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- READ PROCEDURE DETAILS written by Dr Romano
Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) is a cutting-edge treatment in the field of plastic surgery that harnesses the body’s natural healing powers by extracting and delivering highly concentrated hormones and growth factors to certain areas of your body. PRP is revolutionizing the field of plastic surgery by offering patients a natural and minimally invasive option for enhancing their appearance. Whether you’re looking to rejuvenate your skin, restore your hair, or improve the results of a surgical procedure, PRP could be the solution you’ve been seeking.
PRP is derived from your own blood, making it a safe and natural option for enhancing the results of various cosmetic procedures and providing rejuvenation to your face and skin, especially fine wrinkle lines and more.
Creation of PRP involves drawing a small amount of your blood, which is very comfortable and no different than the blood drawn for a routine blood test. This blood is then placed in a centrifuge, a machine that spins it at high speed. The spinning process separates the different components of your blood, isolating the plasma into a sub-fraction which is rich in platelets. Platelets are small cells in the blood that play a crucial role in healing and tissue regeneration. The resulting PRP is a concentrated form of these platelets which have released the hormones and growth factors that aid and enhance the body’s natural healing processes and provide youthful rejuvenation.
USES OF PRP IN PLASTIC SURGERY
PRP has gained popularity in plastic surgery for its versatility and effectiveness in a variety of treatments. Here are some of the common uses:
- Facial Rejuvenation (“Vampire Facelift”): PRP is often combined with other facial treatments to rejuvenate the skin. It can help reduce fine lines, wrinkles, and improve skin texture and tone. PRP is either injected into the skin or applied topically with microneedling (the Skin Pen) to enhance collagen production and so tighten the skin, smooth wrinkles and texture, even pigmentation and achieve a youthful glow.
- Hair Restoration: PRP is used to treat hair loss in both men and women. The growth factors in PRP stimulate the hair follicles, encouraging new hair growth and improving the thickness of existing hair. It works great for thinning hair and this is the indication for which it works best. Several treatments are best. Results are seen within weeks.
- Scar Treatment: PRP can be used to improve the appearance of scars, including acne scars. By promoting tissue regeneration, PRP helps smooth and soften scar tissue, making it less noticeable.
- Breast Augmentation and Fat Grafting: PRP can be used in conjunction with fat grafting during breast augmentation or reconstruction. It is used in combination with fat grafting for any other area of the body such as in the face or buttocks. It promotes and enhances the growth of and survival of the transferred fat, leading to better result and better retention of the volume of fat grafted.
- Wound Healing: PRP can speed up the healing process after surgery by reducing inflammation and promoting tissue repair. This is particularly beneficial in patients undergoing procedures that involve significant tissue manipulation, such as facelifts or body contouring.
BENEFITS OF PRP
- Natural and Safe: Since PRP is derived from your own blood, the risk of allergic reactions or adverse side effects is extremely low.
- Minimally Invasive: PRP treatments involve injections or topical applications, making them less invasive than surgical procedures.
- Quick Recovery: PRP treatments are well tolerated, no residual pain or discomfort and no downtime. You can resume your normal activities immediately after the procedure.
- Versatile: PRP can be used in various areas of the body and combined with other treatments to enhance results.
PRP PROCEDURE
PRP treatments are relatively quick, typically taking around 30 to 60 minutes. The procedure begins with a blood draw, followed by the preparation of PRP in the centrifuge. Depending on the specific treatment, the PRP is then either injected into the targeted area or applied topically.
Most patients experience mild discomfort during the procedure which is minimal if at all. After the treatment, you may notice some redness, swelling, or bruising at the injection sites, but these effects typically subside within a few days.
Recovery and Results
One of the major advantages of PRP treatments is the minimal downtime. Patients can return to their normal activities immediately after the procedure.
Some of the effects of PRP are noticeable very early especially in facial treatments in combination with the Skin Pen. Regardless, you will see improvements in as little as a few weeks since the treatment works by stimulating your body’s natural healing processes. For some treatments, multiple sessions may be required to achieve the desired results. Your surgeon will discuss a treatment plan tailored to your specific needs and goals.
Since PRP is natural and stimulates your collagen and other tissues, the effect is permanent. But the end result can at times be improved, and PRP does not stop the aging process, so repeated treatments may be indicated, and quite beneficial. PRP is a versatile and effective option for many patients, and its success is not limited adversely by your overall health. The condition being treated, and your expectations will all play a role in its success.
