Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction

Low back pain treatment in Los Angeles

Dysfunction in the sacroiliac joint is thought to cause low back pain and/or leg pain. Essential Medical Clinic and Pain Center in Los Angeles can help you to determine the real cause of pain in your low back and give an appropriate pain treatment in our Clinic in downtown Los Angeles.

SI Joint dysfunction

The sacroiliac joint is the “chameleon” of the spine; SI Joint dysfunction can mimic the pain caused by a number of other spinal structures (lumbar disc, nerve root, facet joint). The pain is typically felt on one side of the low back or buttocks, and can radiate down the leg. The pain usually remains above the knee, but at times pain can extend to the ankle or foot. Accurately diagnosing sacroiliac joint dysfunction can be difficult. A diagnosis is usually suspected by the physical examination and then confirmed with an injection under fluoroscopic (live x-ray) guidance.

SI Joint dysfunction can mimic the pain caused by a number of other spinal structures (lumbar disc, nerve root, facet joint). Similar to these other spine disorders, SI Joint pain may have an inflammatory component.

Sacroiliac joint injection

A sacroiliac joint injection (block) requires a highly skilled and experienced physician to be able to insert a needle into the correct portion of the sacroiliac joint. During a diagnostic injection, the spine physician uses local anesthetic, usually lidocaine (“numbing” medication). If the injection relieves your pain, it provides much stronger proof (than physical exam alone) that the sacroiliac joint is the source of your pain. After confirmation of the pain a therapeutic sacroiliac joint injection is performed by placement of the spinal needle into the bottom of the joint, steroid medication and local anesthetic are injected.