Steroid injections to treat arthritis pain may worsen joint damage
According to two recent studies, steroid injections used to treat knee
osteoarthritis may potentially make the disease worse. To gauge how successfully the injections affected the status of hundreds of osteoporosis patients, researchers from the Medical College of Chicago and the University of California, San Francisco, gathered data from the patients. Between the two investigations, the condition of 94 individuals who were given corticosteroids—anti-inflammatory medications used to treat a range of medical conditions worsened
Previous studies indicate that corticosteroids may harm joint cartilage and increase its susceptibility to wear and tear, requiring patients to get a hip or knee replacement
44 of the remaining patients received corticosteroid injections, and research revealed that their arthritis progressed more quickly than that of the other groups. Our findings conclusively demonstrate that corticosteroids are associated with a significant progression of knee osteoarthritis, according to Upasana Upadhyay Bharadwaj, a radiologist at the University of California, San Francisco. "Both corticosteroid injections and hyaluronic acid have been reported to help relieve pain associated with osteoarthritis of the knee," she said. should be used with caution for up to two years after injection
In the second study, which was carried out by Chicago-based experts, information on 150 patients who were tracked for 36 months was examined. When the injection was administered and two years later, patients got X-rays, and each one documented the disease's progression. The findings demonstrated that after two years, those who had corticosteroid injections experienced higher osteoarthritis exacerbations
However, there was no such quick deterioration in individuals who received hyaluronic acid injections or no treatment at all
According to Azard Darbandi, the medical student who oversaw the study, "the symptoms of osteoarthritis were worse after two years in patients who had corticosteroid injections compared to patients who received hyaluronic acid injections or no treatment at all