#732 Risks of PRP vs Cortisone injections for Hallux Rigidus

I was just on a call with a runner who has had this condition called “hallux rigidus.” and it’s where your big toe joint starts to get stiff, becomes rigid, and it doesn’t move as much.

Hallux rigidus is a progressive condition, especially if you continue to irritate the joint. You can damage the joint cartilage. The stiffer the big toe joint gets, the more pressure on the cartilage when the big toe is trying to fight that stiffness. Sometimes that movement hurts.

He was asking me about the options on different injections.

What are the risks between an injection like a PRP or platelet rich plasma injection versus something like a cortisone injection when you have hallux rigidus?

Well, that’s what we’re talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

#621 PRP science explained. PRP vs. Corticosteroid vs. Placebo injections.

If you are a runner with a painful tendon or ligament issue like chronic plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendonitis or plantar plate sprain that just won’t get better, you might have done some research into injections and found a thing called a PRP or “platelet-rich plasma injection.”

The way that PRP injections are marketed by some doctors, you might think that it’s mostly unicorns and fairy dust, but there is some actual science behind platelet-rich plasma. and the effect that it can have on these tendons and ligaments that aren’t healing very well.

Corticosteroid injections have also been around for a much longer time.

Both types of injections can be used as treatments for tendon and ligament sprains in runners.

The question is whether or not there is any real scientific evidence to support Platelet Rich Plasma injection or Corticosteroid injections for chronic tendon or ligament injuries. Is one injection any better than the other?

PRP science explained. Is there a difference between PRP injections, corticosteroid injections, and placebo?

That’s what we’re talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

#612 Dry Needling vs PRP injection in Runners

Today’s episode comes from a great question I got during one of the Runners Aid station calls.

This was someone who had a plantar plate sprain and had talked to a doctor about a couple of different procedures that might actually, potentially, speed up the healing.

He wanted to know about the difference between these two things called dry needling or a PRP injection.

Today on the Doc On The Run podcast, we’re talking about dry needling versus PRP in runners.

#236 Should I just try a more aggressive treatment for my Achilles tendon?

Today was on a consultation call with a runner who is had a long history of Achilles tendon problems.

She’s recently tried some new things that made an improvement.

But the problem is she’s not really certain the improvement is from the new treatments she’s been doing. Because she simultaneously decreased her activity a bit.

So now she’s in this place where she is trying to figure out what to do next.

Should she continue with some simple conservative treatments that aren’t very risky?

Or should she try to just do something riskier to try to get it to finally heal, or heal faster?

Today on the Doc On the Run Podcast, we’re talking about or not a runner should try a more aggressive treatment for an aching Achilles tendon.

#158 Achilles tendinosis treatment failures in a runner

If you’re a runner who gets tightness in your calves and develops Achilles tendinosis it can be very difficult to get it to heal and it can be very frustrating. Some runners fail multiple treatments including stretching, home exercises, physical therapy, braces, PRP injections and many other treatments. You just have to figure what it will take to get the Achilles tendon to heal so you can get back to running.