Joint pain treatment (joint injections) at Spire Norwich Hospital

Spire Norwich Hospital serves patients across Norfolk and East Anglia. We offer a choice of expert orthopaedic consultants, anaesthetists and consultant rheumatologists who perform joint injections and are committed to healthcare excellence.

You can expect to receive treatment without the wait, and high-quality aftercare that’s personalised to you. Our facilities are clean and modern with all the comfort and convenience you’d expect at home.

Getting here

Spire Norwich Hospital is situated just off the A47 southern bypass, close to the University of East Anglia and just three miles from the city centre. Spire Norwich Hospital is approximately three miles from Norwich train station. We have free on-site parking for you and your visitors.

Your consultations

All your consultations will take place in one of our 12 accessible consultation rooms, so don’t worry if you have joint pain when walking. During your consultations, we'll:

• Ask about your medical history
• Say whether you need blood tests, an X-ray and/or an MRI or CT scan so they can examine your joint in more detail
• Check your blood pressure and blood sugar to make sure the hydrocortisone injection is suitable for you
• Explain about the procedure, anaesthetic and any potential risks and complications and how they may affect you
• Give you a chance to ask any questions you have about your treatment

Joint injections can be used to help knee pain, shoulder pain and hip pain, and in particular, pain that’s associated with osteoarthritis.

Once you and your consultant have decided to go ahead with joint injections, they’ll outline your treatment and ongoing support plan.

On the day of your procedure, you’ll come into Spire Norwich Hospital and meet your healthcare team.

When you’re ready, your consultant will feel and flex your joint and may draw out fluid with a needle, if necessary.

Your consultant will then perform the joint injection.

• They may use a local anaesthetic before or at the same time as the injection to help make the procedure more comfortable for you
• A consultant radiologist may use a special X-ray machine to see your joint and guide the needle in
• They may make more than one injection, if necessary

After your injection, you’ll have time to recover until your consultant is happy for you to go home. This is usually after about half an hour.

It’s normal to feel some discomfort from the injection itself and to have some bruising for a few days afterwards. If you had a local anaesthetic, you may not feel much pain but the effects will wear off in a couple of hours.

Some people notice an improvement in their chronic pain after just a few hours but it can take several days for the injection to become fully effective. You can expect the effects to last for a few weeks up to a year, depending on the type and strength of injection you have.

Although everybody’s different and you should always follow your consultant’s advice, here’s a typical recovery timeline for joint injections: