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Short and Long-Term Side-Effects
of
CORTISONE SHOTS in Athletes
Ross
Hauser, M.D.
Years ago, when an athlete
needed to get back to their sport ASAP, cortisone shots were
considered the standard of care. Just because something is the standard
does not mean it is correct. More than 40 years ago, research began
questioning the validity of excessive
cortisone treatments.
Cortisone and other steroid shots are given to
athletes joints, especially the knees, when exercise and
NSAIDs don’t relieve the pain. In
essence, they are given because the family physician, team
physician, or orthopedic surgeon has no more treatment
options.
Did the treatment cause arthritis?
It is commonplace of an athlete to have a sports injuries
and go through exercise, physical therapy, NSAIDs, then a stronger NSAID, and
eventually progress to cortisone shots. Once this level of care is reached it
is only a matter of time before arthroscopies follow. Arthroscopies are
offered to ‘clean up’ the area. They do not repair anything typically just
scrape away damaged tissue. Well the athlete should be asking “why is the damage
there?” It is there because of all the NSAIDs and steroid
injections, which were given by the same physician that is going to the
arthroscopy and eventually the joint replacement.
If one looks at the pathophysiology of arthritis it is
clearly a condition that occurs when a joint becomes loose because of
ligament injury. Non-healed ligament injury causes an excessive amount of pressure on
the other joint tissues such as the
menisci. Once these go, the
cartilage
deteriorates. Arthritis means that the joint is deteriorated as manifested by
a thinning or degeneration of the joint. Excessive bone forms to try and
stabilize the joint which is loose from the underlying ligament laxity.
Ligament laxity or weakness is thus the underlying problem in most degenerated
joints. Because
Prolotherapy
gets at the root cause of arthritis it is very
successfully in treating this disorder.
Prolotherapy
helps all stages of arthritis but is best done as early as
possible.
Prolotherapy
treatments can help
stimulate the repair of all the structures inside the joint including the
ligaments,
tendons, menisci, cartilage, and joint capsule.
Preventing long-term problems
It is extremely easy to prevent arthritis from forming. All
an athlete has to do is heal completely all sports injuries. Since physicians
who utilize Prolotherapy are experts in ligament injuries it is best to have
one of them on the athletes treatment team. Prolotherapy
doctors can help
an athlete determine when complete healing has occurred. If an athletes
ligaments and tendons are as strong or stronger than before the injury there
is no risk for arthritis forming in the future. If an athlete continues to
play on an injured joint or ligament then arthritis is sure to form. It has
to! Arthritis is the bodies response to stabilize a loose joint. A bone spur
or bone overgrowth is occurring because the underlying joint and joint
stabilizing structures (ligaments) are still weakened and stretched. By
obtaining Prolotherapy and strengthening the weakened structures, the impetus
for the arthritis forming stops and so does the pain. |
