Prolotherapy for the Anterior Cruciate Ligament

This is a case study presenting a 69 year-old man complaining that his right knee hurts and has been gradually getting worse over the last two years. He complains of pain with descending a slope and prolonged walking. He has a history of twisting of his knee with an unexpected step into a hole at the work site. On examination he has a mild effusion of the right knee and positive anterior drawer test. The rest of the exam is negative. He has a partially torn Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL). This orthopedic condition brings the skilled Prolotherapist special challenges. The cruciate ligaments are almost two inches long. They are located in the center of the knee, rather than on the outside. Also they are intra-capsular but extra-synovial. Read more about Prolotherapy for the Anterior Cruciate Ligament.

Sciatica, Sacroiliac Instability, Degenerative Disc Disease, Stenosis

It was determined that this Division I college basketball player had unrecognized and untreated connective tissue injuries. Because the Prolotherapy treatment method is the only medical intervention that is known to stimulate natural healing, produce collagen, strengthen damaged and weakened ligaments and tendons, stabilize joints, and subsequently eliminate pain and increase function, the patient/athlete and I decided on pursuing this course of treatment. Despite the length of time since the injury (over two years), the lack of improvement with both conservative and surgical care, and the extreme demands of an elite college athlete, there was a great deal of optimism about the outcome, provided a consistent, complete, and aggressive plan using Prolotherapy was followed. Read more about Sciatica, sacroiliac instability, degenerative disc disease and stenosis in the Journal of Prolotherapy.

Prolotherapy and Knee Pain Research

From the Journal of Prolotherapy. Findings on the effectiveness of Prolotherapy for unresolved knee pain. Accordingly, we investigated the outcomes of patients undergoing Hackett-Hemwall dextrose Prolotherapy treatment for unresolved knee pain at a charity clinic in rural Illinois. We studied a sample of 80 patients, representing a total of 119 knees, that were treated quarterly with Prolotherapy. Read the full article from the Journal of Prolotherapy on Prolotherapy and knee pain research.

Prolotherapy Under C-Arm Fluoroscopy

Free full access article from the Journal of Prolotherapy: Interventional pain management traditionally has focused on the use of C-arm fluoroscopy to inject the spine. Fluoroscopy is a real time X-ray designed to allow the physician to guide a needle into a specific location. While Prolotherapy has been performed without the use of imaging guidance, our training in pain management lent itself to using this technology for certain Prolotherapy techniques. Read more about Prolotherapy under C-arm fluoroscopy.

Standard Clinical X-ray Studies Document Cartilage Regeneration in Five Degenerated Knees After Prolotherapy

Prolotherapy improved the pain and function in five knees with osteoarthritis. All five degenerated knees showed evidence of articular cartilage regeneration in their standard weight-bearing X-rays after Prolotherapy. It is suggested that before and after X-ray studies can be used to document the response of degenerated joints to Prolotherapy. Future research is needed with a larger patient population and under a more controlled setting to further evidence of clinical responses and cartilage regeneration with Prolotherapy. Read more about cartilage regeneration.

Chronic Hip Pain and Prolotherapy

A Retrospective Study on Hackett-Hemwall Dextrose Prolotherapy for Chronic Hip Pain at an Outpatient Charity Clinic in Rural Illinois

The Hackett-Hemwall technique of dextrose Prolotherapy used on patients who presented with over five years of unresolved hip pain were shown in this retrospective pilot study to improve their quality of life even 19 months subsequent from their last Prolotherapy session. The 61 patients with 94 hips treated reported significantly less pain, stiffness, crunching sensation, disability, depressed and anxious thoughts, medication and other pain therapy usage, as well as improved walking ability, range of motion, sleep, exercise ability, and activities of daily living. This included patients who were told there were no other treatment options for their pain or that surgery was their only option. The results confirm that Prolotherapy is a treatment that should be highly considered for people suffering with chronic hip pain. Future studies will be needed to confirm this pilot study and to document if Prolotherapy can keep chronic hip pain sufferers from needing hip surgeries including hip replacements. Read more about chronic hip pain and Prolotherapy.

Unresolved and Chronic Neck Pain

The optimal long-term, symptomatic therapy for chronic neck pain has not been established. Accordingly, we investigated the outcomes of patients undergoing Hemwall-Hackett dextrose Prolotherapy treatment for unresolved neck pain at a charity clinic in rural Illinois. We studied a sample of 98 patients who had suffered with pain on average for 59 months and seen over 3 physicians prior to being treated quarterly with Prolotherapy. On average 18 months following their last Prolotherapy session, patients were contacted and asked numerous questions in regard to their levels of pain and a variety of physical and psychological symptoms, as well as activities of daily living, before and after their last Prolotherapy treatment. The results of this study showed that patients had a statistically significant decline in their level of pain, stiffness and crunching sensation with Prolotherapy. This included clients who were told by their M.D. (s) that there were no other treatment options or that surgery was their only answer for their chronic pain. Read more about unresolved neck pain and Prolotherapy.

Achilles Tendinopathy

The treatment was first described by George S. Hackett as Prolotherapy is described and called Scelrotherapy by others.

Below is an abstract from the medical journal Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy in it, researchers Alfredson and Ohberg noted “injections with the sclerosing substance Polidocanol have the potential to reduce tendon pain during activity in patients with chronic painful mid-portion Achilles tendinopathy.” Read more about Achilles tendinopathy.

Dextrose Prolotherapy and Pain of Chronic TMJ Dysfunction

While the exact cause of chronic temporomandibular dysfunction is still debated, this study did demonstrate that the Hemwall-Hackett technique of dextrose Prolotherapy improves not only the pain level for those having chronic TMD, but also a host of other quality of life measures. The Hemwall-Hackett technique of dextrose Prolotherapy to the temporomandibular joint involves injections into the joint, as well as the fibro-osseous junction of the ligament and capsular attachments on the zygomatic arch, as well as the mandibular neck and condyle. Clearly the structural goal of Hemwall- Hackett dextrose Prolotherapy is to improve the stability of the TMJ by enhancing capsular and ligament strength. Congenital disorders that are characterized by overstretched ligaments, such as Ehlers- Danlos Syndrome, are typically predisposed to TMJ problems. Weakening of the TMJ capsule and ligament would explain a lot of the varied pathology involving TMD including joint subluxations, disc displacements, as well as muscle spasms and myofascial pain patterns. Continue with entire article Chronic TMJ Dysfunction.

Case History

This case study exhibited many of the difficult to treat pain issues that occur in quadriplegics. Michael presented with neurogenic thoracic pain, a dysplastic painful hip, neck degeneration above and below the level of his fusion, as well as an overuse injury of his right shoulder. We were able to help Michael with all of these conditions through treatment with Prolotherapy.

He regained some hip stability which helped him improve his standing pivot transfers and his ability to stand independently. Prolotherapy treatments provided relief of Michael’s shoulder, neck, and thoracic pain. Chronic pain is common after spinal cord injury and is difficult to treat effectively. Further research into Prolotherapy with this patient population seems warranted. Read Michael’s case history.

Case History

This article discusses the case of 57 year-old Bill B, a dentist, who suffered from chronic pain from ligamentous laxity and degenerative disc disease in the cervical, lumbar and thoracic spine. His headaches and back pain were treated successfully with Prolotherapy even after many years of other treatments with failed results. Read the case of chronic pain from degenerative disc disease.