Back Pain Support Group

I have nothing to add as I am having a surgery in the next few months, thus I have no experience. I just wanted you to know that I read your post. Good luck with this surgery.
Blessings

Thanks for your reply. I am worried about getting this done, but I simply can't stand the pain anymore and and it's spreading down my legs. I also notice when my back pain is particularly bad, my knees (both have been replaced) develop a lot of pain. I'm sure I walk differently or put weight on them differently. I'm only 60. I still want a a life. I need to work. I want to play with my grandchildren. I'm tired of saying "Granny can't do that..." I know the pain relief won't last long which scares me moe because being pain free for a little while after the test injections made it doubly hard to deal with the pain when it came back. The good thing about weekends is that I can take muscle relaxers and pain meds, but the bad news is that then I can't drive or enjoy doing anything.

Our family is going to Florida in September and I want to have fun. My Rehab doc suggested renting a wheelchair, but that makes me a burden to someone else. I want to be able to walk. I won't go to all the parks they're going to - probably only to Sea World and the beach. It make me sad that I can't go with them and see my grandchildren having so much fun and being so excited. I'm not expecting miracles, just enough relief to let me do the things I have to, and want to, do.

I did research on rhizotomy on the internet. Apparently, it's as unsuccessful as back surgeries because its effect is only temporary, plus the pain ends up moving to other nerves.

never heard of this procedure, just what does it consist of, ive been told i cant have anymore injections or anything done to my back because of the pe i had and clotting disorders. anything would be better than meds so im interested in what this is.

The nerves are burned with radio frequency waves. It's only a temporary fix because the nerves grow back, but hopefully lasts longer than the epidural injections. I've got to find something to help me through working for at least 5 more years. I can't take full doses of narcotics and still work. I'm going to try it at least once. My sister in law had it and said it worked for two years, but I don't think her back was as bad. It can't fix the problems with the discs, just with the facets, so I know my pain won't be gone, but it should be a lot better.

Hi,

I have a 9 year old with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy. We were looking into doing a Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy (SDR) on our son last year. In this procedure they cut away part of your spinal cord and then pull out the nerves. They test each one and the ones that come back as 'bad' they cut. This is a very basic description too. It's also very permanent and not temporary! We did the baclofen trial to see if our son qualified for this surgery. He did, however, we were also told that if since it was irreversible if we couldn't strengthen his little legs he would be in a wheelchair permanently. This wasn't our goal so we went with the baclofen pump. The first thing our son said when he woke up from the trial was his legs didn't hurt anymore! (we found out about 6 months ago that he has chronic pain due to CP).

Since our son didn't have this surgery I can't tell you anything except what the doctors told us. He said it would definitely help with his chronic pain as well as his spasticity in his legs. We chose the baclofen pump since it is reversible and we can get the same outcome as the SDR without the invasive surgery. If at any time his legs are too 'weak' from too much of the baclofen the pump amount is adjusted.

How did your surgery go?

Mommie2CodyBug

I had a facet Rhizotomy about 2 years ago, before my fusion, and the procedure only gave me relief for about 4 months, that was it! Below find an explanation of the procedure...... Good luck to you!


What is facet rhizotomy?
The goal of a facet rhizotomy is to provide pain relief by "shutting off" the pain signals that the joints send to the brain. The pain relief experienced by most patients who have this procedure lasts months or even years.

How it is done
Patients who are candidates for rhizotomy typically have undergone several facet joint injections to verify the source and exact location of their pain. Using a local anesthetic and x-ray guidance, a needle with an electrode at the tip is placed along side the small nerves to the facet joint. The electrode is then heated, with a technology called radiofrequency, to deaden these nerves that carry pain signals to the brain.

Serious complications with facet rhizotomies are rare. A new technique using pulsed radiofrequency does not actually burn the nerve, but appears to stun the nerve. This technique appears to be even safer than the regular radiofrequency technique, but does seem to have the drawback of not lasting quite as long. Some specialists (such as the author) prefer to use the pulsed technique in higher risk areas such as the neck.

The procedure takes about 30-60 minutes. Afterwards, patients are monitored for a short time before being released.


Facet joint rhizotomy or medial branch neurotomy can effectively treat low back pain emanating from painful facet joints unresponsive to steroid injections. This efficacy hinges on the technical skill of the physician performing the procedure. Each facet joint is supplied by two small nerves so two needles must be placed to treat one joint. Findings of a recent surgical anatomical study have confirmed the accurate course of these nerves targeted in this procedure providing more compelling evidence for proper needle placement. Safe needle placement is critical in avoiding complications related to inadvertent injury to nearby structures leading to increased back or new leg pain. Although symptom reduction may be appreciated within a few days, facet joint rhizotomy should not be considered unsuccessful unless no pain relief occurs by 6 weeks after the procedure. Evidence shows that 60% of properly selected patients experience at least a 90% reduction of their low back pain that is sustained for 12 months, and 87% obtain at least 60% relief. If low back pain symptoms return over time, repeating the procedure can restore similar pain relief. However, one must keep in mind that these results are attainable when completed by well-trained interventional spine specialists experienced in executing these procedures.