What causes a limb to become sore when you get a shot?

[erikiksaz]

I got a menengitis (sp) shot yesterday afternoon, and my arm still feels like it's been beat on by mike tyson. It's better today, but it was TERRIBLE yesterday!

What causes this to happen? I haven't had many shots in the shoulder before, but this one takes the cake for making my arm feel lammeeee.

 

[fatalbert]

its an allegeric reaction to the shot,

generally its the media that the active part of the shot is in that people are allegeric to

 

[Schadenfreude]

The nurse has lousy aim.

No, seriously - if the nurse has a steady hand with a good feel for where the vein is, you won't feel a damn thing.

 

[Schadenfreude]

Originally posted by: fatalbert
its an allegeric reaction to the shot,

generally its the media that the active part of the shot is in that people are allegeric to

Or that.

*was thinking of regular shots.

 

[Beau]

Acidity of solution - more acidic, the more internal tissue damage.
Speed of injection - slower the better -- less tissue damage.
Depth of the injection - the deeper it goes, the more tissue damage.

 

[erikiksaz]

So it's either an allergic reaction or damaged tissues.

IF it is damaged tissues, it's amazing what a little needle can do to surrounding tissues.

 

[Spikey217]

Was your arm relaxed when they gave you the shot?

 

[Ness]

Eeww, a menengitis shot. I had to have one of those when I was living in the dorms of my college.

It didn't feel like anything for the first day and a half, then it hurt like all hell for a week, like my arm was asleep the whole time. I woke up one day and it felt fine then :-\

 

[erikiksaz]

Originally posted by: ness1469
Eeww, a menengitis shot. I had to have one of those when I was living in the dorms of my college.

It didn't feel like anything for the first day and a half, then it hurt like all hell for a week, like my arm was asleep the whole time. I woke up one day and it felt fine then :-\

THERE WE GO! Exactly how it is, but it doesn't really hurt, just sore.

But no, my arm was relaxed.

 

[Mill]

A super majority of all vaccinations are done intra-muscularly instead of intra-venously. With that in mind imagine what happens when you exercise. You tear and hurt muscles and that is why you get sore. The same thing applies in this case because that needle tore or punctured muscle so it hurts like a bitch until it is rebuilt and healed.

Like Beau said, the substance used and the way the injection was given are big factors on the length and amount of pain you have after an injection.

 

[Ryan]

I have never really had any soreness from a shot, except for one. When I moved the Panama, the military gave me a typhoid shot. The stuff they were shooting into me had the consistency of pudding (well, ok, it was a little runnier), and after they had finished giving me that bitch (seriously, took about 20 seconds to administer - burned liek hell in the muscle), I had this huge knot in my arm. They told me that I would have to carry around a weight all day and continuously pump my arm - if not, the pain would only get worse. My arm was sore for almost two weeks, I couldn't touch the area for almost a weak without feeling intense pain..... :frown:

 

[erikiksaz]

I asked the nurse why the shot was administered in the shoulder instead of the forearm, and she said it wouldn't be as painful. I can't imagine having this shot in the forearm, it must hurt like a mothertrucker.

 

[prvteye2003]

Originally posted by: Beau
Acidity of solution - more acidic, the more internal tissue damage.
Speed of injection - slower the better -- less tissue damage.
Depth of the injection - the deeper it goes, the more tissue damage.

These are all true except the first one. The solution used is saline or sterile water. No, it's not an allergic reaction. whoever said this has no idea what they are talking about. When you stick a needle in a muscle, as stated above, tissue is damaged. The rate of injection also plays a part because as the solution gets injected, it spreads apart the tissues causing small tears in the tissue. As for the depth of the injection, yes, more damage is done to tissue but the reason for going deep is because it is more vascular.