KNEE ARTHRITIS - Injections into the joint :

Started the Synvisc...easy as pie. :) - - Posted by cjd72 (cjd72), 7 January 2005

Well folks I had my first Synvisc shots today...in both knees. Just had a little pain upon the needle breaking the skin...then the tinyest bit of presure as he injected the Synvisc. Smooth as a breeze.

I'm a huge wuss when it comes to needles so for those of you who are dreading being stuck my first run wasn't bad at all. I'm the guy that always makes the dentist nervous 'cus I literally turn white as a ghost as soon as I even see a needle.

I'm slated to go in for my two remaining injections on 1/14 and 1/21. I'll keep you all posted.

Chris
Posted by nicole (nicole), 9 January 2005

Glad to hear that went so well for you Chris.   I was a little nervous about the needle, but not as nervous about the possibility that this won't do me much good.  

Anyone know if the 3 shots in 3 weeks is strict? My first is scheduled for Mon, 1/10, second was scheduled for 1/17 but I will be out of town and have to reschedule.  Anybody have these done not in exactly 1 week increments?

Thx,
nic
Posted by cjd72 (cjd72), 9 January 2005

Yeah, I hear ya on worrying whether it's going to work or not...guess none of us know until we try it.

I did end up with a little bruse, about the size of a dime, at the point that he injected my right knee.  Both knees felt a little weird for about a day and a half after the shots. Nothing major. Bottom line...I felt no pain from the injections.

Chris
Posted by Janet (Janet), 9 January 2005

My injections didn't really hurt either. Just some burning at the beginning, but nothing bad. Unfortunately, it has been three weeks since my last injection and I haven't seen any change. Is there still hope?

Nic: I was told that the injections needed to be done withint ten days of each other, but you'll have to ask your OS.

Janet
Posted by nicole (nicole), 11 January 2005

Thanks Chris and Janet.
Had my first one this afternoon and sure enough there was nothing to it.  I was quite nervous by the time the doc came in to do the deed. Great doc that he is, had me calmed down pretty well, especially after he sprayed the freezing stuff on my leg.  That was neat, it dripped down my leg so I had this line of numbness all the way down to my ankle for a few seconds  
I didn't feel a thing after that not even any pressure.  
Now comes the waiting I guess.  Next one is 1/24, then 1/31.  
He said this wasn't always helpful with patella-femoral problems like mine, but it is worth a try to keep me in my life (sports) and away from PKR for as long as possible.

Oh, and Janet, my doc said it could be three to four months to see results.  
Posted by cjd72 (cjd72), 11 January 2005

Janet and Nicole,

Just went to the Synvisc site...they are a bit vague on when the benifits start to kick in. If you read the Synvisc PDF they say you could "start" to see improvement anywhere from the first week all the way to the 12th week. Looks like there is a huge variation, on a person to person basis.

http://us.synvisc.com/ussyn_synvisc_pi.pdf

Good luck to us all.

Chris


Posted by cjd72 (cjd72), 11 January 2005

Forgot to mention my doc said it would be 3-4 weeks before I could see any improvement.

Guess we'll see.  

Chris

Posted by nicole (nicole), 11 January 2005

Wow, maybe I heard him wrong.  Maybe he DID say 3-4 WEEKS not MONTHS  No matter I guess, we'll just have to see how it goes.  
Posted by cjd72 (cjd72), 13 January 2005

Well here's a late mid-injection report... Next injection is on Friday the 14th.

Had my 1st shot in each knee on 1/7. Knees felt weird for a couple days afterward, but no additional pain beyond what I've had before the injection. The weird feeling has subsided somewhat through the week...I'm guessing it has something to do with the Synvisc spreading around the joints.  

How have you been doing for the last couple days Nicole?

Chris
Posted by nicole (nicole), 13 January 2005

Been fine.  Haven't even felt any weirdness, but I'm not very good when it comes to subtle differences because so much seems to change day to day, hour to hour, in my knee.   It's definitely not any better yet, not that I expected it to be.   My next injection is still over a week away, so mostly I try not to think about it so as not to have my hopes up and be as patient as possible

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