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Arthrosis Treatment in Florence Without Surgery

Treatment of arthritic knees, hips and other joints using SVF and PRP. A doctor reviews your MRI or X-rays free to establish the stage

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 osteoarthritis
(arthrosis)?

Arthrosis (osteoarthritis) means slow, chronic wear of the cartilage lining the joint. Healthy cartilage softens impact; when it thins, the bones rub on each other and the joint hurts, stiffens and moves less. Although flare-ups with swelling happen, this is a degenerative disease rather than an inflammatory one.

  • 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

Suitability for treatment is decided by a doctor, following an examination and a look at 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 raised temperature, a cold or flu, inflamed skin above the target joint

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

First comes an examination of the joint and a look at your X-rays, MRI or ultrasound, after which the doctor decides whether the procedure suits you. Already have scans? Send them before the visit.

Blood sample for PRP2

Blood sample for PRP

Blood is taken from a vein in a small amount. Later, platelet-rich plasma containing growth factors is prepared from it.

Adipose tissue sample3

Adipose tissue sample

Through a puncture on the abdomen or inner thigh, and under local anaesthetic, about 30 ml of adipose tissue is collected. No stitches are required.

Processing in a centrifuge4

Processing in a centrifuge

After spinning in a centrifuge, the sample forms layers. The stromal vascular fraction is isolated from them and mixed with the platelet-rich plasma.

Injection into the joint5

Injection into the joint

Under ultrasound guidance the prepared material is injected straight into the affected joint, which helps to place it precisely.

Follow-up6

Follow-up

No hospital stay and no crutches are needed. After the procedure, the doctor remains in touch and tracks how the joint responds.

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

Just your blood and your adipose tissue — no synthetic material and nothing from donors

Cell therapy (SVF) from your own adipose tissue

From a small sample of your adipose tissue, the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) is isolated — a set of cells involved in repairing tissue. Mixed with your own plasma, it is then injected into the joint that is affected.

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

It is used mainly at early and moderate stages of osteoarthritis to slow cartilage wear and reduce friction between the joint surfaces.

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

From a little of your blood, plasma rich in platelets and growth factors is separated and injected into the joint. It calms inflammation and gives tissue repair better conditions.

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

For mild osteoarthritis it is often used alone, and with SVF when the effect needs to be stronger.

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

Small and large joints are treated; the doctor determines the joint, method and number of injections after looking at your scans

  • KneeKneeWorn cartilage, meniscus problems, pain after walking and on stairs
  • HipHipEarly hip osteoarthritis, groin pain, limited rotation
  • ShoulderShoulderLifting the arm hurts; the joint and surrounding tendons are worn
  • ElbowElbowOveruse or sports strain causing pain; worn joint surfaces
  • 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

Your own joint is kept, not replaced — we treat without surgery

Your own tissue

Your own tissue

Just your blood and your adipose tissue — no synthetic material and nothing from donors

No crutches

No crutches

Done through punctures under local anaesthetic, without incisions or long rehabilitation

Second opinion

Second opinion

Free of charge, a doctor gives an independent assessment of the X-rays, MRI or reports you send

Support after the procedure

Support after the procedure

After the procedure, we keep in touch and watch the result — our work does not end on 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

Osteoarthritis treatment prices

After the consultation the doctor names the cost, which depends on the joint, the stage of osteoarthritis and the method

FAQ

Joint treatment: frequently asked questions

About the conditions

More about these conditions

Other services of our clinic

About osteoarthritis treatment for patients from Florence

Knee and hip osteoarthritis are the most common reasons patients from Florence consider joint replacement. SVF and PRP therapy is a way to try to delay or avoid surgery while the joint can still be preserved.

Many patients in Florence notice the first changes 2–3 weeks after the procedure. A stable result forms over about six months and can last from several months to several years, depending on the individual.

How much does arthrosis treatment cost in Florence? The doctor names the price after assessing the stage from your X-ray or MRI and choosing PRP, SVF or a combination. Send a request or message us in any messenger.

Cartilage wear and the arithmetic of a long life

Osteoarthritis is the slow thinning of the cartilage that lines a joint. Cartilage softens impact, and once it wears down the bone ends rub, so the joint aches, stiffens and moves less. It is a degenerative process, not an inflammatory one, even though flare-ups with swelling can happen. For Florence, the first question is how long the joints have to keep working.

Italy's life expectancy was 83.4 years in 2018 according to OECD figures, among the highest in that group of countries. A longer life means knees, hips and ankles carry body weight for more decades, so gradual wear has more time to show itself. Florence itself is a comune of 361,625 residents (2026), almost exactly the 361,619 recorded in 2021. The metropolitan city around it counts 988,494 people. A city this stable in size does not stay young by growing. The pattern of joint complaints depends on the age and activity of the people already there.

