PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Pulsed radiofrequency with steroid injection brings sciatica relief

Pulsed radiofrequency with steroid injection brings sciatica relief
2023-03-28
(Press-News.org) OAK BROOK, Ill. – Researchers found that a minimally invasive procedure combined with epidural steroid injection treatment led to superior pain reduction and disability improvement over one year in patients with sciatica. The results of the study were published in Radiology, a journal of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). The combined treatment performed better than steroid injections alone.

Sciatica is pain that originates along the sciatic nerve, which extends from the back of the pelvis down the back of the thigh. The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body. Treatments to relieve pain include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications, applying heat or cold, and exercising to help minimize inflammation. When the pain is caused by a lumbar disc herniation, surgery is often the treatment option for pain relief.

“The goal of nonoperative care is to provide the most effective means of symptom resolution, while still avoiding the need for a surgical procedure,” said the study’s lead author, Alessandro Napoli, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of radiology and interventional radiology at Policlinico Umberto I – Sapienza University of Rome, in Italy. “However, in many cases conventional approaches are ineffective.”

Minimally invasive interventional therapy has become increasingly popular in patients with sciatica who have become resistant to conservative treatments. Among the available options, transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFESI) is the only interventional procedure recommended in clinical guidelines. However, the duration of benefit is usually short, and additional treatments are often necessary.

Another treatment that researchers have studied for sciatica pain relief is pulsed radiofrequency—a minimally invasive procedure in which pulses of energy from a probe are applied directly to nerve roots near the spine.

For the multicenter randomized trial, researchers wanted to determine the difference in effectiveness between pulsed radiofrequency combined with TFESI versus the steroid injection alone for sciatica pain lasting 12 weeks or longer and not responsive to conservative treatment in patients with due to lumbar disc herniation.

A total of 351 participants (223 men) with sciatica were randomly assigned to receive a single CT-guided pulsed radiofrequency treatment combined with TFESI (174 patients) or TFESI alone (177 patients). Participants were recruited at two tertiary university hospitals and one spine clinic. All procedures were carried out in an outpatient clinic, took only 10 minutes and were performed without general anesthesia.

At four, 12, and 52 weeks there was greater leg pain reduction and greater disability improvement in participants who received pulsed radiofrequency combined with TFESI compared to the participants who only received the steroid injection.

“The results of our trial demonstrate that a combined treatment of pulsed radiofrequency and TFESI leads to better outcomes at one year following a single 10-minute procedure,” Dr. Napoli said.

###

“CT-guided Pulsed Radiofrequency Combined with Steroid Injection for Sciatica from Herniated Disc: A Randomized Trial.” Collaborating with Dr. Napoli were Giulia Alfieri, M.D., Alessandro De Maio, M.D., Emanuela Panella, R.N., Roberto Scipione, M.D., Giancarlo Facchini, M.D., Ugo Albisinni, M.D., Paolo Spinnato, M.D., Pier Giorgio Nardis, M.D., Roberto Tramutoli, M.D., Jacopo Lenzi, M.D., Pejman Ghanouni, M.D., Ph.D., Alberto Bazzocchi, M.D., Ph.D., Stefano Perotti, M.D., Andrew J. Schoenfeld, M.D., M.Sc., and Carlo Catalano, M.D.

In 2023, Radiology is celebrating its 100th anniversary with 12 centennial issues, highlighting Radiology’s legacy of publishing exceptional and practical science to improve patient care.

Radiology is edited by Linda Moy, M.D., New York University, New York, N.Y., and owned and published by the Radiological Society of North America, Inc. (https://pubs.rsna.org/journal/radiology)

RSNA is an association of radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and related scientists promoting excellence in patient care and health care delivery through education, research and technologic innovation. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Illinois. (RSNA.org)

For patient-friendly information on interventional radiology procedures, visit RadiologyInfo.org.

