What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

Anyone familiar with cortizone shots?

  • Thread starter rattler
  • Start date
ive got semi-major knee problems and have been avoiding the issue for sometime(I HATE NEEDLES!) well we have had a couple really low pressure systems move through and it basically feels like someone is jamming an ice pick in my knee anyways so just how bad are they, are they terribly expencive and any other personal experiances? these darn low pressure systems are almost as effective at waking me up in the midde of the night as my darn sugar glider.
 
i thought that was an itch medication?
 
No cortizone shots are for pain,they inject in in the place it hurts.My dad got his hand crushed in a bull dozer track that he was working on,anyway he had a cortizone shot after he recovered from the surgery(month or two)And he said it hurt more than the pain from the injury(imagine getting injections in your knuckles).I feel for you rattler!

Jerry
 
actually its both. its used as a cream for itching ect and its also injected in to joints for cronic pain, usually arthritis but for various other reasons such as what happened to Jerry's dad
 
yeah they hurt alot but it's worth it. it helps with the pain. the few times i had one it left a bruise. if you don't have insurance they can be somewhat expensive.
 
My dog used to get them for itching from allergies.
 
If youve got a long term knee problem then go to the doctors and ask them for advice, I really wouldnt try doing anything myself as it just might damage it more
 
I have had few in my shoulder, the first few times they sting and burn more then standard shots. But after you get a few you get used to it. If the pain is bad enough that you want the shot, the pain from the shot will not bother you.

Wolf
 
Starman, i definatly wont be giving the shot to myself. i could barly stand giving my wife a shot of one of the migraine meds the doctor gave me to give to her during her last really bad string of them and that was a simple shot into the rear. im not taking a big darn needle and rooting around in my knee joints myself. as to doctors at this point there are only two docs allowed to touch my knees. ive had one quack screw up the left knee worse than it was and got me addicted to pain killers to boot. basically the one local doctor i trust said the cortizone shots are the next step since i chucked the Celebrex he had me on out the window when it started causing a whole nother set of issues with my knees that were not acceptable. basically the problem is i have issues with needles and no insurance at this point in time(hopefully the newspaper i work at will have a policy before the begining of the year).
 
  • #10
Cortisone is an anti-inflammatory steroid that can be given in cases of severe joint pain but does not relieve pain directly. However, it can reduce local pain indirectly by reducing inflammation. The shot can be slightly painful but often local and topical anesthetics are coadministered to reduce this. Side effects, if any, are typically mild and most commonly include increased joint pain hours to days after injection (due to the cortisone itself) or infection. Cortisone's effects last a few days and it's not given more than 3-4 times to reduce the risk of more serious side effects associated with chronic use.

I'd trust your physician's judgement. Medicine is more of an art than a science and complications, when they occur, are typically unavoidable or unforseen as opposed to being the result of negligence.
 
  • #11
I have had a cortisone shot. They aren't that bad. What I didn't like was not so much the pain but the fact that you can FEEL the cortisone going into you. Its kinda like a thick, ripply feeling. It was gross and creepy. However, it was very effective for me. I was having terrible pain in my shoulder from a bone spur for at least two years. Sometimes I could barely lift my arm to put it through a coat sleeve or brush my hair. After about a week, the pain went away and I have remained largely pain-free since then. I also needed cortisone for my foot but I requested cortisone pills instead of the shot. Shots in your foot can cause you problems. The pills worked on my foot too but took a little longer.

And I've had cortisone pills many times for bronchial problems in the past. Its effective for that too but when you take the pills...you must be careful to wean off them slooooowly. Come off too fast and the consequences are unpleasant.
confused.gif
 
  • #12
My mother got a cortisone shot in her shoulder to treat five decades of shoulder trouble stemming from a childhood bout with polio. It was a miracle for her, and she's still pain-free now, two years later.

Capslock
 
  • #13
I've also had them for my shoulder.I have rotator cuff syndrome,so I started getting the shots when I was just 13.It did help a lot though.Rattler if you're so afraid of the needle,then why don't you try the pills like PAK did,just take her advice and be really careful.Hope it works out for you
smile.gif
~Niki~
 
  • #14
i wasnt aware there were pills, i will have to ask the Doc about them
 
  • #15
Yep...there are pills. There is something called a Medrol-dosepak. You take a series of pills over time. The very first set of pills (usually something like 6 in one day) is the actual treatment. Then you wean off....taper off the pills each day...5...4...3...2...1... til you're done. That's weaning you off slowly so you don't get a bad reaction.
 
