If you’ve recently sustained a painful bodily injury, are dealing with chronic pain, or have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis, you might be dreading the potential of needing orthopedic surgery.
After all, surgeries and invasive procedures often come with a variety of risks and complications—not to mention, long and frustrating recovery times.
But today, thanks to advances in medicine and knowledge, there are a host of alternatives that could be viable for you, depending on the scope and severity of your injury.
Consider asking your doctor about any of the following types of treatment as an alternative to orthopedic surgery.
1. Stem cell therapy
Stem cell therapy is a type of regenerative medicine that can be used to treat or repair arthritis, bones, cartilage, ligaments, muscles, and tendons.
By stimulating the body’s natural healing process, stem cell therapy can be effective in rebuilding tissue and resolving pain—with a much faster recovery time than that of surgery.
2. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) treatment
The platelets in our blood are known to possess growth factors that can help your body heal itself at a faster rate than the recovery time of conventional surgery.
During platelet-rich plasma treatment, your physician will draw PRP from your body, isolate the layer that contains the highest concentration of platelets, and inject that layer at the site where you are experiencing pain.
3. Microfragmented adipose injections
Similar to PRP treatment, micro fragmented adipose injection treatment uses a high concentration of healing agents found in the body—this time, the reparative cells in fat—to support vulnerable joints and injured tissue.
As your body won’t typically reabsorb this fat, it can provide cushioning for long-term pain relief while also utilizing the properties that help the body repair itself.
4. Prolotherapy
Prolotherapy, short for proliferation therapy, is another type of regenerative medicine by which a natural irritant is injected into the body to stimulate its natural healing process.
Primarily, this method is used to treated injuries at joints and ligaments; but it can also be used in other areas, such as the hips, shoulders, and knees.
5. Physical therapy
Physical therapy often accompanies surgery or a procedure, but there are cases in which it can stand on its own as a method of treatment.
Through physical therapy, you may be able to increase your range of motion at a particular joint, regain strength in different areas of your body, and even make a full recovery from certain types of injuries. Besides Tonic acupuncture is helpful in many cases.
6. Steroid injections
While steroid injections aren’t a catchall solution for every injury, they can often be helpful in reducing inflammation in areas that are causing serious pain—such as joints, ligaments, and tendons.
7. Medications
There are all types of medications that can be used to treat injuries—whether it’s an oral or topical painkiller or a lubricating joint injection. Ask your doctor about the different medications that might be used to help you treat pain and inflammation.
8. Chiropractic care
If you’ve sustained an injury that is causing you back, neck, or shoulder pain, it could very well be spinal-related. When the vertebrae in our spine are moved out of position, they can put pressure on the nerves and send painful signals to different areas of our body.
Through chiropractic care, you may be able to have your spine’s vertebrae moved back into place, correct your posture, and eliminate certain pain in the process.
9. Acupuncture
Although some patients are wary of the discomfort caused during acupuncture, this ancient technique has been shown to be an effective method of treating certain types of injuries.
While acupuncture isn’t for everyone, it can be helpful when it comes to relieving chronic pain and triggering a natural healing response from the body.
10. Massage treatment
Similar to physical therapy and chiropractic care, professional massage treatment can decrease pain and increase mobility.
In addition to relieving pain, a massage might also facilitate deeper rest and a better night’s sleep.
11. Weight loss
In the case of minor injuries, osteoarthritis, or joint pains, it’s true that excess weight can put additional pressure on problematic areas and cause the cartilage to deteriorate much faster.
By exercising and losing weight, you can often reduce the amount of strain you put on these joints and limit the amount of cartilage breakdown as a result. In many cases, this type of change can effectively decrease or eliminate joint pains.
12. Dietary changes
Again, if you have a relatively minor injury or are experiencing joint pains, there are certain lifestyle changes that can sometimes help the issue resolve itself.
Making healthy changes to your diet is one of them. Consuming fewer ingredients that are harmful to the body and replacing them with nutrients that strengthen bones, fortify joints, and build cartilage can make a world of difference.
