Ozone Injections: A patient guide for Utah Valley

What is ozone therapy, really?

Most patients hear "ozone" and think of the layer of the atmosphere or pollution alerts on hot summer days. Medical ozone is a different thing entirely.

Medical-grade ozone is a colorless gas made of three oxygen atoms (O3). The kind used in clinical settings is generated on-site from pure medical oxygen, at therapeutic concentrations, immediately before use. It is not the ozone from car exhaust or industrial pollution. The dose, purity, and delivery method are tightly controlled.

Ozone has been used clinically in Europe for over fifty years, primarily for wound healing, infection control, and joint pain. In the United States, it has gained traction over the past two decades as a regenerative medicine option, particularly for patients who want an alternative to long-term anti-inflammatory drugs, repeated cortisone injections, or surgery.

When injected into a painful joint, ligament, or muscle, ozone interacts with the local tissue in a few specific ways. It increases oxygen availability, modulates inflammation, and triggers a controlled cellular stress response that activates the body's repair pathways. The result, in plain terms: the joint gets a chemical signal to start healing, rather than a chemical signal to suppress symptoms.

How ozone works in the body

The mechanism is more interesting than most patients expect. Three things happen simultaneously when ozone is delivered to tissue:

1. Oxygen utilization increases locally

Damaged tissue is often oxygen-starved. Chronic inflammation and scar tissue both reduce blood flow, which means less oxygen reaches the cells that need it to repair. Ozone injection delivers a temporary surge of oxygen and primes the local tissue to use oxygen more efficiently. Cells that were stuck in a metabolic slump start working again.

2. Inflammation gets re-tuned

Inflammation is not categorically bad. Acute inflammation is how tissue heals. The problem is chronic inflammation, the kind that persists long after the original injury and starts breaking down healthy tissue. Ozone modulates this. It dampens the chronic, destructive cytokines while preserving the acute repair response. Steroid injections, by contrast, suppress everything indiscriminately.

3. Repair pathways activate

Fibroblasts (the cells that build connective tissue), chondrocytes (cartilage cells), and resident stem cells all respond to ozone with increased activity. This is why ozone is classified as a regenerative therapy: it actually rebuilds tissue, not just masks symptoms.

Conditions ozone injections treat

Ozone is not a cure-all. It works best for specific kinds of musculoskeletal problems, and we tell patients honestly when it is not the right fit. The conditions that respond well in our experience:

• Chronic joint pain in the knee, shoulder, hip, or low back, especially when adjustments alone have stopped producing results.
• Tendinitis at common sites: tennis elbow, golfer's elbow, achilles tendinitis, rotator cuff tendinopathy, plantar fasciitis.
• Sports injuries that have stalled in their recovery, particularly soft-tissue injuries that should have healed by now but have not.
• Mild to moderate degenerative joint conditions where surgery is being discussed but not yet scheduled.
• Persistent muscle trigger points that keep firing despite manual therapy.
• Post-surgical scar tissue or adhesions that are limiting range of motion.
• Sacroiliac joint pain and other deep-joint pain that is hard to reach with manual care.

Ozone is generally not appropriate for end-stage arthritis (the kind that needs joint replacement), acute infections, or fractures that need surgical fixation. Dr. Drussel will tell you if surgery is the better path.

What your first injection visit looks like

The injection is added on to a regular chiropractic visit. There is no separate appointment. Here is what happens, in order:

1. Intake and exam. If you are a new patient, this is your standard chiropractic intake. Dr. Drussel reviews your history, exam findings, medications, and imaging if you have it.
2. Decision and consent. Dr. Drussel evaluates whether an injection makes sense. If it does, he explains exactly what he is going to do, where, and why. If it doesn't, he tells you and you do not pay for an injection.
3. Site preparation. The injection area is cleaned with an antiseptic. Most injections do not require numbing, but a small amount of local anesthetic can be used for joints that are particularly sensitive.
4. The injection itself. A thin needle is used. The injection takes seconds. Most patients describe it as similar to a flu shot, with a brief stinging sensation followed by a feeling of warmth or pressure as the ozone disperses.
5. Brief observation. You rest for a minute or two. Most patients are fine to walk out immediately. We ask that you avoid intense exercise for the rest of the day.
6. Follow-up plan. For chronic conditions, we typically schedule the next injection 1 to 2 weeks out, with a re-evaluation after 2 to 4 sessions to decide whether to continue.

Cost and what to expect financially

We publish our prices and stand by them. No menu of upsells, no hidden fees, no membership requirement.

• Ozone injection: $125 per injection. Add-on to a standard chiropractic visit.
• Homeopathic injection (Traumeel/Zeel): $55 per injection. Add-on to a standard chiropractic visit.
• The chiropractic visit itself may be covered by your insurance if you have chiropractic benefits. The injection portion is out-of-pocket.

