ReachMD

After graduating from Brigham Young University, Dr. Ryan Riggs received his medical degree from the University of Utah. He completed his internship and residency at the University of Arkansas and became board-certified in Emergency Medicine. For ten years, he practiced emergency medicine in Arkansas, Oregon, and Utah hospitals. Even though Dr. Riggs had a secure and rewarding practice in ER medicine, he had a career-changing experience with a family member. His mother-in-law suffers from arthritis, and after enduring chronic pain for several years, she finally decided to undergo knee replacement surgery. After six weeks of a painful recovery, she had improved only slightly. Dr. Riggs began researching arthritis and discovered a relatively new and innovative treatment plan. It focused on a series of Hyaluronic Acid (HA) injections under x-ray guidance combined with a physical therapy regimen, and it was getting fantastic results. After undergoing training, Dr. Riggs began performing these injections in a clinic part-time and found the results astounding. Even though emergency medicine had been very rewarding, he decided to open The Active Joint Institute in order to provide a unique service to patients such as his mother-in-law who are interested in nonsurgical arthritis treatments. Dr. Riggs became a pioneer in knee joint pain treatment. He was the first physician in Utah to offer guided HA injections, using fluoroscopy-guided (x-ray) HA injections. Since 2009, he has performed over 15,000 procedures. He performs more guided joint injections per year than any other single health care provider in the U.S. In 2011, he received ultrasound-guided injection training (which complemented his ultrasound training during medical residency) and perfected the ActiJoint FLEX Shot™ with a precision which also allows him to use the least painful approach during the injection. Unlike other procedures for HA injections, ultrasound-guided injections have a 100% accuracy of placement and are done completely under sterile conditions. He is only physician in the state of Utah to routinely offering this process (ultrasound-guided and sterile conditions) for all HA injections. The opening of The Active Joint Institute in 2012 has enabled him to design the only state-of-the-art medical facility in the Intermountain area dedicated solely for the treatment of joint pain.