Steroid Injections Worsen Knee Osteoarthritis?

Pain killing, by steroid injections into the knee joint, may have a higher price than commonly expected: improving pain but worsening the osteoarthritis itself. Two studies, underlining this risk, were presented on the November 2022 annual meeting of the RSNA 'Radiological Society of North America'. (link: https://press.rsna.org/timssnet/media/pressreleases/14_pr_target.cfm?id=2386). As a sports physician specialised in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) applied to sports injuries and musculoskeletal pain syndromes, I would like to refer to alternative treatment methods (to steroid injections) for pain control and tissue regeneration in case of osteoarthritis: acupuncture and manual hand techniques (Tui Na) together with external application of Chinese herbal formulas (you may contact [email protected] to receive further practical informations about it) improve Qi and blood flow in the meridians and stimulate regeneration of cartilage and bone, beside reducing pain. The possible mechanism of action of those methods is explained in the article 'Mechanism of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Treating Knee Osteoarthritis' published 2020 by in the 'Journal of Pain Research' (download here: https://www.dovepress.com/getfile.php?fileID=58867 ). Focusing of best flow of Qi and blood in those meridians that pass the joint, lowers also the risk of developing a post-traumatic osteoarthritis after sports injuries or surgery. My intention is to stimulate academic discussion about the way to improve treatment of our patients suffering from osteoarthritis.