Nerve block procedure.

Hi, just over a week ago I was given a nerve block injection into my shoulder. This involved the doctor putting a probe into my shoulder to find the nerve and then injecting a steroid and anesthetic into it. I was told to rest up for at least two days after it which I did.

However, here I am ten days later and the pain is so bad from my shoulder right down to my fingers and every move produces crunching noises. I am waiting for an MRI scan which my GP said he would put down for urgent for me. I saw a different GP this week for another reason and asked about the scan and he looked it up and said I hadn't been put down for one but he would see the other doctor and get it sorted out, meanwhile I am still waiting.

The pain was caused through a nasty fall I had last February where I ruptured two tendons in my shoulders. I have been told by an orthopeadic surgeon that an operation to repair the tendons is not possible because it would be like trying to repair pieces of wet tissue and they would break again almost straight away. Having RA has weakened my tendons and I am in pain with my back, neck and knees from it all the time but at least it lets up when I rest.

I just feel that I can't go on in pain like this, it never lets up, even when I rest and it throbs all the time. I suppose my question is, has anyone else had anything like this happen to them and have any of you had a nerve block and has it worked or not?

[hawker955]

Yes, I have had injections into both shoulders after rotator cuff injuries and that was in 2006 . My shoulders have been 99% okay ever since, though the injection was repeated in one shoulder a few years later as well. I think that mine were successful and complication-free.

[helixhelix]

My OH has had two nerve blocks into his shoulders, just with anaesthetic for an operation, but without horrible after-effects like you're having tho'.

You can get steroid flares after an injection, but I don't think that would produce crunching noises. You haven't got any heat or redness at the injection site have you?

Can you go back to your doctor and ask about it as sounds deeply unpleasant and not right.

[Hidden in reply to helixhelix]

Hi Helix and thanks for your reply. No, there is no swelling or heat. I do wonder if it is a flare from what you say. It was actually crunching before I had the treatment as well and I should have said that. I am waiting to have an MRI scan done on that shoulder and arm. I mentioned it to the doctor when I was seeing him about something else on Wednesday and he didn't really say anything. However, I asked him how long he thought it would be before I had the MRI scan because the other doctor said he would put it down as urgent. He looked on the computer and said he couldn't find any thing about me being put down for one and he would speak to the other doctor about it. So I have a feeling that he forgot to put me down for it and that will have wasted three weeks. Meanwhile I go on in this awful pain. I am going to ring the doctors surgery again on Monday to ask if I am down for it now. It looks like I am going to have to keep pushing them to do something. When you are feeling ill and in pain, the last thing you want is to have to keep on urging people to do their job.