Arachnoiditis

Common Conditions
Written By Murray McAllister

Arachnoiditis is one of many causes of chronic back pain. It can also cause other symptoms such as numbness and tingling. In extreme cases, it can cause loss of bowel or bladder functions.

Causes of arachnoiditis are rare complications from spine surgeries and epidural steroid injections. Infection of the arachnoid can also cause arachnoiditis. In the past, certain oil-based contrast dyes used in CT scans also caused arachnoiditis in rare circumstances. However, these dyes are typically no longer used and have been substituted with water-based dyes.

Is there a cure for arachnoiditis?

Generally, arachnoiditis is a chronic condition. As such, the focus of care are typical rehabilitation goals: reduce the symptoms of arachnoiditis as much as possible through lifestyle changes and increase the ability to cope with the condition. The overall goal of rehabilitation is to live well despite having the condition.

Therapies & Procedures for arachnoiditis

Typical treatments for arachnoiditis are chronic pain rehabilitation and medications. Most chronic pain rehabilitation programs include medication management as part of their overall therapies.

Date of publication: April 27, 2012

Date of last modification: October 23, 2015

Murray McAllister

Murray J. McAllister, PsyD, is a pain psychologist, and the founder and editor of the Institute for Chronic Pain. He holds a Doctor of Psychology degree from Antioch University, New England, and a Master's degree in philosophy from the University of Oregon. He also consults to pain clinics and health systems on redesigning pain care delivery to make it more empirically supported and cost effective. Dr. McAllister is a frequent presenter to conferences and is a published author in peer reviewed journals. His current research interests are in the relationships between fear-avoidance, pain catastrophizing, and perceived disability.

Previous

Arthritis
Next

Abdominal Pain