PainCare Florida Physicians

Regenerative Medicine

Pain Treatment Procedure

Regenerative Medicine

Regenerative medicine is revolutionizing the way medical professionals manage chronic pain and facilitate injury recovery. Rather than mask pain with medication or treat issues with surgery, regenerative therapies help your body repair and heal itself at the cellular level. These innovative treatments may sound like something out of a science fiction laboratory. Still, they are increasingly used in pain care for a range of conditions, including joint pain, back problems, tendon damage, and post-surgical recovery.[1;2]

By utilizing biological materials naturally found in the body, such as platelets, stem cells, and healing factors, regenerative medicine can help restore function, reduce inflammation, and promote long-term healing. These therapies offer patients the opportunity to heal and alleviate painful inflammation when conventional treatments are ineffective.[3; 4]

Types of Regenerative Medicine in Pain Management

There are several types of regenerative therapies commonly used in pain management:

  • Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP): Uses your own blood platelets to stimulate healing. [5; 6]
  • Stem Cell Therapy: Uses stem cells derived from your body (often fat or bone marrow) to repair damaged tissue. [7;8]
  • Prolotherapy: A sugar-based injection that triggers healing in ligaments and joints. [9]
  • Viscosupplementation (Hyaluronic Acid Injections): A gel-like fluid is injected into joints to improve lubrication and reduce pain.[10; 11]

These injections are done in the office and are minimally invasive. Multiple sessions may be needed.

How Regenerative Pain Therapies Work

Unlike traditional nonsurgical treatments, regenerative medicine delivers human cells (yours or harvested) to damaged or diseased tissues or organs.[12] The goal is to stimulate or enhance your body’s own natural healing response.

PRP and stem cell therapy are the cellular therapy powerhouses of regeneration medicine. Stem cell therapy introduces cells that can divide and develop into new tissue, aiding repair in damaged cartilage, muscles, or nerves. [13; 7] Platelet-rich plasma is used to treat musculoskeletal conditions. PRP uses your blood for a concentrated platelet serum containing growth factors that help speed up healing and reduce pain and inflammation.[7]

Prolotherapy uses a sugar-based serum injected into the joint to stimulate a mild inflammatory response, encouraging tissue regeneration and healing without introducing new cells.[14] Viscosupplementation is commonly used in the knee joints, which is why it is often referred to as “knee gel.”[10] It provides cushioning and lubrication inside arthritic joints, easing pain and improving movement [10;15]

Biologic therapies can be combined to create a more effective treatment to promote natural healing and tissue regeneration. Over time, these treatments may improve tissue strength, flexibility, and function—without the need for medications and without the risks and recovery time associated with surgery.

Conditions Treated with Regenerative Medicine Injections

Regenerative medicine is an exciting and innovative field in orthobiologics that takes pain management to the next level. It’s not just about relieving symptoms—it works at the cellular level to support proper healing and tissue repair.

Pain management specialists often use regenerative medicine therapies to treat a wide range of conditions, including the following:

  • Joint pain and arthritis (knee, hip, shoulder, etc.)
  • Tendon, ligament, and muscle injuries
  • Back and neck pain (including disc issues and sciatica)
  • Sports injuries and repetitive strain
  • Chronic migraines and tension headaches
  • Whiplash and post-accident injuries
  • Nerve-related pain (like neuropathy or radiculopathy)
  • Chronic pain that hasn’t responded to other treatments

For more information on what each therapy treats and its benefits, please visit our detailed pages on PRP, stem cells, prolotherapy, and viscosupplementation.

Benefits of Regenerative Medicine Treatments

Still weighing your options? Regenerative medicine offers some unique benefits that go beyond traditional pain treatments, including:

  • Minimally Invasive: No major surgery required, reducing risk and downtime.[16]
  • Natural Healing: Uses your own blood, cells or healing response to reduce complications or side effects. [4]
  • Speeds Healing: Helps accelerate the natural healing process, reducing your injury recovery time.[7]
  • Combined Approach: Regenerative therapies like PRP and prolotherapy can be used together—and alongside physical therapy and other pain management interventions—to enhance healing, reduce pain, and support long-term recovery.
  • Drug-Free Pain Relief: Can reduce inflammation and pain at the source.[1]
  • Improved Function: Helps restore movement and flexibility over time. [8]

Consult a Regenerative Medicine Specialist for Pain Management

Regenerative medicine enables you to harness your body’s natural healing powers to alleviate pain, inflammation, and restore mobility. Your pain specialist will determine if one or more regenerative therapies are right to treat your chronic pain, joint problems, or lingering injuries from sports or daily life.

