I have a torn meniscus in my left knee, and my doctor recently recommended cortisone shots to treat that injury. Is this a good idea? Does anybody know about Cortisone shots? And what are the side effects?
2007-01-05 14:29:52 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Health ➔ General Health Care ➔ Pain & Pain Management
If your pain is mostly in one particular spot, such as in a joint or a trigger point in a specific muscle, your doctor may suggest injecting medication right into the site of your pain. These injections are commonly referred to as cortisone shots, but what medication is injected can vary.
Joint injections are usually a combination of a local anesthetic, or numbing agent, which provides immediate relief, and a corticosteroid, such as cortisone. The steroid reduces inflammation and often can relieve your pain for several weeks or even months at a time. The pain from the injection is said to be moderately uncomfortable.
Before turning to cortisone shots, however, doctors usually try less invasive treatment methods first — such as oral medications and physical therapy
A possible side effect is the introduction of bacteria at the site, causing an infection in the joint. Prompt treatment is needed to prevent destroying any joint function. The risk of infection has been listed as anywhere between 1 in 1000 and 1 in 16000, so the risk is not very great. If the person doing the injection is skillful and sterilizes the skin using iodine and/or alcohols this will lower the risk. Probably the most common side-effect is a 'cortisone flare,' a condition where the injected cortisone crystallizes and can cause a brief period of pain worse than before the shot. This usually lasts a day or two and is best treated by icing the injected area. Another common side-effect is whitening of the skin where the injection is given. This is only a concern in people with darker skin, and is not harmful, but patients should be aware of it. Also, patients with diabetes may have a transient increase in their blood sugar which they should watch for closely. Because cortisone is a naturally occurring substance, true allergic responses to the injected substance do not occur. However, it is possible to be allergic to other aspects of the injection, most commonly the betadine some physicians use to sterilize the skin.
2007-01-05 14:38:23 · answer #1 · answered by HoneyBunny 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Cortisone shots are a really effective joint pain solution. However, if not careful when the shot is given you can get infections through no fault of your own. To add to that, cortisone drops your immunity to a very low level. unfortunately some doctors will not explain the bad side to treatments as well as the benefits. No one explained these to me and I got a staph infection from the shots. It took 3 months for it to actually centralize to be able to find out what it actually was. My doc insisted it was just migraines. (headache, achy, weak) so I believed them. 2 cat scans, 1 MRI and a biopsy later I was referred for emergency surgery as it had accumulated to the size of a tangerine on my neck. I dont mean to scare you off as this is like a 1 in 1000 risk. there are many benefits from this treatment, but wanted to warn you of the real possible side effects of this. email me for any other questions
2007-01-05 14:40:33 · answer #2 · answered by jody s 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
My husband had a cortisone shot for a bad elbow awhile ago. It really helped, but it did wear off after a month or so. Don't know of any side effects.
2007-01-05 14:32:09 · answer #3 · answered by AZKludgeQueen 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I get cotisone injections in my knees pretty often, but not sooner than 3 months. They do offer some relief for most of that time, sometimes longer. They do not get rid of all the pain for me. I have had arthroscopic surgery 3 times which helps for a longer time. This is where they go in and scrape the cartilage to smooth it out so the knee cap operates more smoothly. One knee had to have a ligament notched to allow it to stretch. One side effect of the steroids is a rash and "Thrush mouth" which is a yeast infection. The tongue gets a thick fur and food has no taste. Good luck!
2016-03-14 02:11:05 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes my husband had a very bad knee and his doc gave him several cortisone shots he didn't have any side effects and they really helped him but they do wear off so then he had to have knee surgery and now he's fine.
2007-01-05 14:38:43 · answer #5 · answered by fefe 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
cortisone shots are a type of steroid used to alleviate joint pain
2007-01-05 14:33:05 · answer #6 · answered by Miklo 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They do work but they're quite painful to get.
2007-01-05 14:38:25 · answer #7 · answered by Chick-A- Deedle 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
My orthropedic surgeon said he wouldn't do that for a weight-bearing joint. (Mine was my ankle) Get a second opinion.
2007-01-05 14:38:21 · answer #8 · answered by shermynewstart 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