BACKGROUND
Platelets are small, irregularly shaped clear cell fragments that contain an abundance of natural growth factors. Platelets may be considered the “factory” of the many different types of growth factors and hormones that are released and utilized throughout the body and for many different valuable functions. These small irregular shaped cells that circulate in our blood. They are continuously produced in our bone marrow and contain numerous freshly produced factors critical to many of our life processes and live about 5-9 days. They contain the factors mostly involved in formation of the clot that stops bleeding after injury, but also are involved in many aspects of wound healing. They are a natural source of a high concentration of these growth factors and hormones. Taking this one step further, Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) is a concentrated source of platelets derived from a small sample of your blood. The growth factors and cytokines contained in PRP may be thought of as the hormones responsible for regulating a variety of cellular processes. These factors include:
- platelet-derived growth factor
- transforming growth factor beta
- fibroblast growth factor
- insulin-like growth factor 1
- insulin-like growth factor 2
- vascular endothelial growth factor
- epidermal growth factor
- Interleukin 8
- keratinocyte growth factor
- connective tissue growth factor
The collection, preparation and use of PRP is not new. It has been approved and safely used in different clinical situations as far back as the 1970’s when it began use in the hospital setting. The efficacy of certain growth factors in healing various injuries and the concentrations of these growth factors found within PRP are the theoretical basis for the use of PRP in many different clinical applications. These include nerve injuries, tendinitis, osteoarthritis, cardiac muscle injury, bone repair and regeneration and oral surgery and plastic surgery. PRP has also received attention in the popular media as a result of its use in treating sports injuries in professional athletes. Plastic surgery uses include adding PRP to fat cells to enhance success of fat grafting; adding PRP to the surgical sites of facelift and nasal and eyelid surgery to accelerate healing and decrease bruising. Most recently PRP injections have been found to add volume to the face and fill wrinkles.
The platelet extraction centrifuge and system called Accelerate® by Exactech used for preparation of PRP was cleared by the FDA in 2002 for use by orthopedic doctors to speed tissue repair. Platelets extracted with current devices have totaally been cleared or approved by the FDA for facial rejuvenation. PRP has been safely used thousands of times in orthopedic surgery setting and follows a similar use in plastic surgery; it is mixed or injected into your tissues. In all instances in all applications PRP has been found to be completely natural and not associated with any problems or complications.
PRP IN PLASTIC SURGERY
There has been an explosion in the use of platelet rich plasma (PRP) and research associated with this. There has been an abundance of good clinical studies and microscopic histological research studies. There has been “SPLIT-FACE” studies where PRP has been used on one side of the face and a control on the opposite side for comparison. In all studies, subdermal and intradermal injections studied revealed microscopically significant Increase in epidermal and papillary dermal thickness, collagen volume, and fibroblasts. In all studies there has been an improvement in Intraorbital dark circles, wrinkles, texture, and pigmentation. Improvement in these features has been seen in as little as 8 weeks after one treatment. Best results are after a series of three treatments 4-6 weeks apart.
In our practice we use PRP for HAIR RESTORATION and FACIAL REJUVENATION. In many clinical situations including the use in plastic surgery, we take PRP to an additional step. Once collected PRP is activated by the addition of thrombin and calcium chloride which induces the release of these factors from alpha granules. This then forms a matrix which allows the slow sustained release of the growth factors. This we call Platelet Rich Fibrin Matrix (PRFM). This is then injected into the skin just beneath the dermis to fill wrinkle lines, or into the fat layer just below the dermis to add volume, like in the cheeks or midface. It has also been used to treat acne scars, enhance fat grafts and healing in facelift and rhinoplasty.
Clinical studies have found significant collagen production and new blood vessel ingrowth and formation of new fat cells (adipophylin and adipocytes); all of which are permanent. In a clinical trial PRFM injected into the nasal folds showed improvement in 14 days and this persisted for the 12 weeks of the study. No complications have been reported in its use in any of these areas. Because this is your own tissue there is no risk of allergy.
THE PROCEDURE
- You will have blood drawn in the office in one small specially designed yellow tube shown below. This is just like if you were having blood sample testing.
- Once your blood is drawn the tube is inserted into a special centrifuge in the office where the platelets are separated. This takes 6 minutes during which time your skin is cleansed and numbed.
- The platelet portion of your blood sample is shown below as the yellow serum and it is removed and activated to form the PRFM.
- This PRFM is injected into treatment areas with a very small needle just like any other facial filler. This takes about 15-20 minutes after which iced compresses are applied.
WHAT TO EXPECT
Immediately after injection the treatment area is slightly red and this typically fades in several hours. There is usually little or no bruising. There is no pain after injections. Some mild swelling is present that subsides in several days. You will see some improvement in the treated areas and these are usually slightly “over” treated to allow for some of the liquid serum that absorbs. There is some settling of the effect in the treated areas in the first 1-2 weeks after which the result should stabilize.
