Epidural Steroid Injections Compared with Oral Treatment for Lumbosacral Radicular Pain - A Comparative Efficacy...

Spinal pain is the most common of all chronic pain disorders. Conservative treatment, percutaneous spine interventions, and surgery have all been used as treatments for this condition. The aim of the present study is to compare the addition of epidural steroid injections to the oral treatment for better pain relief and improving the quality of life of the patients. The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of epidural steroids in lumbosacral radiculopathy and to evaluate the comparative efficacy of combining epidural steroids and oral drug treatment (gabapentin/pregabalin and/or amitryptiline) and oral drugs alone in refractory pain due to lumbosacral radiculopathy. This was a prospective observational study.

This study was conducted after getting clearance from the ethical committee. Patients with clinical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features suggestive of lumbosacral radiculopathy were included and were given epidural steroid injections in addition to oral medications or escalating dose of oral medications. The pain scores (visual analog scale and functional rating index [FRI]) were compared before and after treatment in the two groups.

A total of 60 patients were enrolled, and the final analysis was carried out in 47 patients. After 6 months, there was a significant decrease in the mean VAS and FRI scores in both treatment groups. There was a statistically significant difference between the mean VAS and FRI scores of the two groups at the time of discharge and at 1 month of follow-up, but there was no difference at 3 and 6 months of follow-up.

The results of our study suggest that both treatment modalities are effective in reducing pain in patients of lumbosacral radiculopathy. But the combined treatment provides better pain relief compared to oral medications alone.