PRP Injections for Hip Pain

PRP Injections for Hip Pain in San Antonio, TX

Your hips are highly versatile and powerful, allowing you to perform everyday movements like sitting, walking, and running. So, when they're a source of pain, they can impair not only your activities but also your quality of life.

Hip pain affects about 10% of adults and increases with age.¹ PRP Clinic at The Golab Center for Back & Joint Relief offers platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections, an innovative breakthrough therapy that can help relieve your hip pain, recover faster, and stay active.

Understanding Hip Pain

Hip pain encompasses any pain in or around the hip joint, though it can also be referred pain from other places such as your knees or spine.¹

Common causes of hip pain include:²

Fractures
Arthritis
Infection
Bursitis
Labral tear
Sprains
Sciatica
Tendinitis
Groin strains

Whenever possible, your provider may recommend conservative, nonsurgical methods to manage your hip pain, such as:

Lifestyle changes
Physical therapy
Pain medications (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs)
Corticosteroid injections
Herbal or dietary supplements

While NSAIDs, corticosteroids, and even herbal or dietary supplements may be effective in many cases, they aren't without risk and side effects. Corticosteroid therapy is of particular concern as studies have shown it can impair your immune system and lead to bone loss.^3,4

What is PRP Therapy?

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy has emerged as a potential therapy for hip pain.

So how does PRP help with hip pain?

A PRP injection delivers a high concentration of platelets, leukocytes, and growth factors to the affected area. These factors appear to be able to turn a toxic, inflammatory environment into a healing one.⁵

The secretion of growth and anti-inflammatory factors also means that PRP may help repair damaged cartilage.⁶ This is a significant finding since many other treatment methods focus on managing your symptoms, not actual healing.

Do PRP Injections Help Relieve Hip Pain?

The answer depends on the cause of your hip pain.

Several clinical trials have provided support for PRP's effectiveness for patients with mild to moderate hip osteoarthritis. In a study published in 2012, 40 patients with severe hip osteoarthritis were treated with PRP injections for 3 weeks. Twenty-three (57.5%) of the patients reported a reduction of pain, and 16 patients showed lasting pain reduction at the 6-month follow-up visit.⁷

Another study of 9 patients reported similar findings. In this study, all 9 patients reported improvements in their hip pain and function, and the benefits lasted until the 12-month follow-up.⁸

A 2017 literature review examined 29 articles of PRP administration for degenerative cartilage diseases, 3 of which involved hip osteoarthritis. The authors found that patients who were treated with PRP showed superior results compared to those treated with alternative methods, including hyaluronic acid.⁹

Chronic hip bursitis is another source of frustration for patients and physicians alike. In a study presented at the 2014 American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons annual meeting, a single PRP injection provided patients significantly more durable and effective relief compared to steroids.¹⁰

Studies also show that PRP may help patients with chronic hamstring tendinopathy. In one study, 7 of 14 patients reported at least a 50% reduction in their pain after PRP treatment.¹¹

How the PRP Process Works

Your provider will provide instructions on how to prepare for your appointment. Some medications like anticoagulants or NSAIDs may need to be stopped temporarily.

The entire PRP process, which includes preparation and injection, takes approximately 1 to 1.5 hours. At PRP Clinic at The Golab Center for Back & Joint Relief, you can expect the following steps:

Step One	Step Two	Step Three	Step Four
A technician will draw a small sample of blood from you, which will be placed in a tube.	The vial is placed in a centrifuge, which spins the blood at high speeds. This separates the platelets from the other blood components.	We remove the tube from the centrifuge and separate the plasma layer from the other layers which are then discarded.	Once the PRP solution is prepared, your provider will inject it into the affected area where the healing process begins.

Step One

A technician will draw a small sample of blood from you, which will be placed in a tube.

Step Two

The vial is placed in a centrifuge, which spins the blood at high speeds. This separates the platelets from the other blood components.

Step Three

We remove the tube from the centrifuge and separate the plasma layer from the other layers which are then discarded.

Step Four

Once the PRP solution is prepared, your provider will inject it into the affected area where the healing process begins.

Because PRP triggers a cascade of biological responses, you may experience some soreness or swelling in the injection area for a few days. We recommend taking it easy for a few days after your treatment.

Are PRP Injections Safe?

Because PRP is an autologous therapy (derived from your own blood), it has an outstanding safety profile. There is no risk of an adverse reaction or disease transmission. Talk to your provider if you experience any severe discomfort.