successful facet joint pain treatment. We employ state-of-the-art equipment and adhere to the latest advancements in nerve block techniques to ensure the highest possible pain relief. So, you don’t need to worry about your chronic pain impacting your everyday life.

Here is why we stay ahead of others for medial branch nerve blocks:

  • Get Seen Quickly: We provide quick appointments to help you get treated in your time of need.
  • State-of-the-Art Office: We embrace advanced medical technology and soothing features to enhance your treatment quality and experience.
  • Convenient Location: We are conveniently located at Rancho, Santa Margarita, CA, so you don’t need to find us.
  • Insurance Accepted: To help with your treatment costs, we accept major health insurance plans, such as Medicare, Self-Pay, Cigna PPO, and Blue Cross or BlueShield of California PPO.
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FAQs

Though medial branch nerve block is a safe procedure, some people may experience complications, such as:

  • Increased pain
  • Discomfort at the injection site
  • Bleeding from the injection site
  • Allergic reaction, usually caused by X-ray contrast dye
  • Infection at the injection site
  • Nerve or spinal cord damage and, rarely, paralysis

As it is done with local anesthesia, the medial branch injection won’t cause much pain except a tingling or pinching sensation when the needle is inserted.

While success rates may vary depending on individuals, medial branch injection is generally considered adequate and successful for pain relief and management.

Medial branch nerve block injection diagnoses or treats chronic neck and lower back pain, joints, etc. So, those who suffer from persistent or chronic pain or are looking to find the underlying cause of the pain can make the most of the injection.

Serving Areas: Rancho Santa Margarita (RSM), Trabuco Canyon, Mission Viejo, Foothill Ranch, Lake Forest, Las Flores, Coto de Caza, Portola HIlls, and Southern Orange County, CA

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Stay Pain-Free with Our Medial Branch Nerve Blocks

Whether you have facet joint pain, pain from a herniated disc, or arthritic joint pain, Maasumi Headache & Spine Care is at your service. With our medial branch nerve blocks, you can get your chronic pain effectively, despite its cause and source. Ask us today whether a medial branch block injection may be right for you.

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