Medial branch blocks are diagnostic injections intended to give the patient and provider more information about the root cause of the pain. These injections use only an anesthetic medication which is delivered at a precise level of the spine. The patient then keeps track of their pain level over the course of 12 hours to determine if the pain is truly coming from the facet joint. This is injection is typically repeated a second time for confirmation and leads to radiofrequency ablation of the nerve root.
