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Joint and soft tissue injections are shots with a needle.  They can be given in a joint, such as your knee, or a soft tissue site, such as the space between a muscle and a bone. Injections can help diagnose or treat many different conditions, including:

• Bursitis
• Tendonitis
• Arthritis
• Osteoarthritis
• Carpal tunnel syndrome
• Rheumatism

The needle can be used to take out fluid or put in medicine. Anti-inflammatory medicines are the most common drugs to use in injections. These include corticosteroids (steroids), which are often given together with pain relievers such as lidocaine. Before getting an injection, it is important to tell your healthcare provider if you are allergic to steroids or any other medications.

Long-term use of steroids can cause side effects, such as weight gain, infection risk, and other issues. Talk to your healthcare provider about their long-term plan to treat your joint condition.

Path to improved health

Before the shot, your healthcare provider will probably give you a local anesthetic (numbing medicine) This helps reduce the pain of the injection needle. After the shot, you may have some pain after the anesthetic wears off. Ask your healthcare provider if you can take an oral pain reliever. You also can apply ice on the site for 15 minutes several times a day.

Some people need more than one injection. Your healthcare provider will talk to you about how many you need and how often.

Things to consider

Injections do have possible side effects. Swelling and irritation are the most common. These are known as a post-injection “flare” and may last up to 48 hours. Less common side effects are infection, tendon rupture and muscle damage. In order to reduce your risk of infection, follow your healthcare provider’s instructions carefully and keep the injection site clean.

Contact your healthcare provider right away if you have:

• Redness
• Warmth at the site
• Continued pain
• Fever
• Abnormal reaction