By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published May 16, 2026 · 9 min read Watch the Full Video There is no shortage of recommendations for rotator cuff and shoulder pain — rest the shoulder, get a cortisone injection, try stem cells, get surgery, do physical therapy. But not all of these interventions are created equal, and some of the most popular options have very little evidence behind them. As a sports medicine physician practicing in the San Francisco Bay Area, I've helped thousands

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published May 9, 2026 · 7 min read Watch the Full Video If you are 40 or older and have been told you need surgery for a degenerative meniscus tear, the evidence has shifted dramatically in the past few years — and the most recent long-term data may change your mind. The New England Journal of Medicine has just published 10-year follow-up results from a sham-controlled trial of arthroscopic partial meniscectomy, and the findings confirm what many spo

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published May 3, 2026 · 7 min read Watch the Full Video The data on platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for knee osteoarthritis is now overwhelming. PRP outperforms cortisone, hyaluronic acid, and saline placebo across multiple meta-analyses, and it is widely considered the single best injection we have for addressing pain, improving function, and even slowing the progression of knee arthritis. But there is a catch most patients — and even most physicians — d

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published April 3, 2026 · 8 min read Watch the Full Video There is now MRI evidence that platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections can help facilitate the regrowth of knee cartilage. A 42-year-old physically active male developed a progressive osteochondral defect after snowboarding. He tried rehabilitation, corticosteroid injections, and even standard PRP — none of which resolved his condition. His orthopedic surgeon recommended arthroscopic surgery.

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published April 1, 2026 · 10 min read Watch the Full Video Can PRP actually heal a torn rotator cuff? A brand new 2026 randomized controlled trial has provided some of the clearest evidence we have ever had. Researchers used MRI to measure actual tear volumes before and after treatment, and the group that received platelet-rich plasma (PRP) on top of physical therapy showed significantly greater structural healing than the group that received physi

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 31, 2026 · 20 min read Watch the Full Video If you are dealing with knee pain, there is a good chance that at least three things you do every single day are making it worse. The good news is that with the right daily habits, you can reduce pain, slow cartilage breakdown, and protect your joints for the long term. In my practice treating thousands of patients with knee arthritis and chronic knee pain, these are the 16 habits I find m

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 08, 2026 · 8 min read Watch the Full Video A landmark randomized controlled trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine challenged one of the most common assumptions in orthopedic surgery: that patients with bone-on-bone knee arthritis inevitably need a knee replacement. The researchers took 100 patients who had been evaluated by an orthopedic surgeon and deemed eligible for total knee replacement, then randomly assigned

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 8, 2025 · 6 min read Watch the Full Video If you are over 40 and have had a shoulder MRI, there is a very good chance your report mentions something about your rotator cuff — tendinopathy, a partial tear, maybe even a full-thickness tear. Those words sound alarming. But a landmark study published in JAMA Internal Medicine is challenging everything we thought we knew about what these findings actually mean. The researchers scanned ov

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2026 · 5 min read Watch the Full Video Dextrose prolotherapy is one of the oldest regenerative injection therapies still in use today, yet most patients have never heard of it. The concept is simple: inject a concentrated sugar solution into or around a damaged joint to trigger the body’s natural healing response. But does the science actually support this approach for knee arthritis ? In this post, we review the clinical trial ev

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2026 · 6 min read Watch the Full Video Both hyaluronic acid (HA) injections and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections are well-established treatments for knee osteoarthritis. When used individually, head-to-head trials consistently show that PRP tends to produce more favorable outcomes than HA alone. But a growing body of research is now exploring whether combining the two injections could produce a synergistic effect — offerin

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2026 · 12 min read Watch the Full Video Myofascial pain syndrome and trigger points are among the most common — and most commonly missed — causes of chronic musculoskeletal pain. In my sports medicine practice, I regularly evaluate patients who have seen multiple providers, undergone extensive imaging, completed months of physical therapy, and sometimes even had surgery — all without relief — because the underlying myofascial tri

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2026 · 7 min read Watch the Full Video Stem cell therapy continues to generate excitement as a potential treatment for chronic joint pain. Among the various sources of stem cells being studied, umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells have emerged as a particularly interesting option. Unlike bone marrow or adipose-derived stem cells — which are harvested from the patient's own body — umbilical cord stem cells come from donate

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2025 · 7 min read Watch the Full Video Rotator cuff disease is one of the most common causes of shoulder pain, accounting for up to 70% of all shoulder complaints. The condition spans a wide spectrum — from tendinopathy and subacromial impingement to partial and full-thickness tears — and the vast majority of cases can be managed without surgery. But when pain is severe enough to prevent participation in physical therapy , injecti

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2026 · 5 min read Watch the Full Video Tennis elbow — clinically known as lateral epicondylitis or lateral elbow tendinopathy — is one of the most common causes of elbow pain. It develops when the common extensor tendon in the forearm is subjected to repetitive overuse or overloading, leading to microtears that weaken the tendon over time. The result is chronic pain, reduced grip strength, and difficulty performing everyday tasks.

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2026 · 8 min read Watch the Full Video Platelet-rich plasma ( PRP ) injections have become a widely studied treatment option for tendon conditions such as tennis elbow, fascial problems such as plantar fasciitis, and joint conditions such as osteoarthritis. PRP is increasingly used as a first-line therapy because it is both safe and effective. However, one often-overlooked factor that can significantly influence your outcomes is t

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2025 · 5 min read Watch the Full Video Myofascial pain syndrome and trigger points are among the most common causes of chronic musculoskeletal pain, affecting an estimated 85% of patients who visit chronic pain clinics. Despite how widespread this condition is, effective treatment remains a challenge for many patients and clinicians alike. Traditional management typically involves soft tissue modalities such as massage, acupunctur

Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2025 · 5 min read Watch the Full Video Amniotic fluid injections have generated significant interest as a potential treatment for knee osteoarthritis. One of the most compelling use cases is for patients who continue to experience pain despite standard treatments such as hyaluronic acid and corticosteroid injections. But does this treatment actually work? A recent clinical trial offers some encouraging — though nuanced — answers. Wh

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2026 · 6 min read Watch the Full Video Platelet rich plasma injections and stem cell injections are two of the most talked-about orthobiologic treatments for knee osteoarthritis. Both have demonstrated clinically significant pain relief and functional improvement in clinical trials. However, stem cell therapy is often marketed as a superior treatment and comes with a much higher price tag. But does the evidence actually support th

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2025 · 7 min read Watch the Full Video If you have been diagnosed with a degenerative meniscus tear, you have likely heard conflicting advice about treatment. Some physicians recommend arthroscopic surgery to remove the damaged tissue, while others advocate for physical therapy and structured exercise. The disagreement often depends on whether you see an orthopedic surgeon or a nonoperative sports medicine specialist. So which app

By Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD · Published March 6, 2025 · 7 min read Watch the Full Video Rotator cuff disorders are among the most common causes of shoulder pain, contributing significantly to lost function and decreased quality of life. When conservative measures such as physical therapy and activity modification fall short, many patients are offered cortisone injections. While cortisone provides strong short-term pain relief and anti-inflammatory effects, growing evidence sugge