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Arthritis Treatment for Patients from Munster

Your case and test results are reviewed by a doctor before PRP and SVF cell therapy is offered as part of arthritis care for the knee, hand, shoulder and more

Consultation and review of your scansFree

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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?

Inflammation of a joint is what arthritis is. Its usual signs: pain at night and at rest, morning stiffness that takes over half an hour to wear off, swelling, redness and heat over the joint. Possible causes range from autoimmune diseases — rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis — to gout, infection or a previous 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

The treatment is only offered once a doctor has examined you and reviewed your scans and found it suitable

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: fever, flu or a cold, or inflamed skin over the joint being treated

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 checks the joint, goes through your X-rays, MRI or ultrasound and decides if the procedure suits you. If you have scans already, feel free to send them before you come.

Blood sample for PRP2

Blood sample for PRP

Blood is taken from a vein in a small amount, later to be turned into platelet-rich plasma with growth factors.

Adipose tissue sample3

Adipose tissue sample

Under local anaesthetic, a small portion of adipose tissue (about 30 ml) is taken through a puncture on the abdomen or inner thigh. No stitches are 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

The affected joint receives the prepared material by direct injection under ultrasound guidance, for precise placement.

Follow-up6

Follow-up

The doctor follows how the joint responds and stays in touch after the procedure — and you need no crutches or hospital stay.

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

We use only your own adipose tissue and blood, with no synthetic or donor material

Cell therapy (SVF) from your own adipose tissue

From a small sample of adipose tissue we isolate the stromal vascular fraction (SVF), a mix of repair-related cells. Combined with your own plasma, the material is injected into the joint that is affected.

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

It helps calm inflammation and improves conditions for tissue repair: plasma rich in platelets and growth factors, separated from a small amount of your blood and injected into the joint.

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

It may form one part of the overall treatment plan in rheumatoid and other types of inflammatory arthritis.

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

Large or small joints: once your scans are reviewed, the doctor picks the joint, the method and the number of injections

  • KneeKneeWear of the cartilage, problems with the meniscus, pain after walking and on stairs
  • HipHipEarly hip osteoarthritis, groin pain, limited rotation
  • ShoulderShoulderPain when raising the arm, wear of the joint and surrounding tendons
  • ElbowElbowOveruse or sports-strain pain and wearing of the joint surfaces
  • Hand and wrist jointsHand and wrist jointsSmall joints of the fingers and wrist that stiffen and hurt
  • AnkleAnklePain and stiffness after sprains and old injuries

Advantages

Why patients choose City Medical Centre

We try to keep the joint you have rather than replace it — with treatment without surgery

Your own tissue

Your own tissue

We use only your own adipose tissue and blood, with no synthetic or donor material

No crutches

No crutches

Punctures in place of incisions, under local anaesthetic, without a long rehabilitation

Second opinion

Second opinion

For a free, independent doctor's assessment, send us your X-rays, MRI or reports

Support after the procedure

Support after the procedure

We remain in contact after the procedure and follow the result, well beyond 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

Since the price depends on the joint, the method and the type of arthritis, the doctor gives it after the consultation

FAQ

Joint treatment: frequently asked questions

About the conditions

More about these conditions

Other services of our clinic

Arthritis in Munster: from diagnosis to follow-up

Arthritis is inflammation of a joint. For patients from Munster, typical signs are pain at rest and at night, morning stiffness that lasts longer than half an hour, swelling, redness and warmth over the joint.

No crutches and no hospital stay are needed. The puncture sites are small and covered with dressings, and the doctor stays in touch with patients in Munster after the procedure.

Joint inflammation that does not settle? Book a free consultation in Munster: the doctor reviews your case and suggests whether PRP or SVF makes sense now. The price is set individually.

Damp Münsterland winters and what a joint diary can show

Munster sits at about 60 m above sea level in the Nordrhein-Westfalen lowlands. The statistics describe a damp, mild climate. Relative humidity averages 78.6% over the year and rises to 85-86% from November to January. In January the mean daily maximum is 5.7 °C and the minimum 0.4 °C, so mornings hover around freezing without staying frozen for long. Rain falls on about 183 days a year in the 2015-2020 table, adding up to 672 mm. Many people with inflammatory arthritis say the weather affects their joints. Whether it does for you is a question a diary can answer far better than a general impression.

A useful diary is short enough to keep up on a bad day. Write down the date and how long morning stiffness lasted, because stiffness beyond half an hour is one of the signs that points towards inflammation rather than simple wear. Add a pain score for night, rest and movement. Note whether any joint looked swollen, red or warm, and which painkillers you took. Then add one line about the day itself: rain, frost, a dry bright spell, a long cycle ride, a poor night's sleep, a stressful deadline. After four to six weeks you can see whether the bad days cluster around weather, effort or nothing obvious.

