Your Recovery
Facet joints connect your vertebrae to each other. Problems in these joints can cause chronic (long-term) pain in the neck or back. They can sometimes affect the shoulders, arms, buttocks, or legs.
The medial branch nerves are the nerves that carry many of the pain messages from your facet joints.
During your medial branch neurotomy, your doctor used radio waves to damage a nerve in your neck or back to help your pain.
You may feel a little sore or tender at the injection site at first. But after a successful neurotomy, most people have pain relief right away. And it usually lasts for 9 to 12 months or longer. Sometimes the pain relief is permanent.
Follow-up care is a key part of your treatment and safety. Be sure to make and go to all appointments, and call your doctor or nurse call line if you are having problems. It's also a good idea to know your test results and keep a list of the medicines you take.
Where can you learn more?
Go to https://www.healthwise.net/patientEd
Enter N672 in the search box to learn more about "Medial Branch Neurotomy: What to Expect at Home".