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• Treat Facet Disease

How to Treat Facet Disease

Many people wonder how to treat facet disease. Facet disease, which is a casual term used to describe degeneration of the facet joints, typically begins when cartilage on these joints begins to degrade, making movements of the back and neck quite painful. Patients have reported symptoms of throbbing and tenderness, abnormal joint stiffness, limited range of motion, and diminished flexibility.

While facet disease is a progressive, degenerative condition that worsens with age, the good news is that there are a number of treatment options. Once you have spoken with your doctor about your facet joint pain and he or she has done at MRI or CT scan to pinpoint which region of your spine is affected, you can work together to decide how to treat facet disease.

Conservative Treatments

The standard course of action is to begin with a conservative, non-invasive treatment schedule. This may include any of the following:

• Rest
• Hot and cold packs
• Mild exercise, combined with stretching and periods of rest
• Chiropractic work
• A physical therapy regimen
• Pain and anti-inflammatory medication
• Steroid injections

Advanced Treatments

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If these treatments have not proven effective and you would like to consider a more advanced form of treatment, Laser Spine Institute (LSI) would like to introduce you to one of our minimally invasive, endoscopic procedures—facet joint ablation. During this procedure, an extremely small incision is made and a thin tube is inserted, through which we can thread a heated laser that gently desensitizes the local pain nerve serving the affected facet joint. This procedure is similar to the deadening of a tooth during a root canal. After facet joint ablation, facet joint function is preserved, and yet painful symptoms are relieved.

The experts at Laser Spine Institute have helped tens of thousands of people rediscover a life without pain. To get your facet joint treatment plan started, we’d like to review your MRI or CT scan, absolutely free of charge.

Please note: Laser Spine Institute currently does not perform endoscopic procedures on the thoracic spine.