Patent ID: 8088119

Claim:
A method of performing a transforaminal epidural injection to deliver substances into an injection site in an epidural space of a patient, the method comprising: providing a needle cannula having a needle lumen and an injection tubing having a distal portion with a blunt tip and extending through the needle lumen, where the injection tubing comprises an injection lumen where the injection tubing comprises a flexible material that deflects away from structures in the body such as blood vessels, nerves, or bone; fluidly coupling a source of a radiopaque material to the injection lumen; inserting a distal end of the needle cannula so that it is spaced a distance from the intended injection site, such that the needle cannula is spaced from the epidural space; advancing the blunt tip of the injection tubing from the needle cannula and distally through a vertebral foramen into the epidural space while the needle cannula is proximally spaced from the epidural space, to advance the blunt tip into the epidural space; delivering the radiopaque material through the injection lumen to the epidural space to verify placement of the blunt tip of the injection tubing; and delivering a first therapeutic substance through the injection lumen to the epidural space.