Does anyone have experience with cortisone shots?

The shot itself only caused pain during the procedure, afterwards I felt relief only slowly with peak after a week, lasting me 8 weeks. . . . Q

Abilene, I think my knee problem stems from too much jumping. Do you mind sharing your knee story? What did the doctors say about it? Did you ever get an MRI, and, if so, what were the results? I am curious and also glad to hear that your cortisone shot was so helpful for you.

The other doctor I saw diagnosed me with patellofemoral pain syndrome. She told me to do PT. I tried PT once. While there, the PT said my quads were very knotted and tight, making my thigh bone rub against my knee cap. I felt even worse the following days, and decided to do the stretches he told me about (as well as foam rolling), but I did not go back to PT.

Chelsea,
Unfortunately, Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) is one of those catch all terms for pain no one understands and no one knows how to manage. Heck, they aren't even sure which tissues are involved. But they do know that there is inflammation involved. At your age a quick shot of cortisone will reduce the inflammation and follow up with PT will strengthen the muscle tissues around the inflamed joint . . . The back of the kneecap and the bottom of the femur . . . Q

Post Edited (quincy17) : 10/13/2014 12:44:28 PM (GMT-6)

I've had a bad knee for 25 years - started with injury of tearing cartilage and tendons, etc. and I had one surgery shortly after the initial injury, then they wanted to do major surgery, which I opted out of! Until recently I had been getting the injections in my knee, and got pretty good pain relief for about 10 weeks consistently.

For me, I get about four days of pretty severe pain after the injection, then it suddenly goes away. Probably not typical, as I also have fibromyalgia and mayofascial pain syndrome that likely get flared by the treatment. Odd that it is always the same length of time though, nothing else about my health is so predictable!

You can ask your dr about hydrotherapy and a PT appt for that. I have been doing aquatherapy for about 2 years now and once shown the steps I go to a private gym now with a heated pool and do not use PT anylonger for that. I also take a low impact water aerobics class at the Y which is awesome to help stay limber and not overtax my knees or my spine. I have both knees redone one with a partial and one a full knee replacement. The full is great and the partial is broken so it gives me many many issues.

You need not to stop exercising just have to change the way you do it!! As a matter of fact it is very important for your knees to continue to get that exercise and movement.

There are actually some pretty good websites that give you the basics as far as watertherapy goes and what to do for specific joints. If your Y doesnt have a heated pool many gyms do as well as hotels that will allow you access to their pool for a small fee and campgrounds such as KOA and Encore do the same.

Got my steroid injection into my right knee this morning, I have had flu shots that hurt worse than that injection, HA. It was a piece of cake, then went shopping at Sam's. Anyway she wanted to also give me the injection of that thick stuff, ( can't remember the name, but it is suppose to make a cushion between the bones in the knee. But I choose not to get that till I see how the steroid injection works. Am suppose to go back the middle of November.

I have had problems with that knee every since high school when I tore three thumb nails sized chips of bone away. The tendons were stronger than the bone it was attached to, so the bone gave way. Then had a jug handle tear in the cartilage in the early nineties that locked the knee up and required surgery. Last few months it has been giving me fits again and swelling up. X-rays show fragments floating around in it. The four weeks of PT did little to help it and in fact I think made it worse.

Now will see if this injection will help. Chelsea the injection its self is really easy! Piece of Cake!

White Beard

Yep Dixie that's the name she called the stuff! I thought it might be better to wait to see if this steroid injection calms it down first before going for that injection! As I age these joints just keep getting worse and worse! LOL I have had both knees worked on too, and one shoulder and well the whole spine is going down the toilet! Doc told me I got the bottom of the barrel on the gene pool! I ended up with a bit of everything that has plagued both sides of my family! My daughters keep telling me that they better not inherit all the joint problems that I have had! LOL Such is life huh!!

White Beard

I think I would like hydrotherapy. Would it be beneficial for patellafemoral syndrome? This is the diagnosis on the PT script.

