Are you afraid of having a joint injection performed? Do you need one? Is arthritis causing problems in your life?

Joint pain is very common and many millions of us suffer with it each day. Knee pain causes particular misery, with pain, stiffness and loss of mobility a major issue for many who suffer.

The range of available treatments is wide. Will a joint injection cure your knee pain or would it be better to try another option?

Please remember that an injection is not always the best or the only method available for treating your joint pain. Lots of other treatments can help. Ask your doctor or your therapist about the other choices you could make.

Sometimes you will not get help from an injection and might need an operation. Perhaps even a joint replacement in some cases. Take care with joint injections if its possible that you might need surgery in the near future. Some surgeons don't like to operate within two or three months of an injection being done.

Two or three different joint injections exist and are commonly used.

Many doctors use a mixture of an anti inflammation steroid drug and some numbing drugs to act as a local anesthetic. Several different steroids can be used, with the most common being Kenalog, Depomedrol or Hydrocortistab.

A steroid injection gets rid of pain by getting rid of any inflammation in the joint.

Some specialists now also use lubricating agents like synvisc or ostenil. These are sometimes called viscosupplements because they put back missing lubrication fluid into the joint.

Please remember that most joint injections are not painful. You have no need to be afraid of having one. Your doctor will have the experience and the skill to make sure that you don't find it unpleasant.