IPSA Medical often advises getting steroid injections if you are suffering from inflammation or from arthritis (usually in the knees, shoulders, elbows or wrist joints).
If you are experiencing joint pain, visit your IPSA Medical doctor, as he or she will be able to prescribe some effective treatments that will ease your symptoms.
Swelling and pain in the joint areas can be reduced following steroid joint injections, thus leading to improved mobility.
The pain relief provided by these injections can last for 3–6 months.
This will depend on:
- The type of steroid that is given
- The severity of your injury
- The disease present in the joint
If required, these injections can be given every 3 months, usually with no more than four injections being given annually.
IPSA Medical’s Arthritis Treatment
Your IPSA Medical doctor is fully trained in both minor procedures and joint injections. As an IPSA Medical client, you will be examined immediately. The environment is both quiet and clean. Your affected joint will be fully examined to exclude any other medical conditions.
Your IPSA Medical doctor will discuss the best treatment mode for your joint/s.
You will be offered a range of treatments such as:
- Steroid injections
- Analgesia
- Exercises
- Anti-inflammatory medication
If, whilst having your consultation, your IPSA Medical doctor thinks that having the steroid injection is the best possible course of treatment for you, then your doctor will explain what will happen (before, during and after the procedure) and will discuss any pain that you may experience. Our IPSA Medical doctor will run you through the benefits, alternatives and risks; in this way, you are kept fully informed regarding what the procedure actually entails.
If you are happy at this stage and give your consent for the procedure to go ahead, you will then be asked to sign the consent form.
You will be offered complete after-care advice following on from the injection being given. We may also recommend/prescribe medication to maximise your healing following the procedure.
If required, your IPSA Medical doctor may discuss with you (and recommend) some further tests during the same appointment.
IPSA Medical is also able to organise joint X-rays, ultrasound scans or MRI scans of the affected joint/s immediately (without an excessive waiting time), if your doctor’s finding is that some further imaging is required.
Talk to your IPSA Medical doctor today if you are considering having steroid injections.
Steroid Injections: How Do They Work?
- The affected area is examined
- Your skin is cleaned with sterile wipes
- A local anaesthetic is given
- The steroid is then injected
After receiving the local anaesthetic, you may not regain the full feeling in the joint for several hours, so care needs to be taken not to knock/bump the area. Extra pain relief may then be needed as the anaesthetic starts to wear off so that you do not experience discomfort.
Before going home (usually this is when you feel able to do so), your IPSA Medical doctor will assess your joint movement and suggest some suitable exercises for you to do once you are home.
There are rarely any problems following joint injections with steroids; however, contact IPSA Medical immediately if you notice:
- Persistent swelling
- Redness
- Joint pain (which does not settle down after a few days)
- A high temperature
Contact IPSA Medical today, as our doctors can usually offer you same-day appointments.
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