Piriformis muscle injection is the treatment for back and leg pain caused by trauma to the pelvic or buttock, hypertrophy of the piriformis muscle, anatomic abnormalities of the piriformis muscle or sciatic nerve, differences of leg length, or piriformis myositis. This procedure involves the injection of local anaesthetic and either steroid or botox in the piriformis muscle using electromyography, CT guidance , or fluoroscopic guidance to guide the doctor with the correct needle placement in the identification of the affected area. Botox is used for stopping the spasming of the muscle for up to 3 months. Steroid on the other hand, reduces inflammation, swelling, and irritation around the piriformis muscle.
During the treatment
- When admitted for piriformis muscle treatment, an anaesthetic will start the procedure by placing a cannula into a vein in hand.
- The patient will be asked to lay on their abdomen with a pillow under the hips and abdomen.
- Sedation will then be given by the anaesthetic. X-ray machine will be used for guidance in locating the correct area where the needle will be injected.
- Once the placement of the needle is established, local anaesthetic and botox or steroids will be used depending on the kind of treatment needed by the patient.
- Overall procedure approximately takes 10 minutes to complete.
After Treatment
Patient will be taken to the recovery and be discharged approximately an hour after the treatment.
Botox usually takes 5 days to start working. During the first 5 days, the patient may experience some flu-like symptoms. With possible side effects like headache, irritation of nerves at the site of the area injected, and rarely paralysis outside the area of the spasm. While steroid approximately takes 48 hours to start working with a possibility of discomfort or pain.
