How Long Does a Knee Injection for Arthritis Last?

Mar 22, 2019 | Arthritis, Osteoarthritis, Treatments

Understand the Options You Have for Treating Your Osteoarthritis Pain

When it comes to seeing relief from the arthritis pain in your knees, you can easily get overwhelmed by the information. Since immediately jumping to a total knee replacement isn’t always the right solution for your knee pain, people are in the market for an alternative solution. Not only are there several types of injections available, but when it comes to something like viscosupplementation, there are several brands of fluid that may be considered.

On top of it all, you simply want to know exactly how long one of these knee injections might last.

In fact, that might be the question we hear most at Arthritis Relief & Vascular Centers. Because conditions like osteoarthritis have no known cure, people want to know about all of their options. This is especially true if they’re going to invest in a regular treatment regimen. Moreover, before receive a knee injection, it makes sense that you want to learn exactly how much relief you’ll receive – and when you might need another one.

A Knee Injection Primer

As a brief introduction to the procedure, there are 5 basic types of injections:

  • Cortisone shot – a powerful anti-inflammatory
  • Viscosupplementation – hyaluronic acid
  • Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) – a concentrated dose platelets within your own blood plasma
  • Amniotic Regenerative Injection – amniotic tissue
  • Mesenchymal Stem Cell Therapy

You’ll need to speak with your physician or one of the trained experts at Arthritis Relief & Vascular Centers to determine which injection is best for you and your goals given the stage of osteoarthritis you have. Once the type of injection is determined, the process goes as follows:

  • Scheduling
  • The procedure under guided imaging
  • Monitoring the outcomes

Depending on the type of procedure performed, it may take a few days, weeks, or even months for you to feel the benefits of the injection(s). Some types of injections like viscosupplementation require a series of shots over a 3-5 weeks in order to experience lasting pain relief for 6 months. What’s important is that you follow your doctor’s instructions.

How Long Will the Pain Relief Last?

This can be difficult to determine for each patient, and there is no short answer. Each treatment can have a difference response and a different goal. Regenerative medicine treatments like stem cell therapy, PRP, and amniotic tissue injections can have lasting benefits that extend beyond 12 to 18 months. Viscosupplementation typically provides 6 months relief, while cortisone (steroid) injections may provide a few weeks and sometimes months of relief.

In conjunction with these treatments, doctors further recommend that patients consider adjunctive treatments to encourage the efficacy of the knee injections, including:

  • Weight loss
  • Improved diet
  • Low-impact exercise routine
  • Knee bracing

While you might not be able to get rid of arthritis completely, a knee injection can give your body the best possible chance to enjoy long-term relief from your knee pain.

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