Want2hike
member
United StatesHyaluronic acid shots initially worked well for me. In 2009, I went to my OS. I was bone on bone in both knees, but the right was causing me the most pain. My OS said to skip cortisone, as my knees really needed replacing, but wanted to try the injections first.
I had Synvisc (series of three) in my right knee. I went from not being able to walk to the end of my block, to doing 15 mile hikes with 6,000 ft elevation gains/losses. The first series of shots lasted 1.5 years.
When they wore off, I got them in both knees (by this time the left was hurting too) and in the 1.5 years they lasted, I hiked a 100 mile trek across the Andes in Peru (major elevation changes) and hula hooped 60 miles during a charity walk (plus all the training leading up to those events).
When those wore off, my OS tried the single shots (Synvisc one) in each knee. I only got about two weeks out of those. My insurance company refused to approve the series for over a year, so I was back to not being able to walk to the end of the block. I tried cortisone shots but they only lasted 2 days. In Jan 2016, I got the series of three again, and they worked ok (could do daily life tasks, but still couldn't do much hiking). When they wore off this time, I scheduled surgery.
I had Synvisc (series of three) in my right knee. I went from not being able to walk to the end of my block, to doing 15 mile hikes with 6,000 ft elevation gains/losses. The first series of shots lasted 1.5 years.
When they wore off, I got them in both knees (by this time the left was hurting too) and in the 1.5 years they lasted, I hiked a 100 mile trek across the Andes in Peru (major elevation changes) and hula hooped 60 miles during a charity walk (plus all the training leading up to those events).
When those wore off, my OS tried the single shots (Synvisc one) in each knee. I only got about two weeks out of those. My insurance company refused to approve the series for over a year, so I was back to not being able to walk to the end of the block. I tried cortisone shots but they only lasted 2 days. In Jan 2016, I got the series of three again, and they worked ok (could do daily life tasks, but still couldn't do much hiking). When they wore off this time, I scheduled surgery.
