Meralgia Paresthetica (MP): Outer Thigh Pain

The lateral femoral cutaneous nerve (skin nerve located on the side of your thigh) is a branch of the lumbar (low back) spinal nerves that travel under the inguinal ligament (groin area) and provides sensation to the side of the thigh. Because the nerve travels under the inguinal ligament, it is susceptible to impingement at the inguinal ligament. This is similar to carpal tunnel wherein the wrist's median nerve becomes trapped.

Symptoms may include:

• Numbness in the lateral thigh
• Neuropathic pain, sometimes severe

When pain does not respond to medical management, a nerve injection block at the site of impingement can provide both diagnostic and therapeutic advantages.

Cryoablation (cold therapy) may provide pain relief as well as spinal cord stimulation (neuromodulation) versus a selective L2 nerve stimulation.

Spine and Pain Consultants of New York are currently enrolling patients in a study involving pulsed radiofrequency ablation of the L2 dorsal root ganglion. This is the nerve from which the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve originates.

To Learn More

If you have been diagnosed with meralgia paresthetica, or are interested in learning about treatment options to manage your pain, please contact our pain management experts at Spine and Pain Consultants of New York in Manhattan, New York and Staten Island, New York. We would be happy to make an appointment for a consultation and provide additional information about other treatment options.