Spinal Probing

An accurate diagnosis is necessary to successfully relieve back pain.  Once the origin of back pain is accurately diagnosed, an appropriate treatment program can begin. While spinal discography or discogram is the best test to accurately diagnosis back pain caused by spinal disc diseases, it is not effective if back pain is being caused by something other than a spinal disc condition.

Spinal probing is providing more accurate back pain diagnosis for spine conditions that may be missed in discography, CT or MRIs including:

• Bone Spurs
• 
Facet Joint Hypertrophy
• 
Failed Previous Back Surgery

• Osteophytes
• Scar Tissue
• 
Spinal Stenosis
• Disc Herniations

• Foraminal Stenosis
• 
Inflamed Tissues
• 
Severe Degenerative Diseases
• 
Slippage of Vertebrae

Spinal probing is a relatively new technique used for the diagnosis of pain sources in the foraminal structures. During this test, the patient is lightly sedated but able to report any back pain. Using fluoroscopic guidance, an introducing cannula is inserted to target foraminal entrance. A blunt probe is inserted through the cannula for reproducing pain by gentle probing.

The introducing cannula is repositioned to different locations but will be parked in the foraminal entrance. The spine surgeon uses a blunt probe to try to reproduce pain in different locations, allowing the source of the patient's back pain to be determined.