The pattern matters for the doctor because treatment is timed around flares. The programme described for this service never acts during a severe flare or an active joint infection. PRP and cell therapy are considered once the acute phase has calmed. A diary that shows when your flares began and ended gives the doctor a concrete basis for judging whether the joint has settled, instead of relying on a vague "it has been better lately".

Seasonal light is also on record. Sunshine averages 4.1 hours a day in Munster, 6.6 hours in May and 6.3 hours from June to August, but only 1.3 hours in December. Short winter days change how much people walk, how they sleep and how stiff they feel on waking. Record those changes as they are. Do not blame the weather for everything, and do not rule it out either. The diary treats the weather as one more observation next to your medication, activity and rest.

A flat bicycle city, handlebars and the joints they load

Munster calls itself the bicycle capital of Germany. In the 2007 figures bicycles carried 37.6% of traffic and vehicles 36.4%. The Promenade, a bicycle-friendly ring, circles the city centre. Cycling is kind to many painful knees because the joint moves under much less impact than in running. It still has its own demands. Hands and wrists grip the handlebars and take vibration from cobbled stretches, and small finger joints inflamed by arthritis can protest after a short ride. Hips and knees repeat the same arc hundreds of times.

The terrain is gentle by German standards. The city centre lies at 60 m, the highest point is the Vorbergshügel at 99.8 m, and the lowest is 38.6 m on the Ems. There are no long climbs to loosen a stiff knee. Short slopes such as bridge ramps and canal embankments, along with stairs in older buildings, can still bring on knee and hip pain. The service text lists "pain after walks and on stairs" among the typical knee complaints, and "groin pain, limited rotation" for the hip.

If you cycle every day, tell the doctor how you ride, not just whether you do. Useful details include the distance, whether you stand on the pedals, which hand goes numb or aches first, and whether the pain starts during the ride, after it or only the next morning. Pain that appears hours later, with swelling, warmth or morning stiffness, points more towards inflammation. Pain that appears at a particular point in the pedal stroke and fades quickly is more mechanical. The service text separates the two: arthritis is the inflamed joint, while osteoarthritis is cartilage wear, usually felt as a dry crunch and aching pain on movement. Your ride notes help the doctor see which picture fits.

The same applies to the Aasee shoreline and the canal paths. Flat walking is a good test of a joint. If you can manage the same loop around the Aasee on a good week but not on a flare week, write both down. Those comparisons are more convincing than a single pain score.

Semesters, fairs and an irregular calendar

Munster is a city shaped by study. The university had 41,217 students in the winter semester 2025/26, and across all institutions the city is credited with about 65,000 students in 2018. A great many people therefore live on the rhythm of lectures, exams and short-term contracts. Inflammatory arthritis often appears in young adulthood, and a flare in an exam period or before a thesis deadline raises its own questions. How much can I sit at a desk? Can I type through the stiffness? Can I plan a procedure around term dates?

The Send fair adds a different kind of calendar. It takes place three times a year, in spring during Lent, in June and in October, and draws more than one million visitors a year. For anyone who works in hospitality, retail or events, those weeks mean long hours on your feet. If your job works that way, choose a time for any injection plan with those weeks in mind. The service text describes the procedure as done in one day, with no crutches and no hospital stay, but the first week can bring a little extra ache in the joint, which it calls an expected reaction. The coordinators can help you set the date around your calendar instead of the other way round.

Because the consultation is online and the coordinators answer around the clock on WhatsApp and Telegram, you can send material between lectures, on a night shift or after a late rehearsal. The first reply is promised within 15 minutes. Photos of scan reports, a short video of how you walk or of your hand opening and closing, and your diary pages can all be shared in the same chat.

National health cover, specialist access and where this fits

Most people in Germany are insured through the statutory system. About 92% of the population is covered by it, and as of 2024 about 88% of the working population is insured through statutory funds and about 11% privately. That system matters for arthritis because the backbone of care is a rheumatologist who manages the disease, and the statutory structure is how most people reach one. Online consultation does not replace that relationship. The service text is explicit that PRP and SVF work alongside, not instead of, a rheumatologist's care for a systemic disease such as rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis.

Joint disease is common here. About five million people in Germany have osteoarthritis (Arthrose), and about 400,000 hip and knee replacements were performed in 2016. Those numbers show how much of the system revolves around late-stage solutions. After an uncomplicated hip replacement, the inpatient stay lasts about six to eight days in most clinics, with follow-up rehabilitation arranged during the stay. A 2010 survey found that 70% of Germans reported waiting less than a month for elective surgery. Some people want something earlier in the chain, to keep a joint working longer. The service text speaks of avoiding or postponing joint replacement, and the doctor says honestly after the scans when replacement is the more realistic option, as with a badly damaged hip.

