Intra-articular corticosteroid injections provide relief for which conditions?

• A. Tendinopathy
• B. Osteoarthritis and inflammatory arthritis
• C. Calcific tendinopathy
• D. Gout

Answer: (B)

Intra-articular corticosteroids work by dampening inflammation inside the joint capsule. They are most effective when the disease process involves the joint itself—such as osteoarthritis with synovitis and inflammatory arthritis (like rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis). Tendinopathies and calcific tendinopathy are problems of the tendon, not the joint, so injecting into the joint won’t reliably relieve their pain. Gout is a crystal-triggered arthritis; while a steroid injection can help an acute gouty joint, the typical, broad use of intra-articular steroids is for osteoarthritis and inflammatory arthritis.