Hi! I haven't had PRP, but I have had a few steroid injections (all pre-diagnosis). I know that some people get relief from them, but I never did. And now I am wary to ever do it again due to some possible effects on connective tissue and my reaction to my last injections... My last injections were in both hips for bursitis and it led to a massive flare that eventually led to the diagnosis of HSD, MCAS, and POTS. My POTS doctor suspects that the flare was due to a MCAS reaction to the steroid, but I'm not sure. If I were to ever need another steroid injection, I would definitely discuss it at length with my EDS-informed pain specialist. When my SI joints are subluxing a lot and I can't stabilize them even with lots of physical therapy, I do have good results with a short course of oral steroids to reduce the inflammation. That helps me reap the benefits of the physical therapy. But I try to avoid steroids if possible as I've already been on inhaled corticosteroids for asthma for 20 years and just got diagnosed with early-onset osteopenia (32F). It's definitely not something I take lightly! But everyone reacts differently and, like I said before, some find major relief without major side effects, so you should definitely discuss your concerns with your doctors! Maybe even ask your orthopedic surgeon about the PRP if you haven't yet and see what they say.
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u/Restlessfibre
Steroids will compromise the integrity of connective tissue so even though they might give temporary pain relief I don't think it's a good idea for hypermobile people. Prp and prolotherapy seem to offer better long term benefits because they improve stability in joints.
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u/leavesandlaw
I’ve done PRP and prolo! I’ve also done steroid shots. I would check and see if your insurance covers PRP because most don’t and I can be pretty expensive.
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u/athlete-student34
I have not had PRP, but I’ve had 2 steroid injection in my hip and didn’t really have any benefits from them. Plenty of side effects though…
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u/heathbarcrunchh
Definitely prp! It’s helped me a ton. From my understanding steroid shots can in some cases make the pain worse and can degrade connective tissue
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u/Fine_Cryptographer20
Was given so many steroids oral and injections for constant pain over the years I almost died. Spent weeks in ICU before the endocrinologist team discovered I have Secondary Adrenal Insufficiency. After just a week on correct meds I was back home. Scary month for me. Ironically now I have to take steroids multiple times a day or I will literally die.
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u/ClassofherOwn
Steroid injections can give relief, but it’s not a guarantee, won’t address any structural issues creating the pain and can cause long term tissue compromise.
PRP and prolo can be highly effective (I’ve had extensive work done for muscle and ligament tears with great success) but it needs to be done by a skilled, experienced practitioner who can appropriately diagnose what is causing the pain. These interventions have become very popular and there are a lot of docs out there haphazardly injecting people without proper diagnostic process or protocols.
Also disclaimer that I’m not diagnosed with EDS or hEDS (working on it) but I’m definitely on the hypermobile spectrum and respond to PRP/prolo as someone with hEDS would.