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Discogenic Low Back Pain and Radicular Pain: Therapeutic Strategies and Role of Radio-Frequency Techniques

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Radiofrequency Treatments on the Spine

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Abstract

Low back pain (LBP) is a major problem to public health. Approximately 60 to 80 % of the US population experience back pain at some point of their life [1]. Internal disc disruption (IDD) is an important cause of LBP, accounting for 28 to 43 % of the patients with LBP [2, 3].

Lumbosacral radicular pain, described as LBP extending below the knee, affects each year a rate between 9 and 23 % of the general population [4].

Radio-frequency (RF) procedures have been used for treating various chronic pain conditions for many years. This minimally invasive treatment employs alternating electrical currents oscillating in RF range to eliminate or alter pain impulses [5, 6]. In this chapter the use of RF procedures for the treatment of discogenic LBP and its application to the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) has been analyzed [5, 7, 8].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento Di Diagnostica Per Immagini, Policlinico Tor Vergata, Università Di Roma, Roma, Italy

    Mario Raguso, Salvatore Marsico, Roberto Fiori & Salvatore Masala

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  1. Mario Raguso
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  2. Salvatore Marsico
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  3. Roberto Fiori
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  4. Salvatore Masala
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Correspondence to Salvatore Masala .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Radiology, Santissima Trinita Hospital Radiology, Cagliari, Italy

    Stefano Marcia

  2. Department of Radiology, University of Cagliari Department of Radiology, Cagliari, Italy

    Luca Saba

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Raguso, M., Marsico, S., Fiori, R., Masala, S. (2017). Discogenic Low Back Pain and Radicular Pain: Therapeutic Strategies and Role of Radio-Frequency Techniques. In: Marcia, S., Saba, L. (eds) Radiofrequency Treatments on the Spine. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-41462-1_9

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