Coverage deserves a plain answer. The German health-law articles in our facts describe what statutory insurance excludes. Procedures done at the patient's own request for cosmetic reasons are not paid for, and where a procedure was not medically indicated, the insured person may have to share in the costs of complications. Arthritis care is a medical matter, and the consultation here is free. But whether a regenerative injection plan is reimbursed by your own insurer is something we cannot decide for you. Ask your fund or private insurer in writing before you commit, and keep the reply with your papers. The doctor gives the cost of any plan only after reviewing your scans, as the service text states.

Folder for the screen: scans, notes and questions

A good online consultation depends on what reaches the doctor beforehand. The coordinator will ask for your X-ray, MRI or ultrasound, and the doctor will tell you whether treatment without surgery suits you. If you already have images on a disc or in a patient portal, photograph the report page and export the images where possible. Do not send only the written summary if you can include the pictures.

Build the folder in this order. First comes the diary described above, with at least a few weeks of entries. Second, a list of diagnoses and medication, including anything a rheumatologist has prescribed and any recent change. Third, your blood test results, if you have them, because the service offers a free review of those too. Fourth, a note on previous injections, operations or sports injuries in the same joint. Fifth, a short list of what you hope to change: sleeping through the night, gripping a handlebar, walking round the Aasee, working a full shift.

Also be ready for the contraindications, because the doctor will ask. The list includes cancer, pregnancy, blood clotting disorders, acute infections including infection in or near the joint, and a flare-up of a serious chronic illness. Temporary reasons to wait include fever, a cold or flu, and any skin inflammation over the joint planned for treatment. Tell the doctor honestly about any of these, even if they seem unrelated. A postponed procedure is a normal outcome, not a failure.

Finally, think about what the process involves so you can ask informed questions. A small blood sample is taken for PRP. About 30 ml of adipose tissue is taken under local anaesthetic through a single puncture on the abdomen or inner thigh, with no stitches. A centrifuge separates the samples, and the prepared material is injected under ultrasound guidance. After that the doctor keeps in touch. The service text gives approximate stages: about a week of possible extra ache, easing of pain usually by about a month, better mobility at about three months and the full effect developing at about six months. It also says no one can promise a fixed result.

Could Munster's damp winter weather be causing my flares?

It is possible that weather plays a part for you, but a diary is the only reliable way to find out. Munster has an average relative humidity of 78.6%, rising to 85-86% from November to January, and a January mean daily maximum of 5.7 °C. Record daily pain, stiffness length, swelling and the weather for several weeks. The doctor can then see whether flares follow weather, activity or neither.

I cycle to work every day. Should I stop if my joints are inflamed?

Do not decide that alone. Cycling is a daily habit for many people in a city where bicycles carried 37.6% of traffic in 2007, and the doctor needs to know how you ride. Tell the doctor about distance, which joint hurts and when, and whether pain comes during the ride or hours later with swelling and warmth. The doctor can then advise on your activity at the consultation, and acute flares are treated differently from calm periods.

How do I plan treatment around exams or the Send fair weeks?

Tell the coordinator your key dates when you first write. The procedure is done in one day without crutches or a hospital stay, but the first week may bring a little extra ache, which is described as expected. Avoid placing it just before a long period on your feet or a critical deadline. The Send fair runs three times a year, in spring, June and October, so people in event or catering work may want to leave a gap around it.

Will my statutory or private insurer pay for PRP or SVF?

We cannot answer that for your fund. About 92% of Germany's population has statutory cover, and about 11% of the working population is privately insured, so the rules differ between insurers. Ask your insurer in writing whether regenerative joint injections are reimbursed, and keep the answer. The doctor states the cost of a plan only after the consultation, and the first consultation itself is free.

Does an online consultation replace my rheumatologist?

No. For rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis, the rheumatologist remains responsible for the disease. PRP and SVF are described as supporting joint tissue and easing local inflammation and pain alongside that care. Psoriatic arthritis is chronic and cannot currently be cured completely. The aim is long remission, and regenerative injections are one possible part of a wider plan.

I already have knee osteoarthritis and flares in the hand. Can both be discussed?

Yes. The doctor selects the joint, the method and the number of injections after reviewing your scans, whether the joint is large or small. Hand and wrist joints, knees, hips, shoulders, elbows and ankles are all on the list of joints treated. Send images for each joint you want assessed, and say which one troubles you most.

What if my scans were taken at a hospital in another German city?

That is fine. Photograph the report and, if you can, export the images from the disc or portal. The coordinator asks for X-ray, MRI or ultrasound, and the doctor reviews them free of charge as a second opinion, whichever place produced them. Include the date of each scan, because the doctor will want to compare it with how the joint feels now.

When would the doctor say no or ask me to wait?

The procedure is not done during an active joint infection, a severe flare, cancer, a blood clotting disorder or pregnancy. A fever, a cold, flu or skin inflammation over the joint are temporary reasons to postpone. In some cases, such as a badly damaged hip, the doctor may tell you that replacement is the more realistic route. That honest answer is part of why the scans come first.