Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Orthop. Jun 18, 2026; 17(6): 120581
Published online Jun 18, 2026. doi: 10.5312/wjo.v17.i6.120581
Published online Jun 18, 2026. doi: 10.5312/wjo.v17.i6.120581
Sacroiliac joint injections and radiofrequency ablation for pain management: A clinical review
Amol Soin, Anisha Mandava, Department of Surgery, Wright State University, Dayton, OH 45458, United States
Gavin Soin, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29630, United States
David Kloth, Federation for Pain Care Access, Connecticut Pain Care, Danbury, CT 06810, United States
Peter Staats, Federation for Pain Care Access, Chief Medical Officer Emeritus, National Spine and Pain Centers, Atlantic Beach, FL 32233, United States
Hemant Kalia, Federation for Pain Care Access, Invision Health Rochester, Irondequoit, NY 14609, United States
Philip Kim, Federation for Pain Care Access, Center for Interventional Pain and Spine, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010, United States
Author contributions: Soin A conceptualized and supervised the study; Mandava A and Soin G contributed to the literature search, data extraction, and initial drafting of the manuscript; Soin G and Kloth D assisted in the data interpretation and further finalization of the manuscript; Staats P and Kalia H contributed to the critical revisions and expert clinical insights; Kim P assisted in final drafting, revisions, and editing of the manuscript; all authors reviewed, revised, and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors declare no conflict of interest.
Corresponding author: Amol Soin, MD, Department of Surgery, Wright State University, 7076 Corporate Way, Dayton, OH 45458, United States. drsoin@gmail.com
Received: March 3, 2026
Revised: April 1, 2026
Accepted: April 23, 2026
Published online: June 18, 2026
Processing time: 107 Days and 0.9 Hours
Revised: April 1, 2026
Accepted: April 23, 2026
Published online: June 18, 2026
Processing time: 107 Days and 0.9 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This clinical review summarizes current evidence on diagnostic sacroiliac (SI) joint injections and therapeutic interventions, particularly steroid injections and radiofrequency ablation (RFA). Image-guided diagnostic injections remain the gold standard for confirming SI joint-related pain. While steroid injections may provide short-term relief, RFA-especially cooled or bipolar techniques-demonstrates more durable pain reduction lasting up to 6-12 months in appropriately selected patients. Emerging regenerative therapies such as platelet-rich plasma and mesenchymal stem cells show promise but require further high-quality clinical evidence to establish their effectiveness.