Regenerative Sports Care for El Paso Athletes Insights

Regenerative Sports Care for El Paso Athletes: PRP, MFAT, IV Infusions, Peptides, and Chiropractic Care

Abstract

Athletes in El Paso, Texas, often want to recover from injuries while losing as little training time as possible. This has increased interest in regenerative therapies and orthobiologics such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP), platelet-fibrin products, micro-fragmented adipose tissue (MFAT), IV infusions, and peptide therapies. These treatments are not all the same, and no single therapy is right for every athlete. Some may support pain control and tissue recovery when used for the right condition, while others have limited research or important sports-regulation concerns.

Integrative chiropractic care can also be part of the recovery plan by addressing joint motion, soft-tissue restrictions, strength, balance, and movement patterns. At Injury Medical Clinic PA in El Paso, Dr. Alexander Jimenez, DC, APRN, FNP-BC, CCST, CFMP, IFMCP, ATN, combines chiropractic and rehabilitation strategies with medical collaboration and functional medicine principles. Clinic materials identify Dr. Maria Guadalupe Cardenas, MD, a board-certified internal medicine physician with more than 40 years of experience, as the practice’s Medical Director and Collaborative Physician. Together, this multidisciplinary model focuses on the injury, the athlete’s overall health, and a safe return to activity.

Why El Paso Athletes Are Asking About Regenerative Medicine

A sports injury can involve more than pain. A tendon may become irritated, a ligament may be strained, a joint may lose normal movement, or an athlete may start moving differently to protect an injured area.

For example, an ankle injury can change the way a person walks or runs. This can place extra stress on the knee, hip, pelvis, and lower back. Treating the painful ankle alone may not correct the movement problem that developed after the injury.

Regenerative medicine supports the body’s repair process, while rehabilitation restores movement and function. The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine explains that orthobiologics are an evolving area of sports medicine. Some treatments show promise, but the evidence varies greatly depending on the product, injury, preparation method, and patient (Finnoff et al., 2021).

Common questions from athletes include:

• Can PRP help a tendon or ligament injury?
• How much training time will I lose?
• What is PFP or PRF?
• When might MFAT be considered?
• Can an IV infusion improve recovery?
• Are peptide therapies safe?
• Will a treatment violate WADA, USADA, NCAA, professional league, or other sports rules?
• How can chiropractic care and rehabilitation fit into the recovery plan?

These questions matter because faster treatment does not always mean faster healing.

PRP: Using the Athlete’s Own Platelets

Platelet-rich plasma, or PRP, is made from the patient’s own blood. Blood is drawn and processed to create a plasma preparation with a higher concentration of platelets. Platelets contain proteins and signaling factors involved in the body’s normal healing response.

PRP is used in sports medicine for selected tendon, ligament, muscle, and joint problems. El Paso-area orthopedic practices also describe PRP as an option for certain sports and musculoskeletal injuries (Dunn, n.d.; OrthoEdge El Paso, n.d.).

However, PRP should not be presented as a guaranteed way to heal faster.

A 2025 systematic review of randomized trials involving injured athletes found mixed results. Some studies showed improvements in pain or recovery, while others found little or no advantage. Researchers concluded that PRP may help some athletes, but stronger and more standardized evidence is still needed (de Sire et al., 2025).

This means an athlete should be evaluated based on the specific injury, not receive PRP simply because it is called “regenerative.”

What About PFP and PRF?

The terminology can become confusing.

The most widely recognized terms in the medical literature are:

• PRP: Platelet-rich plasma
• PRF: Platelet-rich fibrin

Some integrative clinics use the term PFP, or platelet-fibrin plasma, for certain fibrin-rich blood preparations. However, PFP is not used consistently across scientific literature. In some research, PFP can even mean platelet-free plasma.

For this reason, an athlete should ask what the product actually contains rather than relying on the initials alone. Dr. Jimenez’s published material has also discussed this terminology issue and notes that PRF is the more established scientific term for fibrin-rich platelet products (Jimenez, 2026).

PRF-type preparations are designed to create a fibrin structure that may hold platelets and signaling molecules in the treatment area. Their use should still be based on the injury, available evidence, and professional medical judgment.

