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The
Basis of A Prolotherapy Treatment
The
Prolotherapy Doctor's Examination
A Prolotherapy physician will physically examine the patient, being careful to
gently press on the suspect area causing pain. When the physician's touch
elicits an intense pain spot, known as a trigger or tender point,
this is the spot where Prolotherapy is given.
One
of the tests you can do at home to determine if you are a candidate for
Prolotherapy is to gently press, for example your knee that hurts, the joint
causing pain. If you can put your finger on an exact spot of acute pain, you
have found the trigger or tender point, the junction of bone and connective
tissue that is injured or weakened. Prolotherapy is also effective for areas
of the body that are painful but not tender.
The
Injections
Unlike the cosmetic use of collagen which requires injecting bovine collagen
into the skin to rejuvenate and restore a more youthful appearance,
Prolotherapy stimulates your body to produce it's own collagen to rejuvenate
and rebuild your body's infrastructure, allowing you to again with youthful
vigor. The ingredients used in Prolotherapy consist of a variety of tested,
refined, and researched compounds that have been successful in helping
alleviate chronic pain.
At
our practice at Joint Rehabilitation, we use a mild dextrose solution in 99%
of our cases. Our practice is also somewhat unique when it comes to patient
comfort. Injections are injections and there are people who hate them, fear
them, even get queasy over them. We make every effort to minimalize pain and
reduce the stress associated with getting an injection. Where most
Prolotherapist use a thick, long needle, we use a short, very thin needle,
this has a significant impact on lessening discomfort. Additionaly we use a
“derma-jet” anesthesia spray. Nearly all the pain associated with an
injection occurs at the point where the needle breaks the skin. A quick spray
from the “derma-jet,” numbs the skin just before the injection so the
patient hardly feels anything.
The
Treatment
The solutions used in Prolotherapy are designed to have a
"double-edged" effect: a combination of anesthetic and proliferant
qualities. (Patients who suffer from chemical sensitivities are given a simple
dextrose solution.) The anesthetic agent alleviates the "pain trigger,”
this also lets me know (as the Prolotherapist) that the solution was placed in
the proper area, while at the same time the proliferant agent begins to
strengthen the ligaments and tendons at the trigger or tender point site.
The injections at the trigger points cause an irritation, that stimulates the
body's natural process for repairing damaged tissue by creating collagen and
cartilage. Joints are gradually pulled back into proper alignment as the newly
produced collagen reinforces the muscles, tendons and ligaments, then shrinks
to tighten the joint capsule and prevent excessive and unnatural movement.
This is all part of the natural healing process. Rather than just alleviating
the symptoms like pharmaceutical pain-killers do, Prolotherapy fixes the very
structure of the body, effecting a hopefully permanent cure, instead of
surgically removing important anatomical components. Prolotherapy fixes the
damage, naturally and permanently.
 What
exactly is injected
during Prolotherapy?
There
are a number of different types of injections which have proven to be
successful in Prolotherapy. Although they work in different ways, motivating
the body to heal itself through a variety of natural responses, the end result
is the same: to cure pain by building new tissue and stabilizing the joints.
All
of the solutions used in Prolotherapy are designed to have a
"double-edged" effect: a combination of anesthetic and proliferant
qualities.
The
anesthetic agent alleviates the "pain trigger" while at the same
time the proliferant agent begins to strengthen the ligaments and tendons at
the trigger or tender point.
Some
prolotherapists use mild chemical irritants, such as phenol, guaiacol or
tannic acid, to trigger the healing process. These substances attach
themselves to the walls of the cells wherever they are injected, causing
irritation that stimulates the body’s reactive healing process. Others
prefer to use chemotactic agents, primarily morrhuate sodium, a fatty acid
derived from cod liver oil. Most closely aligned to the compound Sylnasol used
by Dr. Hackett in his pioneering efforts, these proliferants attract immune
cells directly to the injected area.
The
dramatic sounding "osmotic shock agents" are actually simple
compounds like dextrose and glycerine.
These
are the most commonly used ingredients in the arsenal of Prolotherapy.
Extremely safe and water-soluble, they are easily excreted from the body after
having their initial desired effect. They work by causing cells to lose water,
which leads to inflammation and the subsequent stimulation of the healing
response.
Particulates
such as pumice flour are microscopic particles that attract macrophages, tiny
organisms which gobble them up, in turn secreting polypetide growth factors
that result in collagen production.
Besides
these general differences, the specific combinations of chemicals and
substances used are as varied as the "schools" of Prolotherapy using
them.
Some
practitioners add co-factors, such as the anti-oxidant mineral manganese, or a
combination of glucosamine sulfate and confroitin sulfate which is believed to
aid in the repair of arthritic joints, or other co-factors believed to
increase the efficacy of the compounds they are used with.
Despite
the enormous success of the compounds used today, the most exciting advances
in Prolotherapy may be just around the corner, in the form of Growth Factors
or Growth Hormones. In addition, fetal stem cells have been injected.
Growth
factors cut to the chase, so to speak, acting directly on the cells and joints
of the body to stimulate the proliferation of fibroblasts and regeneration of
collagen and cartilage.
The
most important variable of all, however, as in all medical practices, is the
ability and experience of the therapist one chooses. Besides being a licensed
medical doctor, it is important that the prolotherapist also be in tune with
the underlying premise of homeopathy. It is not our duty to cure, but rather
to entice the body into curing itself.
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