are there severe side effects of hyaluronic acid injections for artiritus

hi doctor.
my mother is suffering from ruemotid artiritis for more than 12 yrs now.her both knees are in critical condition ....
x- ray shows there is no liquid left in the joints between the joint there is no cavaity at all....we are thinking of going for the knee replacement operation.....but before this operation dr says we can try hyaluronic acid injection course.
im concerned about the possible side effects of the medicine and how long it will help to ease the pain and enable her to walk (as now she can hardly walk) and do we still need the operation if he give these injections to her....also she is having high blood pressure,sugar,black and dry patches of skin,she has pain in her eyes and her liver is not good.....in this situation should we take the risk to get these injections for her or should we not consider it....many people are saying that this medcine can effect heart and skin very seriously.....plz help me regarding this situation as my mother is really sick and in very much pain all the time.
thanks.

[S. Kaul, MD]

Hi there!

Since the medication is injected locally into the joint there are hardly any side effects of using the hyaluronic acid injections except an allergic reaction and it is quite successful in treating pain due to degenerative arthritis. Relief would typically last 4-8 month after which the injection may be repeated or alternative treatment may be sought.
Hope this information helps.

Take care!