A question came up during a recent telemedicine visit I was doing with a runner who has hallux rigidus. He wanted to know whether or not it was a good idea or a bad idea to inject the big toe joint with cortisone to treat his hallux rigidus.

The doctor is basically looking at your circumstances, trying to figure out what you really want short-term and long-term, and then figuring out whether or not that treatment is actually appropriate given your circumstances.

There is nothing risk-free in medicine. 

So when you have a cortisone injection in the big toe joint for hallux rigidus, the goal is to reduce the inflammation. Corticosteroids, however, are also very effective at breaking up collagen bonds.

Today on the Doc On The Run podcast, we're talking about whether or not cortisone injections are good or bad for hallux rigidus.