HOW DOES IT WORK?

Prolotherapy involves many injections of an irritant solution into a joint space, weakened ligament, or tendon insertion to relieve pain. Most commonly, hyperosmolar dextrose (a simple sugar) is the solution used and is mixed with lidocaine (a commonly used local anesthetic) and sterile water.

Sometimes we add the salt sodium-chloride to intensify the hyperosmolar response. The injections are administered at ligaments or at tendons where they connect to bone. Prolotherapy treatment sessions are generally given every four to six weeks for several months in a series ranging on average from 3 to 8 treatments. 

Once the weakened tissue is healed, there is usually no additional need for prolotherapy injections and the patient can either resume physical therapy (if needed), or simply return to normal activities.

The underlying premise for prolotherapy is to initiate the body’s natural healing mechanisms by “tricking” the body into thinking the target tissue was re-injured. The inflammation caused by prolotherapy causes pain, swelling, and stiffness. This is desired if we are to get the body to heal the previous chronic injury. Source

DR. LAUER'S EXPERIENCE WITH PROLOTHERAPY

After personally suffering a devastating ruptured disc in 2013 requiring nerve decompression surgery, Dr. Lauer experienced a very difficult rehabilitation journey. His spinal ligaments were destabilized when the disc collapsed. Not knowing this at the time, he continued physical therapy modalities and exercising to get strong again. However, these activities further weakened the loose ligaments.

Standard medical cortisone injections did not help, nor did medications, so he pursued “alternative treatments” such as acupuncture and massage therapy. Unfortunately, these did not allow the ligaments to fully heal either. 

Eventually he lost the ability to walk without sacral splints and crutches. One pain specialist told him to surgically fuse the spine, while another did not know what else to offer for assistance.  After struggling for 18 months and nearly becoming medically disabled, his neurosurgeon encouraged him to pursue prolotherapy treatment.

Dr. Lauer was treated several times by a leading prolotherapy expert in Chicago, Ross Hauser, M.D. This experience began Dr. Lauer’s personal education with prolotherapy. As he healed, he studied the works of Dr. George Hackett and Dr. Gus Hemwall for whom the Hackett-Hemwall Foundation Prolotherapy Institute is named.  In 2014 and 2015 he was trained in prolotherapy by the American Osteopathic Association of Prolotherapy and the Hackett-Hemwall Foundation.

Dr. Lauer made a full recovery from daily incapacitating pain but required all of 2015 to rehabilitate lost strength and endurance. During this time, he initially practiced on other areas of his body (arthritis of feet and knees), and later offered these healing treatments to the most disabled patients in his general medicine practice. After many of these patients got better or were able to wean off their opiate pain killers to resume normal life, he began offering the treatment to those “walking wounded” in the general medicine practice. After treating hundreds of patients and having gained adequate experience with these wonderfully trusting patients, Dr. Lauer opened the doors to outside patients in 2015 for prolotherapy and platelet rich plasma injection treatments.