When to Consider Joint Injections for Shoulder Pain

Shoulder pain can develop for many reasons, including overuse or injury. It varies in severity, sometimes going away on its own and other times requiring invasive procedures for long-term relief.

In most cases, conservative measures like physical therapy, oral medications, and rest help to ease shoulder discomfort. However, if these measures aren't successful, consider a minimally invasive joint injection to decrease pain.

At Prudent Medical Providers, Sarah Phillips, DPN, APRN, and Jorein Teves, MSN, APRN, FNP-C, provide various treatment options for shoulder pain, including joint injections. These injections often decrease pain and ward off surgical intervention.

What are joint injections?

The shoulders are among the many joints you can injure throughout your life. They’re high-use joints, meaning you're at risk for injury and a breakdown in cartilage, tendons, and bones. These issues can lead to chronic pain and difficulty moving or using the shoulder.

Doctors use minimally invasive joint injections to reduce inflammation and relieve pain. You can get one in just about any joint in the body when conservative treatments don’t yield suitable relief.

You can get different types of joint injections, including corticosteroid injections. Corticosteroids are a type of medication that reduces inflammation and pain over time after an injection.

We give an anesthetic medication along with the corticosteroid injection to ease pain immediately after the procedure. The anesthetic lasts for several hours, while it often takes a few days to weeks to feel the full effects of the corticosteroid.

Corticosteroid injections are one of the most prevalent types of injections. However, you may also benefit from other treatments like platelet-rich plasma injections or stem cell injections to heal the tissues within the shoulder joint.

In some cases, joint injections are successful enough to prevent further issues within the shoulder and delay or rule out surgical intervention.

When to consider a joint injection for relief

We typically start with minimally invasive, conservative treatments to tame your pain. These include physical therapy, oral medications, and ice or heat. Further, rest is essential after an injury to allow soft tissues to heal. 

However, if you've tried conservative measures without significant relief, it may be time to move on to the next treatment.

Joint injections are usually the subsequent option. They offer long-term relief without surgery when you have inflammation from an injury or overuse of the joint.

Our team carefully evaluates your shoulder to determine if a joint injection is the best therapy for your needs. There are several reasons why we might not be able to give shoulder joint injections, including:

• Septic arthritis
• Acute fractures
• Bacterial infections
• Cellulitis
• Allergy to the medications

You may require more than one joint injection for long-term shoulder pain relief. However, you shouldn't have it sooner than three months after the first injection if you're still having discomfort.

A joint injection is a great option to address ongoing shoulder pain that resists other treatments or if your pain is affecting daily activities and work. Joint injections have minimal side effects and risks, making them a safe alternative to more invasive procedures.

To schedule your shoulder joint injection, call Prudent Medical Providers at one of our offices in Tacoma or Federal Way, Washington, or request a telehealth appointment here on the website.