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Blog/Prolotherapy
Regenerative Medicine10 min read

Prolotherapy: Regenerative Injections for Ligament and Tendon Repair

TL;DR

Prolotherapy (proliferative therapy) uses injections of a dextrose (sugar water) solution into weakened or damaged ligaments, tendons, and joint structures to trigger a controlled inflammatory healing response — stimulating fibroblast proliferation, collagen synthesis, and structural repair. Unlike corticosteroids that suppress inflammation and can weaken tissue with repeated use, prolotherapy harnesses inflammation as a healing tool, rebuilding the structural integrity of connective tissue that conventional treatments cannot restore.

Key Features

  • Dextrose solution injection
  • Stimulates controlled healing inflammation
  • Targets ligaments, tendons, and joints
  • Multiple sessions for cumulative repair
  • Image-guided precision placement
  • Complements PRP and other regenerative therapies

Key Benefits

  • Rebuilds structural integrity of connective tissue
  • Addresses joint instability — not just pain
  • No tissue-degrading effects of steroids
  • Long-lasting results with full treatment course
  • Safe for repeated use
  • Effective for chronic instability and laxity

The Science of Prolotherapy: Using Inflammation to Heal

Prolotherapy works on a counterintuitive principle: controlled inflammation heals. When a dextrose solution is injected into a damaged ligament or tendon, it creates a mild, localized inflammatory response that mimics the body's natural healing cascade — recruiting fibroblasts (the cells that produce collagen), stimulating growth factor release, and initiating the repair process that chronic injuries have failed to complete on their own.

Ligaments and tendons have notoriously poor blood supply, which is why they heal slowly and incompletely after injury. Chronic laxity — the stretched, weakened state that results from incomplete healing — creates joint instability that perpetuates pain, accelerates cartilage degeneration, and predisposes to re-injury. Prolotherapy addresses this root structural problem by rebuilding the collagen matrix of the connective tissue itself.

Conditions Treated with Prolotherapy

Chronic low back pain (ligament laxity)
Sacroiliac joint instability
Knee ligament laxity (ACL, MCL, PCL)
Ankle instability
Shoulder instability
Tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis)
Golfer's elbow (medial epicondylitis)
Achilles tendinopathy
Plantar fasciitis
Hip labral tears

Chronic Joint Instability or Ligament Pain?

Schedule a prolotherapy consultation at NYC Pain Management in Rego Park, Queens. Most insurance plans accepted.