Orthobiologics Specialist

Quince Orchard Medical Center

Integrative & Regenerative Medicine & Rehabilitation located in Rockville, MD

Orthobiologics began many years ago with bone marrow transplants. Thanks to advances in technology, the human body’s own cells can be removed and injected at the site of injured tissues to accelerate healing. The medical team at Quince Orchard Medical Center offers orthobiologics in the form of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections. If you have ongoing pain or a slow-healing injury, call to book an appointment with our nurse practitioner Kara Kelly to see if orthobiologics is a good option for you.

301-241-9711

Orthobiologics Q&A

What role does PRP have in orthobiologics?

Platelets are a natural component of your blood. When you suffer an injury or come down with a disease, platelets travel through your bloodstream to the damaged tissues and release proteins called growth factors.

Growth factors trigger the healing response and alleviate pain by:

Accelerating healing
Regulating inflammation
Supporting new cell growth
Rebuilding blood vessels

The team at Quince Orchard Medical Center makes PRP in the office from a sample of your blood. After drawing the sample, they put it in a centrifuge, which separates and concentrates the platelets, creating your PRP. As soon as the PRP is ready, the medical team uses it in your orthobiologic injection.

What role do human cellular tissue products have in orthobiologics?

Many different types of human cellular tissue products live inside the human body. These cells have the unique ability to self-replicate. They divide to create new cells, and then the new cells develop into a variety of different tissues, depending on what your body needs to replace and repair damaged tissues.

Medical professionals can harvest human cellular tissue products from umbilical cord tissues that were willingly donated by the mother after the birth of a healthy baby. Human cellular tissue products develop into musculoskeletal tissues such as ligaments, tendons, muscles, and cartilage.

After your medical professional at Quince Orchard Medical Center injects the human cellular tissue products, they do their normal job of self-replicating to repair your damaged tissues.

What conditions might benefit from orthobiologics?

Nearly every type of musculoskeletal condition could benefit from orthobiologics. The team at Quince Orchard Medical Center often uses PRP and/or human cellular tissue product injections for joint pain, arthritis, bursitis, tendinitis, rotator cuff tears, and many other sports injuries.

Orthobiologics is also a good option to consider if you injure tissues that have a poor blood supply or your injury is extensive or severe.

What should I expect during orthobiologic injections?

There are two keys to successful PRP and human cellular tissue product injections. First, the injection needs to contain a concentrated amount of cells to ensure optimal results.

The second factor is using ultrasound imaging to guide the needle’s placement. With real-time imaging, your provider can see the needle and make sure the injection is deposited precisely at the injured tissues.

To learn if you’re a good candidate for regenerative medicine, call Quince Orchard Medical Center or schedule an appointment online.

What is a pain injection?

Getting a pain injection refers to treatment for joint pain. When your provider at Quince Orchard Medical Center injects medication or healing agents into one of your joints, they use ultrasound imaging to guide the needle.

Ultrasound provides real-time imaging, so your provider can see the structures in your joint, as well as the movement of the needle.

Ultrasound-assisted joint injections ensure that your provider places the medication at a precise location inside the joint.

What type of pain injection might I receive?

The team at Quince Orchard Medical Center often administers three types of joint injections:

Steroid injections

Steroids relieve your pain as they reduce inflammation. You may need a steroid injection to relieve the pain of an acute injury or to treat one of several possible conditions, including:

Osteoarthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis
Tendinitis
Bursitis
Adhesive capsulitis
Iliotibial band syndrome

Many patients get long-lasting relief following a steroid injection.

Viscosupplementation

Patients who have osteoarthritis may need viscosupplementation, which refers to an injection of hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid, a normal part of the joint’s synovial fluid, serves as a lubricant and shock absorber. However, levels of hyaluronic acid are typically low in patients with osteoarthritis.

An injection that increases the joint’s hyaluronic acid content can significantly relieve arthritic pain and improve joint mobility. Viscosupplementation may also slow down the progression of osteoarthritis.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and human cellular tissue product injections

The platelets in PRP accelerate healing and regulate inflammation. They also support the activity of human cellular tissue products.

Human cellular tissue products self-replicate, splitting in half to produce new cells. Then the new cells develop into the tissues needed to repair your joint, including ligaments, tendons, muscles, and cartilage

Your joint injection may contain PRP, human cellular tissue products, or both, depending on the underlying problem. As they promote healing, your pain lessens.

The medical team at Quince Orchard Medical Center often injects PRP and/or human cellular tissue products for patients with arthritis. However, this type of injection may trigger healing and diminish pain caused by any type of joint injury.

What should I expect during a joint pain injection?

You may need to stop taking certain medications; otherwise, there’s little preparation for a joint injection. Before your procedure, your provider administers a topical anesthetic so your injection won’t cause pain.

If the injection targets your hip, knee, or joints in your foot, you may need to avoid placing excessive weight on that leg for several days. However, you’ll receive detailed care instructions after your procedure is finished.

If you struggle with joint pain, call Quince Orchard Medical Center or book an appointment online.

What is Dry Needling?

First of all, dry needling is not acupuncture. The goals and methods of treatment between the two are completely different. Acupuncture is based on normalizing your energy, or Chi, using acupuncture points along the body’s meridians. The application and administration of dry needling is based on the findings of a thorough musculoskeletal and soft tissue examination. It is used to treat muscle tissue and the goal is to reduce pain, inactivate trigger points and restore function. The dry needling technique focuses on soft tissue injuries and dysfunction.

Dry feeling has been utilized in musculoskeletal rehabilitation for over thirty years. It is used to treat both acute (new) and chronic (longstanding) conditions, is minimally invasive, proven effective, and extremely safe. The procedure involves inserting thin filiform “dry” needles, or needles without medication into the skin at the myofascial trigger points of muscles. The needle itself acts to physically disrupt the pressure and tension within the involved tissue It unlocks the tissue to help it return to a more normal and improved level of function including biomechanical, neurological and chemical components.