I have been in pain since last june. I have tried everything from NSAIDS, herbs, sauna, steamroom, whirlpool, contrast baths, anti aging drugs, ems, sports massage, ice, dmso, gels, any variation of hot to cold you can think of, pain patches, wraps, vitamins, supplements, natural substances,X-RAYS, MRI's, Rehab ect ect. There is nothing I havent tried. I have been to over ten doctors. So a month ago I figured why not try prolotherapy. What the heck. Not actually thinking it would work!!!! Boy was I wrong.
Last tuesday I went to one of the top prolotherapists in the country to see if he could heal my chronic knee pain. He is trained at the top of his field. And his sucess rate is very high. He also has a book out. After one look at the knee, the therapist (dr.greenberg) looked at my knee and diagnosed it as an MCL laxity. He put just a slight bit of pressure on a specific part of my MCL and I was in excrutiating pain. On the other leg I was not. He confirmed that this was causing instability in my knee. I was also diagnosed with patella tendonitis. I know but I said I didnt think I had this. But I do.
I went ahead to get prolotherapy. I recieved a series of injections mabye about 10 injections. They were a series of injections along the MCL and patella regions of my knee. Trigger point injections mostly, although a couple were directly into the the tendon and joint I believe. Along with prolotherapy, I was giving a growth substance also. For those of you who dont know prolotherapy solution consists of dextrose, lidocaine, and irritants to stimulate inflammation and start the process of letting the body heal itself. The hackett technique devoloped in the 1950's. Still sort of an alternative practive. It rebuilds cartilage, tendons and ligaments. The day of prolotherapy I took a long drive back to richmond. I was in new jersey. Usually a drive over four hours would absolutely trash my knee. I didnt.
The cost:
Each treatment is about 225$. Initial visits may be more. Also alot of therapists also offer intravenous cocktails if you will to further the healing process. (I didnt get it this time). Although next time I am scheduled to have one. It consists of 10ml of every nutrient that is good for healing. Also mesotherapy is availabe. Along with all other types of therapies. Its so insane. I wanted to hug everyone in the building.
The Results: YES!
The MCL injury was completly healed that day. No pain. The spot that once would almost cause me to go into tears cannot even be found on my knee. I cant believe it. Both knees look similar now. And there is no more swelling there. My right knee at one point looked really bad. It doenst anymore. My patella tendon is still in the process of healing. Only small amounts of pain in my patella. I expect it to get more inflammed though and eventual heal. This is how prolotherapy works though. Inflammation to start the process to heal itself. Keep in mind after I received a cortisone shot I could not walk for a week. I had to use crutches. And my whole knee turned black and red. I was the most horrific pain I have ever felt. Not only that I couldnt even put pressure on it for a while. And as time went on my injury got worse. Not true with prolotherapy. The day after receiving at least 10 injections. It felt better. It felt so good I thought I was wearing a brace. I felt like my knee was just much stronger. The standard treatment time for prolotherapy is treatments every 3-6 weeks. And it can take up to 2-4 treatment sessions. The healing process takes a while. But it is worth it. Im going back in a couple of weeks to receive another one. Dr. Greenberg was a class act.
when i get it im going to give you guys my boston schedule. im preet sure ill be there for 3 meets.
I am egar to meet you guys. Clemson will be wanting to work with me next after his sees the ghostfacesprinter in action.
I had an MRI done recently which confirmed that I have a COMPLEX TEAR THRU THE MAJORITY OF THE LATERAL MENISCUS WITH PERIMENICAL CYST FORMATION. THE POPLITEUS TENDON CANNOT BE SEEN AND IS ALSO POSSIBLY RUPTURED.
What do I do? I don’t want surgery! My knee does lock at the extreme ranges of motion, i.e. A full leg extension. It also hurts when I do a full squat. Also it locks on me when I put the majority of weight on my left knee when walking (bc the injury is the left knee).
HELP!
P.S. I originally injured it through a car accident where my knee hit the front dashboard (and I recovered and it was fine after 2 weeks) and 6 months later I hurt it doing full squats. That was in Oct 2004, the MRI was done last week.
Knee Pain
Dear Dr. Greenberg:
After limping and dragging my left leg for a couple of months due to a painful Torn Meniscus (diagnosed by MRI) of my left knee I had enough. I was experiencing difficulties going up an down the stairs to the point that my husband and I began to think about selling our two story house and purchasing a ranch house instead. Going down the stairs was the worst. I would take one step at a time, with the left leg leading, so as not to bend the knee for the pain would be excruciating. To stand after sitting for a while was very uncomfortable. At times it felt my knee would buckle under and I’d lose my balance. The orthopedic surgeon in my area recommended arthroscopic surgery. I wasn’t ready for it. My first consultation with you was a godsend. I tolerated the Prolotherapy treatment well. My knee felt better right after the treatment. The discomfort after the treatment was minimal. A second Prolotherapy treatment a month later, provided almost total relief. Six months later, my 62 year-old body feels like “new” again. I can walk well everywhere, dance and do my aerobic classes at the gym. I’d not hesitate to return to your able hands should my knees complain again. I want to thank you and your staff for your patience and care. I feel blessed I found you and grateful to prolotherapy.
Ofelia Rodriguez Goldstein
