Percutaneous Epidural Neuroplasty

Overview

Back pain affects millions of people and is one of the leading causes of patients seeking medical assistance. Back pain affects up to 80% of people at some point in their life, with the frequency of low back pain growing by 2-5 percent each year. Furthermore, more than 80% of afflicted individuals report recurring episodes.

Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is a common cause of lumbar nerve root compression and accounts for 4% of all occurrences of low back pain. Compression of the lumbar spinal root is also known to occur as a result of spinal canal stenosis and post-laminectomy syndrome.

It is important to consider the involvement of epidural fibrosis as a source of these diseases, even after apparently successful lumbar surgery. Before considering a forthcoming operation, when conservative therapy and epidural steroid injections have failed, percutaneous epidural Neuroplasty has shown promising outcomes in the management of severe pain syndromes. Transforaminal percutaneous epidural Neuroplasty might be a suitable choice for the successful treatment of unilateral lumbar radiculopathy linked or not with axial pain, especially when dealing with recurrent lumbar radicular discomfort started on high lumbar levels.