Advanced Regenerative Medicine
SuperShot
An advanced form of platelet-rich plasma that concentrates even more of your body's natural healing signals into a single injection. Same visit, same blood draw, a richer biologic.
Completely Autologous
Point of Care
Works with PRP and Bone Marrow
The Short Version
What Makes SuperShot Different
Standard PRP spins your blood to concentrate platelets, then discards the platelet-poor plasma. That discarded fraction is not empty. It carries a large population of extracellular vesicles, the tiny messengers your cells use to coordinate repair.
SuperShot recovers those vesicles and puts them back into the injectate. You end up with concentrated platelets and their growth factors, plus the signaling molecules and microRNAs that would otherwise have gone in the waste.
Nothing about your visit changes. Same blood draw, same image-guided injection, same day. The difference is in what ends up in the syringe.
"It is the same procedure with a richer preparation. We are simply not throwing away the part of your own blood that carries the instructions for healing."
Dr. Ilana Etelzon, MDWhat ends up in the injectate
Standard PRP
- Concentrated platelets
- Platelet-derived growth factors
- Extracellular vesicles discarded
- MicroRNAs discarded
- Signaling proteins discarded
SuperShot
- Concentrated platelets
- Platelet-derived growth factors
- Naturally occurring extracellular vesicles
- MicroRNAs involved in tissue repair
- Regenerative signaling proteins
The Science
What Are Extracellular Vesicles?
Extracellular vesicles are microscopic membrane-bound particles released by nearly every cell in the body. They act as biological messengers, carrying proteins, lipids, messenger RNA, growth factors, and microRNAs between cells during tissue repair.
Cellular Communication
Carrying instructions between cells so a repair response is coordinated rather than scattered.
Tissue Healing and Regeneration
Supporting the processes that rebuild damaged tendon, ligament, cartilage, and disc tissue.
Regulation of Inflammation
Helping shift tissue out of a chronic inflammatory state and into an environment where healing can proceed.
Angiogenesis
Supporting formation of new blood vessels, which brings oxygen and nutrients to tissue that has been poorly supplied.
Collagen Remodeling
Involved in rebuilding the structural framework that gives tendons and ligaments their strength.
Cellular Repair
Participating in the repair and remodeling that follows injury at the cellular level.
Why microRNAs matter
MicroRNAs are small regulatory molecules packaged inside extracellular vesicles. Though microscopic, laboratory research suggests they help regulate gene expression and cellular communication during healing, including tissue regeneration, collagen remodeling, inflammatory signaling, and communication between healing cells. By preserving more vesicles, SuperShot is designed to retain a greater concentration of these messengers in the preparation.
Not Just Joints
SuperShot for Spine Pain and Disc Herniations
Most people hear regenerative medicine and think knees and shoulders. The spine is often where it matters most, because the alternative is frequently fusion, laminectomy, or a lifetime of injections that wear off.
Dr. Etelzon treats the spine as a set of specific structures rather than one region. Under fluoroscopic and ultrasound guidance, biologics can be placed precisely into the structure actually generating your pain.
Spine structures we can treat
Intradiscal injections
Biologics delivered directly into the intervertebral disc for degenerative disc disease and contained disc herniations, addressing the disc itself rather than the nerve it is irritating.
Facet joints
The small paired joints at each spinal level that become arthritic and are a common source of axial neck and back pain.
Sacroiliac joint
Where the spine meets the pelvis. A frequently missed source of low back and buttock pain that responds well to precise biologic placement.
Epidural and perineural
Placed around irritated nerve roots to address the inflammatory environment driving radicular pain down an arm or leg.
Spinal ligaments
The supporting ligaments that stabilize each segment. When they become lax or degenerated, the whole segment moves poorly and hurts.
Paraspinal muscle and tendon
The muscular attachments that compensate for a failing segment and become a pain source in their own right.
When the disc or a complex spinal structure is involved, SuperShot is frequently paired with bone marrow concentrate rather than used alone, so the preparation carries both cellular support and the full signaling population.