I am worried about exercising because exercising is what caused my problem. I wish I never would have started. I was trying to gain muscle, but otherwise I was in great shape.

I am still considering the injection. The past 2 doctors I have seen are all for PT. I really did not like PT, so I feel like the injection is the only option.

The doctor this week just read the MRI report to me. I could have done that myself. Then he said do PT. I asked him about the cortisone shot, and he said he usually doesn't do them with someone as young as me, but it could or could not help.

Chelsea...I'm not sure what it will take to convince you to go ahead with the cortisone injection.  That's ultimately your decision, but I would encourage you to schedule it and get started on therapy sooner rather than later.

 

Hey TMouse...My first series of Synvisc several years ago was "multi-part" injection(s).  However, there is a Synvisc One that has been available for several years, which is exactly what the name indicates---ONE INJECTION, period. 

As I stated in an earlier post, the gel being injected into the knee joint is "throw up in the wastebasket" pain.  Don't let anyone compare it to cortisone...apples and oranges...indeed.  The injection pain eases, but you need to take a couple of days "off your feet" to get best results, long term.

TMouse--OUCH--Was this your orthopedic that administered the inside/out injection?  No excuse for that or the pain it caused you!

    Dixie

Hey TMouse...Thanks for the congrats to the Rebels=) BTW, Can you tell me if you get better relief from the Opana ER or from your previous OxyContin?  I've got to figure out a way to afford an extended release med, as I'm currently taking Oxycodone. I'm fully aware that meds affect folks as individuals, but I still like to hear personal experiences.

I hope Chelsea will get the cortisone and the therapy for her knee.

~~Dixie

Thank you, TMouse for sharing your experience.  Dilaudid puts me face down in my own vomit (yep).  The Oxycodone actually hasn't caused gastric issues, which is a miracle for me.  However, it's not extended release so it's nearly impossible for me to keep a steady serum level.  My PM has told me that OxyContin is next on the ladder, but it's not in my budget, period.  I don't even know how it would affect me, since I've never taken it. 

Yea, I'm concerned with any ER med lasting the full duration.  I've read of folks who take the OxyContin with Oxycodone as a BT with good results.  If money were no issue, I'd already have tried it.  The $400+ per month is just WAY too much.  I'm thinking Opana is expensive w/o insurance as well, isn't it?  I fall between the proverbial "crack" of income that exceeds limits for assistance, but falls short (way) of the income needed to obtain multiple monthly scripts for maintaining my husband's heart health and my multitude of issues.

I don't mean to hijack this thread.  I just NEED to know if OxyContin is worth fighting for financially, as there is no generic.

Thanks again, TM...You can email me if you like=)

~~Dixie

Dixie6 Before I got my pain pump I was taking Oxycontin and Percocet for BT. percocet is Tylenol and oxycodone and oxycontin is just extended release oxycodone. I took it for many many years and it was a real Godsend to me! When they reformulated it a few years back so it couldn't be crushed and abused so easily the new stuff didn't give the full 12 hour relief so allot of PM docs started prescribing it to take every 8 hours! That's what I did for a long time till I got the pump. Now I don't take any oral pain meds.

Oxycodone short and long lasting was the only pain med that didn't make feel dopey or sleepy or nauseated! it just relieved my pain! For me I thought it worked the best far better than meds with hydrocodone in them! They wired me and made me feel doped up and made me feel nausated! Hated that feeling!!!

White Beard

I am still considering the cortisone shot. I haven't seen/talked to the doctor who suggested the shot since August (he suggested the shot over the phone when he called me with the MRI results). I think I want to see him again before I get the shot to go over how it works/where it's injected. Do you think it's acceptable to make another appointment with him before getting the shot? It's been over two months since I last saw him and got the MRI.

How do the doctors decide where in the knee to inject? Is there a common place where the injection goes on the knee?