Prolotherapy in Portland: helping loose joints get stable again
Prolotherapy uses simple dextrose injections to nudge ligaments and tendons into strengthening themselves. It's a time-tested option for wobbly joints, chronic sprains, hypermobility, and the aches that never quite heal on their own.
The short version
What is prolotherapy?
Ligaments are the straps that hold your joints together. When they're stretched, torn, or naturally lax — as in hypermobility and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome — joints wobble, muscles overwork to compensate, and pain settles in.
Prolotherapy ("proliferation therapy") injects a mild dextrose solution at the spots where ligaments attach to bone. The solution creates a brief, controlled irritation that wakes up the body's repair crew, encouraging the ligament to thicken and strengthen over a series of treatments.
No drugs, no surgery, no scalpels — just your own healing response, pointed at the right spot. It's been practiced since the 1930s and remains a favorite tool for joint instability, chronic low back and SI joint pain, and hypermobile patients who need their supporting structures reinforced.
In Portland, the prolotherapy team at NW Regen in Portland performs prolotherapy with ultrasound guidance, often alongside PRP for tougher cases.
Where it helps
Conditions prolotherapy is used for
If you are hypermobile or have been told you might have EDS, the prolotherapy articles collect the openings of NW Regen's own articles on it, each linked to the full original.
Joint instability
That "wobbly tire" feeling — knees, ankles, shoulders that don't feel held together.
Hypermobility & EDS
Reinforcing lax ligaments in hypermobile bodies, including Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.
Low back & SI joint
Chronic back pain driven by ligament laxity rather than discs alone.
Knee pain
Aching, unstable, or early-arthritic knees that cortisone hasn't fixed.
Chronic sprains
Ankles and wrists that never fully recovered from an old injury.
Neck & head
Upper-cervical instability and related headaches, evaluated carefully case by case.
Step by step
What a course of treatment looks like
A careful exam
A provider maps which ligaments are lax and whether prolotherapy — or a stronger tool like PRP — fits your case.
A series of injections
Dextrose is placed at ligament attachment points, usually in a short series of sessions spaced a few weeks apart.
Strength builds gradually
Ligament tissue remodels slowly, so stability and comfort tend to improve over weeks to months — quietly and cumulatively.
Questions people ask
Common questions
Does prolotherapy hurt?
Expect transient pain at the injection sites, and commonly mild tissue swelling with a temporary increase in pain and stiffness — that irritation is literally the mechanism. Bruising is possible, and lingering soreness is sometimes managed with a prescription or natural anti-inflammatory.
How is it different from PRP?
Both provoke healing; prolotherapy uses dextrose while PRP uses concentrated platelets from your blood. Prolotherapy is gentler and less costly; PRP delivers a stronger signal.
How many sessions will I need?
Commonly three to six, spaced several weeks apart, though ranges vary with the joint and the degree of laxity.
Who offers prolotherapy in Portland?
Prolotherapy at NW Regen in Portland is offered with ultrasound guidance, with particular experience in hypermobility and EDS patients.
From the library
August 17, 2026
The “Trifecta”: Understanding the Connection Between POTS, MCAS, and EDS
Read the excerpt →
December 30, 2024
Exploring Prolotherapy to Manage EDS
Read the excerpt →
October 6, 2023
More Than Just Headaches: Living with and Treating Occipital Neuralgia
Read the excerpt →
October 9, 2024
How Prolotherapy Injections Can Heal Knee Pain
Read the excerpt →Wondering if your joints could use some reinforcement?
Talk with a Portland provider who treats ligament laxity every week — and who'll tell you plainly whether prolotherapy fits your situation.
Ask about prolotherapy at NW Regen