Comparison of radiation doses of fluoroscopy-guided transforaminal epidural steroid injections and dorsal root ganglia pulsed-radiofrequency applications

Objectives: The study aims to determine procedure times and estimate the radiation doses for fluoroscopy-guided transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFESI) and dorsal root ganglion pulsed radiofrequency (DRG RF) per intervention. The goal is to postulate radiation doses for potential utilization in plans to reduce radiation doses in future interventions.
Methods: An observational study was conducted on six hundred ninety-six patients with low back pain who underwent fluoroscopy-guided TFESI or DRG RF at an algology clinic of a training and research hospital. Procedure time and radiation dose per procedure were recorded.
Results: One hundred eighty-nine of the patients underwent DRG RF, and 507 of them underwent TFESI. A total of 1,069 procedures were performed. Procedure time and radiation dose per procedure were found to be 25.68 seconds (7–94) and 4.99 mGy (0.66–49.4), respectively. There was no difference between the DRG RF and TFESI groups in terms of diagnosis, age, gender, BMI, procedure level, and radiation dose. It was found that the procedure time was significantly lower in the DRG group.
Conclusion: Although no difference was detected between TFESI and DRG RF in terms of radiation dose, the procedure time was found to be significantly shorter in the DRG RF group. Pulsed radiofrequency may be preferred in necessary patients, considering the cost.