Springfield Orthopaedic & Sports Medicine Institute

Pain Management - Arthrocentesis

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Introduction

Arthrocentesis or aspiration is a treatment to relieve joint pain and swelling.  Arthrocentesis is appropriate for larger joints including the knee, hip, sacroiliac, shoulder, elbow and wrist.  It is useful for treating joint swelling caused by infection, gout, and rheumatoid arthritis.  Arthrocentesis is also used as a diagnostic tool.

Arthrocentesis involves removing fluid from a joint with a sterile needle and syringe.  The joint fluid is sent to a laboratory for examination.  Tests often performed on the fluid include cell count, culture, crystal analysis and rheumatoid factor.  Anesthetic and or corticosteroid medications can be injected to help relieve pain and inflammation.

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Treatment

Your doctor can administer Arthrocentesis procedures in his or her office or at bedside in a hospital.  Your injection site will be sterilized and anesthetized.  Your doctor will use a needle and syringe to aspirate or pull fluid from the site.  Your doctor may inject pain relieving or corticosteroid medications.  The aspirated fluid will be sent to a lab for examination.  Your doctor will contact you with the results.
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This information is intended for educational and informational purposes only. It should not be used in place of an individual consultation or examination or replace the advice of your health care professional and should not be relied upon to determine diagnosis or course of treatment.

The iHealthSpot patient education library was written collaboratively by the iHealthSpot editorial team which includes Senior Medical Authors Dr. Mary Car-Blanchard, OTD/OTR/L and Valerie K. Clark, and the following editorial advisors: Steve Meadows, MD, Ernie F. Soto, DDS, Ronald J. Glatzer, MD, Jonathan Rosenberg, MD, Christopher M. Nolte, MD, David Applebaum, MD, Jonathan M. Tarrash, MD, and Paula Soto, RN/BSN. This content complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information. The library commenced development on September 1, 2005 with the latest update/addition on February 16, 2022. For information on iHealthSpot’s other services including medical website design, visit www.iHealthSpot.com.