Italy-wide statistics also point to a second factor, body weight. According to ISTAT 2023 data for adults, 46.3% are overweight or obese, with obesity at 11.8%, up from 10.3% in 2013. The same survey found that 35% of people aged 3 and over are sedentary. These are national figures with no regional split, so they cannot be applied to Florence alone. They do show why weight and activity come up in almost every conversation about cartilage. Each extra kilogram adds load to the knee and hip, and little movement weakens the muscles that should share that load.

The doctor describes the stages of knee osteoarthritis as four, from early thinning of the cartilage to severe wear. Injection treatment with SVF and PRP is most often considered in the early and middle stages. At the most advanced stage, when the joint space has almost disappeared, a lasting effect cannot be expected. The doctor will say so frankly, and a joint replacement may then be the more realistic option.

Hills, football pitches and desk chairs: where the load comes from

Florence sits at about 50 m above sea level in the basin of the Arno. The basin is ringed by the hills of Careggi, Fiesole, Settignano, Arcetri, Poggio Imperiale and Bellosguardo. For a person with an early arthritic knee, the geography matters in a practical way. Walking uphill and coming back down loads the knee joint differently from flat ground, and descending is usually the harder direction for a worn cartilage surface. The treatment plan names this very complaint for the knee: cartilage wear with meniscus trouble and pain on stairs or after walking. Anyone who notices pain on gradients, but not on level pavement, has useful information to pass to the doctor.

The city's sporting calendar is another source of joint stress. Calcio Fiorentino is held in the third week of June in Piazza Santa Croce. Two semi-finals are followed by a final on 24 June, the feast of St John the Baptist and the city's patron-saint holiday, with four teams drawn from the quartieri. It is a demanding contact game. ACF Fiorentina was formed in 1926, and Stadio Artemio Franchi holds 47,282, so football is part of the city's identity at every level. Football involves sudden turns, jumps and collisions, and these are the situations in which menisci and ligaments get injured. Old injuries are among the reasons the treatment list includes recovery after injuries and surgery, and the ankle is described as painful and stiff after sprains and old injuries.

Heavy physical work, sport and long sitting each leave their own trace. The service text lists high load on the joints, whether from sport or from physical work, as one of the reasons the treatment may suit a person. It also lists pain, crunching or stiffness in a joint, painkillers that help only for a short time, and a wish to avoid or postpone joint replacement. If several of these apply, send your scans and the doctor will decide.

Exercise stays part of the plan whichever method is chosen. Suitable activity builds the muscles that unload the joint and helps feed the cartilage. The doctor recommends swimming, water aerobics, cycling, Nordic walking or yoga. Running on hard surfaces, jumping, heavy lifting and sudden movements are better avoided.

Frosty mornings, wet autumns and reading your own stiffness

Florence's climate is easy to describe in numbers. The January mean high is 11.2 °C and the low 2.1 °C. About 28.5 days a year have a minimum below freezing. January humidity averages 71.5%, against 60.6% in July. Annual precipitation is 788 mm on 84.7 days with at least 1 mm. November is the wettest month at 115.3 mm, followed by October at 105.1 mm, and July is the driest at 24.6 mm. Summers are hot: the July mean high is 32.3 °C, and there are on average 71 days a year with a maximum of at least 30 °C.

None of these figures says that weather causes cartilage wear, and the service text makes no such claim. What they offer is a calendar against which to keep a symptom diary. Some people feel more stiffness after rest in the colder, damper months. Others notice that pain increases in the heat when they walk more or sleep badly. A note of when the joint is worse, written over several weeks, is more useful to the doctor than a general statement such as "it hurts in winter".

The diary should separate two kinds of pain. In osteoarthritis the typical picture is aching pain on movement, crunching, and stiffness after rest. In arthritis, which is an inflammatory disease, the joint hurts at rest and at night. There is swelling, redness and warmth over the joint. Morning stiffness lasting more than 30 minutes also points towards arthritis. The approach to treatment differs, which is why diagnosis comes first. Causes of arthritis include autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, infections, gout and psoriasis.

Be aware of the temporary contraindications too: a raised temperature, a cold or flu, or inflamed skin above the target joint. Florence's damp autumns are the season when colds are common, so if you plan the procedure for that time, tell the coordinator about any symptoms. Acute infection, including infection in or near the joint, is a firm reason not to proceed.

How public care in Italy shapes the first step

Italy's national health service, the SSN, was established in 1978 and gives 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, known as LEA. For someone in Tuscany, that means the first contact for joint pain is usually the public system. That route works well for referrals and basic imaging.

Waiting times are the usual pressure point. According to the cited overview of Italian healthcare, waits are usually up to a few months in big public facilities. Private facilities contracted with the SSN usually manage up to a few weeks. No official waiting-list figure was found, so treat both as general descriptions only. Specialist visits carry a co-payment, though exemptions exist by age (over 65 and under 6), by income, or for chronic illness. Osteoarthritis is a chronic condition, so ask your general practitioner or the regional health office what applies to you.

