Facet Joint Injection Information

What is a facet joint injection?

The bones in your spine (vertebrae) are connected by discs and facet joints. These facet joints help stabilise your back and allow normal movement. Sometimes these joints can become irritated or damaged, which can lead to back or neck pain.

A facet joint injection is a treatment in which a local anaesthetic and steroid are injected directly into the painful facet joints. This can help:

Reduce pain
Improve daily activity
Allow you to be more active in physiotherapy
Reduce the need for painkillers

Relief may not be immediate and can take up to two weeks to take effect. The amount and duration of pain relief varies between individuals.

How is the procedure done?

You will lie on your front for the procedure.
The skin of your back or neck is cleaned with antiseptic.
Using either Fluoroscopy (Xray) or Computed Tomography (CT) guidance, the doctor identifies the right facet joints to treat.
The skin is numbed with local anaesthetic.
The steroid and anaesthetic solution is injected into the facet joints. Several joints may be treated at one time.

You will not need a general anaesthetic.

After the procedure

You should not drive, operate machinery or perform activities requiring full attention on the day of the injection.
It is common to experience temporary increase in pain as the injections settle.
There may be bruising and tenderness where the needle was inserted.
Some people feel flushed or warm for a few days after the injection.
Activity and physiotherapy are encouraged once pain has eased, as increased movement can help improve the benefit of the injection.

Radiation safety

This procedure uses CT or Xray guidance, which exposes you to a small amount of radiation.
All of us are exposed to natural background radiation every day. The extra radiation in medical imaging is kept as low as possible and is justified by the benefit of accurate needle placement and diagnosis.

If you are pregnant, might be pregnant, or are unsure, please tell a member of staff before the procedure.