If the patient is in pain, the doctor can administer an injection of painkillers. The doctor can examine the area in advance, palpating bones and other soft tissue.
With ultrasound-guided infiltration, however, the doctor can precisely localize and control where the substance is injected. The image is displayed in real time on a monitor so that the doctor can see exactly where the needle of the syringe is in the tissue. This method is very important, not least because of its great accuracy.
Facet infiltration
In facet infiltration, altered vertebral joints, known as facet joints, are treated. These ossify due to wear and tear(spondylosis or spondylarthrosis) and can painfully compress the lateral spinal nerves of the spinal cord (compression syndrome). You can read more about treatment in the article Facet infiltration.
During facet infiltration, a painkiller is administered directly into and onto the joint under imaging control. The video shows the exact procedure:
Nerve infiltration
This usually involves treating the nerve roots . A mixture of painkillers and anti-inflammatory cortisone is also injected into the nerve root under imaging control.
This procedure is used for herniated discs, for example. The video shows the treatment of the cervical spine:
Trigger point infiltration
Trigger points are strands within the musculature that can be felt as a hardening . Trigger points can not only be very painful, but can also prevent the muscles from working properly.
Trigger point infiltration therefore involves injecting a local anesthetic into the trigger point, which reduces the pain. In many cases, however, several injections must be given, as there are often several trigger points in the muscles.
Muscle twitching is often observed during infiltration, but this is generally seen as positive. You can see schematically in the video how trigger points can trigger pain in more distant parts of the body:
Joint infiltration
In joint infiltration, preparations are injected directly into the diseased joint with imaging support. Osteoarthritis, for example, is a disease that makes this method necessary.
However, care should be taken when choosing the preparation. Although cortisone has a pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effect, it can damage the joints. Hyaluronic acid is therefore seen as an effective alternative. Not least because it is a component of natural synovial fluid.
In this treatment method, the treating doctor carries out the infiltration using an ultrasound device. He can "scan" the area to be treated with the ultrasound probe and then decide exactly where the injection should be made.
The patient benefits from the fact that it is possible to administer the medication, i.e. infiltration , at a precise location.
© Tobilander / Fotolia
If there is a lot of bone or soft tissue in the area in question - or if the area to be treated is very deep - ultrasound-guided infiltration is used. As already mentioned, the advantage for the doctor and patient is that the medication can be applied as precisely as possible.
Bursae can also be infiltrated with pinpoint accuracy in this way; this method is used forbursitis, for example.
