I'm curious if anybody has tried PRP for knee trouble. I tore my ACL and medical meniscus playing indoor soccer back in 2003, had surgery (used medial patellar for the ACL and he stitched up the torn meniscus), and that knee is perfect except from it being tender to kneel on hard surfaces and can only get about 98% flex getting into a catcher's squat. Most of the flexing issue is due to the joint healing so solid. I never have trouble with it swelling anymore, weather change doesn't bother me, and the only time it feels achy is if I stop hitting it with weights for a few weeks. I realize I'm incredibly lucky on the recovery. It was a combination of having a top ten orthopedic in the country on knees do the surgery, doing tough physical therapy a month before surgery to prep the knee for surgery, doing ridiculous physical therapy after the surgery for couple months (20+ hours a week just on the knee) to get through the crucial recovery period, and a good chunk of luck and good genes.

I went in for my regular check-ups for the year following surgery and everything was great. I have continued to go each and every year to have them proactively check it to make sure that it remains structurally sound (the peace of mind is worth the $40 copay to have them say it is still rock solid and I don't need to see them until I have a problem). Last year I had him check my non-surgical knee as it felt a little "fuzzy" inside. They immediately put me on the MRI machine to check. I was told I have a couple rough spots on the cartilage, my medial patellar tendon had microscopic tears which could just be tendonitis, and that in general the joint reflected "heavy use." I have been very active in sports my whole life (catching in baseball early on, basketball, soccer, tennis, hockey, racquetball, etc.), so I guess that is expected. I don't have any pain, however, and I never take any drugs (even during/after a rough tournament I don't need aspirin or anything like that). I'm 33, so I still have youth on my side although I definitely feel soreness and experience a slower recovery than I did in my late twenties.

The orthopedic who didn't operate on me (but did my last check-up) suggested that PRP could help. He told me to research it but I haven't taken a lot of time to do that. I'm more interested in talking with somebody who has actually done it with a knee. The knee bothers me more now than it did a year ago, but I've slipped out of my cross-training routine and am trying to get back into it. I think that after I get back into a good weight-lifting routine that the knee will stabilize and the negative sensations will reduce, but the damage that's in there won't fix itself. I'm curious if the PRP will.

Thanks for any feedback,

Bryan

I did PRP but not on knee - had it in forearm for tennis elbow. There's a thread about that in this section, you may or may not find it applicable.

BillB

I did PRP but not on knee - had it in forearm for tennis elbow. There's a thread about that in this section, you may or may not find it applicable.

Thanks. It's helpful, but I'm hoping for somebody who has gone through it with a knee.

I altered my weight-lifting program to specifically strengthen the muscle groups around the affected area and noticed significant immediate improvement. The hypochondriac side overlooked that I was probalby playing too much racquetball and not doing the necessary cross-training and weights to prevent repetitive use injuries.