Drugs, Medications, and Spinal Injections to Relieve Neck Pain

Based on the diagnosis, your doctor will recommend a treatment plan. The vast majority of people with neck pain don't need surgery. Generally, the cause is a muscle strain, so time is a good medicine. However, if your symptoms last more than a few days or get worse, get in to see your spine specialist.

Your doctor may prescribe medications and/or spinal injections to treat your neck pain. This may be part of a more comprehensive treatment plan that includes physical therapy.

The severity of your pain determines the prescription, which could be:

Spinal Injections for Neck Pain

• Cervical Epidural Injection: This injection targets the epidural space, which is the space surrounding the membrane that covers the spine and nerve roots. Nerves travel through the epidural space to the neck, shoulders, and arms. If a nerve root is inflamed in the epidural space, you can have neck, shoulder, or arm pain. A cervical epidural injection puts anti-inflammatory medicine into the epidural space to decrease the inflammation of the nerve roots. The epidural injection may provide total and permanent relief—or it may reduce your pain for several months.

• Trigger Point Injection: These are used in more extreme cases. Trigger points are knots of muscle that develop when muscles do not relax. A trigger point injection targets that area with a painkiller. Injections aren't used in isolation; your doctor will most likely also suggest an exercise program (physical therapy) to work on muscle flexibility, strength, and proper movement.

Medications for Neck Pain

• Over-the-counter NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs): These will help reduce swelling while relieving your pain. If an over-the-counter NSAID is an option for you, you have plenty to choose from. You can use acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil).

• Prescription Medications: If you have chronic neck pain caused by muscle spasms, you may need a muscle relaxant, which will help stop the spasms. As surprising as it may seem, anti-depressants can be effective drugs for treating pain because they block pain messages on their way to the brain. They can also help increase your body's production of endorphins, a natural pain killer.

As with all medications, you must follow your doctor's advice precisely. Never mix over-the-counter and prescribed drugs without consulting your doctor.