A free online consultation with City Medical Centre is a different step. It does not replace your public-sector follow-up, and it does not depend on a referral. You send the X-ray, MRI or ultrasound you already have. The doctor reviews it free of charge, tells you which stage it shows, and says whether a non-surgical plan is appropriate. It can serve as a second opinion while you wait for a public appointment. If joint replacement looks more realistic for your case, the doctor will say so rather than push an injection.

Whether any regional scheme reimburses SVF or PRP treatment is something the available information does not establish. Ask your regional health office before you decide, and do not assume it is covered.

Preparing scans and questions before the consultation

The more complete your set of images, the more useful the review. An X-ray remains the main method and shows the stage. MRI gives a detailed picture of cartilage and soft tissues. Ultrasound shows inflammation and fluid in the joint, and blood tests help rule out inflammatory diseases. Existing results can be reviewed free of charge, so do not repeat tests before the first conversation. Send what you have, including older images, because comparison over time helps the doctor judge how fast the joint is changing.

Write down the details a doctor will ask about:

- which joint hurts, and whether one side or both

- whether pain appears on stairs, on slopes, after walking or only after rest

- how long morning stiffness lasts

- previous injuries, meniscus trouble or operations

- what painkillers you take and how long they help

- whether you have cancer, a blood clotting disorder, are pregnant, or have an infection (these rule the treatment out)

The procedure itself is described in six steps. After the consultation and scan review, a small blood sample is taken for PRP. Under local anaesthetic, the doctor collects roughly 30 ml of adipose tissue through a puncture on the abdomen or inner thigh, with no stitches. The samples are spun in a centrifuge, the stromal vascular fraction is isolated and blended with the platelet-rich plasma, and the material is injected into the joint under ultrasound guidance. Only your own blood and adipose tissue are used, nothing donor or synthetic. The whole procedure is done in one day. There are no crutches and no hospital stay.

Recovery follows a general timeline that the text gives only as guidance. In the first week the joint may ache a little more, which is an expected reaction. By about a month the pain usually eases, around three months mobility and activity improve, and by about six months the full effect develops. How long it lasts differs from person to person and depends on the stage, body weight, activity and other factors. No one can promise a fixed result. Coordinators answer on WhatsApp and Telegram round the clock, so questions can be asked at any hour.

Does Florence's hilly setting matter for knee osteoarthritis?

It can matter for how symptoms show up. Slopes load the knee differently from level ground, and many people with cartilage wear notice pain mainly on gradients or stairs. The geography does not cause osteoarthritis, but noting whether pain comes on uphill, downhill or flat ground helps the doctor understand which part of the joint is under stress when you send your scans.

Is stiffness in January a sign of osteoarthritis or of something else?

Not by itself. January in Florence averages a high of 11.2 °C and a low of 2.1 °C, with about 28.5 days of frost a year, so stiffness after rest in cold months is common. What counts is the pattern. Aching on movement, crunching and stiffness after rest suggest osteoarthritis. Pain at rest and at night, swelling, redness, warmth, or morning stiffness beyond 30 minutes suggest an inflammatory arthritis. Only an examination and scans can separate the two.

Do I need a referral from the national health service before sending my scans?

No referral is needed for the free online review. You send your existing X-ray, MRI, ultrasound or test results through WhatsApp or Telegram, and the doctor assesses them. For public-sector care, a referral through your general practitioner is the usual route. The two paths can run side by side, and the review can serve as a second opinion while you wait.

Will the SSN cover this treatment, and what about co-pays?

The information available does not establish that SVF or PRP injections are covered by the SSN. The service is run regionally under national Essential Levels of Care, so the sensible step is to ask your regional health office or general practitioner. Specialist visits in the public system carry a co-pay, with exemptions by age, income or chronic illness. The consultation and scan review with City Medical Centre is free, and the doctor quotes the cost of treatment after it.

I carry extra weight. Does that rule treatment out?

No, but it affects the plan. Body weight is one of the factors that decides how long the effect lasts, along with the stage, your activity and other individual features. ISTAT 2023 data show that 46.3% of Italian adults are overweight or obese, so the doctor sees this often. Controlling weight and exercising are part of a realistic plan, alongside any injections.

I played football for years and had a meniscus injury. Is that relevant?

Yes. Meniscus pathology and old injuries are among the conditions the service treats, and recovery after injuries and surgery is on the list. Mention the injury, its date and any operation, and send images from before and after if you have them. The doctor will judge the stage from the scans and decide on the joint, the method and the number of injections.

Do Italian public holidays or Sundays slow down the first contact?

Not for messaging. Italy's holidays include 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. Public offices may be closed then, but coordinators reply on WhatsApp and Telegram 24/7, so you can send scans on any day.

I have a cold in the autumn. Should I postpone the procedure?

Tell the coordinator, because a raised temperature, a cold or flu, and inflamed skin above the target joint are temporary contraindications. The procedure is usually delayed until you have recovered. Acute infection, especially in or near the joint, is a firm reason not to go ahead. The doctor makes the final decision at the consultation.