Anyone had this done? If so… how did it work? What kind of pain were you experiencing and where? I’m considering doing it for my neck. Thanks
I had it done in my lower back, it did not help me but that was because we now know that my problem was in my hip. I would give it a try if the facet blocks were helpful.
I’ve had RFA on my lower back and neck with good results on both areas. After about 5 years I had some additional, degenerative changes in my back (not facet related) that radio frequency wasn’t effective for and I had surgery almost 2 years ago.
My neck issues are mainly facet and RFA has been very useful. I generally get 6-8 months of good pain relief. I’m actually due for it next month but I just had a knee replacement 4 weeks ago and I think they’ll make me wait a full 3 months before having any invasive procedures where there’s any risk of infection.
As Laurierace said, if the facet blocks worked for you, there’s a good chance that radio frequency will be effective for you.
[QUOTE=susie09;7461934]
I’ve had RFA on my lower back and neck with good results on both areas. After about 5 years I had some additional, degenerative changes in my back (not facet related) that radio frequency wasn’t effective for and I had surgery almost 2 years ago.
My neck issues are mainly facet and RFA has been very useful. I generally get 6-8 months of good pain relief. I’m actually due for it next month but I just had a knee replacement 4 weeks ago and I think they’ll make me wait a full 3 months before having any invasive procedures where there’s any risk of infection.
As Laurierace said, if the facet blocks worked for you, there’s a good chance that radio frequency will be effective for you.[/QUOTE]
Thanks all. I haven’t had the facet blocks yet. I guess that’s the next step. I just had a CESI to see if we can resolve hand and arm pain and numbness I’m getting from an impinged nerve. The pain doc told me that RF Ablation won’t do anything for that nerve pain effecting my hands. I have plenty of neck specific pain and brutal muscle spasms gone crazy since the CESI. I think they are having a raucous party at my expense. Sheesh!
I had RFA performed for debilitating facet joint pain. We did the injections first; which gave me partial relief.
The improvement was dramatic. I went from not being able to walk without severe pain to not even having to take an aspirin. That was a couple of years ago. I’m back to running the farm, foxhunting, etc.
The nerve does/can grow back; my understanding is that this is not permanent pain relief. But what it did (at least with me) was get me comfortable enough that I could start exercising. I’m religious about my back exercises, weight management, etc.
If/when the pain does come back I won’t hesitate to have RFA performed again.
Hope you feel better soon.
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[QUOTE=JSwan;7462139]
I had RFA performed for debilitating facet joint pain. We did the injections first; which gave me partial relief.
The improvement was dramatic. I went from not being able to walk without severe pain to not even having to take an aspirin. That was a couple of years ago. I’m back to running the farm, foxhunting, etc.
The nerve does/can grow back; my understanding is that this is not permanent pain relief. But what it did (at least with me) was get me comfortable enough that I could start exercising. I’m religious about my back exercises, weight management, etc.
If/when the pain does come back I won’t hesitate to have RFA performed again.
Hope you feel better soon.[/QUOTE]
Thanks JSwan. Here’s to hoping the facet blocks work so I can proceed with RFA. I’m trying to avoid fusion surgery.
Doctors wanted to fuse several vertebra in my lower back. He insisted the pain was from the discs. It wasn’t. The pain was from the facet joints; and not the facets next to the thinned disc. But the jackwagon was really scalpel happy. I had a minor back surgery about 11 years ago; for a disc problem that did not improve with medication and injections. I NEVER want to be cut again. Ever.
You can have the RFA performed again; it’s not a one time thing. If injections give you relief, go for the RFA. If you can get pain free enough to participate in PT, exercise, and build your core; you may find that back pain is largely a thing of the past. Or at least very manageable with OTC meds when needed.
I’m back to foxhunting and running the farm. You’ll be fine too. 
1 Like
[QUOTE=JSwan;7462168]
Doctors wanted to fuse several vertebra in my lower back. He insisted the pain was from the discs. It wasn’t. The pain was from the facet joints; and not the facets next to the thinned disc. But the jackwagon was really scalpel happy. I had a minor back surgery about 11 years ago; for a disc problem that did not improve with medication and injections. I NEVER want to be cut again. Ever.
You can have the RFA performed again; it’s not a one time thing. If injections give you relief, go for the RFA. If you can get pain free enough to participate in PT, exercise, and build your core; you may find that back pain is largely a thing of the past. Or at least very manageable with OTC meds when needed.
I’m back to foxhunting and running the farm. You’ll be fine too. :-)[/QUOTE]
Thank you JSwan. I’ll proceed on this path for my neck. Fingers crossed.