Two Ways We Use It
SuperShot with PRP, and with Bone Marrow Concentrate
SuperShot is not a separate procedure. It is an upgrade to the biologic preparation used in the procedure you are already having.
SuperShot with PRP
Recovers the vesicles ordinarily discarded during standard PRP processing, producing a preparation with concentrated platelets, growth factors, and an enriched population of signaling molecules.
Commonly considered for
- Tendon, ligament, and muscle injuries
- Mild to moderate osteoarthritis
- Sports medicine injuries
- Partial rotator cuff tears
- Tennis elbow and golfer's elbow
- Plantar fasciitis
- Chronic tendinopathies
SuperShot with Bone Marrow Concentrate
Bone marrow concentrate provides progenitor cells, supportive cells, cytokines, and growth factors. SuperShot complements that environment by adding a higher concentration of naturally occurring vesicles and their signaling molecules.
Commonly considered for
- Moderate to advanced osteoarthritis
- Cartilage injuries
- Meniscal pathology
- Labral tears
- Chronic tendon disorders
- Spine and intervertebral disc disorders
- Sacroiliac joint dysfunction
- Complex musculoskeletal injuries
Worth Being Clear About
Entirely Your Own Biology
There is a great deal of marketing in this field. Here is exactly what SuperShot is and is not.
Completely autologous, derived entirely from your own blood
Prepared at the point of care during your visit
No donor tissue of any kind
No cell culture or expansion
No cryopreservation or freeze drying
No amniotic, umbilical, or birth tissue products
An honest note on the evidence
Regenerative medicine continues to evolve. Research into extracellular vesicles and their role in tissue repair is active and growing, and SuperShot is designed to enhance the biologic composition of PRP by concentrating vesicles recovered from your own blood. Individual responses vary. Treatment recommendations are based on your diagnosis, imaging, clinical evaluation, and the current state of the evidence, not on what is newest.
How It Is Done Here
Precision Is the Whole Point
A richer preparation only helps if it reaches the structure causing your pain. As a Regenexx Certified Core Provider, Dr. Etelzon works to a defined standard for how biologics are collected, concentrated, and placed.
Every patient receives
- A detailed medical history and comprehensive physical examination
- Review of advanced imaging
- Functional assessment
- A personalized treatment plan rather than a standard protocol
- Ultrasound and fluoroscopic guidance where clinically indicated
Depending on your diagnosis, a plan may draw on PRP, SuperShot-enhanced PRP, platelet lysate, or bone marrow concentrate, and often includes rehabilitation, nutritional support, and activity modification alongside the procedure.
Learn More About Regenexx
Questions We Hear a Lot
SuperShot FAQs
Is SuperShot a different procedure than PRP?
No. It is the same procedure with a different preparation method. Same blood draw, same image-guided injection, same visit. The difference is that the platelet-poor plasma is processed to recover extracellular vesicles, which are then added back rather than discarded.
Can SuperShot be injected into a spinal disc?
Yes. Intradiscal injection is one of the applications where the richer preparation is most relevant, and it is typically performed under fluoroscopic guidance. Candidacy depends on your imaging and the specific nature of the disc pathology. Contained herniations and degenerative disc disease are more likely to be appropriate than large extruded fragments or cases with progressive neurologic findings.
Does it take longer or hurt more?
No. Preparation happens during your visit while you are in the office. From your side the experience is the same as a standard PRP or bone marrow concentrate procedure.
Is anything from a donor involved?
Nothing. SuperShot is entirely autologous, meaning it comes from your own blood. There is no donor tissue, no amniotic or umbilical product, no cell culture, and no freezing or freeze drying.
Is it covered by insurance?
Regenerative procedures including PRP and bone marrow concentrate are generally not covered by insurance, and SuperShot follows the same pattern. Our team will be clear about cost before you commit to anything.
How do I know whether I am a candidate?
Through a consultation that includes an examination and a review of your imaging. Dr. Etelzon will tell you honestly whether a biologic approach is appropriate for your specific problem, and will say so if it is not.