Treatment Options for Spinal Stenosis

Spinal stenosis is a common cause of neck and back pain — up to 500,000 Americans have symptoms of a narrowed spine, and many more might have asymptomatic spinal stenosis. Spinal stenosis usually develops in your neck or lower spine when your spinal column narrows. The reduced space leads to nerve compression, causing local and radiating pain. 

Our anesthesiologist and pain management expert Syed Nasir, MD, here at Skilled Pain Care Clinic, PA, in Houston and Katy, Texas, offers expert, personalized spinal stenosis treatments. We can relieve your pain and restore your quality of life. 

Treatment options for spinal stenosis

We provide customized, multidisciplinary treatment plans for spinal stenosis. Depending on the cause of your spinal narrowing and your symptoms, we tailor your therapies to address your specific needs and relieve your pain.

Physical therapy

Physical therapy is an excellent treatment option for many causes of back and neck pain. You and your physical therapist practice exercise, stretches, and other activities. You work to build your strength and stamina, flexibility, and balance. In addition to your appointments, your physical therapist gives you “homework” to practice between appointments to maintain your progress. 

Pain medication

Depending on your condition, Dr. Nasir can prescribe a variety of drugs to reduce your pain, including:

• Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) 
• Corticosteroids
• Antidepressants
• Anti-seizure drugs
• Opioids

We usually combine medication with other therapies. Ideally, we reduce your pain so you can have physical therapy or another treatment to correct the condition causing your spinal stenosis.

Steroid injections

Steroids are powerful anti-inflammatories. We can inject steroids directly into your spine to reduce swelling that can narrow your spinal canal, compress nerves, and cause pain. 

Steroid injections are relatively quick, outpatient procedures. We use X-rays to ensure the correct placement of the needle before injecting a combination of steroid and local anesthetic into your spine. The local anesthetic provides almost immediate relief, which should last long enough for the steroid to take effect. 

Regenerative medicine

We often include regenerative medicine in treatment programs for spinal stenosis and back pain. Regenerative medicine stimulates your body’s natural healing ability, which can help address the underlying injury or issue causing your pain.

Decompression

We offer decompression procedures to remove small pieces of thickened ligaments with a needle. Decompression is an outpatient procedure, and you don’t even need general anesthesia. 

Surgery

In some cases, surgery is the best option to correct spinal stenosis. For example, suppose other treatments haven’t relieved your pain or a structural problem needs to be corrected. In that case, Dr. Nasir might suggest surgery to fix the underlying issue narrowing your spinal column and causing your pain. 

Call us or make an appointment online if you have chronic back or neck pain caused by spinal stenosis. We offer carefully tailored, multidisciplinary pain management plans to relieve your pain, heal your spine, and help you get back to your regular activities.