What is Medial Branch Block and How Does it Help Pain?
Medial branch nerves are the very small nerve branches that communicate pain caused by the facet joints in the spine. These nerves do not control any muscles or sensation in the arms or legs. They are located along a bony groove in the low back and neck and over a bone in the mid back. The purpose of this procedure is to determine if the facet joints are painful. There is no other test which gives this information. CT Scans and MRI scans will not tell if the facet joints are painful. This test is only temporary, but if it shows the joints to be painful, a long term procedure (radio frequency lesioning) can be performed. Procedure Overview The medial branch block injection is an outpatient procedure. The patient is placed on the x- ray table and positioned in such a way that the physician, using x-ray guidance, can best visualize the bony areas where the medial branch nerves are located. The skin is scrubbed with prep solution. Next, the physician numbs a small area of skin wi