MFAT: Micro-Fragmented Adipose Tissue

Micro-fragmented adipose tissue, or MFAT, is another type of orthobiologic treatment. A small amount of the patient’s own fat tissue is collected and processed before being placed into a targeted area.

MFAT is sometimes considered for more difficult joint problems, especially when symptoms have not improved enough with conservative treatment.

Research has been promising for knee osteoarthritis. A systematic review published in Arthroscopy found improvements in pain and function after MFAT treatment. However, the researchers also reported limitations in study quality and advised interpreting the findings carefully (Hohmann et al., 2025).

MFAT should therefore not be described as a guaranteed way to “regrow cartilage.” A more accurate message is that it is an emerging orthobiologic option that may help selected patients with pain and function.

How Much Training Downtime Is Needed?

This is one of the biggest questions athletes ask.

There is no single return-to-training schedule for regenerative therapy. Recovery depends on:

• The injured tissue
• Injury severity
• Treatment used
• Athlete’s age and health
• Training demands
• Sport
• Strength and mobility
• Previous injuries
• Response to rehabilitation

After an injection, some temporary soreness or swelling may occur. Training is then gradually increased according to symptoms, tissue healing, strength, and functional testing.

A key point is that feeling better is not always the same as being ready to compete.

Tendons, ligaments, and muscles must tolerate force again. An athlete may need progressive strengthening, balance training, sport-specific drills, and movement testing before returning to full competition. The goal is not simply to reduce pain. The goal is to restore safe function.

IV Infusions and Athletic Recovery

IV therapy is different from PRP or MFAT. An IV infusion is not an orthobiologic injection.

IV fluids may be medically appropriate for dehydration, certain nutrient deficiencies, medications, or other clinical needs. However, routine IV vitamin or hydration treatments should not be marketed as if they directly rebuild injured tendons, cartilage, or ligaments.

Competitive athletes also need to be especially careful.

Under anti-doping rules, intravenous infusions or injections totaling more than 100 mL within a 12-hour period are generally prohibited unless they fall within specific medical exceptions or the athlete has an appropriate Therapeutic Use Exemption. Even an IV containing otherwise permitted substances can create an anti-doping violation if the method itself is prohibited (USADA, n.d.).

Athletes should always check the current rules before receiving a recovery infusion.

Peptide Therapy Requires Extra Caution

Peptide therapies have become a major topic in fitness and regenerative medicine, but athletes should be cautious.

Some peptides marketed for recovery are experimental, lack strong human safety data, or are prohibited by anti-doping organizations.

For example, USADA specifically warns that BPC-157 is prohibited as an unapproved substance. Other peptide hormones, growth factors, and compounds with similar biological activity may also be prohibited (USADA, 2026).

The FDA has also raised safety concerns about several substances used in compounded peptide products, including BPC-157, CJC-1295, ipamorelin, injectable GHK-Cu, MOTS-c, and others. For many of these compounds, human safety information is limited (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2026).

This does not mean every substance called a peptide is banned. It means competitive athletes must check the exact ingredient.

USADA stresses that athletes are responsible for substances found in their bodies. Athletes should check the 2026 WADA Prohibited List before treatment and may also need to use Global DRO or speak with their governing body’s anti-doping program.

Is PRP Allowed in Competitive Sports?

PRP itself is generally not prohibited under WADA rules. USADA states that PRP is permitted, although purified individual growth factors remain prohibited when administered separately. Altered products intended to create performance enhancement may also create problems (USADA, n.d.).

This is an important difference.

A treatment can be medically reasonable and still have sports-rule concerns based on:

• What is in the injection
• How the substance was prepared
• Whether another medication was added
• How it was administered
• The athlete’s governing organization

Athletes should document every treatment.

Where Integrative Chiropractic Care Fits

An injection may target injured tissue, but it may not correct the movement pattern that contributed to the injury.

This is where integrative chiropractic care and rehabilitation can play a different role.

Dr. Jimenez’s published clinical observations describe evaluating both the biological injury and the mechanical problems surrounding it. His model combines musculoskeletal examination with chiropractic care, soft-tissue treatment, functional rehabilitation, movement assessment, and medically appropriate regenerative strategies (Jimenez, 2026).

