Once a Year Cortisone Shot

INFORMATION ABOUT THE “ONE OR TWO TIMES A YEAR” (CORTISONE) SHOT

Some patients want to ask about the “once-a-year-shot” their friend got for allergies. This usually refers to an injection of cortisone, such as Kenalog.

Cortisones are useful, powerful medications. But in some cases, this injection will give relief for only a couple of weeks. Moreover, there are some patients who report they got no relief at all This inconsistent benefit must be weighed against the fact that some patients will actually experience unwanted side effects from Kenalog, just as they would experience from Prednisone cortisone pills. These side effects can include acid stomach, water retention and weight gain, mood changes, inability to sleep, acne, and menstrual cycle disturbance.

If cortisone is repeated too frequently over the years, long-term side effects occur throughout the body, and these effects are cumulative. Some patients exhibit high blood pressure, stomach ulcer, acceleration of cataracts in the eyes, diabetes mellitus, large weight gain, round face, a hump at the base of the neck, thin easily-bruised skin, general muscle weakness, brittle bones (including the hip and spine) that fracture easily, a somewhat compromised immune system, as well as the risk of wide psychological mood swings. Rarely, there can be occurrence of a sterile abscess or muscle wasting at the site of the cortisone injection. For these reasons we allergists recommend against the routine usage of these cortisone injections, and advise they be reserved for the very few unusual situations in which they are absolutely necessary.

Disclaimer
If you think you have a MEDICAL OR PSYCHIATRIC EMERGENCY, CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY or go to the nearest hospital. DO NOT attempt to access emergency care through this web site. An emergency medical condition is a medical or psychiatric condition that manifests itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity (including severe pain) such that you could reasonably expect the absence of immediate medical attention to result in any of the following: serious jeopardy to your health, serious impairment to your bodily functions, or serious dysfunction of any bodily organ or part. An emergency medical condition is also "active labor," which means a labor when there is inadequate time for safe transfer to a Plan hospital (or designated hospital) before delivery or if a transfer poses a threat to the health of the member or unborn child.

This site may contain links to other web sites outside of www.permanente.net. Kaiser Permanente has no control over the content or the availability of these sites, and is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such Web sites. Web links are provided as an educational tool, and should not be relied upon for personal diagnosis or treatment. A link or reference to a web site should not be construed as an endorsement of the site or its contents. Any medical content that you feel may be important to your health should always be discussed with your Kaiser Permanente physician.