Joint Injection

Joint injections are used to treat pain for several reasons:

• Treat inflammation

• Heal injured tissue within the joint

• Diagnostic purposes, to differentiate the multiple possible

sources of pain

The Revive team of orthopedic pain

management specialists will review your medical history,

perform a problem focused physical exam, review imaging, and

offer a customized treatment plan based on an accurate

diagnosis. If you have joint pain you may benefit from an

injection.

Joint injections are used to treat pain for several reasons:

• Corticosteroids are the traditional way to treat

inflammation and are mixed with local anesthetic. Risks of

steroids include cartilage damage, joint infection,

increases in blood sugar, weakening or rupture of nearby

tendons, osteoporosis, skin discoloration, and weight gain.

• Newer, cutting edge therapy using Regenerative Medicine

Therapy with platelet rich plasma (PRP) and Stem cells

uses your own body’s ability to promote healing, reduce

inflammation, and relieve pain without many of the risks

associated with steroids.

Your doctor and staff will explain what to expect before, during,

and after the treatment. If you want sedation for your

procedure, your doctor will advise you to avoid eating or

drinking anything for eight hours before the procedure and to

have a responsible adult drive you home. You may need to stop

taking certain medicines (blood thinners) several days before

your procedure. You are welcome to do the procedure awake,

under local anesthesia if you would prefer, in which case this

may be done in the office under sterile conditions.

All our injections are performed using sterile technique and

using image guidance. After a sterile cleaning of the site to be

injected, local anesthesia will be used to numb the skin. The

needle will be placed using image guidance. Medication will

then be administered and needles removed. Bandages will be

placed and you will be given post procedure instructions.

How quickly you get relief and for how long depends on what

type of medication is used for your injection. 

• Typically steroid injections with local anesthetic work very

quickly. Duration of effect will depend on the severity of

arthritis, inflammation, and damage within the joint.

• Typically, regenerative medicine treatment has a slower

onset of effect (four to eight weeks) and greater duration

of effect with the potential to repair underlying damage

within the joint as opposed to steroids which can impair

wound healing.

The amount of relief is dependent upon the amount of

inflammation, injury and duration, sometimes it can be

complete relief, sometimes a subsequent injection is necessary

to achieve more complete relief.