Effect of Cervical Multifidus Muscle Area on Interlaminar Epidural Steroid Injection Outcomes

Can Multifidus Muscle Area Affect Cervical Interlaminar Epidural Steroid Injection Outcomes?

Cervical radiculopathy is one of the most important causes of chronic neck pain. Cervical epidural steroid injections including interlaminar approach are frequently used for treatment option in patients that more conservative modalities are ineffective.

Paraspinal muscles have an important role in supporting neck movements and providing stability of the cervical spine. The multifidus muscle, located in the deepest part of the neck extensor muscle group, has become the muscle that is frequently emphasized in spinal pain in recent years. In the literature, it has been shown that the multifidus muscle on the affected side is atrophied in patients with cervical radiculopathy.

Although many factors are known to be effective on the outcomes of cervical interlaminar epidural injection, there are limited data on the effect of the multifidus muscle area. In this retrospective study, it was planned to investigate the effect of the multifidus muscle area on the results of cervical interlaminar epidural steroid injection.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients with unilateral radicular pain due to cervical disc herniation for at least 3 months
• Patients with disc herniation level C5-C6
• Patients who are unresponsive to other conservative treatments and who have undergone cervical interlaminar epidural steroid injection

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients with incomplete medical records (absence of MR imaging, incomplete data of 3rd week and 3rd month follow-up periods after cervical interlaminar epidural steroid injection)