Peripheral Nerve Block Injections Explained
Oct 21, 2015
Peripheral nerve block injections are used to reduce pain caused by the peripheral nerves. These injections can be used to treat a variety of pain conditions and injuries. This article will focus on peripheral nerve block injections. Read on to learn more about these injections and the conditions they can treat.
The human nervous system is broken out into two distinct parts – the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system. The central nervous system consists of the nerves in the brain and spinal cord, while the peripheral nervous system comprises all the other nerves in the body that connect to the spine and brain.
There are 43 total nerves in the peripheral nervous system. When you injure your knee in a car accident, your peripheral nerves pass pain signals all the way up to your brain to process the pain. Nerve block injections aim to stop these pain signals before they even reach the brain – reducing pain in the process.
Peripheral nerve injections can be a great help in treating a wide array of painful conditions, including:
Peripheral nerve blocks can also be used to diagnose certain conditions. If your physician is having trouble pinpointing the cause of your pain, they might recommend nerve block injections to narrow down a diagnosis. So if you are experiencing knee pain and a nerve block injection does nothing to relieve the pain, your physician can look into other potential causes of the pain.
If you are suffering from chronic pain or pain from an accident – peripheral nerve block injections may help reduce your pain. Contact a skilled Minneapolis pain doctor at Advanced Spine & Pain Clinics of Minnesota today to discuss your pain management options.