scarr tissue after ankle arthroscopy

[slmr]

Hello, In may 2011 i had ankle arthroscopy to remove the OS trigonum  bone that was bothering me since nearly 2 years, and as i am a professional dancer i really needed to take care of it.
Before the surgery i had 2 shots of cortisone wich each one really gave me three months of pain relief but i always finally...i decided for the arthroscopy, all went well, i could already walk 2 days later, and now its been 4 months post op and  im still in lots of pain and my movement of the foot is limited, so i had an MRI and it seems like i have scarr tissue that isnt going away with fisiotherapy, so i am going to have another cortisone shot, this time to help breaking the scarr tissue.
My question is...is it possible that since the bone is away and all i have now is scar tissue ( in the joint) the cortisone shot will be a permanent solution?
thank you
Salome Martins

[S. Kaul, MD]

Hi again!

For scar involution the steroid is injected into the scar tissue itself; unlike the situation in other conditions such as inflammation; and since there is minimal systemic absorption the side effects are minimal as well.
Hope this information is useful.

Take care!

[slmr]

Thank you for your answer...i just had the injection 2 hours ago...lets hope for the best...my only fear is that too many njections might be harmful for me in other ways...i already had three and i hope i wont need anymore.
sincerely S. Martins

[S. Kaul, MD]

Hey Salome!

Yes, steroid injections may be tried to reduce the scar and are quite successful. However these may need to be repeated after a period of a few weeks before the desired results can be achieved.
Hope this helps.

Take care!