Joint Injections Specialist
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Compassionate Health Medical Center
Family Medicine & Urgent Care located in Miami, FL & Hialeah, FL
Painful joint problems like arthritis, bursitis, and ligament injuries sometimes don’t respond to conservative treatments. If you have joint pain that isn’t improving, visit Julio Gonzalez, MD, and his colleagues at Compassionate Health Medical Center in Miami and Hialeah, Florida. They perform joint aspiration to drain excess fluid, and joint injections containing steroid medication or hyaluronic acid to relieve inflammation and pain. To benefit from the effects of joint injections, call Compassionate Health Medical Center today or book an appointment online.
Joint Injections Q & A
What are joint injections?
Joint injections perform several functions. They enable your Compassionate Health Medical Center provider to drain excess fluid out of a joint that’s making it swell. You can also benefit from an injection that reduces joint pain.
Depending on what’s causing your pain, your provider might recommend hyaluronic acid or a steroid injection.
Hyaluronic acid is a lubricating substance your body produces naturally. Injecting the acid into a joint (viscosupplementation) can ease chronic joint pain. Steroids are strong anti-inflammatory drugs that calm the inflamed tissues causing joint pain. Steroids are also effective for acute and overuse injuries.
Why would I need joint injections?
Joints — where the ends of your bones meet — are a common source of musculoskeletal injuries and pain. Conditions that might require joint injections include:
- Osteoarthritis
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Bursitis
- Patellofemoral pain syndrome
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Achilles tendonitis
- De Quervain’s tenosynovitis
- Rotator cuff injuries
- Medial epicondylitis (golfer’s elbow)
- Lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow)
Sprains and strains (acute injuries to the joint’s ligaments and tendons, respectively) might benefit from joint injections too.
In most cases, your Compassionate Health Medical Center provider uses conservative options initially, such as physical therapy, activity modification, splints or braces, and medication. If these methods don’t help you heal, joint injections offer a safe, nonsurgical solution.
What joints are suitable for injections?
Your Compassionate Health Medical Center provider can make injections in these joints:
- Knees
- Shoulders
- Ankles
- Elbows
- Wrists
- Thumbs
- Hips
- Jaw
They can also inject any of the small joints in your hands and feet.
What happens when I have a joint injection?
When you visit Compassionate Health Medical Center for your joint injection, your provider cleans the skin at the injection site. Then they insert the needle into the affected joint. Next, they remove the excess joint fluid before injecting steroids or hyaluronic acid.
If the joint is difficult to inject accurately, like the hips, shoulders, or jaw, your provider might use ultrasound imaging or a special moving X-ray called fluoroscopy to guide them. Any fluid your provider removes from the joint goes to the lab to check for infections.
Steroid injections are often highly effective in improving pain and reducing swelling. There’s minimal risk involved with joint aspiration and injections.
To find out if joint injections could help with your condition, call Compassionate Health Medical Center today or book an appointment online.
