Prolotherapy
Dr Egan has been trained in a regenerative injection therapy known as prolotherapy.
Used to treat both acute and chronic joint pain, prolotherapy works by stimulating the body’s natural ability to heal. The injection works by initiating an intentional yet mild inflammatory response at the affected area. It’s the inflammatory response that triggers specialized cells in the area to work to rebuild, tighten, and strengthen the tendons and ligaments of the injured area.
Prolotherapy can offer a non-surgical option to facilitate repair and regrowth of connective tissues. With the ability to repair and rebuild previously injured tissues, prolotherapy can restore range of motion, stability, and function to a joint; thereby eliminating the symptom of pain.
Who can benefit from Prolotherapy
If you have musculoskeletal pain, likely you can benefit from prolotherapy. Since this therapy uses your own bodies innate ability to heal itself it is not for “every body”, but if you have proper healing response this treatment has been found to be over 85% effective. This therapy can offer relief from assorted conditions, here are some of the common issues that see favorable results:
- Acute joint injuries (sprains, strains, rolls and twists, etc.)
- Chronic joint pain (unstable joints, ligamentous laxity)
- Arthritis
- Knee pain
- Torn meniscus
- Hip pain
- Labral tears
- Tennis or golfers elbow
- Rotator cuff injuries
- Whiplash pain
- Low back pain
- Sciatica
How Prolotherapy works
- The treatment is a direct injection of dextrose (sugar water) to the affected painful area.
- The injection causes a modulated inflammatory response in the area that stimulates the immune system in the area.
- Over the course of several weeks the immune response continues to work rebuilding and repairing the area. This restricting of the tissue is what tightens and strengthens the ligaments and other soft tissues that were previously injured.
Benefits of Prolotherapy
- Strengthens tendons and ligaments that support joints, preventing future injuries.
- Quick recovery time with limited disruption to daily activity.
- Increased circulation and immune response to the injured area.
- Shortened healing time, especially for acute injuries.
- Greatly decreases the chance for invasive procedures, like surgery.
- The injections contain a natural substance that works with your body to heal naturally. It will not suppress your body’s natural healing response like a steroid injection.
How many injections are needed?
- There will be an initial consultation with Dr Egan before any procedure is scheduled to determine if you are an ideal candidate based on your personal health history and the nature of your pain.
- Typical protocol is 3-6 rounds of treatment per joint, scheduled 4-5 weeks apart. Typically patients see results within the first 2 treatments, but the therapy compounds and more benefit is seen with each treatment.
- Each injection site will be thoroughly cleaned, and sterile equipment will be used.
- At each treatment there will be anywhere from 4-10 injections per joint, depending on presentation of pain and age of injury.