Depending on the athlete, care may include:

• Chiropractic adjustments
• Joint mobility treatment
• Soft-tissue therapy
• Corrective exercise
• Strength progression
• Neuromuscular retraining
• Balance and stability work
• Functional movement testing
• Sport-specific rehabilitation
• Recovery and nutrition education

Chiropractic care is therefore not a replacement for PRP, orthopedic evaluation, medical treatment, or rehabilitation. It can be one part of a coordinated musculoskeletal recovery program.

Research has documented chiropractic care in multidisciplinary sports-health settings, particularly for musculoskeletal complaints such as neck and back pain (Howitt et al., 2023).

Medical Oversight at Injury Medical Clinic PA

At Injury Medical Clinic PA in El Paso, the clinic materials list Dr. Maria Guadalupe Cardenas, MD, as a board-certified internal medicine physician, medical director, and collaborative physician. The practice lists her NPI as 1164426749 and Texas medical license as J2933 and describes her as having more than four decades of medical experience.

Dr. Cardenas works alongside Dr. Alexander Jimenez, DC, APRN, FNP-BC, CCST, CFMP, IFMCP, ATN, who provides chiropractic, nurse-practitioner, functional medicine, rehabilitation, sports injury, and personal injury services.

This multidisciplinary structure allows the team to consider different parts of an athlete’s health together.

Dr. Jimenez can focus heavily on biomechanics, musculoskeletal examination, chiropractic care, rehabilitation, and functional recovery, while Dr. Cardenas provides medical direction and internal-medicine oversight within the practice’s clinical model.

For an athlete, this can help create a more complete question:

Not just, “What can we inject into this injury?” but, “Why did this tissue become overloaded, what needs to heal, and what must change before I safely return to sport?”

A Better Road Back to Competition

Regenerative medicine can be valuable, but athletes should avoid choosing treatment based only on promises of faster recovery.

A better process includes:

1. Identify the injury.
2. Determine which tissue is damaged.
3. Look for movement problems that may be contributing.
4. Decide whether conservative rehabilitation is enough.
5. Consider PRP, platelet-fibrin products, MFAT, or other medical options when appropriate.
6. Review medications and peptide products carefully.
7. Check all anti-doping rules before treatment.
8. Rebuild strength, mobility, and sport-specific function.
9. Return to competition based on objective progress, not just less pain.

For El Paso athletes, the goal of integrative sports care is not simply getting back onto the field as fast as possible. It is helping the athlete heal appropriately, move better, rebuild capacity, and return with a lower risk of repeating the same problem.

References

de Sire, A., Marotta, N., Prestifilippo, E., Parente, A., Lopresti, E., Drago Ferrante, V., Sgro, M., Lippi, L., Invernizzi, M., & Ammendolia, A. (2025). Efficacy of platelet-rich plasma injection for pain relief in injured athletes: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, 65(5), 665–672.

Dunn, J. (n.d.). Regenerative medicine for sports injuries.

Finnoff, J. T., Awan, T. M., Borg-Stein, J., Harmon, K. G., Herman, D. C., Malanga, G. A., Master, Z., Mautner, K. R., & Shapiro, S. A. (2021). American Medical Society for Sports Medicine position statement: Principles for the responsible use of regenerative medicine in sports medicine. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, 31(6), 530–541.

Hohmann, E., Keough, N., Frank, R. M., & Rodeo, S. (2025). Micro-fragmented adipose tissue demonstrates comparable clinical efficacy to other orthobiologic injections in treating symptomatic knee osteoarthritis. Arthroscopy, 41(2), 418–441.e14.

Jimenez, A. (2026). Regenerative therapies for fitness and recovery insights.

Jimenez, A. (n.d.). Dr. Alex Jimenez: El Paso chiropractor and multidisciplinary injury care.

Jimenez, A. (n.d.). Dr. Alexander Jimenez LinkedIn profile.

OrthoEdge El Paso. (n.d.). Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy.

Reagan Integrated Sports Medicine. (2022). How platelet-rich plasma therapy helps athletes.

U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. (2026). What’s new on the 2026 WADA Prohibited List?.

U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. (n.d.). Orthobiologics: What do athletes need to know about PRP?.

U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. (n.d.). IV infusion: Explanatory note.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (2026). Certain bulk drug substances for use in compounding that may present significant safety risks.

Wellness Doctor RX. (2026). El Paso injury regenerative wellness treatments available.