Most patients with chronic conditions need 2 to 4 ozone sessions before judging the response. So a typical out-of-pocket investment is $250 to $500 for the injection portion. Compared to alternatives:

• Cortisone is often covered by insurance, but is limited to 2 to 3 injections per joint per year because of tissue weakening.
• PRP costs $500 to $1,500 per injection and is rarely covered.
• Stem cell therapy runs $3,000 to $10,000 or more per injection.
• Surgery costs thousands plus weeks to months of recovery.

Ozone is the most accessible regenerative option. We offer a superbill if you want to submit to HSA or FSA for reimbursement.

Safety, side effects, and contraindications

Ozone injection therapy has a strong safety record when delivered at therapeutic concentrations by a trained provider. The most common side effects:

• Mild local soreness or warmth at the injection site for 24 to 48 hours. Similar to a workout-induced ache. Usually resolves on its own.
• Brief lightheadedness right after the injection in some patients. Resolves in minutes.
• Minor bruising at the needle site if you are on blood thinners or take fish oil.

Serious adverse events are rare. Patients who should not receive ozone:

• Pregnancy
• G6PD deficiency (a specific enzyme deficiency, usually known)
• Severe hyperthyroidism
• Recent heart attack or active cardiovascular instability
• Active hemorrhage or severe bleeding disorders

We screen for all of these before any injection. Mention any blood-thinning medications, recent steroid injections, or pregnancy at check-in. Dr. Drussel will recommend skipping the injection if there is any concern.

How ozone compares to cortisone, PRP, and surgery

If you are weighing options, here is the honest comparison. We have dedicated pages for each that go into more detail.

Ozone vs cortisone

Cortisone suppresses inflammation. Ozone stimulates repair. Cortisone provides faster initial relief, but the relief is temporary, and repeated injections weaken tissue over time. Ozone takes a few weeks to show benefit, but the benefit is structural, not just symptomatic. Read the full comparison.

Ozone vs PRP

Both are regenerative. PRP uses your own concentrated platelets to deliver growth factors. Ozone uses oxygen chemistry. PRP is more expensive ($500-$1,500) and often more potent for advanced cases. Ozone is more accessible and works well for soft-tissue and early-stage joint conditions. Read the full comparison.

Ozone vs surgery

Surgery is definitive but invasive, expensive, and has real recovery time. Ozone is usually worth a trial first for chronic joint pain that has been recommended for surgery, especially if the joint is not yet end-stage. Read the full comparison.

Where homeopathic injections fit in

Alongside ozone, we offer homeopathic injections, primarily Traumeel and Zeel from the Heel/MediNatura line.

Traumeel is a multi-ingredient anti-inflammatory formulation widely used in European sports medicine. We use it for acute soft-tissue injuries, strains, sprains, and patients who want a non-pharmaceutical alternative to NSAIDs.

Zeel is formulated specifically for chronic joint pain and osteoarthritis. It works more slowly than Traumeel but is well-suited to patients with degenerative conditions who want an ongoing recovery support option without long-term drug use.

Both are $55 per injection. They have minimal side effects, mostly local soreness at the injection site. They are often combined with ozone for compounding effect, or used as a lower-cost recovery support between ozone sessions.

Compare Traumeel and Zeel to NSAIDs and other anti-inflammatories.

Who is a good candidate?

Patients who do best with injection therapy at our clinic share a few traits:

• They have a specific, identifiable area of chronic pain (knee, shoulder, low back, etc.).
• They have already tried at least one or two rounds of conservative care (chiropractic adjustments, soft tissue work, exercise) and either plateaued or want to compound the effect.
• They want to avoid long-term NSAIDs, repeated cortisone, or surgery if possible.
• They are willing to commit to a short series (2 to 4 sessions) before judging the response.
• They are otherwise healthy enough to tolerate the procedure (no contraindications above).

Patients who are not great candidates: end-stage arthritis where the joint is bone-on-bone, acute infections, severe systemic illness, pregnancy. We will tell you straight if you are not a fit.

Where to get ozone injections in Utah

If you are in Utah Valley, ozone and homeopathic injections are available at Integrative Motion in Orem, located at 61 W University Pkwy, 84058. We serve patients from Orem, Provo, Lindon, Pleasant Grove, Vineyard, and American Fork. We also see patients from Salt Lake County who want a chiropractic-integrated approach rather than a pure-play regenerative clinic.

Dr. Dustin Drussel, DC, MS administers all injections personally. He holds a Doctorate in Chiropractic and a Master's in Sports Rehabilitation from Logan College of Chiropractic, with over 15 years of experience treating musculoskeletal conditions. The integrative approach (chiropractic adjustments, soft-tissue work, and injection therapy combined in one visit) is genuinely rare in Utah and produces compounding results that single-modality clinics often miss.

To book, call (801) 396-1100 or use online scheduling. The booking takes about 90 seconds. Add the injection on the add-on step or mention it at check-in.