Hip Intraarticular Cortisone Injections

We often encourage patients to exhaust several conservative treatment options, including intraarticular cortisone injections, prior to being scheduled for total hip replacement surgery. Cortisone is a strong anti-inflammatory medication that if injected into the affected joint may provide substantial pain relief for weeks to months. These injections are very helpful both from a therapeutic and diagnostic standpoint as often times patients have more than one source of their pain. Undergoing an intraarticular cortisone injection helps to differentiate whether the majority of a patient’s symptoms are emanating from within the hip joint or an extraarticular source (back, tendon, etc.). If a patient has dramatic improvement in their symptoms within the first few hours after undergoing an intraarticular cortisone injection, this confirms that those relieved symptoms were originating from hip joint pathology.   The intraarticular cortisone injections are performed in our Altoona office on Tuesday afternoons and Wednesdays. The injections are performed in the office using ultrasound guidance and are minimally invasive; patients will be able to drive themselves home following the procedure. Diabetics should monitor blood sugars more frequently for several days after undergoing a cortisone injection as the cortisone may increase glucose levels temporarily. Additional side effects may include insomnia, headache, dizziness and soreness at the injection site. Intraarticular cortisone injections can be repeated as often as every three months. Hip Injection Diary