Pulsed radiofrequency neurotomy: advances in pain medicine

In the past three decades, radiofrequency neurotomy (RFN) has been established as a safe and effective treatment for facet and sacroiliac arthropathy. However, early reports of deafferentation pain syndromes and motor deficit with the application of radiofrequency lesions to other neural structures effectively halted further development of this technology for other applications until recent years. Pulsed radiofrequency neurotomy (PRFN) represents the most recent advance in radiofrequency technology in clinical practice. PRFN allows for application of radiofrequency current at markedly lower tissue temperatures, thereby minimizing the risk of adverse events. The initial clinical data on PRFN demonstrate response rates similar to conventional high temperature RFN lesions for facet and sacroiliac arthropathy and a host of other chronic pain disorders.