Steroid Injections
Steroid injections (Corticosteroid injections) are a type of anti-inflammatory medicine, they alleviate pain by reducing inflammation.
All Steroid injections at Physiotherapy2Fit are administered by our Advance Practice Physiotherapists, which have completed additional post-graduate training and are highly experienced clinicians.
The clinicians at Physiotherapy2Fit use steroid injections to reduce the symptoms of:
- Acute and Chronic bursopathy
- Acute capsulitis/frozen shoulder
- Chronic Tendinopathy
- Inflammatory Arthritis
- Osteoarthritis
- Chronic ligament sprains
Common examples of Steroid Injections include hydrocortisone, triamcinolone and methylprednisolone.
Steroid injections are most commonly administered into the joint, muscle or tendon.
The injections normally take a few days to start working and maximum effect can take up to 2 weeks. The effect usually wears off after a few months.
You are advised to rest the injected area for 48 hours and only to do light exercise for 2 weeks post injection.
Possible side effects post-injection
- Pain localised to the area of the steroid injection – painkillers such as paracetamol can help with this.
- Temporary bruising at the site of injection
- Facial flushing- occurs in less than 1% of cases
- An infection of the joint or tissue injected- signs of infection are redness, swelling and pain. If you have these symptoms seek medical advice as soon as possible. Joint infection are however very rare occurring in less than 0.001% of cases.
- Permanent Small depression in the skin due to reduction in fat at the site of injection
- Permanent discolouration of pigment of skin at the site of injection
- Temporary rise in blood sugar levels in diabetics- after a few days this should return to normal
- Temporary rise in systolic blood pressure in patients with high blood pressure- after a few days this should return to normal
It is very important that you notify you Physio before a steroid injection if you:
- Have has a steroid injection recently- it is recommended that there is a least a 4 week duration between injections
- Have had 3 in the last year- no more than 3 injection should be administered into the space in a 12 month period
- Have had past allergic reaction to a steroid
- Have an infection
- Have had any vaccination recently or are due to have one.
- Are Pregnant, breastfeeding or trying to conceive
- Have any other conditions such as diabetes, epilepsy, high blood pressure or problems with your liver, heart or kidney
- Taking other medicines such as anticoagulants
Steroid injections may not always be suitable in some cases, although your physio may recommend them if they think the benefits outweigh any risks.
If a Physiotherapist has suggested that you would benefit from having injection therapy, there are 3 ways in which Physiotherapy2Fit can offer this to you via different pathways, the 3 options are there to ensure every patient is given ‘patient choice’ as required under the NHS guidelines, and has been agreed following consultation with the local CCGs that we work with
OPTIONS AVAILABLE:
- If you are under the care of a Consultant we can refer you to them for their attention with a request for them to consider injection therapy, the approximate waiting time for this is 6-8 weeks
- We can refer you to Clinical Assessment Service (CAS), the approximate waiting time for this is 6 weeks
- We can offer you the Injection Therapy in-house with Physiotherapy2Fit, the approximate waiting time for this is 7-10 days.
You will receive an equitable level of care whoever you are seen by. If you choose option 3 where you will be seen by our Advanced Practice Physiotherapist, we will raise the prescription to save you having to go to the chemist. The prescription is required to be a private prescription following decisions made by the local CCG. As a result, there will be a fee payable to Physiotherapy2fit equal to the current prescription charge of £9.00
Please discuss all options with your Physiotherapist.
