Should I have Prolotherapy or Another Injection?

If you are a chronic pain sufferer, injection therapy may be an excellent method for reducing your pain. The problem is that there are many different types of injections to choose from and making an informed decision can be difficult. In this article, we are going to discuss a few tips for deciding between prolotherapy injections, and various other types of pain relief injections.

Prolotherapy

As we have discussed before on this site, prolotherapy is a regenerative medicine treatment in which a solution is injected into a patient’s degenerated tissues to stimulate healing and regeneration.

Other Types of Injections

Here are a handful of other common pain management injections, with a little explanation of how they work:

• PRP Injections. Similar to prolotherapy, PRP injections fall under the umbrella of “Regenerative Medicine.” However, the actual solution injected is much different. PRP injections use the patient’s own blood platelets and plasma to stimulate healing and tissue regeneration at the site of pain.
• Nerve Block Injections. These injections aim to disrupt pain signals from the nerves that transmit them. Nerve blocks are best used when patient pain is the result of a nerve issue.
• Corticosteroid Injections utilize a steroidal solution to decrease inflammation and swelling in the area of pain.

Every injection has its pros and cons, and every patient’s situation is different and should be treated according to its unique set of circumstances. Talk with a pain physician about your options before making a decision about what injection to pursue.

The experienced pain management physicians at Advanced Spine & Pain Clinics of MN are trained in prolotherapy, PRP, steroidal injections, nerve blocks, and other pain reduction techniques. If you are living in pain, one of these injections may be your ticket back to a pain-free existence. Contact us today to set up your appointment with a Minnesota pain doctor who can fully diagnose your condition and walk you through your options for treatment.