brain mapping: functional MRI and DTI. Functional MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is a noninvasive diagnostic test that measures small changes in blood flow as a person performs tasks while in the MRI scanner. Functional MRI detects the brain in action (e.g., speaking or moving).
Back injections may help treat two major back pain problems: radiculopathy and spinal stenosis. Doctors also use injections for other types of back pain. Sometimes, they also use them to help find out what's causing the pain. Radiculopathy refers to inflammation or damage to a nerve usually in the neck or the low back.
The epidural injection is usually not painful because of the numbing medicine used at the start. Many people do have mild tenderness for up to a few days after the injection. In a nerve block, a doctor injects the area around the nerve with a numbing medicine, or anesthetic. Lidocaine is the most common anesthetic used.After a nerve block injection, a person will usually rapidly experience numbness with near-complete pain relief. The numbness wears off, though, after several hours. Some doctors use nerve block injections to try to diagnose what's causing the back pain.idocaine is the most common anesthetic used. After a nerve block injection, a person will usually rapidly experience numbness with near-complete pain relief. The numbness wears off, though, after several hours. Some doctors use nerve block injections to try to diagnose what's causing the back pain.