Most doctors won’t say this: steroid injections are substandard medicine the overwhelming majority of the time. They don’t just fail to heal — they destroy cartilage, weaken tendons, and accelerate the very condition they’re supposed to treat. Dr. Aneesh Garg, DO, CAQ breaks down why cortisone shots are a business model disguised as a treatment plan, why inflammation is actually your friend, and what PRP, EMTT, and focused shockwave do instead. In 56 clinical trials, PRP outperforms steroid injections past the four-week mark every single time. The evidence isn’t close.
Chapters:
- 0:00 Stop getting steroid injections — here’s why
- 0:57 My doctor gives me cortisone every few months and it helps — what’s the problem?
- 1:03 Steroid injections lose you more cartilage than saline — JAMA evidence
- 2:45 A business model, not a treatment plan
- 3:22 But cortisone reduces inflammation — isn’t that the point?
- 3:29 Inflammation isn’t bad — good inflammation is how you heal
- 4:49 PRP, stem cells, and focused shockwave are pro-inflammatory — that’s why they work
- 5:16 56 trials: PRP outperforms steroid injections past four weeks every time
- 9:11 The biggest culprits: knee arthritis, tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow, Achilles
- 10:23 If your doctor is injecting Achilles with steroid — don’t even take off your shoe
- 10:56 Getting a steroid injection locks you out of pro-inflammatory treatments for six weeks
- 12:01 So what should I be getting instead of cortisone?
- 12:04 EMTT, focused shockwave, PRP, stem cells — how they work differently
- 13:28 What does tangible damage from years of steroid injections actually look like?
- 15:11 The smoke detector analogy: steroids take out the battery, they don’t put out the fire
- 16:24 What should I do the next time my doctor reaches for the cortisone needle?
- 16:28 Ask what your other options are — if they can’t answer, walk out
- 17:43 If you have a steroid injection scheduled tomorrow, cancel it
