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Joint Treatment for Patients from Bologna

Cell therapy (SVF) and platelet-rich plasma for knee, hip and shoulder joints and beyond, plus a free look at your scans first

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 regenerative
joint treatment?

The treatment is regenerative and uses only what your body supplies: PRP (platelet-rich plasma from the blood) and SVF (the stromal vascular fraction from a small piece of adipose tissue). Injected into the joint that hurts, it aims to calm inflammation, ease pain and support the tissue within.

  • 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

It is a doctor who decides if the treatment fits you — after an examination and a review of 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: a cold, flu or fever, skin inflammation above 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

At the consultation the joint is examined and your X-rays, MRI or ultrasound are reviewed to decide if the procedure suits you. You can send existing scans before you come.

Blood sample for PRP2

Blood sample for PRP

All it takes is a little venous blood; later on it becomes platelet-rich plasma containing growth factors.

Adipose tissue sample3

Adipose tissue sample

Under local anaesthetic, a small amount of adipose tissue — roughly 30 ml — is removed through a puncture on the abdomen or inner thigh, with no stitches needed.

Processing in a centrifuge4

Processing in a centrifuge

The centrifuge separates the sample into layers, the stromal vascular fraction is isolated, and it is then mixed with platelet-rich plasma.

Injection into the joint5

Injection into the joint

Using ultrasound guidance, the doctor places the prepared material precisely by injecting it straight into the affected joint.

Follow-up6

Follow-up

There are no crutches and you do not stay in hospital. After the procedure the doctor stays in contact and tracks 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

Only material from your own blood and adipose tissue is used, with no donor or synthetic components

Cell therapy (SVF) from your own adipose tissue

Processing a small sample of adipose tissue yields the stromal vascular fraction (SVF), a blend of cells that help tissue repair. The doctor combines it with your plasma and injects it into the problem joint.

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

The usual reason to choose it: more pronounced changes in the joint and the goal of a longer-lasting effect.

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

Your blood, in a small amount, is used to separate plasma rich in platelets and growth factors. This plasma is injected into the joint to help calm inflammation and support tissue repair.

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

As a course of injections it can be used alone, or it can be added to SVF.

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 and small joints can be treated; the doctor settles the joint, the method and the injection count after checking your scans

  • KneeKneeWorn cartilage and meniscus issues, with pain on stairs and after walking
  • HipHipEarly hip osteoarthritis, groin pain, limited rotation
  • ShoulderShoulderWear of the joint and its tendons, pain when raising the arm
  • ElbowElbowPain after overload or sports strain, worn surfaces of the joint
  • Hand and wrist jointsHand and wrist jointsPain and stiffness in the small joints of the wrist and fingers
  • AnkleAnklePain and stiffness after sprains and old injuries

Advantages

Why patients choose City Medical Centre

No surgery: our work is about keeping your own joint, not swapping it for an implant

Your own tissue

Your own tissue

Only material from your own blood and adipose tissue is used, with no donor or synthetic components

No crutches

No crutches

Done through punctures instead of incisions, under local anaesthetic, without long rehabilitation

Second opinion

Second opinion

Free of charge: a doctor's independent assessment of the X-rays, MRI or reports you send

Support after the procedure

Support after the procedure

We follow the result after the procedure and stay in contact, not only on the day of the injection

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

Joint treatment prices

How much it costs depends on the joint, the method and the stage of the condition — the doctor tells you after the consultation

FAQ

Joint treatment: frequently asked questions

About the conditions

More about these conditions

Other services of our clinic

Joint treatment in Bologna: what you should know

SVF and PRP work in different ways. PRP helps calm inflammation and creates better conditions for repair; SVF contains cells involved in tissue repair and is chosen when changes are more pronounced. For patients from Bologna, the doctor often combines the two.

The puncture sites are small and covered with dressings, and no general anaesthetic is used. This is why joint treatment in Bologna does not require crutches or a long rehabilitation period.

Book a free consultation in Bologna to find out whether regenerative joint treatment suits you. The doctor names the price after examining the joint and reviewing your scans.

Stairs, slopes and porticoes: what Bologna asks of your knees and hips

Bologna sits at 54 m above sea level in the centre, on the edge of the Po Plain where the Apennines begin. Within the municipality the height ranges from 29 m in Corticella to about 300 m at Sabbiuno and Colle della Guardia. That is a 270 m spread inside one city, so a daily route can be flat or noticeably uphill depending on the district. Knees, hips and ankles feel this difference more than most people expect.

