Treatment

Dr Watson uses acupuncture, manipulation, exercises, stretching and posture correction, but some patients may have tried these approaches already without success, and so a large proportion these patients will be offered an injection (if appropriate).

Injections

Dr Watson uses cortisone (or rather, its derivatives), local anaesthetic, synthetic joint fluid (hyaluronic acid) and prolothrapy. The choice depends on the condition being treated and on the patient’s preferences. All treatments including injections are discussed in detail with the patient before any decisions are made or any treatment takes place. It is Dr Watson’s aim to ensure you are well-informed and completely happy about the treatments available to you, before a final decision is made on how to proceed with treatment.

• Synthetic joint fluid injections can help some patients with osteo-arthritis.
• Cortisone / Corticosteroid injections (or rather its derivatives ) is a powerful anti-inflammatory agent which can be put directly where the inflammation is located, rather than trying to work on the whole body as an anti-inflammatory tablet would.
• Prolotherapy can be particularly helpful for chronic/recurrent spinal conditions and ligament laxity. Find out more about Prolotherapy.

Some patients are very worried about the pain of having an injection. If this is a worry to you, please see the section “Do the injections hurt?” in FAQs.