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UncannyTarotSpread t1_iyb9eg3 wrote

I thought this was already well-known. I had to have a steroid shot in my knee in 2016 and the doctor warned me that it couldn’t be done too often as it would hasten degeneration.

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jphamlore t1_iybepy2 wrote

Indeed, I suspect the most common reason people get such corticosteroid shots is for short-term ability to continue working. From my very limited personal experience, there was never any understanding this was good for the long-term.

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UncannyTarotSpread t1_iybgdic wrote

I’m thankful that it was just for bursitis and not for a chronic condition. But the sheer number of people I see hobbling around… gah.

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lordenki40 t1_iycbb2z wrote

Lots of people are forced to trade their health for a paycheck with long hours and little to no healthcare along the way. Then they get to retire after their best years are gone. It's a sad state of affairs.

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SilverThread t1_iye7nvb wrote

Yup. I'm currently helping my mother finally take care of herself - double hip replacement, teeth pulled, dentures, hearing aids, cataract surgery.... She didn't take care of herself at all during her life.

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Saladcitypig t1_iybwl7o wrote

unless you are a rich guy with an in pocket doctor like my ex, who wanted a shot before playing tennis... blech.

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Partly_Dave t1_iyc6qcj wrote

My mother was in so much pain from arthritis in her knee that she was admitted to hospital.

Doctor said there wasn't much they could do apart from managing the pain. My sister pressed back, saying there must be something he could do.

He said that cortisteroid injection in the knee was an option, but there could be long term complications.

Mum, "I'm 90, I don't have a long term!"

She got the injection and it worked.

She was also right, she only had another four years - but they were pain free years.

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UncannyTarotSpread t1_iyc8ee5 wrote

I’m sorry for your loss, but I’m glad she had the last few years without pain. Her memory for a blessing.

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lordenki40 t1_iycb7hc wrote

Responsible doctors absolutely would warn against this I agree. Steroids deteriorate bone mass. Unfortunately it caught on as a "safe" alternative to opiates. It was insisted that I must try injections before we could consider opiates since I failed Gabapentin/ Lyrica with flying colors and I'm horrendously allergic to Aspirin and therefore NSAIDs. I would kill to be able to take ibuprofen. I received the shots in my knees even though my osteoarthritis was mild they were willing to do it monthly if necessary. Treatment resistant autoimmune inflammatory arthritis is my main issue though and my knees rarely hurt. They injected a steroid so strong that when it's put in flesh there is a risk of necrosis. I almost completely lost the ability to walk for six months and my knees were now the most painful part of every day for half a year. I slowly regained strength and the pain faded as the medication was fully absorbed and removed. I said never again. Eventually I did jump through enough hoops to get the opiates two rheumatologists suggested would be the only way to improve my quality of life. They were right as the last two years are going the best they have in over a decade. I'm literally a poster boy for the pain practice's success stories now.

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UncannyTarotSpread t1_iycqj0j wrote

I’m so sorry that they did that to you. Opiates are now treated like Satan by a lot of people, even professionals, and it’s horrific.

Gabapentin really works for some people (and my dog) - but it gave me suicidal ideations and then I had to be weaned off of it and it made the pain worse.

I am glad that you finally got the treatment and relief you need. All the best, friend.

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aShittierShitTier4u t1_iyddbca wrote

The real benefit from opiates for osteoarthritis might be that as the osteoarthritis grows bone nodules in an arthritic joint, the patient won't mind the pain of having to move so that the bone nodules get ground down to a smooth joint surface.

Just be honest about your pain, you owe it to yourself and the prescriber to do what is therapeutic, I'm sure that you know why. I'll never forget the time that I consulted with a different specialist, an emeritus at a prominent teaching hospital. I told him about my pain management, and he asked to see the medication. It was like I just handed superman a bottle of kryptonite, the poor guy was clearly tempted to gulp down a bunch of pills, or suffering some other anxiety about some measly Vicodin. A foremost healer in his field, and painkillers could maybe derail it all.

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isadog420 t1_iyesue7 wrote

Gawdamighty, for anything stronger than Advil here, it takes an act of god. Now. Before that, every junkie on the streets had a SAFEr Supply of oxy.

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DawnOfTheTruth t1_iyc2uql wrote

Had a bad cuff tear. Surgeon wanted to give me a shot on the joint before an mri and send me on my way. I insisted on the MRI refused the shot. Turned out to be an almost full cuff tear and during surgery they saw a perfect smooth surface at the joint so no arthritis. The shot would have fucked me and solved nothing.

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threat024 t1_iydn9ia wrote

Agreed. It's the reason I turn them down every time when offered.

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