In the last few years, platelet-rich plasma therapy has become more popular among athletes in treating specific injuries in the hopes that it will help them return to competing more quickly than medication, surgery, or physical therapy alone, but it’s not a new concept. PRP treatment was used as early as the 1990s for maxillofacial and plastic surgery. The treatment has very little in the way of side effects and can be used safely to treat a variety of conditions.
What Platelet Rich Plasma Treatment Is
Blood is made up of two main components – liquid plasma and small solids that include red and white blood cells as well as platelets. The role of platelets is to assist in clotting blood, but they also contain hundreds of growth factor proteins which help injuries heal. Platelet-rich plasma uses plasma infused with 5 to 10 times more platelets than you’d normally find in blood. It’s made by drawing blood from the injured patient and separating the platelets from other blood cells using centrifugation which also increases their concentration. This concentration of platelets is then combined with the rest of the drawn blood.
After preparation, PRP is injected into the injured or inflamed area with a local anesthetic. Any beneficial effects may take several weeks to appear and pain in the area may increase for up to two weeks. PRP may also be used after surgery to improve healing. If an athlete has a torn tendon that requires surgery to repair, PRP is sometimes used to treat the area during surgery so it can be stitched into torn tissues.
Conditions Treated With Platelet Rich Plasma Therapy
While the effectiveness of platelet-rich plasma treatment can vary based on several factors, doctors are using it to heal various injuries. PRP therapy is most often used in the treatment of sports injuries like acute muscle and ligament injuries. Athletes have been known to use it for pulled muscles and sprains. Chronic tendon injuries are also seeing great results from this type of therapy in reducing inflammation. Some physicians treat patients who have broken bones or arthritis with platelet-rich plasma too.
If you’re an athlete who wants to get back to peak performance in less time, Contact the Lamkin Clinic today. We can help determine whether PRP therapy in Oklahoma would be an effective treatment for you.
Call today – 405-285-4762