Trigger points form when muscle fibers become painfully knotted. However, injecting them with steroid medication and a local anesthetic can relax the tissues and relieve your pain. The rheumatology team at Arthritis Associates in San Antonio, Texas, offers expert trigger point injections as well as a variety of advanced intra-articular therapies to treat a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. For relief from your joint, muscle, and spine pain, call Arthritis Associates to schedule a consultation or book an appointment online today.
Trigger points are extremely sensitive knotted muscle fibers that can cause intense pain and soreness when touched. They may develop after an injury, from overuse or repetitive strain, or as a result of chronic muscle tension.
Joint problems like arthritis can increase your risk of developing trigger points and worsen those already present.
Trigger point injections offer pain relief and help excessively tight muscles to relax. The injections contain an anesthetic to numb the pain and a corticosteroid medication to reduce inflammation. Following your injection, the treated trigger points loosen, and your pain eases off.
After your trigger point injection, you may experience some swelling and discomfort for a short period, but this soon wears off. You can use over-the-counter pain relief and apply ice packs if necessary.
You should find that in the weeks after your trigger point injections, the lump of knotted muscle starts smoothing out.
In addition to trigger point injections, Arthritis Associates offers several types of intra-articular injectables, including:
Steroids reduce the production of inflammatory cells, which are your body's natural response to injury and disease. Intra-articular steroid injections can treat osteoarthritis, gout, and rheumatoid arthritis, with injections into the hips, knees, and hands being particularly effective.
Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a substance that naturally lubricates your joints, but people with osteoarthritis tend to have low levels of HA. Intra-articular hyaluronic acid injections or viscosupplementation may increase lubrication, improve range of motion, and reduce pain in your joints.
Other substances like platelet-rich plasma (PRP), which comes from your blood, can also be injected into damaged tissues to boost your body's natural healing abilities.
The team at Arthritis Associates may use trigger point and intra-articular injections to treat a range of painful conditions, including:
Your Arthritis Associates provider selects the most appropriate treatment for your condition. They only suggest steroids when other, more conservative approaches prove ineffective due to the potential risks of using steroids without good cause.
To find out if you can benefit from trigger point or intra-articular injections for your musculoskeletal disorder, call Arthritis Associates to schedule a consultation or book an appointment online today.
