Dosage
Your dose of hydrocortisone depends on the size of your joint. It can vary between 5mg and 50mg of hydrocortisone.
The amount of hydrocortisone you need could go up or down if you have a follow-up injection. It depends on how well the previous injection worked, how long the benefits lasted and whether you had any side effects.
How to get a hydrocortisone injection
You'll usually get your injection from a specialist doctor at your GP surgery or a hospital clinic.
If the injection is for pain, it may contain a local anaesthetic. You may be given a local anaesthetic by spray or injection to numb the skin before the hydrocortisone injection.
The hydrocortisone is injected directly into the painful joint. This is called an intra-articular injection.
You can go home after the injection, but you may need to rest the joint that was treated for a few days.
How many injections to have
Hydrocortisone injections usually help with pain and swelling for around 2 months. They can also make movement easier.
If the pain and swelling gets better after a single hydrocortisone injection, you may not need another injection.
The number of injections you can have depends on the area being treated and how strong the dose is. If you have long-term joint pain, you can have 1 hydrocortisone injection into the same joint 2 to 3 times a year.
How long to have injections for
If you have a short-term joint injury, an injection will often help you start to move again so that your body can heal itself.
If you have a long-term problem and your hydrocortisone injections are working well, you can carry on having them. For long-term joint pain, an injection should help for a few months. You should wait at least 3 months before having another hydrocortisone injection in the same joint.