When you’ve tried conservative therapies and rehab for your joint pain without success, consider joint injections from board-certified orthopedic surgeon Marc Pietropaoli, MD. As the founder of Victory Sports Medicine & Orthopedics in Skaneateles, New York, Dr. Pietropaoli has more than 20 years of experience, since 1998, performing thousands of joint injections with gentleness and compassion. To learn about joint injection options for your joint pain, schedule an in-person or telemedicine appointment. You can call or schedule a visit online today.
Joint injections are therapeutic procedures used to relieve pain and inflammation in a joint by injecting medication into the injured area. Joint injections contain different medications depending on the cause and severity of your pain.
The most common type of joint injection contains cortisone, an anti-inflammatory steroid medication. When cortisone is injected into your joint, it reduces inflammation in the area, which in turn reduces swelling and pain.
Joints that cause chronic pain often have excess levels of inflammatory chemicals in the area, which is your body’s way of protecting the joint from further injury. Long-standing inflammation prevents your body’s tissues from healing, creating a vicious cycle of pain, swelling, and irritation.
By decreasing the inflammation and treating any underlying structural or functional issues through rehab and other therapies like MLS® Laser Therapy, Dr. Pietropaoli and the team can help you get out of pain and back to your favorite activities.
Dr. Pietropaoli recommends joint injections for chronic pain in your:
In most cases, Dr. Pietropaoli begins your treatment plan with conservative therapies like MLS laser therapy and physical therapy, though if you don’t see the results needed within an appropriate time, he may recommend a joint injection.
Joint injections can help you regain pain-free movement if you have:
Dr. Pietropaoli and his team perform joint injections using state of the art ultrasound for visualization. Utilizing ultrasound sets Dr. Pietropaoli’s Practice, Victory Sports Medicine & Orthopedics apart from other practices that do not utilize ultrasound for injections. Utilizing ultrasound allows for the best visualization and extreme accuracy when injecting which leads to better results.
Dr. Pietropaoli offers comprehensive joint injection options, including:
Historically, the most common type of injection used to relieve inflammation and pain. Dr. Pietropaoli has performed thousands of cortisone injections during his career. He is using cortisone less and less since there are better options below that actually help with healing as opposed to "just" decreasing inflammation.
Hyaluronic acid is responsible for helping your joints, and especially cartilage, stay lubricated and hydrated. These injections are most beneficial if you have arthritis in your knees. Unfortunately, many insurance companies are not covering these anymore. They do help stimulate the body to produce better, "thicker" joint fluid, but they do not heal.
On average: Hyaluronic acid injections last ~6 months
Healing injections:
Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections can be used alone or combined with other injections to provide the essential nutrients and growth factors needed to help repair injured bodily tissues and decrease inflammation and pain in joints, including arthritic joints. On average: PRP injections tend to last ~9-12 months, but the studies show it may sometimes take 2-3 injections to notice the full effect.
Bone Marrow Aspirate Cells/BMC therapy uses bone marrow cells, most often removed from the pelvis/"hip" area, in a quick in office procedure to offer support for tissue regeneration and healing on a cellular level.
The type of injection you need is determined by your diagnosis, imaging, symptoms, and goals for your recovery.
To set up an in-person or telemedicine consultation to discuss joint injections, call or book online now.
