DO PROLOTHERAPY INJECTIONS HURT THAT MUCH?
Do Prolotherapy Injections Hurt That Much?
No Pain No Gain! As the saying goes, "no pain, no gain." Shots are shots. Yes, Prolotherapy injections hurt. Just remember that all of the staff at Caring Medical have been treated for various injuries with Prolotherapy, so they truly feel your pain, including Dr. Hauser himself. Each patient has a different level of pain tolerance. Some patients can receive many Prolotherapy injections and not flinch, while others receive a few shots and have a rough time.
How much will it hurt? Many patients tell us that the amount of pain experienced during the Prolotherapy treatment is insignificant compared to the pain they experience every day. Many say after the Prolotherapy treatment, "It wasn't that bad." There are a few people, however, who need help in receiving the injections.
Pain Control During Treatment:
Numbing cream: In order to assist those patients who find Prolotherapy painful, we apply a numbing (lidocaine) cream to the area prior to treatment to help lessen the pain of the injections. We have stress balls for the patients to squeeze during treatment, and we can certainly tell some good jokes to keep your mind off the pain! For most patients, the cream does a good job taking the edge off the treatment and is all that they need.
Oral pain medications: The next level of pain control is to take oral medications prior to the treatment. We provide you with a prescription for a pain medication to be taken 20 minutes prior to Prolotherapy treatments. This is not necessarily optimal, because the patient’s pain is minimized during the physical examination due to the pain medications.
IV conscious sedation: For those requiring injections in many areas at one time, or for those who are extremely anxious about receiving shots, intravenous conscious sedation with things such as Demerol may be used. The sedation makes the patient "woozy" and occasionally someone gets nauseous, therefore it is mandatory that patients eat at least a few hours prior to their Prolotherapy treatment. Patients receiving conscious sedation require a friend/family member to drive them home.
Do I need pain control during treatment? In reality, however, most patients require nothing for pain and the procedure is completed in a matter of minutes. Ninety-nine percent of our patients receive the treatments without pain medications and do just fine. We know that injections hurt, so we are very in tune with your needs and do all that we can to help you during the procedure, including providing stress balls to squeeze, soothing music to listen to, hot packs, and of course, a kind medical assistant in the room with you to offer you a hand to hold. Most people prefer this to receiving drugs. This way you can drive yourself home and feel fine immediately following the procedure.
So in summary – yes, the injections hurt. But remember, the treatment will be completed very quickly, and the result will be elimination of pain in the future! It’s worth it! No pain, no gain!
|
