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Arthritis Treatment in Belfast with PRP and SVF

PRP together with SVF cell therapy supports arthritis care in the knee, hand, shoulder and other joints; first comes a doctor's review of your case

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Knee joint: regenerative treatment without surgery
Joint treatment without surgery. Free consultation and review of your scans

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What it is

What is arthritis
and when does this treatment fit?

An inflamed joint is the core of arthritis. Look for pain at night or when resting, stiffness in the morning for longer than half an hour, swelling, and a joint that is red and warm. The cause can be autoimmune (rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis), gout, infection or a long-past injury.

  • No surgery — an injection instead of an operation
  • Own tissue — your blood and adipose tissue
  • Ultrasound guidance for every injection
Knee joint: an injection under ultrasound guidance

Who the treatment suits

A doctor decides whether the treatment suits you after examining you and reviewing your scans

Suitable

A doctor reviews knee X-rays with a patient
  • Pain, crunching or stiffness in a joint
  • Painkillers only help for a short time
  • Recovery after injuries and surgery
  • You need a second opinion on your scans
  • You want to avoid or postpone joint replacement
  • Early or moderate arthrosis or arthritis
  • High load on the joints — sport or physical work

Not suitable

A doctor examines a patient's knee
  • Cancer
  • Pregnancy
  • Blood clotting disorders
  • Acute infections, including infection in or near the joint
  • Flare-up of a serious chronic illness
  • Temporary contraindications: skin inflammation over the target joint, or a fever, a cold or flu

Not sure the treatment is right for you?

Leave your number — the coordinator will ask for your scans (X-ray, MRI or ultrasound), and the doctor will tell you whether treatment without surgery suits you.

Find out if it suits me

What we treat

Conditions we treat

How it works

How the procedure goes: step by step

Consultation and scan review1

Consultation and scan review

The doctor examines the joint, reviews your X-rays, MRI or ultrasound and decides whether the procedure suits you. If you already have scans, you can send them before the visit.

Blood sample for PRP2

Blood sample for PRP

From a small amount of blood drawn from a vein, platelet-rich plasma with growth factors is prepared later on.

Adipose tissue sample3

Adipose tissue sample

The doctor numbs the area with local anaesthetic and takes about 30 ml of adipose tissue through a puncture on the abdomen or inner thigh; stitches are not needed.

Processing in a centrifuge4

Processing in a centrifuge

Centrifuging the sample separates it into layers, after which the stromal vascular fraction is isolated and mixed into the platelet-rich plasma.

Injection into the joint5

Injection into the joint

Under ultrasound guidance, which helps with precise placement, the prepared material is injected straight into the affected joint.

Follow-up6

Follow-up

Without crutches and without a hospital stay: after the procedure the doctor stays in touch and follows the joint's response.

Book a consultation

Call or message us — our coordinator will contact you shortly and book your consultation

A doctor talks with a patient about joint treatment
Book a consultation
A doctor talks with a patient about joint treatment

Results

After the procedure

  • Doctor talking warmly with a patient after the procedure

    1 week

    The joint may ache a little more — this is an expected reaction.

  • Doctor consulting an older patient one month after treatment

    1 month

    The pain usually eases.

  • Doctor explaining progress to a patient using a knee joint model

    ~3 months

    Mobility and activity improve.

  • Doctor and patient walking together at a follow-up visit

    ~6 months

    The full effect develops.

How long it lasts differs from person to person and depends on the stage of the condition, body weight, activity and other factors — no one can promise a fixed result.

Comparison

Methods we use

Your own adipose tissue and blood are the only materials used, never donor or synthetic ones

Cell therapy (SVF) from your own adipose tissue

The stromal vascular fraction (SVF) — a blend of cells involved in repairing tissue — is isolated by processing a small sample of your adipose tissue. Mixed with your own plasma, it goes into the affected joint by injection.

A doctor explains SVF cell therapy for the knee to a patient on a tablet

Once the acute flare has settled, it is used in inflammatory arthritis for its effect on tissue repair and local inflammation.

Material
Your adipose tissue and plasma
How it is given
Into the joint, under ultrasound
Duration
The whole procedure is done in one day.

PRP — platelet-rich plasma from your own blood

A small amount of your blood is used to separate plasma rich in platelets and growth factors, which is then injected into the joint. It helps settle inflammation and gives tissue repair better conditions.

A doctor explains PRP therapy for joints to a patient on a monitor

Rheumatoid and other inflammatory arthritis may call for it as one part of the overall treatment plan.

Material
Your blood from a vein
How it is given
Into the joint, under ultrasound
Duration
The whole procedure is done in one day.

