Interventions in chronic pain management. 2. New frontiers: Invasive nonsurgical interventions

Invasive nonsurgical techniques have a central role in the management of patients suffering from acute and chronic pain. This article surveys common percutaneous pain procedures: trigger point injections, intra-articular injections, spinal injections, nerve blocks, radiofrequency lesioning (thermocoagulation and pulsed-mode), epidural adhesiolysis and decompressive neuroplasty, neural mapping, intradiskal and intra-annular procedures, neuromodulation, continuous intrathecal analgesia, and deep brain stimulation. Physiatrists must understand the guiding principles behind these procedures before practicing interventional pain management. Overall Article Objective: To review invasive, nonsurgical pain management procedures.