Ketorolac Versus Corticosteroid Injections for Sacroiliac Joint Pain

Overview

This study will contribute to the current literature that have compared joint injections with steroid versus ketorolac providing evidence for the use of ketorolac for SI joint pain. Currently steroid is the clinical standard for joint injections, however with repetitive use, steroid injections can damage the joint. Ketorolac is an alternative anti-inflammatory medication that does not cause the same joint damage and at a cheaper cost than steroid. The investigators hypothesize that ultrasound guided SI joint injections utilizing ketorolac provide the same pain relief as corticosteroid SI joint injections measured at 2, 6 and 12 weeks post injection. This would allow more frequent injections to control pain at a decreased cost to the healthcare system.

The majority of people will suffer from low back pain at some point in their life with 15-25% of axial low back pain originating at the sacroiliac (SI) joint. This pain is thought to be due to inflammation of the SI joint capsule, ligaments or bone. Following conservative management strategies such as mobility work, core strengthening and physiotherapy, as well as pharmacologic management, an SI joint injection would be the next treatment modality. Corticosteroid injections are currently the standard of care for joint injections. The corticosteroid minimizes pain by interrupting the bodies inflammatory cascade primarily by inhibiting the phospholipase A2 enzyme. However, with repetitive use, steroids can cause cartilaginous damage of the joint. With chondrocyte dysfunction being a key part of early osteoarthritis, these injections may expedite the arthritic joint changes. Due to this damage, physicians try to spread out joint injections as far as possible to reduce this risk even if the patient begins to experience more severe joint pain. One possible alternative to steroids is the use of ketorolac, an non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). Ketorolac joint injections have been shown to have similar pain reducing effects to steroids when used for shoulder, knee, hip and carpometacarpal joint pain. They have also been used widely in the National Football League to treat musculoskeletal injuries and in the post-operative phase to reduce opioid usage to manage pain. NSAIDS provide analgesia by inhibiting the cyclooxygenase (COX) family of enzymes that are involved with formation of prostaglandins. These prostaglandins are inflammatory mediators that promote inflammation and activates nociceptive neurotransmitters. Although there are known side effects of NSAIDs including increasing propensity for GI bleeds, kidney and liver disease, joint injections may have less systemic side effects compared to their oral counterparts. Another benefit of Ketorolac is the fact it is significantly cheaper than steroids. With less chondrotoxic effects, perhaps Ketorolac injections could be administered more frequently, not allowing the patient to have increasing pain levels, at less cost to the health care system even with more frequent administration.