Parchment Family Practice

Prolotherapy / Reconstructive Therapy

All joints are held together by ligaments that anchor a bone to bone. These joints are moved by tendons that are attached to muscles. Through trauma, overuse, osteoporosis or malnutrition, these tendons and ligaments may be weakened, stretched, torn or become fragmented.

In general, the circulation to these structures is quite poor. They are often slow to heal, and many times the body stops healing on its own or because of use of steroids or nonsteroidal medications. The pain often then becomes chronic.

Prolotherapy (also known as Reconstructive Therapy) addresses the true underlying cause of the problem by helping to strengthen the tendons and ligaments and stabilize the joints, thus relieving the pain.

Prolotherapy solutions

There are a number of different solutions that can be used in Prolotherapy / Reconstructive Therapy. They work by causing a mild irritation to the injured area. This irritation triggers a cascade of responses of the body making it think there is a new injury here, and starts the healing process. It creates new fibrous tissues, thus strengthening the injured area.

Any joint in the body can be treated. Often patients get referred pain from a ligamentous injury, and may need an adjacent area treated to fully remediate the problem. The treatments involve a series of injections two to three weeks apart. With each injection comes a gradual buildup of tissue to restore the area to its original strength.

Each individual's response is different, depending on a number of variables, such as smoking, nutritional status, hormones, other medications, and other chronic health problems. If you smoke, it is strongly recommended that you stop prior to having Prolotherapy / Reconstructive Therapy.

One can expect mild discomfort after the injections. This discomfort is part of the inflammatory process, and is usually alleviated with ice and Tylenol products. Once again, anti-inflammatories must be avoided.

For more information

For further information, we recommend Pain, Pain Go Away by William Faber, D.O. (available at our office), or Prolo Your Pain Away by Dr. Houser. You can also go to the American College of Osteopathic Sclerotherapeutic and Pain Management website.

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Give us a call

Contact us at 269-344-6183 for more information or to schedule an appointment!

Office Hours

Our office hours are Monday from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Tuesday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Additional hours may be used to accommodate patients.