Jeff LangmaidFounder, The Evidence Based Chiropractor

ESI Exposed 😱 | The Shocking Truth Behind Epidural Steroid Injections Revealed! 💉

16 Jun 2024 · 1 min

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Jeff Langmaid argues epidural steroid injections are overused and risky. Nearly 9 million are performed yearly in the US, but they work in only about 50% of cases. Each injection carries a 21% increased risk of spinal fracture, yet doctors rarely discuss this with patients.

Questions this video answers

Nine million per year.

About 25,000 per day.

A 21% increased risk of spinal fracture each time an ESI is given.

Approximately 50% of patients ("generally successful for approximately 50% of patients").

Chapters

Anybody know what ESI is? Epidural steroid injection. Anybody see a patient that gets three a year? I get three a year. Nine million of these are shot up every single year. That is 25,000 epidural steroid injections per day. And if you know anything about them, you know that they are basically frowned upon in the literature, used off label and completely non effective unless somebody is in abject pain and maybe it can help them for a very short period of time. Well, what also do we need to know? Might not know this, but 21% increased risk of spinal fracture every time somebody gets an esi. Do people know that? I don't think so. And that they are, quote, unquote, generally successful for approximately 50% of patients. That is worse than placebo by definition. They're kind of successful some of the time. About 50% for some people. That's about the weakest statement ever created. Yet this is done 9 million times per year. And that is why we need to communicate at a higher and better level, because people deserve better than that.