The effects of the product and injection on wrinkles have been studied and shown to improve dramatically over the first 3-4 weeks, then improve slowly and become permanent up to 12 weeks.
The success of PRFM in this and other applications is due to the slow and sustained release of the platelet derived growth factors. At least the main six of these have been studied by sampling blood up to 8 days later and demonstrated slow steady and sustained release. This means that the factors are not released all at once but slowly for a continued benefit.
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BACKGROUND
Platelets are small, irregularly shaped clear cell fragments that contain an abundance of natural growth factors. Platelets may be considered the “factory” of the many different types of growth factors and hormones that are released and utilized throughout the body and for many different valuable functions.
These small irregular shaped cells that circulate in our blood. They are continuously produced in our bone marrow and contain numerous freshly produced factors critical to many of our life processes and live about 5-9 days. They contain the factors mostly involved in formation of the clot that stops bleeding after injury, but also are involved in many aspects of wound healing. They are a natural source of a high concentration of these growth factors and hormones. Taking this one step further, Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) is a concentrated source of platelets derived from a small sample of your blood. The growth factors and cytokines contained in PRP may be thought of as the hormones responsible for regulating a variety of cellular processes. These factors include:
- platelet-derived growth factor
- transforming growth factor beta
- fibroblast growth factor
- insulin-like growth factor 1
- insulin-like growth factor 2
- vascular endothelial growth factor
- epidermal growth factor
- Interleukin 8
- keratinocyte growth factor
- connective tissue growth factor
The collection, preparation and use of PRP is not new. It has been approved and safely used in different clinical situations as far back as the 1970’s when it began use in the hospital setting. The efficacy of certain growth factors in healing various injuries and the concentrations of these growth factors found within PRP are the theoretical basis for the use of PRP in many different clinical applications. These include nerve injuries, tendinitis, osteoarthritis, cardiac muscle injury, bone repair and regeneration and oral surgery and plastic surgery. PRP has also received attention in the popular media as a result of its use in treating sports injuries in professional athletes. Plastic surgery uses include adding PRP to fat cells to enhance success of fat grafting; adding PRP to the surgical sites of facelift and nasal and eyelid surgery to accelerate healing and decrease bruising. Most recently PRP injections have been found to add volume to the face and fill wrinkles.
The platelet extraction centrifuge and system called Accelerate® by Exactech used for preparation of PRP was cleared by the FDA in 2002 for use by orthopedic doctors to speed tissue repair. Platelets extracted with current devices have totaally been cleared or approved by the FDA for facial rejuvenation. PRP has been safely used thousands of times in orthopedic surgery setting and follows a similar use in plastic surgery; it is mixed or injected into your tissues. In all instances in all applications PRP has been found to be completely natural and not associated with any problems or complications.
PRP IN PLASTIC SURGERY
There has been an explosion in the use of platelet rich plasma (PRP) and research associated with this. There has been an abundance of good clinical studies and microscopic histological research studies. There has been “SPLIT-FACE” studies where PRP has been used on one side of the face and a control on the opposite side for comparison. In all studies, subdermal and intradermal injections studied revealed microscopically significant Increase in epidermal and papillary dermal thickness, collagen volume, and fibroblasts. In all studies there has been an improvement in Intraorbital dark circles, wrinkles, texture, and pigmentation. Improvement in these features has been seen in as little as 8 weeks after one treatment. Best results are after a series of three treatments 4-6 weeks apart.
In our practice we use PRP for HAIR RESTORATION and FACIAL REJUVENATION. In many clinical situations including the use in plastic surgery, we take PRP to an additional step. Once collected PRP is activated by the addition of thrombin and calcium chloride which induces the release of these factors from alpha granules. This then forms a matrix which allows the slow sustained release of the growth factors. This we call Platelet Rich Fibrin Matrix (PRFM). This is then injected into the skin just beneath the dermis to fill wrinkle lines, or into the fat layer just below the dermis to add volume, like in the cheeks or midface. It has also been used to treat acne scars, enhance fat grafts and healing in facelift and rhinoplasty.
Clinical studies have found significant collagen production and new blood vessel ingrowth and formation of new fat cells (adipophylin and adipocytes); all of which are permanent. In a clinical trial PRFM injected into the nasal folds showed improvement in 14 days and this persisted for the 12 weeks of the study. No complications have been reported in its use in any of these areas. Because this is your own tissue there is no risk of allergy.
THE PROCEDURE
- You will have blood drawn in the office in one small specially designed yellow tube shown below. This is just like if you were having blood sample testing.
