Steroid injections are a tried-and-true solution to persistent pain and inflammation. At Central Oregon Spine & Sports in Bend, Oregon, Philip Wallace, MD, administers steroid injections to help his patients find relief from their pain and improve their overall functioning. Free yourself from pain by scheduling an appointment online or by phone today with Dr. Wallace and the pain relief experts at Central Oregon Spine & Sports.
Steroid injections are a mixture of a corticosteroid medication and a local anesthetic that is injected directly into specific areas of your body where you’re experiencing chronic or acute pain or inflammation. Steroid injections are an effective pain management treatment that alleviates your pain by reducing localized inflammation in the site of the injection.
Steroid injections can also be used as a diagnostic tool. By injecting steroid medications into specific areas of your body and observing your body’s reaction, a surgeon can determine whether or not you might need a particular surgery, and where precisely that surgery needs to be done.
Steroid injections can treat a number of different conditions, including:
Steroid injections can be used to treat those conditions in numerous areas all over your body, including your:
Steroids are most commonly injected into your joints, and are even used in treating conditions in the small joints of your hands and feet.
When you come in for a steroid injection, Dr. Wallace first cleans the area around the injection site and, depending on where you’re receiving treatment, uses an anesthetic spray to numb the area. He then inserts the needle. In some situations, he uses an ultrasound or a special type of X-ray called fluoroscopy to monitor and help guide the needle into the perfect position.
Once the needle is properly placed, he depresses the plunger on the syringe and releases medication into the injection site. Because steroid injections usually include an anesthetic, you’ll experience some immediate relief in addition to the long-term relief of the corticosteroid.
After receiving your steroid injection, you might feel some warmth and redness in your chest and face. This is normal and usually goes away quickly. You’ll also need to limit the amount of activity in the area where you’ve received the injection for a few days, in addition to avoiding bathtubs and hot tubs.
You might experience a temporary flare-up in pain and inflammation immediately following the injection, but that should fade within 48 hours, after which you should feel significant relief in pain and inflammation for up to several months.
To learn more about how steroid injections can help alleviate your chronic or acute pain, schedule an appointment online or by phone today with the medical experts at Central Oregon Spine & Sports.