END


[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Pulsed radiofrequency with steroid injection brings sciatica relief

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Probe where the protons go to develop better fuel cells

Probe where the protons go to develop better fuel cells
2023-03-28
Fukuoka, Japan—Solid oxide fuel cells, or SOFC, are a type of electrochemical device that generates electricity using hydrogen as fuel, with the only 'waste' product being water. Naturally, as we strive to reduce our carbon output and mitigate the casualties of the climate crisis, both business and academia have taken major interest in the development of SOFCs. In what can potentially accelerate the development of more efficient SOFCs, a research team led by Kyushu University has uncovered the chemical innerworkings of a perovskite-based ...

Could changes in Fed’s interest rates affect pollution and the environment?

Could changes in Fed’s interest rates affect pollution and the environment?
2023-03-28
Can monetary policy such as the United States Federal Reserve raising interest rates affect the environment? According to a new study by Florida Atlantic University’s College of Business, it can.  Using a stylized dynamic aggregate demand-aggregate supply (AD-AS) model, researchers explored the consequences of traditional monetary tools – namely changes in the short-term interest rate – to the environment. Specifically, they looked at how monetary policy impacts CO2 emissions in the short and long run. The AD-AS model conveys several interlocking relationships between the four macroeconomic goals of growth, unemployment, inflation and a sustainable balance ...

For advanced endometrial cancer, chemotherapy plus immunotherapy improves outcomes

2023-03-28
Endometrial cancer, which makes up about 90% of uterine cancers, will be diagnosed in more than 65,000 people in the United States this year. It is the fourth most common cancer in women and is one of the few cancers that is increasing in incidence and mortality. Unfortunately, very few treatments have been developed specifically for endometrial cancer. Now, new research published March 27, 2023, in The New England Journal of Medicine finds adding the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab (Keytruda®) to standard chemotherapy greatly improves patient outcomes in both patients whose tumors have a genetic alteration leading ...

ASBMB calls for 10% budget increase for NIGMS

2023-03-28
The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology submitted testimony to the U.S. House Appropriations Committee March 22 outlining its recommended budgets for major scientific funding agencies. Notably, the society requested a significant 10% increase in the budget for the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, which is part of the National Institutes of Health. “The ASBMB has a longstanding history of advocating for NIGMS and its researchers, and the majority of our members are funded by and rely on NIGMS to advance their research,” Sarina Neote, public affairs director of the ASBMB, said. “The ...

NIH researchers discover new autoinflammatory disease, suggest target for potential treatments

NIH researchers discover new autoinflammatory disease, suggest target for potential treatments
2023-03-28
WHAT: Scientists have identified an autoinflammatory disease caused by mutations in the LYN gene, an important regulator of immune responses in health and disease. Named Lyn kinase-associated vasculopathy and liver fibrosis (LAVLI), the identification sheds light on how genes linked to certain illnesses can potentially be targets for treatment by repurposing existing drugs. The research, published in Nature Communications, was led by Adriana A. de Jesus, M.D. Ph.D., and Raphaela Goldbach-Mansky, M.D., M.H.S. of the Translational ...

KICT develops a ground & structure collapse detection sensor

KICT develops a ground & structure collapse detection sensor
2023-03-28
The Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology (KICT, President Kim Byung-suk) developed a smart sensor that detects signs of ground or structure collapses and a real-time remote monitoring system.   The development of the sensor and system began with a search for a method of instant sensing of the collapse of slopes or buildings caused by ground movement for immediate response. This led to the development of a smart sensor that turns on a LED warning light upon detecting ground movement. The ...

Study: “Safer” PFAS in food packaging still hazardous

2023-03-28
Replacement per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) heralded as safe for use in food packaging break down into toxic PFAS that leak into our food and environment, suggests a study published today in Environmental Science & Technology Letters. Due to the known exposure risks of using smaller PFAS molecules like PFOA and PFOS in food-contact materials, many companies have pivoted to using larger polymeric PFAS to make their wrappers, bowls, and other fast-food packaging water- and grease-repellant. ...