The benefits and timings shown are averaged and given for guidance: the plan and recovery depend on your joint and individual features, and the doctor confirms them at the consultation.

At the consultation the doctor will review your scans and suggest a treatment plan

Free consultation

Book a consultation

Joints

Joints we treat

Any size of joint, large or small: your scans are reviewed first, then the doctor settles on the joint, the method and the number of injections

  • KneeKneeMeniscus problems, cartilage wear, and pain on the stairs and after walking
  • HipHipEarly hip osteoarthritis, groin pain, limited rotation
  • ShoulderShoulderPain on lifting the arm and wear of the joint and nearby tendons
  • ElbowElbowOveruse or sports-strain pain and wearing of the joint surfaces
  • Hand and wrist jointsHand and wrist jointsPain and stiffness affecting the small joints of the fingers and wrist
  • AnkleAnklePain and stiffness after sprains and old injuries

Advantages

Why patients choose City Medical Centre

We work on keeping your own joint rather than replacing it — treatment without surgery

Your own tissue

Your own tissue

Your own adipose tissue and blood are the only materials used, never donor or synthetic ones

No crutches

No crutches

Instead of incisions we use punctures, with local anaesthetic and no long rehabilitation

Second opinion

Second opinion

An independent assessment from a doctor, free of charge, once you send your X-rays, MRI or reports

Support after the procedure

Support after the procedure

Staying in touch after the procedure, we follow the outcome and not only the injection day

About the clinic

A clinic where you can feel at ease

Modern equipment, comfortable rooms and care for every patient

A doctor and a patient at the clinic

Contact us the way that suits you

We will answer your questions and find a convenient time for a consultation

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Request a free call

Price

Arthritis treatment prices

After the consultation the doctor names the cost, which depends on the joint, the arthritis type and the method

FAQ

Joint treatment: frequently asked questions

About the conditions

More about these conditions

Other services of our clinic

What Belfast residents ask about arthritis

SVF contains cells that can modulate the local immune response and support the repair of damaged tissue. Research is ongoing, so the doctor discusses realistic expectations with every patient in Belfast.

If you are being treated by a rheumatologist, do not stop your prescribed medication without talking to them. In Belfast, regenerative injections are planned together with your ongoing treatment.

Patients from Belfast can start with a free review of their tests and scans: the doctor tells you whether regenerative treatment could suit your type of arthritis and what it would cost.

Weather, flares and what the Belfast figures actually show

Belfast sits at the mouth of the River Lagan, at the head of Belfast Lough, and the water opens through the North Channel to the Irish Sea. The Met Office normals show a mild and damp climate. The annual mean maximum is 13.7 °C and the mean minimum 6.3 °C. Even in July, the warmest month, the mean maximum is 19.7 °C, so summers stay under 20 °C. January is the coldest month, with a mean maximum of 8.2 °C. Rain falls on about 156 days a year, and November is the wettest month, with 102.3 mm over 15.5 days.

Many people with inflammatory arthritis say damp, grey weather makes their joints worse. It is fair to take that seriously, but it is not proof. The weather is one possible trigger among several. A cold spell can also mean less walking, more time sitting, a winter infection or a missed dose, and any of these can matter just as much. The doctor will not try to settle the question of weather in general. The aim is to see whether your own joints follow a pattern over weeks and months.

Daylight changes through the year as well. December has only 35.3 hours of sunshine on average and January 40.1, while May has 185.1. Short dull days can change sleep, mood and how much you move. All three affect how pain feels, and a diary will show whether that applies to you.

A flare also matters for timing. The doctor does not offer PRP or SVF injections during a severe flare or an active joint infection. Injections are considered once the acute phase has calmed. A winter flare therefore does not close the door. It means the plan is made around the calmer period that follows.

A symptom diary that a rheumatologist can actually use

The symptoms that point to an inflamed joint are well defined. They are pain at night or at rest, morning stiffness lasting longer than half an hour, swelling, and a joint that is red and warm. A diary built around these signs is far more useful than a general note saying "bad day".

Keep it simple and write it at about the same time each day. Useful entries include:

- how long the morning stiffness lasted, in minutes, and whether it passed the half-hour mark;

- whether pain woke you at night, and which joint it was;

- which joints were swollen, warm or red, with a phone photo if the change is visible;

- what you took for pain, and when, since painkillers often help only for a short time;

- unusual events such as a fever, a cold, a skin problem over a joint, a new medicine, a fall or a long period of unusual activity;

- the weather that day, in a single word, if you want to test your own suspicion.

After four to six weeks, read the diary from start to finish. Compare flare days with calm days. A pattern may appear around rest, stress, a particular activity or the weather. Or the diary may show that flares arrive with no clear cause, which is useful for the doctor to know too.

