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MISSION IS TO EDUCATE THE WORLD ON THE LIFE-CHANGING EFFECTS
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Questions & Answers About Prolotherapy |
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What is Prolotherapy?
What do you mean “stimulates normal healing?”
What do you inject during Prolotherapy?
Do the injections hurt?
Are all Prolotherapists the same?
Who is the ideal candidate for Prolotherapy?
What are some of the conditions that respond to Prolotherapy?
How many treatments are needed?
How often do I need to get treated?
What do you mean by chronic pain?
I just injured myself. Can I get Prolotherapy?
Prolotherapy and surgery. How do they compare?
Will there be soreness after Prolotherapy?
What signs or proof is there that Prolotherapy is working
for someone?
What if results are not seen immediately with Prolotherapy?
What about when Prolotherapy doesn’t work? Do you have
any other solutions or tests you can do?
Can Prolotherapy regenerate cartilage?
What are the risks with Prolotherapy?
What is the success rate for Prolotherapy?
What is Prolotherapy?
Prolotherapy
is a treatment that stimulates the body to repair painful
areas. Specifically it involves the injection of natural
substances into painful areas to stimulate the body’s own
repair mechanisms to strengthen and heal injured structures.
Mostly, Prolotherapy is used to strengthen ligaments and
tendons. Ligament injury is presumed to be the preliminary
cause of joints that become degenerated. This along with
the fact that most degenerated joints have tenderness at
ligament attachments around the joint, account for the
fact that degenerative arthritis and degenerated structures
typically respond beautifully to Prolotherapy. Prolotherapy
is a great treatment for pain arising from ligaments, tendons,
and degenerated joints.
What do you mean “stimulates normal
healing?”
The body heals by inflammation. When an athlete
has a hard work out and hurts after it, this occurs because
the workout has inflamed the muscles. The normal inflammatory
healing reaction is what will not only repair the damage
from the workout, but also cause the muscle physiology
to actually change to make the muscle fibers bigger, stronger,
and have more blood supply. Prolotherapy is a treatment
that stimulates the normal healing reaction. So Prolotherapy,
like exercise, can cause structures like ligaments and
tendons to become stronger and thicker. Because Prolotherapy
stimulates normal healing, athletes and people who are
active typically love the therapy because they can work
out through the course of receiving Prolotherapy.
What do
you inject during Prolotherapy?
While part of the “art” of
Prolotherapy is what is actually injected to stimulate
healing, most Prolotherapists use a base solution of hypertonic
dextrose. The dextrose is a sugar made from corn. Some
utilize other substances such as Sarapin (pitcher plant
extract), sodium morrhuate (from cod liver oil), and various
minerals and vitamins. Sometimes glucosamine and human
growth hormone are used. It is possible now to inject a
solution of a person’s own growth factors into the injured
structure to stimulate healing. This latter procedure is
Prolotherapy with platelet rich plasma (PRP).
Do the injections
hurt?
Yes, while the injections
hurt, lidocaine or another anesthetic is put into the solution
to decrease the pain. Also a lidocaine or anesthetic cream
can be rubbed on the skin to make the injections less painful.
Some people receiving Prolotherapy will take a narcotic like
Vicodin, or a relaxant such as Xanax before the procedure.
Some who get a lot of areas treated will need intramuscular
or intravenous Demerol or other forms of conscious sedation
to help them get through the procedure. Realize though, 95%
of folks just grin and bear it and get through the Prolotherapy
procedure fine. In expert hands, Prolotherapy just takes
a few minutes per session.
Are all Prolotherapists the same?
Are all restaurants the
same? Are all doctors the same? The skill level and competency
level varies among Prolotherapists, as it does in any field.
Because of the internet, it is possible to find the best,
most qualified Prolotherapist to do your treatment.
Who
is the ideal candidate for Prolotherapy?
The best candidate
for Prolotherapy would be one who obviously has an injured
structure causing their pain that responds to Prolotherapy.
This typically is an injured or torn ligament or tendon,
or a degenerated joint or spine.
If a tendon or ligament
is completely torn then surgery is typically warranted.
If a nerve is getting pinched, again, surgery may be warranted.
Even in these two scenarios it is typically recommended
that an evaluation be done by a qualified Prolotherapist.
Sometimes the patient, or even their doctor, thinks someone
has a pinched nerve or complete tear, but when evaluated
by a Prolotherapist that is just not the case. The person
then receives Prolotherapy and responds well to the treatment.
In summary, to determine if you are a good Prolotherapy
candidate, it is best to get an evaluation by a Prolotherapist.
What
are some of the conditions that respond to Prolotherapy?
| • Tendon strains |
• Incomplete tendon tears |
• Incomplete Ligament tears |
| • Ligament sprains |
• Degenerative joint disease |
• Spine arthritis |
| • Fibromyalgia pain |
• Frozen Shoulder |
• Adhesive Capsulitis |
| • Loose Joints |
• Subluxing Joints |
• Hypermobility Syndrome |
| • Bone spurs |
• Plantar Fasciitis |
• Tendinosis |
| • Coccydynia |
• Pelvic Floor Dysfunction |
• Pubic Symphysis pain |
| • Tennis Elbow |
• Meniscal tear |
• Labral tear |
| • Post Surgery Pain |
• Osteoarthrits pain |
• Pyriformis Syndrome |
| • Iliotibial pain |
• Chondromalacia patella |
• Shin splints |
For
a complete list please see the books Prolo
Your Pain Away! or Prolo
Your Sports Injuries Away! available at www.amazon.com or www.benuts.com.
How many treatments are needed?
