• Seon Ju Kim, Sang Jun Park, Duck Mi Yoon, Kyung Bong Yoon, and Shin Hyung Kim.
• Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Anesthesia and Pain Research Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea, TESSAR@yuhs.ac.
• J Pain Res. 2018 Jan 1; 11: 1223-1230.

BackgroundPulsed radiofrequency (RF) targeting the adjacent dorsal root ganglion (DRG) is one treatment option for lumbosacral radicular pain. However, the analgesic efficacy of this procedure is not always guaranteed. The aim of this retrospective study was to identify the predictors of the analgesic efficacy of pulsed DRG RF treatment in patients with chronic lumbosacral radicular pain.MethodsPatients who underwent pulsed DRG RF treatment from 2006 to 2017 at our clinic were enrolled. Positive response was defined as a ≥50% reduction in pain score from baseline at day 30. Patient demographics, pain-related factors, and clinical factors were evaluated using logistic regression analysis to identify the predictors of a positive response to the treatment.ResultsA total of 60 patients satisfied the study protocol requirements. Twenty-eight patients (46.7%) had a positive outcome. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the absence of comorbid musculoskeletal pain (OR=0.518, 95% CI=0.029-0.858, P=0.033) and positive response to previous epidural steroid injection (OR=3.269, 95% CI=1.046-10.215, P=0.042) were independent predictors of the analgesic efficacy of pulsed DRG RF treatment.ConclusionComorbid musculoskeletal pain and previous epidural injection response appear to affect the outcome of pulsed DRG RF treatment in patients with chronic lumbosacral radicular pain.

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