I have athritis in my lower back and it is a new thing for me.The pain goes down my leg and in my hip. Dr said the shots will help w the pain.I do exercise and am in great health, other than the back ,lol. Just wondering about other peoples experience.

I've had back pain come & go for many, many years. My pain goes down my leg & even out my toes with some episodes. A few years back, I woke up one morning & could not get up to go to the bathroom. I ended up in hospital where they gave me an epidoral in my spine. The exercise is very important. I am worse in the winter when I'm not doing the bending & stooping when working in my garden. I discovered that Aleve is the only over the counter pain releaver that works on my back. Even though I resist taking any drug, it is better to get it under control before it gets too bad.

Good News/Bad News: I have never had the cortizone shots, but know people that have. I understand that they "hurt like hell" but help tremendously.

I've tried the cortizone and epidural steriods both 3 times and no help whatsoever. Mine is degenerative disc disease, I tried physical therapy and several different pain management therapies, the only thing helping is methadone twice a day and moderate exercise.

I had them and they helped. they even numbed the back area first so I didn't have the pain from the shots :wink:
But everyone does get different degrees of relief. In my opinion it can't hurt to try it , if it works GREAT , if it doesn't work you have lost nothing .
Good Luck :thumbup:

I take aleve too I also have celebrex. I dont take it very often as aleve works pretty good. I am taking prednisone now, 6 pills then 5 then 4 untill done. It has gotten rid of the inflamation that was causing the pain. so hopefully (fingers crossed) I wont have to have a shot just yet! Thanks for the comments.

A nurse friend told that cortizone weakens the bones.
I had shot in my foot - hurt was bad. Check with circopractor he told the name of vitiam to help with the
inflamation in foot. Aleve is what the doctor told my husband to take for arthritis in lower back. Take two
Aleve at first start of pain.

Hope you feel better.

Not in my back, but I have had shots in both ankles and in my right wrist. The shots I had in my ankles had very little pain, the doctor did an awesome job. The problem is they helped for about 2 weeks and then nothing. The shot in my wrist hurt like you wouldn't believe. When the doctor was finished he said "boy you are tough!" I guess you are supposed to scream or cry or somethig. I just wanted to kick hime someplace painful. It helped, but it was not worth the pain of that shot.
Hope you find relief!

I havn't had them in my back but have had a total of 7 in my right shoulder and 3 in the left. They don't seem to work real well for me. I wonder if I am immune to them!!! My Dr. keeps trying, I am possibly getting another into the AC Joint in my right shoulder in about 2 weeks, that one is murder!!!!

I got one in the lower back and it caused me to have a period for 37 days straight.

Yuck!!!!
I bet they never told you that would be a side effect!!!

I had one in my neck and it made me hurt worse. And not just the couple of days after the shot. It started hurting so bad I am going to consult a surgeon. Bleck.

Check and see if there is a clinic in your area that specializes in back and neck pain. I got a referral from my GP to one. They took a look at the MRI and then had me come in twice a week for something like 12 weeks for an exercise program. They have specialized workout equipment that isolates the specific muscles involves in back pain. I haven't had back pain since, and it's been several years. This was after 30 years of on/off lower back pain -- sometimes so severe I could walk only bent over. My MRI showed quite a few problems including stenosis, degenerative arthritis, and disc problems.

If the area is sprayed with LIDOCANE, or another numbing agent, I don't have trouble with shoulder injections. They did hurt like H, before another DR in office did inj. and I could not belive the difference.

My Uncle who was a line man, injured his back from falling off a pole while working, in the '60's, and back then the answer to the pain was cortisone shots, he got the shots once every three months, for years. Now, he can break bones in his feet just by walking across the floor. The Dr's now know that it is a dangerous treatment when continues for a long time. I wouldn't trust that drug. I have had one shot of cortisone in my foot for bone spurs and plantars faciitis, it did not help me at all. And it was very, very painful, even if it had worked I don't think I would have the shot again, I can usually handle pain, but this was intense.

When they do it in the joint, the Lidocane does nothing to numb the pain. It is inside pain, they pop the needle into the joint, while you sit in front of a fluroscope (ex-ray type machine) It was not fun and I am not looking forward to getting another one!!!!