People with osteoarthritis often describe the same early signs: pain after a long walk, discomfort on stairs, and crunching or stiffness after sitting. The treatment described here is aimed at exactly these complaints. The doctor reviews the scans of the knee, hip, shoulder or another joint and decides whether injections of your own platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) are reasonable. For gonarthrosis, which is osteoarthritis of the knee, the usual complaint is pain on stairs or after walking. For early coxarthrosis it is groin pain and limited rotation of the hip.

A city of roughly 391,000 people (the 2026 figure, up from 371,337 in 2011) has a lot of older buildings, stairwells and uneven stretches of pavement. Your routine decides which joint complaint bothers you most, and it is worth describing it to the coordinator in some detail. Mention the number of floors you climb, how far you walk, and whether you use a bicycle or a trolleybus. The doctor can then match the plan to your real load rather than to a general average.

The city's own transport figures show why this matters. The average commute is 5.4 km and takes 53 minutes per weekday trip. Trolleybus lines have been run by TPER since 2012, and a first tramway line has been under construction, with four lines planned. A long daily journey with changes, steps and standing time adds up for a painful joint, even when the pain is only moderate.

Cold, damp and the calendar: planning around Bologna's weather

Bologna has a humid subtropical climate. In the 1991-2020 normals, January brings a mean high of 7.2 °C and a mean low of -0.5 °C. Relative humidity in January averages 79.2%, and in November it reaches 81%. November and October are the wettest months, with 77.2 mm and 75.4 mm of rain. Annual precipitation is 667.6 mm, spread over 73 days with at least 1 mm. Summers are hot: the July mean high is 31.4 °C and the low 19.1 °C, and the record high is 40 °C.

Many people with stiff joints say they feel worse in cold, wet weather, but the weather does not cause or cure the condition. The diagnosis comes from the examination and the scans. The calendar can still help you plan, because the procedure has a short sequence of events:

- A blood sample for PRP.

- If SVF is planned, roughly 30 ml of adipose tissue taken under local anaesthetic through a small puncture in the abdomen or inner thigh. No stitches are needed.

- Processing in a centrifuge.

- Injection into the joint under ultrasound guidance.

The whole procedure is done in one day, with no hospital stay and no crutches.

The same service text sets out temporary contraindications. Skin inflammation over the joint to be treated, a fever, a cold or flu all mean the procedure has to wait. Winter in a damp city is also the season of colds, so leave some slack in your schedule. If you catch a cold in the week before the appointment, tell the coordinator and the date can simply move.

Summer heat has a different effect on planning. With a July mean high of 31.4 °C, some people reduce their walking and sport, and that is a good moment to talk about a gradual return to activity. The doctor gives recommendations on load and exercise for the first weeks after the injection. A joint that hurts less in the cool hours of the morning is a useful detail to pass on at the consultation.

Reading the first months: what a recovery calendar looks like

The expected course is fairly steady, though it differs from person to person. During the first week the joint may ache a little more, which is an expected reaction. By about one month the pain usually eases. Around three months mobility and activity improve. The full effect develops by about six months. How long it lasts depends on the stage of the condition, body weight, activity and other factors, and no one can promise a fixed result.

Bologna's public life follows a rhythm of its own, and it is easy to pencil in the follow-up around it. National holidays fall on 1 January, 6 January, Easter Monday, 25 April, 1 May, 2 June, 15 August, 4 October, 1 November, 8 December, 25 and 26 December, and every Sunday counts as a holiday. These are the days when offices and many laboratories are closed, so scan files and old reports are best collected beforehand. The coordinators answer round the clock on WhatsApp and Telegram, so a question about your plan does not have to wait for a working day.

The city also has a busy cultural year, with the Bologna Jazz Festival, Biografilm, Il Cinema Ritrovato, Gender Bender and others. Long evenings on your feet in crowded streets are a fair test of how a joint copes. If you are planning to attend, mention it to the doctor. The follow-up exists to see how your joint responds in daily life, not only on injection day.

For sport, the city's football and basketball tradition is a reminder that many adults still play. Bologna FC 1909 has won seven Serie A titles, and Virtus Bologna has 17 Italian basketball titles. A recreational footballer or a basketball player with knee trouble belongs to the group the treatment describes as "high load on the joints — sport or physical work". Recovery after injuries and surgery, meniscus problems and early or moderate arthrosis are conditions the doctor will consider after seeing the MRI.

Public care in Italy and where an online consultation fits

Italy's national health service, the SSN, was established in 1978 and provides universal coverage to citizens and residents. It is run on a regional basis under the Ministry of Health, which sets the national Essential Levels of Care (LEA). For a resident of Bologna this means that the first steps, a general practitioner and an orthopaedic or rheumatology referral, normally go through the regional system in Emilia-Romagna.

