After moving to California recently, I decided to take surfing lessons. However, I wasn’t aware that I was about to receive a PRP injection myself after spraining my MCL on the first day! I felt a pop in my knee and subsequently had an MRI that showed bruising of my tibia & swelling/fluid at my MCL. Shortly afterwards, I received a PRP injection to my knee.
This experience let me understand the healing process & better communicate the recovery process with patients. Most importantly I have appreciated the necessary role of Physical therapy post injection. We are in the process of developing Physical therapy protcols to maximize positive outcomes & improve pain tolerance. Being a typical doctor, and not properly taking care of myself, I worked the day after my injection rather than resting as I recommend to others. This resulted in increased pain which was later relieved with a device I received called “game Ready” which provides cooling & compression with ice. Now, I describe the process as similar to experiencing a new injury. Although there isn’t a second injury, we are releasing potent proteins/growth factors that normally accumulate when there is an acute injury.
I tell patients that they may feel a different pain which gradually subsides in 2-7 days. For some reason patient tolerance of the injection varies. Some describe significant brief discomfort, while others are completely fine.
