Pain Injection Treatments

1. What are Pain Injection Treatments?

From nerve blocks to steroids and epidurals, our injections provide temporary or permanent pain relief for a few weeks to several months.

2. How Pain Injection Treatments work

Steroid injections can be given in the joint, muscle, spine, or blood, depending on the affected area. They generally take a few days to take effect. However, some work in just a few hours. Patients may begin to feel pain again in weeks or months.

An epidural can be used to ease conditions such as sciatica. The relief lasts several months, enough time for the condition to settle without surgery.

Nerve blocks take around 30 minutes to have an effect. The pain relief can last from a few hours to several months, depending on your nerve block type.

3. What to expect when receiving Pain Injection Treatments

Before your treatment

At Yorkshire Pain Clinic, each patient is assessed and treated as an individual. During the consultation and assessment, the medical team learns the history of your pain and its impact on your abilities, well-being, and quality of life.

The team will hear about treatments and interventions you’ve already tried, your medical history, and any medications you take. The team at Yorkshire Pain Clinic will take this information and create a bespoke plan for your pain.

This plan will include advice, medication changes, interventions, investigations, and referrals to specialists or centres. Your GP will also receive a copy of the clinic letter for their records.

Once a Pain Injection Treatment is booked, you’ll need to arrange transport to and from your appointment, as you should not drive afterwards. If you’re taking medication, the consultant will tell you if you should stop.

At your appointment

A consultant will perform your treatment. The consultant works closely with a team, including a nurse, radiographer, and healthcare assistants, to give you the best pre and post-procedure care.

For spinal procedures, you’ll be lying face down; for other procedures, you will be positioned on the examination couch. The consultant will use ultrasound or low-dose X-ray imaging to locate the site.

You’ll receive a local anaesthetic. Depending on the procedure, you might be given other pain relief or steroids. The procedure may cause some pain, but this should be minimal with the local anaesthetic, gas, and air.

The procedure takes around 20 minutes.

After your appointment

After your appointment, a team member will move you to the recovery area in a wheelchair. You’ll need to wait in the clinic for 30 minutes to check if it's safe for you to leave and that you haven’t had an adverse reaction.

You’ll have to eat and drink something before you leave – we have a selection of biscuits, juice, and hot drinks to enjoy while you wait. When the team is happy for you to go, you will receive information on post-procedure care and a number to call if you have any issues.

4. Risks and complications of Pain Injection Treatments

Risks and side effects of Pain Injection Treatments can depend on the injection site and type of injection you have.

For injections in the joints, muscles, or spine, you may experience the following side effects:

• Pain and discomfort
• Bruising
• Flushed face for a few hours following the injection
• Blurred vision
• Pale skin around the injection site

For epidural injections, you may have a headache. For injections in the blood, you may have an increased appetite, insomnia, and mood changes.

If you have diabetes, your blood sugar level may go up, and if you have high blood pressure, it may go up for a few days post-injection.

Serious complications with Pain Injection Treatments are rare. However, you should seek medical assistance if you experience the following:

• An infection causing swelling, redness, and pain at the injection site or in your joint
• Damage to the joint or tendons

5. How to recover following Pain Injection Treatments

The pain after the injection may be worse initially. You can help manage the pain by applying a cold compress for up to 20 minutes at a time. Over-the-counter painkillers and rest will also help. For the first few weeks following the injection, you should avoid doing too much that involves the joint or muscle.

If the injection site becomes swollen or red and you feel unwell, contact your GP.