Steroid injections into joints anyone had them? Do they work?

[eejit]

[Tigerlily4]

If you're talking about shots of the long-lasting steroid Depo-Medrone in order to control SLE, yes, very well for me with far fewer nasty side effects than tabs. I've been having them now for almost a decade. The downside is the drug does gradually wear off over the 13 wks each lasts so they won't take away all your pain and stiffness all the time. NB. Unless you drink at least a pint of milk every day, be sure to ask your GP for Calcium with Vit D supplements or, longterm, you could end up with osteopenia/osteoporosis, which is what happened to me!

[eejit in reply to Tigerlily4]

Thank you so much that's really helpful.

[heatherx]

I have Cortisteroid (normally Kenalog) to help reduce inflammation injected into my joints to help ease the pain. I find for the first week after having them the pain is alot worst and then starts easing off. Mine last for about 4-6 months. They don't leave me psi free but do leave the pain at a copeable level. I've had them injected into my shoulder and hips.

My daughter who's 15 has them also for arthritis type spinal problems, she has them by epidural straight into her spinal space

Good luck with whichever shots it is your needing x x

[eejit in reply to heatherx]

Thank you

[Voutton]

Hi I'm with heather on this had Cortisteroid which did help !but the first few days was truly painful but def worth the longer lasting effects I had them in to my thumbs which then allowed me to continue working at that time Good Luck I'm sure they will help you x

[eejit in reply to Voutton]

Thank you

[rlupus]

Hi i have cortisteroid to help with inflammation my joints become more painful for about 5 days then they seem to work for me for about 8 weeks , good luck hope you get some relief.

xx

[eejit in reply to rlupus]

Thank you some relief be good!

[EOLHPC]

at the end of march i had depo medrone 40mg + chirocaine 1ml 0.5% injected into the third forefoot interspace on the right, between joints where i have one of my 2 mortons neuroma & inflammed bursa situations making that forefoot highly reactive, rendering me lame, not only upon to weight bearing of any kind but also during the swelling-inflammation cycle of simulateous raynauds & erythromelalgia. this situation has been gradualy developing all my life inspite of wearing bespoke orthotics since my teens, and generally wearing appropriate footwear.

apparently injections to the feet are almost ALWAYS done with imaging equipment (eg ultrasound) guidance, but although my neuromas & bursae are visible on MRI, i was not offered any treatment by the nhs orthosurgeon who finally (this took 7 years, although i did my own research and figured my prob out right at the beginning of the diagnosis process) identified these conditions. he told me to simply avoid any weight bearing on my feet. grrreat, i htought, this will be really good for my general health. anyway, in desperation, my gp (who also said no way could feet be injected in office by a gp no matter how expert) referred me to a podiatrist surgeon privately, who is experienced in diabetes. he said sure thing, and referred me to his radiologist at that private hospital for ultrasound guided injection. she couldn't see the neuroma & bursa on ultra sound and i was charged nearly 3500 for both appts and 0 treatment. i was too poorly at the time to scream with frustration & disappoinment, but my husband was reallly angry the consultant hadn't warned me. seems it's hard enough to see such deadly little things in feet on mri, let alone ultra sound

so, we decided i'd go see the genius pain consultant who has hugely helped my spine pain over the past 15+ years (again, nhs diagnosed spondylosis & joint deterioration, but would give me no treatment and as my sle was undiagnosed until 2 years ago, no dr realised how that was factoring into my chronic muscle & joint pain). again, i'd had to consult his privately cause his nhs wait is something like 3-4 years unless you've a terminal condition. we can ill afford private, but we have not children and save for emergencies. so at the end of march i saw this genius who plopped me on his table, and, using my mri report (which i'd bought on order from the nhs) identified the injection spot by physical examination, performed the injection with NO imaging guidance. yesterday, my genius (private again) chiropodist (who organises my custom made orthotics, without which i cannot walk at all) told me it is HIGHLY unusual for ANY dr of any kind to give this sort of foot conditions injections without imaging guidance. she told me only rheumie's or ortho-surgeons will give these injections and they usually will not offer them because in most cases these foot injections are unsuccessful...

well, over a month on, my injection has quieted my pain significantly. yes, i still have to wear my orthotics always, and very very carefully ration my weight bearing activity which means it's hard to socialise, but at least i can get most basic household chores done. my pain consultant has told me what we do next if these injections stop helping: my understanding is that they do need repeating....but the intervals between injections vary in each case. me, well, basically i feel as if i am experiencing a minor miracle.

and i am still trying to figure out how i feel about the nhs's attitude to my serious lameness. if my rheumy or ortho surgeon had taken the time to explain why they wouldn't inject me, i'd be feeling less upset and conflicted. but i had to do loads of research online instead in order to understand the anatomy/morphology of the flippin human foot re neuromas/bursas etc etc etc and also to understand how sle cases react to these injections and the pros/cons of treatment (the steroid exposure/soft tissue degeneration issues etc). of course i also have researched all other treatment options for my sort of feet issues. over the past 7 years, i've had to become a flippin feet specialist. well, sorry for such a long rant. and haha i haven;t even told 1/2 the full story of getting my feet diagnosed/treated on the nhs. my impression is that only diabetics' feet are taken really seriously...i know i'm exaggerating, but i suspect the nhs wouldn't have done anything to treat my feet until i was in a wheel chair, and i am trying to avoid my condition getting that far....

well, many thanks for asking your ? eejit: i am not fascinated by any discussions of joint injections and the replies you've had are very helpful to me.

over and out, eejit, and anyone else who managed to read all the way to the end of this long long post!!!!!

take care all

[EOLHPC in reply to EOLHPC]

Sorry for the typos inc should've been: £500! Not 3500!

[eejit in reply to EOLHPC]

My god uve been through the mill and every right to rant I hope it works out for you keep me posted as to how you get on. Ps I'm roisin (pronounced row sheen) nearly as good as eejit lol

[eejit]

Thank you all for your replies all looks more favourable now to go ahead than not maybe now I might be able to use my shoulder and arm! I really appreciate your comments!

Roisin x

[haron]

I have had steroid injections in knee, hands & feet and they all helped the pain for several months.

[Hidden]

Hi eejit, have had many of these jabs in , shoulders. Hands, feet, hips, and ankles. I can honestly say that for me, only a few have worked. I am always told, worse for 48hrs, then better for approx 6mths. No dr has ever guaranteed their success. None of the jabs hurt more than the pain I already had in the joint. The last 2 I had were in my hip and shoulder. I had not had any before by this dr. I was in a lot of discomfort for a week and wished I hadn't had them. They turned out to be the best jabs ever. !!!!

[mojo]

Hi there yes i have had them a few times in my rite shoulder and they did help me realy well, i wld try it, i know get the all in one steroid injection in my behind for the pain is all over and they do help too, not completly, but they make a differance, wish you well....x