How Do Joint Injections Work?
Understanding Joint Injections
As people age, they often start to experience pain in areas that never used to bother them when they were younger. Unfortunately, joint pain is common in older men and women. Of course, younger people are also susceptible to joint pain. If you suffered a joint injury or you engage in activities that require you to use a given joint in a certain manner repetitively, it may cause the joint’s lining to wear down prematurely. Pain, stiffness and an inflamed or swollen joint may be the result. Joint injections are a popular procedure that can help.
What Are Joint Injections?
Luckily, there are several treatments for chronic or occasional joint pain that’s having a negative influence on the quality of your life that don’t involve replacing your painful joint. One of them is joint injections.
Joint injections are exactly what their name implies. They are shots administered by a medical professional with the goal of alleviating discomfort and/or inflammation in a joint. With a joint injection, a medication of some sort is injected into a joint where two bones move against each other and they’re housed by what’s called a joint capsule.
Joint injections can be performed on any achy or swollen joint. Fingers, toes, wrists, knees, hips, elbows, shoulders and ankles are all eligible for joint injections.
What Happens After a Joint Injection?
Depending on various factors, you may be given a local anesthetic at the time of your joint injection. If you do get one, the local anesthetic will probably make your painful joint feel better right away because the joint will be numbed. The anesthetic will wear off within a few hours and your pain is likely to return.
It generally takes three to five days for a joint injection to start relieving a patient’s discomfort. As the solution that was injected makes its way through your joint over the first few days following your injection, the pain in your joint may increase moderately.
How Long Will a Joint Injection Relieve My Joint Pain?
The length of time a given joint injection will relieve your pain depends on a variety of factors, such as your weight, overall health, lifestyle and the type of medication that was administered. In general, a joint injection will alleviate pain anywhere from a few days up to several months.
What Kind of Joint Injections Are Available at Dr. Weight Loss of Atlanta?
When you visit one of Dr. Weight Loss of Atlanta’s four area locations, we’ll explain that Dr. Roig administers several kinds of joint injections. The specific one you’ll receive will be determined by Dr. Roig based on various factors like the severity of your pain and inflammation and the length of time you’ve suffered from an achy joint.
As we just mentioned, Dr. Roig uses several different kinds of joint injections to relieve joint discomfort and inflammation. Here are some of the joint injections that are used most often at our facilities:
- Stem cell and platelet-rich plasma injections
- SUPARTZ® and HYALGAN®
- Serapin®, Zeel®, and Traumeel®
- Lidocaine and Marcaine®
Don’t let joint pain limit what you’re able to do every day. Visit Dr. Weight Loss of Atlanta to see if you’re eligible for life-altering, pain- and inflammation-reducing joint injections today.
