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PRP procedure in SI joints
On 10/24/25 I had the PRP injections in my SI joints. As of today 1/14/26 I don’t have any relief from the pain. I’m 83 years old and the pain is worse than before the shots. How long did it take for you to get relief? Did you get relief?
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I've been having shots for SI joint pain for at least 2 years. Sometimes it works for 3-4 months and sometimes it does not. I haven' figured out if it is because a different doctor did some of the shots. I had a shot 2 weeks ago, same doc as last time 4 months ago, and thought there was relief, but when I tried walking for more than 2 blocks, the pain was still there. I'm the same age as you are, 83 on the 15th of Feb. I had gotten my walking up to almost 2 miles a day but now with the pain, I'm back to only being able to go for about 1/2 a mile.
Sometimes I find that if I bend over from the waist and just hang there for about 30 seconds, when I rise up I can walk some more before the pain begins again. After the last shot I asked the doc if there is anything else that can be done and he said that an ortho doc could fuse the joint. Apparently it isn't as debiliting as fusing a spinal joint. I'm still on the fence about whether or not to look into this further. Susan
Sorry, my injection was a steroid injection, not PRP
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1 Reaction@sussaw Hi Susan, my pain doctor wanted to fuse my Si joints. I was going to have it done but then I looked into it on Google etc. and decided not to.
There is so much stuff that you are told not to do during the recovery time…like bending over, lifting more than five pounds, etc. I live by myself with two cats, both weigh over five pounds. Cat litter bags are 25 pounds. Some doctors told you not to drive for X amount of time.
One orthopedic doctor was totally against SI joint fusion. He said it was popular in the 90s and was coming back but he didn’t recommend it. Apparently the SI joints move very little…but their movement allows other joints to function. He reported that many people had initial pain relief but after awhile they developed hip pain, pain going down their legs, etc. because joints didn’t work well because the SI joints were fused.
Get on Google, Reddit, etc. and read about the fusion
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1 Reaction@barbarav1 I meant to comment that the steroid injections haven’t helped me at all.
Thank you! That is very helpful. I already declined a spinal fusion for
much the same reason.
No cats but I do live alone & although a couple of friends would help, I'd
rather save that option for some medical emergency, should I need that.
Susan
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2 ReactionsI’m scheduled soon for the exact same thing and I’m paying 850 dollars because it’s not covered under Medicare. I’m on the fence and may cancel. I have not heard of many folks getting this for SI joint and getting better.
Did you stay awake for the injection. Thank you. Hope you feel better soon. I’m 71. I also paid extra for mild anesthesia.
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2 ReactionsI paid $1700 for PRP and anesthesia. I’m in the Atlanta, GA area. While I’m in worse pain than before, my pain doctor told me to not give up on the procedure yet. Hopefully it will work. As there’s not a whole lot that will help, if you can afford the PRP procedure it’s worth a try. I read it was 70% effective but it didn’t state the SI joints specifically. The steroid shots do nothing for me and the Oxycodone I was taking for years just stopped working. Apparently people get PRP injections in their scalp (for more hair growth). I read that it caused some hair loss but that the hair grew back stronger. I mention that because I noticed more hair on my brush than normal so I looked it up. While the shot was for the SI joints and not on the scalp, IMO wherever you get the shot it will go into your blood system. I hope it works for you. Please let me know your progress.
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1 Reaction@barbarav1 , Thanks, I've read quite a bit and since I alread have pain in my lower leg and my left hip, I'm not anxious to try anything that might make that worse.
@mothermary1 , Yes the steroid injection is an outpatient procedure and I was awake for all of them. There is a discomfort with the injection, but I don't find it to be too much. I always go back for another one 3-4 months later. If it were too awful I'm pretty sure I would not continue to get them.
Unfortunately they don’t help me at all. I have light anesthesia with mine.