Cartesian Therapeutics expands clinical advisory board with five internationally recognized experts in autoimmunity

Cartesian Therapeutics expands clinical advisory board with five internationally recognized experts in autoimmunity
2023-03-28
Gaithersburg, MD—March 28, 2023 – Cartesian Therapeutics, a fully integrated biopharmaceutical company pioneering RNA cell therapy for autoimmune diseases and cancer, today announced the appointment of five internationally recognized experts in autoimmune diseases.  Cartesian’s appointments include distinguished physicians and scientists as leaders in clinical trials and medicine. “Cartesian is proud to have these prestigious, multidisciplinary advisors committed to treating other autoimmune diseases,” said Miloš Miljković, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at Cartesian Therapeutics. “Their perspectives will provide the utmost value ...

New study finds toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” in Canadian food packaging

2023-03-28
Researchers at the University of Toronto, Indiana University and University of Notre Dame have detected levels of toxic PFAS chemicals—short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances—for the first time in Canadian fast-food packaging, specifically water-and-grease repellent paper alternatives to plastic.  Published today in Environmental Science and Technology Letters, the findings suggest that food packaging exposes people directly to PFAS, which have been linked to serious health effects such as increased cancer risk and immune system damage, by contaminating the food they eat. Further, once discarded packaging enters waste streams, PFAS enter the environment, where these ...

Eco-efficient cement could pave the way to a greener future

Eco-efficient cement could pave the way to a greener future
2023-03-28
HOUSTON – (March 28, 2023) – The road to a net-zero future must be paved with greener concrete, and Rice University scientists know how to make it. The production of cement, an ingredient in concrete, accounts for roughly 8% of the world’s annual carbon dioxide emissions, making it a significant target of greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals. Toward those efforts, the Rice lab of chemist James Tour used flash Joule heating to remove toxic heavy metals from fly ash, a powdery ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Resistance training may improve nerve health, slow aging process, study shows

Common and inexpensive medicine halves the risk of recurrence in patients with colorectal cancer

SwRI-built instruments to monitor, provide advanced warning of space weather events

Breakthrough advances sodium-based battery design

New targeted radiation therapy shows near-complete response in rare sarcoma patients

Does physical frailty contribute to dementia?

Soccer headers and brain health: Study finds changes within folds of the brain

Decoding plants’ language of light

UNC Greensboro study finds ticks carrying Lyme disease moving into western NC

New implant restores blood pressure balance after spinal cord injury

New York City's medical specialist advantage may be an illusion, new NYU Tandon research shows

Could a local anesthetic that doesn’t impair motor function be within reach?

1 in 8 Italian cetacean strandings show evidence of fishery interactions, with bottlenose and striped dolphins most commonly affected, according to analysis across four decades of data and more than 5

In the wild, chimpanzees likely ingest the equivalent of several alcoholic drinks every day

Warming of 2°C intensifies Arctic carbon sink but weakens Alpine sink, study finds

Bronze and Iron Age cultures in the Middle East were committed to wine production

Indian adolescents are mostly starting their periods at an earlier age than 25 years ago

Temporary medical centers in Gaza known as "Medical Points" (MPs) treat an average of 117 people daily with only about 7 staff per MP

Rates of alcohol-induced deaths among the general population nearly doubled from 1999 to 2024

PLOS One study: In adolescent lab animals exposed to cocaine, High-Intensity Interval Training boosts aversion to the drug

Scientists identify four ways our bodies respond to COVID-19 vaccines

Stronger together: A new fusion protein boosts cancer immunotherapy

Hidden brain waves as triggers for post-seizure wandering

Music training can help the brain focus

Researcher develop the first hydride ion prototype battery

MIT researchers find a more precise way to edit the genome

‘Teen’ pachycephalosaur butts into fossil record

Study finds cocoa extract supplement reduced key marker of inflammation and aging

Obesity treatment with bariatric surgery vs GLP-1 receptor agonists

Nicotinamide for skin cancer chemoprevention

[Press-News.org] Pulsed radiofrequency with steroid injection brings sciatica relief