Doctors often resort to prescribing cortisone to treat multiple diseases and injuries, and then patients wonder about the necessity of cortisone treatment, expressing several fears of its use, and these fears may reach the patient’s opposition and refusal to use cortisone as a treatment.
What is cortisone?
Cortisone is a steroid hormone that prevents the body from releasing substances that cause inflammation.
It is a chemical compound derived from the hormone cortisol, which is secreted by the adrenal gland, an endocrine gland attached to the kidneys.
Cortisol helps to carry out various vital processes in the body and plays an important role in the functioning of most parts of the body.
It is the hormone responsible for feeling stress and responsible for regulating the biological clock. It also calms the immune system, among many other functions.
In addition to cortisol, the adrenal gland secretes some steroid hormones such as aldosterone, as well as adrenaline and noradrenaline.
The pituitary gland in turn controls the work of the adrenal gland, as it is the gland that controls all endocrine glands in the body by secreting a hormone that stimulates the adrenal gland to work and secreting hormones responsible for controlling blood pressure and regulating body reactions as well as regulating metabolism and blood sugar levels.
How does cortisone work?
We can say that cortisone drugs are a synthetic version of the hormone cortisol. Cortisone, when taken in certain doses, mimics the action of cortisol, but in a concentrated form.
The therapeutic properties of cortisone
Anti-inflammatory: Cortisone works to reduce the immune system's response to allergies and inflammation, hence the position of cortisone among anti-inflammatory, as it is the most powerful anti-inflammatory that has been discovered so far.
Due to its ability to suppress inflammation in all parts of the body effectively and quickly at the same time, it gives a feeling of pain relief, but it is not a pain reliever in itself.
Cortisone is not an analgesic as some believe, and it reduces inflammation that causes pain.
A suppressant of the immune system:
We previously mentioned that cortisol, which is naturally produced by the human body, has a dampening effect on the immune system, which is stimulated when suffering from a disease or infection, causing inflammation.
His reaction to an injury or infection causes more harm than the original cause of this reaction.
At this specific point of inhibiting the immune system, cortisone shows us an important role, which is its use after organ transplant surgeries so that the immune system does not reject the new organ.
thinking that it is an infection or a foreign body that must be expelled and attack its cells, and it is also used in the treatment of autoimmune diseases. such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus erythematous.
But it is not used in knee or hip replacement surgeries As it is made of materials that do not raise the body's immunity,
Anti-proliferative:
Corticosteroids have the ability to inhibit the proliferation and growth of cancer cells.
Benefits and indications for using cortisone
Cortisone is useful in relieving symptoms and treating many diseases. It is used in cases of:
Cortisone injection in the spine
Some cases of back and spine injuries such as sciatica.
Inflammation of joints and tendons.
Cases of respiratory allergies in the nose or chest in the absence of response to normal allergy medications.
Skin allergies such as eczema, alopecia and itchy skin. It is also used in the treatment of psoriasis and vitiligo.
Effective and fast antidote for some types of acute infections.
Organ transplant cases.
Autoimmune diseases result from a defect in the immune system, which causes it to attack various organs of the body such as joints and kidneys.
In cases of cancer, it is sometimes used as part of chemotherapy for some blood cancers. It is also used to reduce the proliferation of tumor cells.
Acute kidney infections that cause kidney damage and loss of large amounts of protein in the blood.
Plantar fasciitis (the connective tissue that extends from the heel to the front of the foot and connects the heel to the toes).
patellar tendinitis
Treatment of plantar fasciitis with cortisone injections
pharmacological forms of cortisone
We find several pharmacological forms of cortisone, depending on the reason for its use and according to the dose to be taken.
Cortisone can be treated by:
Oral:
Cortisone is available in the form of tablets, capsules, and syrups, to treat inflammatory and chronic conditions such as lupus , rheumatoid arthritis, and sclerotic spondylitis .
Topically:
Available in many forms such as creams, gels, sprays, and patches. These topical forms are used to treat skin problems such as allergies, insect bites, skin psoriasis, as well as psoriatic arthritis.
Inhalation sprays:
They are used in the treatment of asthma and respiratory allergies, whether in the nose or chest.
Injections:
It is used to treat synovial cystitis , gout , tendon and ligament inflammation, and arthritis. The use of injectable corticosteroids ensures quick and direct access to the site of inflammation.
Cortisone injections and their uses
Non-purulent joint infections may cause damage to the tissues surrounding the joints such as tendons and synovial bags, and to avoid this, the affected joint may be injected with cortisone injections that reduce inflammation.
The injection also reduces swelling and redness, which leads to pain relief.
Symptoms of arthritis, acute attacks of gout and rheumatoid arthritis can be treated with cortisone injections, but it does not treat the disease from its roots.
For example, cortisone injections can reduce the effects of acute gout attacks, but they do not prevent it from happening again.
Cortisone is injected into the patient's joint for one of two reasons; For treatment or accurate diagnosis
cortisone injections for arthritis
Cortisone injections reduce inflammation and pain for a period ranging from 6 weeks to 6 months.
The pain may recur after that and may stop, depending on the patient's condition and commitment to other treatment methods and follow-up with a specialized orthopedic doctor.
Cortisone injections, due to their important role in relieving pain, are only part of a larger treatment plan for the causes of inflammation.
However, temporary pain relief resulting from alleviating the severity of inflammation helps the patient to:
• Treatment of joint pain.
• The ability to engage in physical activity and physical therapy.
• Resting the.
• Postponement of surgery.
by: Dr Asmaa Reda
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