Corticosteroid Therapy in Acute and Subacute Arachnoiditis – A Case Series

Abstract

Yeng F Her,1 Ryan T McWilliams,2 Erik A Ovrom,3 James C Watson1 1Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Mayo Clinic Hospital, Rochester, MN, USA; 2Family Medicine, Alaska Native Medical Center, Anchorage, AK, USA; 3Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, Mayo Clinic Hospital, Rochester, MN, USACorrespondence: Yeng F Her, Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Mayo Clinic Hospital, Rochester, MN, USA, Email [email protected]: Arachnoiditis is difficult to treat. Patients are often left frustrated after many failed trials of conservative therapies without symptom resolution. Surgery may provide symptom relief for a short period of time, but their pain often returned. Herein, we present three cases of acute arachnoiditis following three different pain procedures: epidural blood patch, IDDS implant, and epidural steroid injection. The patients were diagnosed and treated with corticosteroids within 10 days of the procedure. Two patients were treated with the same oral steroid regiment, while the third patient was treated with both oral and IV steroid. All three patients had good outcomes at the completion of their steroid therapy. This case series may provide insight into treating acute and subacute arachnoiditis from pain interventions.Keywords: arachnoiditis, epidural blood patch, intrathecal pain pump, epidural steroid injection, corticosteroid therapy

Keywords

• arachnoiditis
• epidural blood patch
• intrathecal pain pump
• epidural steroid injection
• corticosteroid therapy