Prolotherapy Natural Healing Power In the Treatment Of Joint Pain

By David C. Wang, DO

Kaplan Center for Integrated Medicine

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Prolotherapy Natural Healing Power In the Treatment Of Joint Pain

Are you suffering from sprains, strains or arthritis pain? You should consider a healing technique called prolotherapy.

Prolotherapy, which is short for “proliferative therapy,” is a kind of “regenerative injection therapy” where natural solutions are delivered to areas of injury to restart and maximize the body's own injury-healing processes. It is most often applied to painful and injured joints, ligaments, and tendons to encourage the restoration of normal, healthy tissue. Prolotherapy can help people to postpone and even eliminate the need for surgery in some cases.

How does it work?

Prolotherapy stimulates your body's own internal healing response in any joint, ligament, or tendon. The healing response itself is triggered when the injected solution causes the injured tissue to release specific growth factors that attract tissue-healing cells to the injury site. It is safe, minimally invasive, and uses dextrose, a natural plant-based sugar.

Health Benefits

Since the 1930's prolotherapy has proven to be a safe and time-tested treatment for virtually every joint area of the body from head to toe. The amount of clinical research has increased substantially over the last several years, and dozens of studies have demonstrated its effectiveness in treating a myriad of painful problems. Prolotherapy can be successful in healing the following conditions

TMJ (jaw) pain

neck pain and whiplash injuries

rotator cuff injuries

shoulder instability and labral tears

tennis elbow (lateral epidondylosis)

golfer's elbow (medial epicondylosis)

wrist sprains and tendinitis

hand and finger arthritis

mid-back and rib pain

low back pain

sacroiliac dysfunction (which often causes sciatica and pain radiating down the leg)

groin strains

arthritis of the knee

knee tendon, ligament and meniscus injuries

ankle sprains

Achilles tendon injuries

plantar fasciitis

toe sprains and arthritis

Following prolotherapy, many of my patients are able to return to their everyday activities with less pain, more mobility, and greater endurance. Recuperation is usually fast. I use the smallest, thinnest needles possible and perform the technique very gently.

That means the procedure and recuperation period are much less painful.

The patient should take it easy for about two to three days, but downtime is pretty minimal.