  • #16
I'm not a fan of Celebrex even though it is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. I've had the good old cortisone shots in my knees before as well as in my hip of all places.  Not pleasant but no where near as unpleasant as having a bone marrow test or having your knees drained. Come to think of it a shot of Demerol is far worse than any cortisone shot. Here's how it works for me... my doctor will start out with a small needle and he will shoot some pain killer in, then he will insert the needle a little deeper and shoot some more pain killer in. Then he will pull that needle out and insert the needle for the cortisone. By the time I actually get the cortisone shot, I really don't feel much of anything other than pressure at the injection site. Each person reacts differently. The shot could be heaven or it could be hell. You've probably reached the point where you just don't care how much a shot will hurt if you think you can get rid of the pulse that wakes you up at night. I think of aching throbbing joints and I immediately think of Chinese water torture or that short story "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe. I am not a medical doctor but I wish you would please consider going to an orthopedic doctor to ask if you can have additional testing such as an MRI. If your employer is going to be offering health insurance this coming year maybe you can find out what is at the root of your knee problems as opposed to masking the symptoms. What if this is not just a sports injury related type osteo arthritis and you've got a torn acl or maybe rheumatoid arthritis or who knows what? The cortisone will usually take care of the pain but I doubt it will do much more than that. My other concern with cortisone shots is that sometimes they work too well. You start using your knees again for normal activities because they feel good and you can end up doing more damage. I'd be inclined to go for the Medrol dosepak until you have health insurance and can figure out what is actually wrong with your knee. It's a steroid so if you opt for this route, please consider what PAK said and I'd have to add that you should eat saltine crackers or get something in your stomach when ever you take the meds just so you don't end up with an ulcer. Here's hoping you get some relief and a few weeks of deep sleep.
 
  • #17
actually i know exactly whats wrong with my knee. ive had MRIs and even surgery on both(one knee done by a quack, the other by a hell of a surgeon) my problem is basically i have patches spurs made of cartilage over the surface of the knee joint. they are catching and rubbing together and thats what is causing the pain and inflimation. surgically removing the spurs works, for a lil while. i spend several grand to have the doc go in and scrape/burn with a lazer the spurs off and smooth up my knee. with the good Doc, im healed up from the surgery and walking normally in about 10 days. i get about 3 weeks of bliss and than the spurs have grown back to the point ive got pain and inflamation again. with the quack, 3 weeks on crutches, addicted to pain killers and still walking with a bit of a limp 10 weeks down the road.

another option would be to remove the cartilage all together but than i will have arthritis to contend with.

Laura my problem with Celebrex is about what you describe about Cortizone working to good. Celebrex does wonders for the pain but nothing for the spurs so i loose my warning sign of pushing my knees(pain) to far. the doc perscibed the Celebrex to me for last hunting season. it was great i was hiking 15 miles a day in rough country and having no pain. well about 2 weeks after hunting season i was leaving my parents house, stepped up into the truck and my left knee popped out of joint and i invented a whole new family of curse words much to the surprise of my now wife and step kids who had no clue what had happened. after i got my self home and drugged up good all i could think about was what if that had happened while i was hanging off the sandstone cliff chasing mule deer 3 weeks earlier, very scary thought. i flushed the Celebrex the next day. they werent worth it.

basically im looking for something to split the difference. the pain i can deal with for the most part, but i need something to help out. narcoics arent an option cause my body has a low tollerance and i cant work on them. Celebrex works to good. Tylenol, Asprin, Ibuprofin, and Naproxin arent quite good enough and tear up my stomache after a few days.

i know what will work but its a whole nother risk that im not quite ready to take. my state legalized its medical use but since Celebrex works and im assuming Cortizone will to there is no way a doctor will go out on a limb and perscribe it.
 
  • #18
I have to have a cortisone shot in my right shoulder every five years or so... dislocated it three times stepping off my scooter (motocross racing) at high speed,
It usually takes three of four tries before the doc gets the needle in the right place...not fun is an understatement...but it works.

No! They do not use a square needle rattler.  
laugh.gif
 
  • #19
Sheridan... I thought I was a bad girl until I read this, "it was great i was hiking 15 miles a day in rough country and having no pain." Hiking 15 miles a day in rough country??? I'm all for adding Bambi to the freezer in nice white packages but shame on you for 15 mile a day hikes on bad knees. If I was your wife I'd give you twenty whips with a wet noodle. If your stomach is getting torn up on over the counter meds, best to share this with your Doctor before you consider asking for Medrol dosepak.

Sorry, I must have missed a comment about "square needles". Like Lauderdale said, they don't use square needles.

Lauderdale... shame on you too!  "dislocated it three times stepping off my scooter (motocross racing) at high speed".  Twenty whips with a wet noodle for you too!
 
  • #20
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]If I was your wife I'd give you twenty whips with a wet noodle.
LOL! she was hiking along side me, we were actually looking for an elk for her first. i wound up shooting my deer a whopping 200 yards from the road. i can handle 6 days of pills if it helps with my knees. taking enough OTC pills to do any good and still keep me councious enough to work(no narcotics) every day tears up my stomach.

Laura my knees have been bad enough to keep me from doing the hiking i love to do for over 6 years. they felt good and i wanted to hike. i had just never had one pop out of joint before. its an experiance that i dont want again. but all in all if presented the same thing again i would probably do it if i dont find a solution that works in for another 5 years.
 
Back
Top