My DH has that shooting pain down his leg, the General Practictioner told him it was muscle spams. I didn't believe them and complained till we got an MRI, found out it was a hernated disk. He did decompression therapy (where they pull these to veribrae apart and it "sucks" the disk back in), it did wonders for him. HUGE improvement, and the regular doctor just wanted to do surgery. But from what I've heard, so many back surgeries are considered failures its actually a "disease" now. Failed Back Surgery disease, or something like that. I told him that he was too young and I had to many things left for him to do to take that chance. After he did the decompression, he has some exercises he does at home anytime he starts to feel sore and he seems to be almost normal. I'm so glad we decided against the surgery.

due to fm & arthrtis& a shoulder replacement,i've had shots almost eerywhere,the only ones that i can say really worked were the ones in my knees ,1 a week in each knee for 6 wks.took a couple mos. but finally they worked! i had 3 epidurals in my lower spine about 4 wks apart , they did nothing,they put me out to get them,thank heavn! not to mention cost,$7000 at a crack ! i have really good ins. tho, so cost me 0 out of pocket.some of the others were done in dr's office & would send me up the wall w/pain.i finally found a pain clinic that works w/me,but the only thing that really does any good are the pain meds.problem is,they make me terribly sleepy.just do what i can,putzalong like everyone else!just try to do what i can,but it's really hard.i keep telling myself that i'm 68 yrs old,but still hard toadmit i can't do what i used to !

I've had them three times in my shoulder but I won't do it again. By the time the pain from the shot wore off I was only without pain for a very short period of time--about a week. Since you can only have three per year it just wasn't worth the hassle. Besides, cortizone damages what cartilage that's still there.

I've used Jones Formula 23 with success. It's only temporary but it works for me. It's expensive but it last a fairly long time. I think a 4 oz bottle is 70 or 80 dollars but that will last about 6 months. The relief is well worth it. If you use it three times a day for 4 or 5 days then you can start cutting back. After the next week sometimes it's only once every day or two or sometimes longer. I buy two bottles for myself and one for my brother's Christmas gift every year.

Had them in wrist, hip and spine. The third ( and last one) in my spine just about put me out. Seems the doc went just a little too close to the nerve . You know, you can't move with that needle in your spine, and I didn'T, but it took me 15 minutes to stop shaking and to be able to get off the table. It isn't always too bad to stand, I'd had some that didn't do more than be a little uncomfortable. And some help and some don't. I use Aleve also, when home I get by pretty well, but if I am going to be standing or walking for any length of time, I take a pain pill first! And boy. my doc is very tight about giving those out!!

I don't know if I can handle that side effect! I am 62 now & stopped when I was 53. Oh MY.

Haven't had shots in my back but did have them in my shoulders. It did help but didn't last very long. Did give me relief and I thought it was worth it.
Hope you get some relief.
Blessings,
Scherrie

The pain goes down my leg and in my hip.
THIS sounds like Sciatica to me. Have had several time and chiropractor always makes it stop.
Have had shots in both my shoulders and worked miracles because I could not even raise arms above waist. So far still working good.
I think you should have another opinion maybe before undergoing shots that may not help you.

Did shots for about 1 1/2 years not much help. My massage therapist told me about ProLo Therapy. I found a couple of Dr's about 400 miles away. Had 9 treatments, once a month. I could not even drive a car. I am so much better I feel like I have gotten my life back. The treatment isn't easy and is expensive. Insurance does not pay. I just didn't want to have surgery. You might want to check it out.

I get them every three months in my right hand, elbow and arm. They hurt like @#$%^&!. But the relief I get from them is worth it. I went in last week for them and the Dr. sprayed a freezing spray on my skin and it helped a little bit. I am sorry you are having problems with your back and I hope the cortisone brings you some relief.

I had an MRI and it is called Sopndylosis or arthritis of the spine. I told the DR pain isnt bad enough for a shot. I have heard the shots in the joints hurt a lot but he said I would be numbed for the shot. But I am not ready for them yet!

Do yourself a favor and DONT GET THIS CORTISONE SHOT! Not only does it hurt like a S_B, but it's not good for you.

I had carpal tunnel surgery and developed a trigger finger afterwards and was told to have 3 cortisone shots between my fingers on each hand. No way will I ever do that again. I almost went into shock. It's so painful and the doctor, who is a complete idiot and has no compassion for life itself, injected this stuff so quickly between my fingers that I nearly fell off the table and passed out.

This drug will do more harm than good, so spare yourself the pain, pain PAIN, PAIN. You will be in more pain from the shot than it's worth. It will deteroriate your tissues in the end.

trust me on this.

i've not had much luck with cortizone. had it but not for back pain.

