Have Had Cortisone Injection Of Hip For Bursitis. Have Flushed Face And Headache. Suggest?

Posted on Thu, 18 Jul 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Thu, 18 Jul 2013 Answered on

Thu, 8 Aug 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : Have had a cortisone inj of hip for bursitis. Reaction is a flushed face and headache. Will that wear off ok?
XXXXX

Answered by Dr. K. Naga Ravi Prasad (20 minutes later)

Hi, thanks for writing to XXXXXXX

Generally, systemic reactions due to local steroid injections are very rare and if they occur are very minor in nature. This is because only a small amount of steroid enters the blood circulation from the injection site.

Facial flushing is the commonest reaction seen especially in females and accounts to 15-20% of cases. This may occur within hours of injection and may last for a FEW DAYS. Some people may experience increased pain at the site of injection for 2-3 days.

So, these reactions are usually SELF LIMITING and needs no specific treatment.

Hope I have addressed your query. Happy to help for any more clarifications.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar