Prolotherapy for Musculoskeletal Pain
by Donna Alderman, DO
 Prolotherapy is a method of injection treatment designed to
stimulate healing.1 This treatment is used for musculoskeletal pain which has
gone on longer than 8 weeks such as low back and neck pain, chronic sprains and/or
strains, whiplash injuries, tennis and golfer’s elbow, knee, ankle, shoulder or other
joint pain, chronic tendonitis/tendonosis, and musculoskeletal pain related to
osteoarthritis. Prolotherapy works by raising growth factor levels or effectiveness to
promote tissue repair or growth.2 It can be used years after the initial pain
or problem began, as long as the patient is healthy. Because prolotherapy works to repair
weak and painful joint areas, it is a long term solution rather than a palliative measure
such as drugs, and should be considered prior to the use of long term drugs or surgery in
appropriate patients.
In the April 2005 issue of the Mayo Clinic Health Letter, the authors wrote: “In
the case of chronic ligament or tendon pain that hasn’t responded to more
conservative treatments such as prescribed exercise and physical therapy, prolotherapy may
be helpful.”3 Prolotherapy has been used in the U.S. for musculoskeletal
pain since the 1930’s, is endorsed by former U.S. Surgeon General, C. Everett Koop,4
and has even made its way into the professional sports world.5 In a 2000 issue
of The Physician and Sportsmedicine, “Are Your Patients Asking About
Prolotherapy?” the article starts:
“Prolotherapy, considered an alternative therapy, is quietly establishing itself
in mainstream medicine because of its almost irresistible draw for both physicians and
patients: nonsurgical treatment for musculoskeletal conditions.”
The article states that as many as 450,000 Americans had undergone prolotherapy and
that some of the patients reporting benefits from prolotherapy were physicians themselves.6
Yet, many physicians have still not heard of or do not know much about prolotherapy.
Please refer to the Jan/Feb 2007 issue for the complete text. In the event you need to order a back issue, please click here.
— Jan/Feb 2007
The full article is now available as a PDF and may be
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