I want women to know their options while they still have options. Dr. Deborah Westergaard explains why she placed an advertisement in D Magazine and what women in Dallas and Plano should ask about PRP, bone marrow concentrate and personalized joint preservation before considering joint replacement or spine surgery.

What happens when lumbar degenerative disc disease begins taking away your sleep, mobility, work, and time with your family?

Artificial intelligence may be learning to design new proteins. But it still cannot look at your knee, understand the life you want to protect, and decide which structure may actually be driving your pain. By Deborah Westergaard, M.D. Dallas | Regen Experts Dallas & Plano Can Technology Help Preserve Your Joints? Lately, I have noticed something interesting. My patients are asking me about artificial intelligence—not with fear, but with genuine curiosity. Recently, a patient

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Imaging guidance helps confirm that a spinal injection reaches its intended target. Fluoroscopy can show needle depth and contrast spread, while ultrasound provides information about surrounding soft tissues. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard reviews imaging and performs an examination to assess whether regenerative spine treatment may be appropriate for selected patients.

By Deborah Westergaard, M.D. Dallas | Regen Experts Dallas & Plano Perhaps buying a convertible in middle age or while heading toward retirement is not a crisis after all. Perhaps it is simply a very enjoyable reason to get outside, put the top down, and experience the morning light. That does not make a convertible a medical treatment. But morning light, healthy sleep, regular movement, good nutrition, and metabolic health all contribute to the environment in which your body

By Deborah Westergaard, M.D. Dallas | Regen Experts Dallas & Plano Sometimes. Knee arthritis involves more than cartilage. The bone beneath the cartilage, the joint lining, the meniscus, and the ligaments can all contribute to pain. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard uses MRI, ultrasound, and examination to identify which structures may be involved before recommending treatment. Treating Knee Arthritis in Dallas For decades, the conventional explana

By Deborah Westergaard, M.D. Dallas | Regen Experts Dallas & Plano If you've been told that nerve burning—also known as radiofrequency ablation (RFA) or rhizotomy is your next step for chronic back pain, you may wonder whether it is your only option. For many years, I performed these procedures myself. Today, I do not. That decision was not based on a single study or a single patient. It came from experience gained in practice since 1989, an evolving understanding of spinal b

By Deborah Westergaard, M.D. Dallas | Regen Experts Dallas & Plano Many patients come to my office after months—or years—of pursuing treatments designed primarily to reduce pain. Pain relief matters. But if your goal is to avoid surgery, preserve function, and maintain an active lifestyle, an important question must be asked: Are we treating pain, or are we identifying the structures responsible for the pain? For many patients, those are not the same thing. About Dr. Westerga

By Deborah Westergaard, M.D. Dallas | Regen Experts Dallas & Plano If I Could Go Back to 2008... If I could travel back to 2008, I would ask my younger self one simple question. "Should I have one more conversation before having hip surgery?" At that time, the procedures I perform today simply weren't available. The landmark intraosseous bone marrow concentrate research hadn't yet been published. Physicians weren't discussing subchondral bone as an important contributor to os

Knee Arthritis Dallas: Still active, but your knees are starting to dictate your life? Many high-performing people reach a point where they are told that knee replacement is the next logical step. For some, that may ultimately be true. But many patients wonder an important question first: "Have I explored every reasonable option before replacing my joint?" Recently, I saw a gentleman with a physically demanding job who had been informed that he was a candidate for knee replac

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts powered by Pain Experts Deborah Westergaard, MD is a double board-certified physician in practice since 1989, with advanced experience in minimally invasive, image-guided spine and musculoskeletal procedures. She specializes in precision-guided orthobiologic and regenerative medicine approaches designed to help selected patients pursue non-operative options for joint and spine conditions. Orthobiologic Joint Maintenance There is a m

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Precision BMAC may be an option for selected patients considering nonsurgical knee care. Bone marrow concentrate is placed under imaging guidance into specific structures, including the bone beneath cartilage, rather than treating every knee identically. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard reviews imaging and performs a biomechanical examination to assess candidacy. Why “Bas

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Shoulder preservation begins with identifying the structures contributing to pain and impaired movement. Rotator cuff problems, instability, arthritis, muscle imbalance, and cervical spine issues may contribute in different combinations. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard evaluates shoulder structure, mechanics, and functional movement before discussing nonsurgical options f

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts powered by Pain Experts The Problem: A Diagnosis That Often Leads Straight to Surgery He walked into my Dallas clinic with a familiar story. A high-performing individual. Disc degeneration on imaging. Pain beginning to interfere with movement, travel, and performance. And the message he had already started to hear: “This is degenerative disc disease… and eventually, you may need surgery.” This is where many patients feel their option

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Hip preservation may be appropriate when an individualized evaluation identifies reasonable nonsurgical options. Bone condition, joint stability, surrounding soft tissues, and how weight passes through the hip influence treatment decisions. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard evaluates these structures and hip function before considering orthobiologic treatment for selected p

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Back surgery may be appropriate when nerve compression, progressive neurological symptoms, instability, or substantial functional impairment supports that decision. The choice depends on how structural findings relate to symptoms and function. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard evaluates symptoms, spinal structure, and function to assess nonsurgical options or the need for s

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: A disc bulge on MRI does not automatically mean back surgery is necessary. Imaging findings must be matched with symptoms because joints, ligaments, muscles, and instability may also contribute to pain. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard reviews imaging and assesses spinal support and function to consider nonsurgical options for selected patients. Avoid Back Surgery Dallas:

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Back surgery may not be the first step when other pain sources, preserved stability, or reasonable nonsurgical options warrant further evaluation. Discs, joints, ligaments, and muscles work together, so MRI findings alone may give an incomplete picture. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard evaluates spinal structure and function before discussing treatment options. Avoid Back

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Nonsurgical care may be appropriate for selected patients even when an X-ray shows advanced knee arthritis. Imaging alone does not capture how ligament stability, alignment, muscle support, and symptoms affect the knee. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard uses examination, imaging review, and ultrasound to assess whether joint preservation is reasonable. The Question Many Pat

By Deborah Westergaard, MD | Regen Experts | Dallas and Plano Short answer: Joint preservation may be appropriate for selected patients considering replacement surgery. Regen Experts was created to assess joint structure and function because symptom relief alone does not establish that the underlying joint problem has been addressed. At Regen Experts in Dallas and Plano, Dr. Deborah Westergaard evaluates joint condition before discussing nonsurgical options or surgical referr