Nerve Block Injections

Safety and What to Watch For

Safety Profile

• Nerve block injections are a relatively safe procedure. Reports confirm they have been performed safely even in patients over 80 years of age
• Serious complications are rare, though temporary leg numbness or heaviness can occur

Rare but Possible Complications

• Dural puncture (which can cause a headache)
• Infection
• Bleeding
• In a large study (400 patients), minor adverse events occurred in 18.5%, and serious complications in 2.3%

Important Things to Know

• The effects of nerve block injections are usually temporary
• Combining them with exercise therapy is important
• There is a limit to how many times injections should be repeated — discuss this with your doctor
• Some research suggests that having epidural steroid injections before surgery may slightly worsen surgical outcomes

Who is a good candidate for nerve block injections?

• Patients who prefer to avoid surgery, or who have other health conditions that make surgery difficult right now
• Patients who want to "try injections first" and consider delaying surgery if the injections help
• When the goal is to identify which nerve is causing the symptoms (diagnostic purpose)