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Information About Cervical Facet Rhizotomy

Cervical facet rhizotomy is a minimally invasive medical procedure. It is used to eliminate chronic neck pain that is caused by the degeneration of connective tissues around the facet joints. Facet joints are part of the bone structure of spine and neck. They facilitate movement.

  1. When Is it Used?

    • Cervical facet rhizotomy is used when other available treatments for the neck pain, such as steroid and lidocaine injections, prove ineffective.

    Procedure

    • The rhizotomy procedure involves numbing the area of skin over the joint and then inserting a specialized needle into the joint using x-rays for guidance. Heat is then applied to the nerve endings and the needle is withdrawn.

    Function

    • The function of the procedure is to kill the nerve ending. By killing the nerve it can no longer transmit pain signals to the brain.

    Post Procedure

    • Anesthetic use requires a second person to drive the patient home and normal activities are typically resumed within one to two days. Occasionally, minor post-procedural pain occurs and is treated with medication.

    Future

    • While the rhizotomy procedures typically employ heat to kill the nerves, spineuniverse.com reports that a newer alternative uses electrical pulses to render the nerves incapable of transmitting signals without causes permanent damage.

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