Hydrodilation at Edinburgh Hospital

What happens during the procedure?

You will be awake during treatment, with the treatment area numbed using an injection of local anaesthetic.

You will be asked to lie on a treatment table and a needle will be inserted into your shoulder joint. Low dose X-rays will be used to help your consultant radiologist guide the needle into the correct position.

When correct needle position has been confirmed, a combination of local anaesthetic, steroids, saline (salty water) and gas will be injected into the joint. This injection stretches and tears the thickened capsule to allow much improved shoulder movement.

After a few days the steroid will start to work on reducing inflammation reducing, or eliminating your shoulder pain.

What are the side effects?

• Steroid can cause irritation following injection, creating the so-called ‘flare response’.
• You may find your shoulder is more painful than it was for two or three days following treatment.
• With any injection into a joint there is a risk of infection. This risk is greatly minimised however, as the injection is done under ‘sterile’ conditions.
• Some of the steroid will travel around the body to other tissues and makes insulin work less well for this short period of time. Patients with diabetes must monitor their sugar levels for up to two weeks after the injection.