The diary also keeps the temporary contraindications visible. A fever, a cold or flu, or skin inflammation over the joint planned for treatment are reasons to postpone. If these are written down with dates, the coordinator and the doctor can plan around them without guessing.

Specialist care in Northern Ireland and where an online opinion fits

Belfast is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, with a population of 351,927 in the district (2025) and 704,406 in the greater metropolitan area at the 2021 count. A city of this size has a concentration of services. Even so, joint disease is common across the whole United Kingdom. Arthritis UK reports that more than 10 million adults, young people and children live with arthritis, according to the 2026 edition of its State of Musculoskeletal Health report. With numbers like that, many people wait for routine specialist appointments, and many come to think about what they can do in the meantime.

The NHS describes osteoarthritis as the most common type of arthritis in the UK. Risk rises with age, is higher in women than in men, and is higher in people with obesity or a joint injury. A GP may suspect it in people aged 45 or older. Rheumatoid arthritis is a different matter. The NHS states that there is no cure. Treatment means long-term medicine to ease symptoms and slow progress, together with physiotherapy and occupational therapy, and operations can correct joint problems that develop.

This shapes what an online consultation can and cannot offer. Our doctor does not replace the rheumatologist who manages a systemic disease. PRP and SVF act as support: they help reduce inflammation and pain inside the joint and support tissue, alongside the care you already receive. Rheumatoid arthritis is not cured by these injections. Psoriatic arthritis also has no complete cure, and the aim is to keep inflammation in check and prevent joint deformity, with regenerative injections as one possible element.

What the online route can give you is a second opinion without a long wait. You send X-rays, MRI, ultrasound or blood test reports, and the doctor reviews them at no charge and tells you whether regenerative treatment could suit your type of arthritis. This does not remove the need for your NHS or private rheumatology follow-up. Keep taking prescribed medicine unless your own rheumatologist changes it.

The NHS also notes that hip replacement may be considered when pain and stiffness have a big effect on daily life and other treatments have not worked. Osteoarthritis is the main reason given, with rheumatoid arthritis and hip injury also named. For an early stage, the doctor may suggest PRP or SVF together with exercise therapy and physiotherapy. If the joint is already badly damaged, replacement may be the more realistic path, and the doctor will say so honestly after seeing the scans.

Preparing for an online consultation: scans, notes and questions

A good consultation starts before the call. The coordinator replies on WhatsApp or Telegram around the clock and will ask for your scans first. Gather the following:

1. **Imaging.** X-ray, MRI or ultrasound of the affected joint, as image files or the disc export, plus the written report if there is one. Newer scans are more useful, but older ones help show how the joint has changed.

2. **Blood test results.** Any inflammation markers or autoimmune tests that your GP or rheumatologist has arranged.

3. **Your diagnosis in your own words.** Write which type of arthritis you have been told about: rheumatoid, psoriatic, gout, or an older injury. If the type is not yet confirmed, say that. The doctor first confirms the type before anything else.

4. **Medicines list.** Names and how long you have taken each, including anything for pain.

5. **The diary.** A few weeks of entries as described above.

6. **Health conditions that affect safety.** Pregnancy, cancer, a blood clotting disorder, a current infection, a recent fever or any skin inflammation over the joint. These can rule the procedure out or delay it.

7. **Your goal.** Walking without pain on a particular route, gripping with your hand, lifting the arm, or putting off a joint replacement. A concrete goal helps the doctor judge what is realistic.

Photos of swollen joints, taken on different days, are valuable. A joint that looks red and swollen in the morning and calm by evening tells the doctor something a scan cannot.

During the call, the doctor checks the joint through your description and images, goes through the scans and decides whether the procedure suits you. If it does, the plan may include blood for PRP, a small sample of adipose tissue for SVF, processing in a centrifuge, and injection into the joint under ultrasound guidance. About 30 ml of adipose tissue is taken under local anaesthetic through a single puncture, with no stitches. The whole procedure is done in one day, with no crutches and no hospital stay. The doctor then keeps in touch and follows how the joint responds.

What to expect after treatment, and how to pace the months

The timeline the doctor gives is an average, not a promise. In the first week the joint may ache a little more, which is an expected reaction. After about a month the pain usually eases. At around three months mobility and activity improve, and at around six months the full effect develops. How long it lasts differs from person to person. It depends on the stage of the condition, body weight, activity and other factors.

Belfast's seasons give a practical frame for reading this timeline. If you were to have the procedure in the weeks after the dullest, wettest months, the one-month point would fall as April and May bring the lowest rainfall of the year (60.4 mm and 59.6 mm) and the most sunshine. That is only a calendar observation and not a medical claim, but it can make gentle activity easier to plan.

