Pain Interventions

What we mean when we talk about ‘injections’, ‘nerve blockers’, ‘zapping nerves’. Read on to find out how these can help you with your pain.

Pain interventions are presently performed as day cases at our affiliated hospitals, St John of God Berwick Hospital and Waverley Private Hospital (Ramsay Health).

Treatments Offered

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    MEDIAL BRANCH BLOCK

    FACET JOINT BLOCK

    SACROILIAC JOINT INJECTION

    SUPRASCAPULAR NERVE BLOCK

    GENICULAR NERVE BLOCK

    GREATER OCCIPITAL NERVE BLOCK

    LUMBAR SYMPATHETIC BLOCK

    EPIDURAL INJECTION

    More Info

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    RADIOFREQUENCY ABLATION

    PULSED RADIOFREQUENCY

    More Info

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    NEUROMODULATION

    SPINAL CORD STIMULATION

    More Info

✺ Frequently asked questions ✺

  • No, as these procedures require anaesthesia and the assistance of x-ray guidance to ensure safe placement of the injection, these are done in hospital and you will go home on the same day.

  • You will be under a light anaesthetic and the proceduralist will numb the skin with local anaesthetic before needles are placed. Head here to find out about the different types of anaesthesia.

  • The pain specialist that consulted with you in the rooms will be the one doing the procedure. The specialist is best placed to do so as she is familiar with your medical history and is trained to perform the procedure with the aid of x-ray imaging in theatre.

  • These procedures are commonly performed by pain specialists in Australia and around the world and are generally considered safe. Your pain specialist will discuss the risks and benefits of your procedure with you in detail at the time of your consultation. Here are some questions to help guide your discussion.

  • Depending on your individual pain profile and the kind of intervention you receive, some patients feel relief within days to weeks of the procedure that lasts for many weeks to months. Many of the procedures are both diagnostic as well as therapeutic, which means they provide useful information about what’s causing your pain, while providing relief.

  • Depending on the kind of procedure that has been recommended to you, good responders to the treatment may experience several months up to a year of pain relief or more, or may require a series of treatments to obtain and maintain the desired result. We do not recommend these treatments in isolation, and would expect other pain management strategies to be utilised as part of multidisciplinary pain management.