You don’t have to be an athlete to benefit from the powerful, natural healing that’s been a sports medicine injury rehabilitation secret for years. These innovative therapies don’t just mask pain—they help your body repair and rebuild from within.

Ready to jump-start your recovery? It’s time to let cutting-edge regenerative treatments restore your physical health. Talk to a specialist and discover how your body’s natural healing power can help you renew, repair, and rise above the pain.

Resources:

  1. Jiang S, Tian G, Li X, et al. Research Progress on Stem Cell Therapies for Articular Cartilage Regeneration. Stem Cells International [Internet]. 2021;2021:8882505. doi:https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/8882505. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7895563/#
  2. D’Souza R, Her Y, Hussain N, et al. Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines on Regenerative Medicine Treatment for Chronic Pain: A Consensus Report from a Multispecialty Working Group. Journal of Pain Research [Internet]. 2024;Volume 17:2951-3001. doi:https://doi.org/10.2147/jpr.s480559 Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.dovepress.com/evidence-based-clinical-practice-guidelines-on-regenerative-medicine-t-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-JPR#
  3. Zorzan N. Stem Cell Injection for Back Pain: Do they work? Medical News Today [Internet]. Updated February 15, 2023. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/stem-cell-injections-for-back-pain#
  4. Wang Z, Liao Y, Wang C, et al. Stem cell-based therapeutic strategies for rotator cuff tendinopathy. Journal of Orthopaedic Translation [Internet]. 2023;42:73-81. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jot.2023.07.006 Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10470406/#
  5. Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy. Johns Hopkins Medicine[Internet]. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/plateletrich-plasma-prp-treatment#
  6. Platelet-Rich Plasma Injections. Cleveland Clinic [Internet]. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/platelet-rich-plasma-prp-injection
  7. Singh JR, MD, Peer-Reviewed P. Regenerative Medicine for Sports Injuries. Sports-health [Internet]. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.sports-health.com/treatment/regenerative-medicine/regenerative-medicine-sports-injuries
  8. Thu AC. The use of platelet-rich plasma in management of musculoskeletal pain: a narrative review. Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science. 2022;39(3):206-215. doi:https://doi.org/10.12701/jyms.2022.00290. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9273137/#
  9. WebMD Editorial Contributors. What to Know About Prolotherapy [Internet]. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.webmd.com/osteoarthritis/what-to-know-about-prolotherapy
  10. Viscosupplementation Treatment for Arthritis. Johns Hopkins Medicine [Internet]. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/arthritis/viscosupplementation-treatment-for-arthritis
  11. Knee Gel Injections (Viscosupplementation). Cleveland Clinic [Internet]. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/procedures/knee-gel-injections-viscosupplementation
  12. Igwe N, Patel NC, Aijaz T. Regenerative Therapy In Pain. PubMed [Internet]. Published 2022. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK578202/
  13. Singh JR. Types of Regenerative Medicine for Sports Injuries. Spine-health. Updated August 03, 2027. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.sports-health.com/treatment/regenerative-medicine/types-regenerative-medicine-sports-injuries
  14. Prolotherapy. Cleveland Clinic [Internet]. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/22426-prolotherapy
  15. Peck J, Slovek A, Miro P, et al. A Comprehensive Review of Viscosupplementation in Osteoarthritis of the Knee. Orthopedic Reviews [Internet]. 2021;13(2). oi:https://doi.org/10.52965/001c.25549. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8567800
  16. Pereira TV, Jüni P, Saadat P, et al. Viscosupplementation for knee osteoarthritis: systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ [Internet]. Published online July 6, 2022:e069722. doi:https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2022-069722. Accessed April 30, 2025. Available from: https://www.bmj.com/content/378/bmj-2022-069722
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