- Once your blood is drawn the tube is inserted into a special centrifuge in the office where the platelets are separated. This takes 6 minutes during which time your skin is cleansed and numbed.
- The platelet portion of your blood sample is shown below as the yellow serum and it is removed and activated to form the PRFM.
- This PRFM is injected into treatment areas with a very small needle just like any other facial filler. This takes about 15-20 minutes after which iced compresses are applied.
WHAT TO EXPECT
Immediately after injection the treatment area is slightly red and this typically fades in several hours. There is usually little or no bruising. There is no pain after injections. Some mild swelling is present that subsides in several days. You will see some improvement in the treated areas and these are usually slightly “over” treated to allow for some of the liquid serum that absorbs. There is some settling of the effect in the treated areas in the first 1-2 weeks after which the result should stabilize.
The effects of the product and injection on wrinkles have been studied and shown to improve dramatically over the first 3-4 weeks, then improve slowly and become permanent up to 12 weeks.
The success of PRFM in this and other applications is due to the slow and sustained release of the platelet derived growth factors. At least the main six of these have been studied by sampling blood up to 8 days later and demonstrated slow steady and sustained release. This means that the factors are not released all at once but slowly for a continued benefit.
PLATELET RICH PLASMA (PRP)TREATMENT INFORMATION
INTRODUCTION
In our practice we use PRP for HAIR RESTORATION and FACIAL REJUVENATION.
Platelets are small, irregularly shaped clear cell fragments that contain an abundance of natural growth factors. Platelets may be considered the “factory” of the many different types of growth factors and hormones that are released and utilized throughout the body and for many different valuable functions.
There has been an explosion in the use of platelet rich plasma (PRP) and research associated with this. There has been an abundance of good clinical studies and microscopic histological research studies. There has been “SPLIT-FACE” studies where PRP has been used on one side of the face and a control on the opposite side for comparison. In all studies, subdermal and intradermal injections studied revealed microscopically significant Increase in epidermal and papillary dermal thickness, collagen volume, and fibroblasts. In all studies there has been an improvement in Intraorbital dark circles, wrinkles, texture, and pigmentation. Improvement in these features has been seen in as little as 8 weeks after one treatment. Best results are after a series of three treatments 4-6 weeks apart.
Platelet-rich plasma consists of two elements: plasma, or the liquid portion of blood, and platelets, a type of blood cell that plays an important role in healing throughout the body. Platelets are well-known for their clotting abilities, but they also contain a highly concentrated collection of your body’s natural hormones and growth factors. These have many actions but importantly, can trigger cell reproduction and stimulate tissue regeneration or healing in the treated area. Platelet-rich plasma is simply blood that contains more platelets than normal. PRP therapy is very safe because cells from the patient’s own blood are used, which means there are no preservatives, and no chance of the body rejecting or reacting to the product.
To create platelet-rich plasma, we will obtain a small blood sample from you and place it into a device called a centrifuge that rapidly spins the sample, separating out the other components of the blood from the platelets and concentrating them within the plasma.
BEFORE YOUR PROCEDURE
- For optimal results and to decrease the chance of bruising at the draw site,
- Avoid all blood thinning medication and vitamins and supplements for 1 week prior to your appointment. This includes taking Aspirin and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDS) such as Ibuprofen, Motrin, and Aleve. Others may include anti-inflammatory medications such as Voltaren, Diclofenac, or Narproxen. Also prescriptions for blood thinning such as Coumadin, Plavix, or any others. Call the office to review anything you are taking which you may question.
- Advise your doctor if you have any blood related or blood clotting related conditions such as platelet dysfunction syndrome, critical thrombocytopenia, auto-immune disease, hypofibrinogenemia, hemodynamic instability, sepsis, chronic liver disease, hepatitis, or any acute or chronic infections.
PREPARATION OF PRP
Our office uses The RegenKit®-BCT Family Kit. It is totally FDA approved for this application and safe. It provides for the rapid preparation of autologous platelet rich plasma (PRP) from a small sample of blood drawn in the office. The PRP is then applied to the affected areas. The RegenKit®-BCT Family Kits are for single use only.
Kit and sample:
AFTER TREATMENT
- Immediately following the procedure, the most commonly reported side effects are redness, swelling, bruising, tenderness, tingling, numbness, lumpiness, and/or feeling of pressure or fullness at the injection sites and/or in the treated area(s).
- Ice or cold gel packs may be applied immediately after treatment to reduce swelling.
- Tylenol is recommended as needed for discomfort.
- To maximize results and prevent complications: Avoid touching or scrubbing at the injection site for 12 hours after treatment.
Non-Surgical Medi-Spa
INTRODUCTION
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