Platelet Rich Plasma or PRP is blood which has been enriched with platelets above normal values. As a concentrated source of Autologous Platelets, PRP contains several different growth factors and cytokines that stimulate healing of soft tissues and bone.
PRP contains high baseline values of normal growth and healing factors that your body naturally produces at sites of tissue damage. By concentrating these factors from your own blood, PRP can be produced and locally injected to sites of ongoing tissue damage for improved healing/tissue regeneration.
PRP is derived from your own whole blood significantly reducing the risk of rejection or foreign reaction. This also eliminates the potential for diseases typically associated with transfusions. Risks of bleeding and infection are minimal and similar to other injection therapies.
Current clinical evidence is expanding the potential sites for PRP treatment/therapy. Promising evidence exists for the musculoskeletal application of PRP for sites including the elbow, knee, patella, ankle/foot, achilles, shoulder and rotator cuff as well as many other joints, ligaments and tendons of the body.
current evidence based literature is in its infancy for PRP although early trials and results are promising. Large random controlled trials are still in progress. See the attached article website references for further reading:
http://www.salempainandspine.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/pRp_applications_PMRJ_March2011.pdf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3435904/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3532098/
Booking your PRP Therapy Consultation
You may contact Guardian Radiology Lloydminster location at 780-875-4600 to book an initial consultation with our orthopedic surgeon. The surgeon will perform a clinical history and physical exam to decide if you are a candidate for PRP therapy.
Unfortunately given early stages of clinical efficacy and cost effective analysis data, PRP is a non-insured medical service in Canada. Please contact Guardian Radiology at 780-875-4600 for further inquiry.
PRP Therapy Procedure
The Orthopedic surgeon will outline clear instructions for the day of your procedure after your initial consultation. During your procedure 20-60ml of your own blood will be drawn and processed. This will then be guided with fluroscopy or ultrasound to the site or desired tissue healing/regeneration. The procedure will take approximately 45 minutes. Post operative instructions and follow-up care will be provided by our post-op care team after your procedure.