Prolotherapy

This is the use of dextrose (purified sugar water) to stimulate your own body’s immune system to be drawn to the area of injury so that it can heal itself.

When an area of the body becomes injured, the cells that were traumatized release sugars and fats that call the immune system to the injury. The immune system then rehabilitates and rebuilds the area of injury. This process lasts for 3-4 weeks, at which point the immune system disperses to take care of other problems in the body. If the original injury resulted in a stretch or tear of tissue greater than 4-6%, then the first round of natural inflammation that the body mounts will not be enough to fully heal the tissue.

During prolotherapy injection treatment, the immune system is brought to the injury site by the prolotherapy solution.

The healing inflammation that the prolotherapy creates will last from 3-4 weeks in duration. At this point, the immune system begins to disperse to other parts of the body just as in the very first round of inflammation following an injury.

Prolotherapy treatments on ligaments, tendons and joints are done every 3-4 weeks to continue the healing process. It typically takes 4-10 treatments to permanently heal an injured area.

Both during and following prolotherapy treatment, it is recommended that patients undergo rehabilitative treatments through a qualified chiropractor or physiotherapist to correct weaknesses that have set up following the chronic injury.

Patients can expect from 4-10 treatments of prolotherapy spaced out at 3-4 week intervals.

Healthcare practitioners can read more about prolotherapy research here.