Medial Branch Blocks in New York City
Targeted anesthetic injections to the medial branch nerves that serve the facet joints — confirming the pain source and providing immediate therapeutic relief in a single procedure. Required before radiofrequency ablation.
- ✓Same-day appointments and treatment at 281 Broadway
- ✓Most major insurance accepted
- ✓Live fluoroscopy on every block
- ✓Board-certified, fellowship-trained specialists
What changes with medial branch blocks
What patients experience before finding Hudson Medical, and after.
| Category | Without targeted treatment |
AT HUDSON MEDICAL NYC
With medial branch blocks
|
|---|---|---|
| Back or neck pain | Chronic, worsens with movement | Relief within hours, confirms the source |
| Daily medication burden | Ongoing, often with side effects | Reduced or eliminated |
| Diagnostic clarity | Unclear source of pain | Confirms the facet joint as the source |
| Next steps | Leads to radiofrequency ablation if effective | |
| Served from | Manhattan · Brooklyn · Queens · The Bronx |
Medial branch blocks are primarily diagnostic — confirming the facet joint as the pain source before proceeding to longer-lasting radiofrequency ablation. Relief from the block itself is temporary. Your physician will walk you through this two-step process at your first visit. All procedures at 281 Broadway, Tribeca.
Medial branch blocks may be right for you
if you have:
Treating the wrong target is worse than not treating at all.
Facet joint pain and disc pain present similarly. Without confirming which structure is driving symptoms, any intervention is a guess.
- Two successful blocks are required before RFA — confirming the target with high accuracy
- Blocks are also immediately therapeutic — providing relief for hours to days
- Live fluoroscopy ensures the needle reaches the exact nerve target
- Blocks identify which spinal level requires treatment when multiple levels are suspect
Our approach: medial branch blocks provide diagnostic certainty — anesthetic injections that confirm the facet joint as the source before any definitive treatment is recommended.
Conditions diagnosed and guided by medial branch blocks
Medial branch blocks are both a diagnostic tool and a therapeutic procedure — identifying which of these conditions is driving your pain.
Medial branch blocks and related procedures at Hudson Medical NYC
All procedures performed at 281 Broadway, Lower Manhattan. Outpatient. Image-guided. Same-day appointments.
Medial branch blocks
Diagnostic and therapeutic — confirms the facet joint source. Two successful blocks required before RFA.
Radiofrequency ablation (RFA)
Follows successful blocks — disrupts medial branch nerves for 9–18 months of lasting relief.
Facet joint injections
Delivers steroid directly into the facet joint — therapeutic alongside or instead of medial branch blocks.
SI joint injections
Sacroiliac joint diagnosis and treatment — when lower back pain is suspected to arise from the SI joint.
Confirm the source. Then treat it.
Medial branch blocks at Hudson Medical are performed under live fluoroscopy at our 281 Broadway clinic. No blind injections. No guessing. Serving patients from Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and New Jersey.
The medial branch block process at Hudson Medical
Two successful blocks — on separate visits — are required before any recommendation for radiofrequency ablation.
Book your appointment
First block — level identification
Pain diary — 4 to 6 hours
Second block — confirmation
Frequently asked questions
Questions we hear most from patients searching for medial branch block in New York City.
Wondering whether medial branch blocks are the right next step?
Our specialists review your history and imaging before recommending any diagnostic procedure.
Ready to confirm the source of your back pain?
Same-day appointments at 281 Broadway. No referral needed. Insurance verified before your visit.
281 Broadway · Lower Manhattan · Most insurance accepted