I had my first of 5-8 alcohol injections into my neuroma on Friday. I have to have them every 10 days until the toe is numb. The doctor guided the needle with an ultrasound to make sure he was hitting the nerve exactly right. He said this treatment has gotten much more effective with the advancement of the ultrasound. He used to do 3 or 4 neuroma surgeries a month; now he does 3 or 4 a year.
The injection didn’t hurt as much as the cortisone when he gave it (he freeze sprayed it first), but later in the evening, it was very, very sore. It’s better today. Hope it’s not that bad every time.
I’ll update my progress in the comments section over the next few weeks.
How many does he think it will take to make it numb?
I had a cortisone shot in my foot once and it made it feel really good for several days.
He couldn’t predict, but usually between 5 and 8 injections, one every 10 days.
Cortisone is pretty nice, once the initial sting goes away. I’ve never heard of injecting alcohol. Does it kill the nerve?
I had my second injection today. There was pretty good progress (shrinkage) from the first one, and he thinks I might only need three or four.
My third and hopefully, final injection was on Thursday. My neuroma has shrunk below 4mm, and that’s typically the threshold for discontinuing injections. He thinks mine will improve more over the coming weeks, but we can always resume the injections if pain persists. It is feeling a lot better now! I still have slight twinges, but that can be from the nerve dying as much as inflammation.