What Types of Pain Can Be Successfully Treated With a Steroid Injection?

If chronic pain is getting in the way of your daily activities, you want relief — and fast. When rest and other conventional approaches haven’t worked, steroid injections may help. 

Steroid injections aren’t a cure for an underlying condition, but many people find significant relief, making it easier to participate in physical therapy, exercise, and everyday activities. 

At Spine & Pain Center of San Antonio in San Antonio and Live Oak, Texas, Dr. Sergio Alvarado and our team can determine the source of your pain and create a targeted treatment plan to help you attain long-lasting relief. Here’s when we might recommend injections. 

What is a steroid injection? 

A steroid injection, also known as a corticosteroid injection or cortisone shot, delivers anti-inflammatory medication directly into an area of persistent pain. 

By dialing down inflammation at its source, steroid injections can reduce swelling, ease pain, and improve mobility. In certain cases, our team may also combine the steroid with a local anesthetic for additional comfort as part of your procedure. 

What types of pain can steroid injections treat? 

Steroid injections are effective for pain caused by inflammation. Our team evaluates your symptoms, medical history, and diagnostic results to determine if you could benefit from steroid injections. 

Arthritis pain 

Arthritis is the term for stiff, painful joints. There are over 100 types of arthritis, including osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Steroid injections can help relieve common arthritis symptoms and limited joint mobility, especially in the knees, shoulders, hands, and ankles. 

Back and neck pain 

Inflamed spinal joints can cause back pain as well as neck pain. Steroid injections may help relieve pain from herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, facet joint arthritis, and spinal stenosis. Lowering inflammation also helps improve range of motion. 

Sciatic nerve pain 

Sciatica develops when the sciatic nerve root gets irritated or compressed, often by a herniated disc or spinal narrowing (stenosis). Steroid injections can help reduce inflammation around the affected nerve root to provide rapid relief.  

Shoulder pain 

If you have rotator cuff injuries, shoulder bursitis, or frozen shoulder, steroid injections may improve shoulder joint mobility and provide pain relief. The same holds true for many cases of knee, hip, and elbow pain.

When we recommend steroid injections 

If you’ve tried physical therapy, rest, or other treatment options and they haven’t worked well enough or long enough, we may recommend steroid injections. It’s important to note that not every type of pain responds to steroid injections; our team can work with you to determine the best pain management plan for your needs. 

What to expect during a steroid injection 

Steroid injections are a quick, in-office treatment. The injection itself only takes a few minutes, and many patients experience rapid relief from the anesthetic, while the steroid can take up to a few hours to significantly calm inflammation.

Pain relief can last from several weeks to several months, depending on your condition, symptoms, and individual response. 

Steroid injections in San Antonio and Live Oak, Texas

If you’re experiencing chronic pain that interferes with your daily activities, speak with our pain management specialists at Spine & Pain Center of San Antonio. 

Our team offers a full scope of non-surgical treatment solutions for a range of chronic pain conditions — and steroid injections may be an ideal next step for you. Contact your nearest office in San Antonio or Live Oak, Texas, to schedule an appointment today.