Waiting times are usually up to a few months in the big public facilities, and up to a few weeks in private facilities contracted with the SSN. No official waiting-list figure was found, so treat these as general expectations rather than a promise for any one month. If you are waiting for an appointment and your pain is increasing, an independent review of your scans can be done in the meantime.

Co-pays, called tickets, apply to specialist visits without diagnostics, and exemptions exist by age (over 65 and under 6), by income and for chronic illness. These rules are set at the national and regional level, and I cannot say how they would apply to your case. Ask your general practitioner or the regional health office which exemption category you fall into.

The online consultation sits beside this system, not in place of it. You send your existing X-rays, MRI, CT or ultrasound. A doctor assesses them free of charge and says whether PRP or SVF could suit you and what else may be needed. You are free to bring the answer to your own orthopaedist in Bologna. The consultation carries no obligation to book anything, and the cost of any treatment is stated by the doctor only after the consultation.

Weight, activity and the long view for your joints

Life expectancy in Italy reached 83.4 years in 2018 (OECD), the fourth highest in the OECD. Healthcare spending was 9.7% of GDP in 2020. A long life means that a knee or hip has to last for decades, which is why the question "can I postpone replacement?" comes up so often.

The service text explains why people try to preserve their own joint first. Replacement is major surgery with a long rehabilitation, risks such as infection, and implants that may eventually need to be redone. With early or moderate changes it often makes sense to try to keep your own joint. For a joint that is already badly damaged, replacement may be the more realistic option, and the doctor will say so honestly after seeing your scans.

National ISTAT data for 2023 show that 46.3% of adults are overweight or obese (34.6% overweight, 11.8% obese, up from 10.3% in 2013), and that 35% of people aged 3 and older are sedentary. These are national figures, with no regional split found for Bologna. Body weight and activity are among the factors that affect how long the result of the treatment lasts, so the doctor will ask about both. Extra weight adds to the load on the knee and hip, while regular, moderate activity helps keep the muscles around the joint working.

Joint complaints in a university city are not limited to older people. The University of Bologna, founded around 1088, has 90,291 students according to its infobox, with campuses in Cesena, Forlì, Ravenna and Rimini. Young adults come with different issues, such as old sports injuries, sprained ankles that never quite settled, or a meniscus injury. The service text lists pain and stiffness after sprains and old injuries among the ankle complaints, and meniscus pathology and injury among the conditions treated.

Does Bologna's cold and damp weather make joint injections less effective?

Nothing in the treatment description links the effect to the local weather. The result depends on the stage of the condition, body weight, activity and other factors. Bologna's January humidity averages 79.2%, and many people notice their joints more in such months, but the procedure is planned around your health. A fever, a cold or flu, or skin inflammation over the joint is a reason to postpone it.

Can I plan the procedure around Italian national holidays?

Yes. Holidays such as 1 November, 8 December and 25-26 December, as well as every Sunday, are days when offices and laboratories are closed. It helps to collect your scans and reports before then. The coordinators answer round the clock on WhatsApp and Telegram, so you can ask about timing at any hour.

I live on a hill near Colle della Guardia. Does the slope affect which joint is treated?

The slope does not decide the method. The doctor examines the joint and reviews your scans, then chooses the joint, the method and the number of injections. Daily slopes and stairs are useful information, because they show which load the knee, hip or ankle faces. Mention them in your first message to the coordinator.

Can this online consultation replace a visit to a specialist through the SSN?

It does not replace the regional health system, which provides universal coverage to citizens and residents. It gives you an independent, free review of your scans. You can take the doctor's view to your own orthopaedist or rheumatologist and decide together what to do next.

What if my public appointment is months away and the pain is getting worse?

Waiting times are usually up to a few months in the big public facilities, and up to a few weeks in private facilities contracted with the SSN. While you wait, you can send your X-ray, MRI or ultrasound for a free review. The doctor will tell you whether PRP or SVF could suit you, and whether anything else is needed first.

I am over 65 and pay a co-pay for specialist visits. Does that change anything for the online consultation?

Exemptions from the national co-pay system exist by age (over 65), income or chronic illness, but they apply to the public system. The online consultation and the review of your scans are free. The doctor states the cost of any treatment after the consultation.

Which scans should I prepare before writing to the coordinator?

Send whatever you already have: X-ray, MRI, CT, ultrasound or a medical report. If you have no recent images, tell the coordinator, and the doctor will say which are needed. The scans let the doctor assess the stage of the condition, and the chances of a lasting effect are higher at earlier stages.

Is the procedure suitable if I play football or basketball on weekends?

High load on the joints from sport or physical work is one of the situations where the treatment is considered. After the procedure, the doctor gives recommendations on load and exercise for the first weeks. The first week may bring a little more aching, and the pain usually eases by about one month. Tell the doctor which sport you play and how often.