Steroid Injections for Shoulder Pain Relief May Do More Harm Than Good

Corticosteroid shots may offer brief shoulder relief, but studies show they can increase the risk of subsequent rotator cuff tears up to sevenfold.

This is like the acid reflux video (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/do-proton-pump-inhibitors-work-for-acid-reflux-gerd) that showed how the standard therapy—PPI proton pump inhibitor drugs like Prilosec can actually cause the disease you’re trying to treat. It can end up causing more acid reflux. I ran into this in chapter after chapter in How Not to Hurt (https://nutritionfacts.org/book/how-not-to-hurt/): things that provide short-term relief can sometimes make things worse in the long run. It’s like how taking antidepressants can make you more likely (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/do-antidepressant-drugs-really-work/) to end up chronically depressed.

Like in the last video (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/common-meds-like-ibuprofen-nsaids-may-turn-temporary-pain-into-chronic-pain). Take ibuprofen for acute back pain, and it can increase your risk of it turning into chronic back pain. Or take it after major surgery and end up more likely to end up with chronic pain. So they give people NSAIDs, anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen after surgery instead of opioid, because we don’t want people to become addicted, but come back 6 months and those who were put on the ibuprofen ended up more likely to be on opioids because interfering with the inflammatory process can undermine the healing process. That’s how the body heals. We interfere with natural healing processes at our own peril.

In this case, your shoulder hurts because of rotator cuff tendon degeneration, so you inject people with steroids that causes… rotator cuff tendon degeneration! Massively increasing your risk of rotator cuff tears, increasing your need for future surgery, and making future surgery even more dangerous. So you go to the doctor and they do something that worsens your underlying condition, and in four and five people doesn’t even result in the short term relief, so it’s all downside. Millions of joints continue getting injected with steroids. That should be all you need to know about the field pain management: something that makes the underlying problem worse endorsed by clinical practice guidelines, endorsed by up to 96% of muscular skill to clinicians and why? Force of habit, financial incentive, and desire for a quick fix.

Don’t fall for it.

This is the first video in a 6-part video series. Stay tuned for:
• Chiropractic Manipulation, Physical Therapy, and Exercise Therapy for Shoulder Pain Relief (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/chiropractic-manipulation-physical-therapy-and-exercise-therapy-for-shoulder-pain-relief)
• Rotator Cuff Surgery May Cause More Shoulder Pain Than Relief (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/rotator-cuff-surgery-may-cause-more-shoulder-pain-than-relief)
• Why Do Surgeons Continue to Perform Worthless Operations? (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/why-do-surgeons-continue-to-perform-worthless-operations)
• Preventing Rotator Cuff Shoulder Pain with Diet (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/preventing-rotator-cuff-shoulder-pain-with-diet)
• Frozen Shoulder (Adhesive Capsulitis): What It Is and How to Prevent and Treat It (https://nutritionfacts.org/video/frozen-shoulder-adhesive-capsulitis-what-it-is-and-how-to-prevent-and-treat-it)

For more on pain, check out my new book How Not to Hurt (https://nutritionfacts.org/book/how-not-to-hurt/), available now for preorders. (All proceeds received from the book are donated directly to charity.)

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Want to get a list of links to all the scientific sources used in this video? Click on Sources Cited at https://nutritionfacts.org/video/steroid-injections-for-shoulder-pain-relief-may-do-more-harm-than-good. You’ll also find a transcript and acknowledgements for the video, my blog and speaking tour schedule, and an easy way to search (by translated language even) through our videos spanning more than 2,000 health topics.

Thanks for watching. I hope you’ll join in the evidence-based nutrition revolution!
-Michael Greger, MD FACLM

Captions for this video are available in several languages; you can find yours in the video settings. View important information about our translated resources: https://nutritionfacts.org/translations-info/

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