Cortisone injections safe, Don't avoid because of knee damage fears, says study
Written By : Hina Zahid
Medically Reviewed By : Dr. Kamal Kant Kohli
Published On 2021-12-08 03:30 GMT | Update On 2021-12-08 03:30 GMT
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Boston-Knee osteoarthritis (OA) also known as degenerative joint disease or "wear and tear" arthritis, affects one in eight Americans over the age of 50 and is associated with reduced quality of life and increased mortality. Cortisone shots, also known as intra-articular corticosteroid injections (CSI) and hyaluronic acid injections (HAI) are popular treatments for this disease yet recent studies have raised the concern that knees treated with CSI are at high risk of OA progression.
A new Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) study shows that cortisone injections in the knee do not cause significant cartilage loss or increase the risk of knee replacement.
Previous studies had suggested that cortisone injections might increase disease progression including cartilage loss, but "a limitation of previous studies is that subjects receiving CSI were not compared to those receiving comparable treatment. Patients receiving CSI have more advanced knee OA, itself a risk factor for disease progression," explained corresponding author David T. Felson, MD, MPH, professor of medicine and epidemiology at BUSM and Boston University School of Public Health.
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