Chronic low back pain can get in the way of simple, everyday tasks. Driving, bending to get a load of laundry out of the dryer or reaching for a plate on the top shelf of a kitchen cabinet can be unbearable. Persistent low back pain can also interfere with therapy and rehabilitation exercises intended to treat the pain.

Epidural steroid injections are a non-surgical solution for managing pain in the lumbar spine, or lower back, and returning people to the activities of everyday living. Pain in the lower back is often caused when the nerve roots are irritated or inflamed. Other common causes of lower back pain include a herniated lumbar disc or a degenerative disease such as lumbar spinal stenosis.

To treat lower back pain with spinal injections a steroid, often cortisone, is injected into the epidural area in the spine. The cortisone coats the nerve roots, sacroiliac joint or facet joints of the spine near the injection area, relieving pain and inflammation.

Injections may also be used to help determine the direct source of pain in the lower back. Once the source is located, the physician is better able to diagnose the pain and determine the best treatment program.

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