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June 25th, 2008

Cortisone Shot

After my initial high from visiting the Orthopedic Surgeon and finding out about the Cortisone shot, I decided to do some research.  I found out that it isn’t actually recommend and that it tends to weaken the Achilles tendon, resulting in ruptures.  This was rather depressing to find out.

I decided to seek out advice from various people, including my dad who is a GP and the great folks at RunningAHEAD.  I also asked my Ortho about it and he mentioned that the tendon ruptures are actually associated more with shots into the tendon 2-3″ above where my shot would be.

I was was told by multiple people that it can hurt quite a bit, and being a wuss when it comes to pain, that is definitely a factor to be considered.

I decided to go ahead with the shot under the following conditions:

I made the appointment and went this morning to get it.  After all the build up of people telling me how it would hurt, including my Ortho who said it would sting, it was actually a very easy procedure.  I felt a prick from the first needle that he used with an anesthetic, but after that initial prick, I felt very little.  To be honest, I don’t know all the fuss was about with regards to the pain.

My heel is a little sore right now (an hour later) and I imagine it will be this way throughout the day, but I’m really glad there was no pain and that it didn’t hurt like everyone else said it would.  And believe me, if there was pain involved, I would know…..I’m a huge wuss when it comes to needles and pain!!

So, now I will rest the heel for a couple days and my Ortho siad  I can run again on Saturday.

My fingers are crossed and we’ll see how this works out…..

Posted by derek in Training, Injury

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 at 9:26 am and is filed under Training, Injury. You can follow any responses to this entry through the comments RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

5 Responses to “Cortisone Shot”

  1. rachel says:

    derek - how is your achilles now? i got a cortisone shot in my right achilles ystdy, have immobolized boot for the next 7 days which is fine by me if it decreases my chances of rupturing the achilles. just very concerned that while the shot may decrease the pain/inflamation from tendonitis, may weaken the tendon and cause problems down the road ie rupture,surgery, ugh…my doct said i should be fine, just have to keep the boot on for the week. just curious how you are feeling now almost 2 months later?
    i am 28 yr old, very active in running, kickboxing

  2. derek says:

    The heel is great. No problems at all. I didn’t have to wait 7 days though…just 48 hrs and my doc allowed me to run again.

    I was also concerned about weakening the tendon so I decided that the one shot is all I’ll do. If my heel starts to hurt again, I’ll stop running.

  3. steve says:

    hey, rachel, hows your achilles doing after the shot? my podiatrist is going to give me one and said that i would have to rest it for a coupple days afterwards (im a very competitive college runner) which is fine. im just doin alittle bit of research before i get it.

  4. Paul says:

    derek,

    I wanted to check in on your insertional tendinitis problem. I ran for 30 years and started having this foot problem. I had a total of 3 cort shots over a 2 year period and a mixture of that and stopping running for 6 months finally healed (sorry for the pun) my problem.

    So, finally 5 months ago I started with walking and worked my way up to 3 miles a day 6-days a week.

    Only now the insertional tendinitis is back with a vengeance. I’m pretty much out of options as easy as a shot.

    Have you found anyone anywhere that is the go to person for this problem?

    I had plantar problems a decade ago and found a surgeon that knew a less-invasive way to fix the problem and that worked great. Now, I’m think I may need this kind of thing for my tendinitis. So, I’m just starting my research.

  5. derek says:

    Paul,

    It’s much too early for me to know if the cortisone shot has worked. I’m gradually building my my mileage and I’m only at about 17 miles/week. So far so good, but the true test would be when I get up to the 30-40 mile range for several weeks in a row.

    I’m afraid I don’t know have any solutions for if the pain returns, but I have already come to terms with myself and if it does return, I’ll stop running.

    My Ortho did mention Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy as a possible treatment. This would break up the bone spur without requiring surgery. It is expensive though and since it’s considered experimental, insurance doesn’t usually cover it. I think you need about 3 treatments and would be looking at a total cost around $20K.

    The last resort would be actual surgery which I don’t think is worth the risk…at least not right now.

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