Pain Reduction and Repeat Injections After Transforaminal Epidural Injection With Particulate Versus Nonparticulate Steroid for the Treatment of Chronic Painful Lumbosacral Radiculopathy

Background: The corticosteroid choice for a lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFESI) remains controversial. Whether to utilize particulate or nonparticulate steroid preparations for these injections remains an unanswered question in the literature. Objective: To determine if a particulate or nonparticulate steroid is more effective in the treatment of electromyography (EMG)-confirmed lumbosacral radiculopathy. Design: Multicenter retrospective cohort study. Setting: Two tertiary academic spine centers. Patients: Consecutive patients, aged 18 years or older, with EMG-confirmed lumbosacral radiculopathy. Interventions: TFESI with a particulate or nonparticulate steroid to treat radicular pain within 6 months of EMG. Main Outcome Measures: The primary outcome was the proportion of patients with >= 50% pain reduction on the numerical rating scale after TFESI. Secondary outcomes included mean numerical rating scale score reduction and number of repeat TFESIs. Shortterm (<30 days) and intermediate (>= 30 days) outcomes were compared between patients who received a TFESI with a particulate versus nonparticulate steroid. Results: Seventy-eight patients, with an age +/- standard deviation of 56 +/- 16 years and a mean symptom duration of 49 +/- 71 months, were included. Forty-one patients (52%) received dexamethasone, 23 (30%) received triamcinolone, and 14 (18%) received betamethasone. There was no statistically significant difference in the proportion of patients who reported >= 50% pain reduction between the particulate and nonparticulate groups at short-term follow-up (35%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 21-51 versus 28%; 95% CI, 13-43) or at intermediate follow-up (40%; 95% CI, 21-59 versus 39%; 95% CI, 19-59). There was no difference in the mean number of injections administered between groups at intermediate follow-up (P = .26). Conclusions: This study demonstrates no significant differences in pain reduction or the number of repeat injections with particulate compared with nonparticulate transforaminal epidural steroid injection in patients with EMG-confirmed painful lumbosacral radiculopathy. These findings suggest a new population for whom nonparticulate steroid appears to be an appropriate first-line therapy, although confirmation with a randomized study is needed.