prolotherapy
Prolotherapy Frequently Asked Questions
What is Prolotherapy?
Prolotherapy is a mixture of dextrose (sugar) and procaine (a non-toxic anaesthetic) that provides enough inflammation at a site of injury to promote the body’s natural healing response.
What type of injuries can be treated with prolotherapy?
This injection therapy works best in injured areas with poor blood flow like ligaments, tendons, and cartilage – as such, many sprains, tears, ruptures — even arthritis responds well.
How does prolotherapy use inflammation?
Inflammation is like a fire in a building, only paid attention to when there are flames and smoke coming out of the building. Some injuries are slow or reluctant to heal with low grade inflammation, much like a small, smouldering fire. Our bodies do very well at paying attention to and healing sites of significant inflammation, like a 3-alarm emergency response when a whole building is consumed by fire.
How does prolotherapy work?
Prolotherapy works by increasing inflammation at the site of injury to the point where the body no longer ignores the signals and heals the site of injury – like fueling a fire large enough so that firefighters show up with lights flashing to put out the fire. More specifically, prolotherapy helps funnel growth factors and cells that produce collagen, like fibroblasts, to the injured soft tissue structures that need them.
Is prolotherapy safe & effective?
Yes. Current research supports the effectiveness of dextrose prolotherapy in treating tendinitis, osteoarthritis, and spinal/pelvic pain due to ligament injury. Prolotherapy is also effective as a treatment for musculoskeletal pain, that is chronic, recurrent, or lasting longer than 3-6 months. Furthermore, this injection therapy is especially useful in the injuries that have failed to respond to conservative treatment. The risk of serious adverse side effects is very low but may include bruising, swelling, soreness, allergic reaction, and/or risk of infection. Dr. Buse will always discuss individual risks with you.
How many prolotherapy injections do I need?
Your healing time from an injury has many influencing variables, including lifestyle, past injury, occupation, level of fitness, etc. Typically, simpler injuries with faster healing times require 1-3 injections that can be spaced 10 days to 3 weeks apart. More complex injuries with slower healing times may require up to 4-6 injections that may be spaced 4-6 weeks apart. Your prolotherapy doctor will consider your individual needs and discuss your unique treatment plan with you.
In Summary:
Prolotherapy is not for you if:
It’s your first or a mild injury
You’ve not yet tried conservative treatment like physiotherapy
You don’t tolerate needles well OR are allergic and/or sensitive to procaine
You may be a candidate for prolotherapy if:
Your injury is chronic & recurrent
Your injury is severe (i.e. prominent rupture)
You have had multiple injuries in several locations