Prolotherapy Injections in Northern VA - The Kaplan Center, McLean, VA

Prolotherapy is a healing technique that is applied to unstable and injured joints, ligaments, and tendons to encourage the restoration of normal, healthy tissue. As such, prolotherapy can help people heal more quickly.

Prolotherapy, which is short for “proliferative therapy,” is a regenerative medicine injection technique where natural solutions (from a simple dextrose solution to more complex stem cells) are delivered to the injury site to restart and maximize the body’s own healing process. Prolotherapy injections work when the injected solution acts as an irritant and causes a local inflammatory response. The injured tissue then releases specific growth factors that attract tissue-healing cells.

At The Kaplan Center, prolotherapy injections may be recommended depending upon the type of injury or condition.

What conditions does prolotherapy treat?

In everyday clinical practice, prolotherapy is used to treat painful conditions in virtually every major area of the body with excellent results.

knee osteoarthritis
TMJ (jaw) pain
low back pain
neck pain and whiplash injuries
rotator cuff injuries, shoulder instability and labral tears
tennis elbow & golfer’s elbow
wrist sprains and tendinitis
hand and finger arthritis
mid-back and rib pain

groin strains
hip arthritis and bursitis
hamstring injuries
knee tendon, ligament, and meniscus injuries
ankle sprains
Achilles tendon injuries
plantar fasciitis
toe sprains and arthritis
sacroiliac dysfunction

What is a treatment like?

After answering any questions, the doctor will examine the area to be treated and may note a few anatomical “landmarks” on the skin surface with a pen.

The area is thoroughly cleaned so treatment can begin. A concentrated dextrose solution or another prolotherapy agent is then injected into the site. The healing response is triggered when the solution acts as an irritant, initiates an inflammatory reaction, and causes the injured tissue to release specific growth factors that attract tissue-healing cells to the area.

Although prolotherapy involves injections, sometimes to multiple areas, it is generally very well tolerated. Because the areas of the body that are being treated are already injured and sensitive, the injections typically cause some temporary pain and discomfort. Our highly trained doctors minimize the discomfort by using the smallest and thinnest needles possible and target the most effective areas with image guidance.

Since the body’s natural healing response can be a slow process, it may take two to four weeks before patients notice significant improvement. The results, however, are often long-lasting and may even be permanent in some cases.

As with any other medical treatment, prolotherapy does not work in all cases. But it can provide long-term pain relief in situations where multiple other therapies have been unsuccessful. When performed as part of a comprehensive treatment strategy that maximizes your healing potential by improving your overall health, prolotherapy can be the catalyst that helps to bring you out of pain and back into the game of life.

If you are interested in scheduling an appointment for a Prolotherapy treatment, or if you want to learn more about the procedure as it relates to your medical condition, please call our office to schedule an appointment today. Call 703-532-4892, ext. 2.