Can I Walk After a (Cortisone) Injection in My Knee?

What type of knee injection am I talking about?

In this article, I discuss the most common knee injections:

• Corticosteroid injections (cortisone)
• Hyaluronic acid injections
• Platelet-rich plasma injections
• Viscosupplementation
• Local anesthetics like lidocaine

And this is regardless of the issue that prompted the injection: knee arthritis, bursitis, tendonitis, meniscus problems, etc. And regardless of the desired effect: pain relief, increased mobility, prevention of wear and tear, etc.

I’m not discussing the benefits of knee injections in this article, although I plan to address it in a future article.

Can you walk on the same day as the knee injection?

Yes, you can walk on the same day as the knee injection without diminishing its potential effectiveness. In fact, it’s generally a good thing.

Here are two theoretical reasons for saying so:

1. When a person remains immobile after a knee injection, there’s a risk of developing joint stiffness. Gentle and regular walking can help prevent this stiffness.It can reduce the accumulation of fluid in the knee and encourage the production of synovial fluid, the natural lubricant of the joint.
2. Gentle walking stimulates circulation, which can help reduce swelling and inflammation in the knee. Excessive inflammation is one of the main causes of pain after a knee intervention.Walking can contribute to flushing out fluids that contribute to this inflammation.

Moreover, some studies follow people who have just had a knee injection.

In the instructions given to them, walking is not prohibited or discouraged.

There are international recommendations for surgeons and physicians performing knee injections. However, these recommendations do not specify whether to advise resuming walking or not.

Source: Phillips 2021

Should you walk less than usual in the days following the injection?

If you are someone who does not walk particularly much (just for your daily activities), then no, there is no indication that you should walk less than usual.

If you are someone who walks a lot (for example, 10,000 steps per day, uphill and downhill), then yes, it might be better to limit your walking a bit in the days following the injection.

Why?

Simply because when there is a procedure on the knee, there can be a slight inflammation. An accumulation of fluid in the knee. The knee can then become red, swollen, and warm.

Excessive walking (especially if you are not used to walking a lot) can potentially exacerbate this inflammation.

That’s why, as a precaution, doctors and surgeons sometimes recommend taking it easy after an injection.

Do you need crutches to walk after a knee injection?

It is rare to need crutches for walking after an injection (if you did not need them before).

Crutches are necessary only if you have difficulty walking due to pain or stiffness. They help to put less weight on the knee.

But even if you limp a bit after the injection, if you have little pain, you can certainly do without crutches.

An alternative is also to use walking sticks to relieve some pressure. And it’s less cumbersome than crutches.