Corticosteroid Injections

Corticosteroid injections, also called Steroid Injections, are anti-inflammatory medicines used to treat a range of conditions such as joint pain, arthritis and sciatica.

The injections normally take a few days to start working, although some work in a few hours. The effect usually wears off after a few weeks or months.

If you’re having an injection to relieve pain, it may also contain local anaesthetic. This provides immediate pain relief that lasts up to a few hours. You may need to rest the treated body part for a few days.

Who can have steroid injections

Most people can have steroid injections.

Please tell Dr Bailey before having treatment if you:

  • have had a steroid injection in the last few weeks – you usually need to wait at least 3 months between injections
  • have had 4 steroid injections in the last year – doctors usually recommend no more than 4 injections in the same area in the space of 12 months
  • have had an allergic reaction to steroids in the past
  • have an infection (including eye infections)
  • have recently had, or are about to have, any vaccinations
  • are pregnant, breastfeeding or trying for a baby
  • have any other conditions, such as diabetes, epilepsy, high blood pressure, or problems with your liver, heart or kidneys
  • are taking other medicines, such as anticoagulants

Steroid injections may not always be suitable in these cases, although Dr Bailey may recommend them if he thinks the benefits outweigh any risks.

Non-PRESCRIBING PRACTICE

A steroid injection requires your doctor to issue a prescription for the medication. Once your suitability for injection has been determined, we will contact your doctor by email and request the prescription. Once you have collected the medication from the pharmacy we will make an appointment to issue the injection.

Please note: Not all surgeries operate in the same way. As such they may or may not issue the prescription for you. You may wish to consider our alternative injections, Cingal or Hyaluronic Acid Injections. These do not require a prescription and we hold the medication in stock.