Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) Injections
Living with chronic pain makes every day a challenge. It’s especially frustrating when medications that once relieved the pain no longer work or you have to take such high doses that the side effects make you miserable. While physical therapy helps some people recover from whatever is causing their pain, for others it only goes so far.
Platelet rich plasma (PRP) injections are increasingly being used to treat chronic pain, injuries, and to help heal wounds after surgery.
The plasma in our blood is rich with platelets that facilitate natural healing. When you have PRP injection, your doctor obtains a small blood sample and places it in a spinning centrifuge to separate the plasma from the whole blood. It is then mixed with solution and injected back into your body at the site of the pain to restore damaged cartilage, cells, and tissue to restore pre-injury functioning.
Once platelets are in the area that’s being treated, they break down and release growth factors, which are compounds that help cells repair and renew, which, in turn, triggers your body’s natural healing process.
Some patients experience pain relief after one treatment while others need up to four treatments spaced several weeks apart.