Most conditions require
three to six sessions of Prolotherapy. Obviously some conditions
respond with one or two visits, while chronic degenerative
joints may need therapy for one to two years. The answer
to this question can be best found by talking with a Prolotherapist
about your specific condition.
How often do I need to get
treated?
Most people receive Prolotherapy every four to
six weeks. In some instances treatments are given every
week to two weeks. The number of treatments and how often
a person is treated is dependent on a lot of variables.
It is best to discuss this with your Prolotherapist at
the initial consultation.
What do you mean by chronic pain?
Most painful conditions
that do not improve completely by three to six months typically
will not “spontaneously” get better on their own. At this
point the person is said to have a chronic condition, or
chronic pain. One of the treatments that should be considered
once a pain is chronic is Prolotherapy, primarily because
it stimulates the painful structure to repair and the cure
rate is very high.
I just injured myself. Can I get Prolotherapy?
It is common
for someone who has been cured of their chronic pain with
Prolotherapy to get Prolotherapy for acute pains. Acute
pain is a pain that just started. Prolotherapy can typically
speed up the healing process. This is especially critical
for athletes who do not want to lose a lot of training
time. So yes, even for an injury that just occurred, Prolotherapy
can be used.
Prolotherapy and surgery. How do they compare?
Prolotherapy
and surgery have not been compared to one another in a
scientific study. The anecdotal evidence from patients
and Prolotherapists is that a person should try Prolotherapy
before surgery in most cases. There are definitely emergency
conditions that require immediate surgery. Since typically
we are talking about chronic pain for these conditions,
most Prolotherapists, and even most surgeons, would say
that conservative treatments should be tried before surgery.
Prolotherapy is a more conservative treatment than surgery.
In the end, most Prolotherapists believe Prolotherapy will
be the treatment of choice for most chronic painful conditions.
This will eliminate the need for a lot of the surgeries
that are currently being done.
Will there be soreness after
Prolotherapy?
Yes. Most people leave a Prolotherapist’s
office walking somewhat like Frankenstein. This soreness
though is a “good” kind of soreness. You know, the kind
of soreness you have when you had a good workout. The muscles
tighten and yes, it is painful, but not awful. Typically
the area feels tighter and stronger right away. You shouldn’t
have awful, awful pain after a Prolotherapy treatment.
If you do, please call your Prolotherapist’s office and
report it. Sometimes pain pills or muscle relaxers are
needed for a short time.
What signs or proof is there that
Prolotherapy is working for someone?
Wow, this is a good
question. Here are some ways a person knows that Prolotherapy
is working.
• Pain level is decreasing.
• The amount of pain medication required is decreasing.
• Function or activity level is increasing.
• Clicking or grinding of the joint is decreasing.
• The area moved better (muscle spasms going away).
• Patient is happier.
• Exercise level is increasing.
• Tenderness in the area of pain is decreasing.
Most people
get treated until they are pain free or almost pain free.
Prolotherapy regenerates structures for many months after
the last treatment. This is why some people stop getting
Prolotherapy when they are 90% pain free. If the pain does
not totally remit in a couple of months after the last
session, then another treatment or two may be needed.
What
if results are not seen immediately with Prolotherapy?
Typically,
two out of three people who receive Prolotherapy feel better
after the first treatment. Some folks have to get a few
treatments before feeling better. If someone has not had
any improvement by the fifth or sixth treatment, typically
Prolotherapy sessions are stopped.
What about when Prolotherapy
doesn’t work? Do you have any other solutions or tests
you can do?
If someone is convinced that they are a good
Prolotherapy candidate, but the initial Prolotherapy treatments
did not work, it may be best to get a second opinion by
another Prolotherapist. There are definitely differences
among Prolotherapists, including solutions used, amount
of solution used, technique differences, and of course,
experience. Some doctors also place a great deal of emphasis
on helping the person heal by eating a proper diet, supplements,
natural hormone replacement and exercise.
Can Prolotherapy regenerate cartilage?
There is anecdotal evidence that
Prolotherapy can regenerate articular cartilage. Cases
have been reported where people have not needed knee and
hip replacements because of Prolotherapy. While the results
are preliminary, it is the hope of the Journal of Prolotherapy
to publish more and more case reports and x-ray/MRI evidence
that cartilage regeneration does take place with Prolotherapy.
What
are the risks with Prolotherapy?
Prolotherapy, like all
injection procedures, carries with it a risk of infection.
Typically with Prolotherapy treatments in general, there
is a risk of increased pain, swelling, bleeding, bruising,
and redness. Depending on the area involved, there can
be a risk of pneumothorax (puncture of the lung), nerve
injury, ligament injury, tendon injury, muscle spasms,
spinal headache (spinal leak), and synovitis (joint swelling/pain).
Like all medical procedures, Prolotherapy carries risks.
These risks should be discussed with the doctor doing your
Prolotherapy.
What is the success rate for Prolotherapy?
This is also
a great question, but it really depends on the person.
For some who have hip arthritis and do not want a hip replacement,
“success” may be just getting back to walking pain free,
while others with the same condition want to get back to
playing racquetball. To give exact percentages of “success”
with Prolotherapy is impossible unless the person’s exact
goals and condition are known. In general, the success
rates with Prolotherapy are excellent. Upon the initial
visit, the Prolotherapist will identify the typical and
expected number of treatments and expected response. Again,
medicine is not an exact science. While a “normal” response
for early arthritis of the knee is seen in say, six treatments,
some people will require four and others will require ten.
Some will not respond. Someone getting Prolotherapy should
realize any doctor doing Prolotherapy is not “God” and
cannot totally predict the future. Those with a lot of
experience are generally close with their estimates as
to number of treatments and response, but no one can predict
the future 100%.
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