Movement matters for joints, and the city has places to do it gently. The Connswater Community Greenway offers 16 km of continuous cycle and walkway through east Belfast. National Cycle Route 9 to Newry starts in Belfast. Flat, continuous paths suit people whose joints tolerate steady walking or easy cycling better than hills. The basalt slopes to the north and north-west, such as Cavehill at 368 m, Black Mountain at 389 m and Divis Mountain at 478 m, are a tougher test for knees and hips. Whether a joint is ready for them is a question for the doctor and your physiotherapist after treatment, not something to try on a good day.

The Belfast Marathon takes place every year on May Day, with about 15,000 participants across its events. For someone with joint disease, that kind of high load is not a casual goal. Sport and physical work are listed among the reasons people seek joint treatment, and the doctor will discuss realistic expectations, including whether a given event suits your joint at all.

Public holidays, round-the-clock contact and planning around them

Northern Ireland has 10 bank holidays in 2026, including St Patrick's Day on 17 March and the substitute day for the Battle of the Boyne on 13 July, in addition to the set shared with England and Wales. For anyone with a flare, holidays can be a practical problem, because routine appointments become harder to find just when symptoms spike.

Our coordinators answer on WhatsApp and Telegram 24/7, so a bank holiday does not change how you reach us. The first reply usually comes within 15 minutes. You can send a new photo of a swollen joint, ask whether a fever means the plan should wait, or share scan files late in the evening. The doctor's assessment depends on your information being complete, not on a working day.

The city's calendar is busy at certain times. St Patrick's Day has been celebrated in the city centre since 1998, Belfast Pride ends with a parade at the end of July, and Féile an Phobail draws over 100,000 people. Busy periods can make routine services slower or more crowded. Planning your online consultation around them is easier when everything happens from home.

There are a lot of students in the city too: Queen's University Belfast has over 25,000, and Belfast Metropolitan College has over 53,000 enrolled on full- and part-time courses. Younger adults and students can have inflammatory arthritis too, and it often comes with a difficult timetable. An online consultation can be fitted around lectures or shifts, with no need to leave the city for a day.

Does Belfast's damp weather make arthritis flares more likely?

The climate figures show frequent rain: about 156 days a year, with November the wettest month. Many people feel their joints are worse in damp, cold conditions, but the cause is not settled and a flare can have other triggers. A symptom diary kept for several weeks, with a short note on the weather each day, lets the doctor see whether a pattern exists for you.

What should I record in a diary before the online consultation?

Note how long the morning stiffness lasted, especially whether it passed half an hour, whether pain woke you at night, which joints were swollen, red or warm, and what you took for pain. Add fevers, colds, skin problems over a joint and changes in activity. Photos of the swollen joint on different days are helpful too.

Can PRP or SVF replace the treatment from my rheumatologist?

No. Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease managed by a rheumatologist, and the NHS states that there is no cure for it. PRP and SVF are used alongside that care, once an acute flare has settled, to help reduce local inflammation and pain and to support tissue in the joint. Keep to the medicines your own rheumatologist prescribes.

Are the consultation hours affected by bank holidays in Northern Ireland?

No. Coordinators answer on WhatsApp and Telegram round the clock, including on bank holidays such as 17 March and the July substitute day for the Battle of the Boyne. You can send scans and questions at any time, and the first reply usually comes within 15 minutes.

I have a flare right now. Can I still book?

Yes, you can book the consultation and send your scans. The procedure itself is not done during a severe flare or an active joint infection, so the doctor will tell you to wait until the acute phase has calmed. A fever, a cold or flu, or skin inflammation over the planned joint are also reasons to postpone.

Which scans and documents should I gather as a Belfast resident?

Send X-ray, MRI or ultrasound images of the affected joint with their written reports, recent blood test results from your GP or rheumatologist, a list of your medicines and your diary. The doctor reviews them at no charge and tells you whether regenerative treatment could suit your type of arthritis.

Is walking on the Connswater Greenway or the hills safe after treatment?

The 16 km of the Connswater Community Greenway is level and continuous, so it suits gentle walking or easy cycling better than steep slopes such as Cavehill. Whether and when to return to harder routes depends on your joint and the stage of treatment. Ask the doctor during follow-up, and do not test it on a good day without advice.

How long until I notice a difference after the procedure?

In the first week the joint may ache a little more, which is expected. After about a month pain usually eases, at around three months mobility and activity improve, and at around six months the full effect develops. These are averages, and no one can promise a fixed result, because the stage of the condition, body weight and activity all matter.