Hi All,
I have a pain mgmt doc I see monthly who is a doll and manages my pain well.
For big flares of pain,
About 5 yrs ago he sent me to another pain doc who did ESI's(epidural steroid injection) that worked well to control pain from a c4/5 herniated disc and helped with some neuropathy...I was very happy. He did this 2 or 3 times.

Well, another bad pain flare last week probably again from disc, an MRI result is pending, so back to the doc that my husband and I call Dr. Needles. However, this time he recommended first Facet Joint Injections, followed by RFA(radio frequency ablation). Now, this is without yet seeing my MRI or examining me as he has in the past, just very briefly talking to me. I asked him why the change in treatment when the previous ESI's worked so well. He got a bit testy and said treatments change and he thought my symptoms were different. I said no, they are the same. He then admitted the ESI now has to be done in the hospital, not in his office and "besides, the ESI is much riskier" than other treatment.

For those of you who have had a facet block and ablation, can you tell me if they helped your pain and what procedure and recovery is like. If anyone else has had ESI and the
facet Inj/ablation...can you offer advice or opinion.

I honestly think this doc is making a decision on what is best for him financially, not what is best for me. He refused to do the ESI he had done in the past.
Thanks, Diandra