I had 3 different spinal blocks(shots) with steroids a couple of years ago for arithritis in lumbar area. Was done in the hospital as out patient and you are numbed prior to the shots. First shot helped a lot, second maybe a little, and couldn't tell a difference after the 3rd. After 3 months they started talking about redoing them again, so I found an excellent neurologist and chose surgery. Would do that again - two lumbar laminectomies, arithritic bone spurs removed, and part of a ligament. Still have some pain if I sit too long without moving around, but it is Nothing like before!

Yup. My MRI showed spondylosis along with stenosis and old herniated discs. The isolation exercises at the neck and back clinic took care of all the pain for me. It is very important to continue to exercise to pump nutrients through the spine.

I have had two of them in my left foot. At first I didn't know it would hurt so bad! The pain the next day was unbelievable. But I called the Dr---they said walking was the best thing to do. So a friend and I went to the mountain and walked the whole day. It helped so much.

The second time I just got up every hour all night long and took my dog on a 20 minute walk. It was a hard night but it didn't get so painful and helped with pain in a major way.

I have had back problems for years and have had the shots. They do not hurt and they do help. Everybody is different on if it works for them and for how long. You will just have to give it a try and see what it does for you.

I had a cortisone shot in my foot for pain in my heel. Podiatrist said could be possible heel spur but could not find it on x-ray and recommended the shot. I had a child at home with a midwife (no meds). I would rather have the child than the shot. Actually the DS I had at home was in the room with me when I had the shot and I remember him telling Dr to stop as I passed out from the pain. Get a second opinion there may be a better (holistic?) alternative.

If this shot is in your spine run away as fast as you can. This will cause a side effect called Adhesive Arachnoiditis. It is the worst thing in the world. It will make your issue worse. If it is in the soft tissue you shoud be fine. DO NOT LET THEM PUT ANY TYPE OF MEDICATION INTO YOUR SPINE. The doctors do not tell you about this side effect. I have proof that the epidural steriod injections caused this. Sorry this is a sore spot with me. I sure hope you feel better soon. I also have arthritis in my spine its the size of the tip of a pen it can cause all sorts of discomfort. If you have any questions please PM me I would be happy to answer any question for you!

My mother has had cortisone shots in her knees, shoulders, and low back. A couple of the lower back shots were called epidurial (sp?) cortisone shots. The shots helped for a while. She eventually had to have surgery. Now she has two metal rods, 3 metal cages and lots of screws in her back. Seems to run in her family. It's called Degenerative Joint Disease. Which I think is mostly Arthritis.

I have had cortisone shots in my hip but not my back.

There are many many different types of cortisone shots EVEN in the spine. Success is dependent on finding the EXACT thing that is causing the pain and getting the most appropriate shot. That's why sometimes they work and sometimes they don't.

I deal with this professionally every day. The key is finding a specialist that is good at selecting the correct shot and the best patient.

There are epidurals which can be done several different ways, facet joint injections, nerve blocking injections. So it all depends on whether it is the nerve itself that is the problem, the joint itself or the disc. While an MRI is helpful, many, many people have
terrible MRI findings for disc problems and no pain and many, many people have minimal MRI findings and pain.

Yes arachnoiditis is a potential side effect, as are several other problems. The specialists that I deal with go over all of the potential problems in detail. There are pain management "mills" out there and you should avoid them. There are five pain management specialist in my area and I only refer to two of them.

Cortisone injections are a tool like any other with pros and cons. It depends on how much pain you are in, medications that have not worked, and how much the pain is changing your lifestyle.

All I have to say is do your research doctors do not tell you all the side effects.

I have have had osteoarthritis for many years. After seeing a chiropractor, physical therapist, acupunturist, and a myofascial therapist, I finally relented and saw a pain management specialist. I found a wonderful, caring, and CAREFUL doctor who gave me a total of 9 injections (throughout a long period of time). He gave me the medication "versed" each time, which helped relax me and I didn't "remember" the pain (yet I was fully awake) and I was closely monitored during the procedures, which were done in a same-day surgery center. The injections did help for a period of time. But after quite a few, we decided I needed to have fusion of the L4-L5-S1. That was almost two years ago, and you would never know I've ever had a problem. Bottom line is, that I found the injections a necessary step to see if my chronic pain could be controlled that way or if I needed to do something further. I understand that, for some people, the injections are very successful for even up to a year or more. Good luck on your journey with this, and I truly hope you find someone who is truly after your best interest.