How You Know It’s Time for a PRP Injection

Platelet-rich plasma, or PRP, is created by separating potent amounts of platelets from your own blood. This dense platelet-solution is then used therapeutically via PRP injections into weak or damaged areas of your skin or muscles. 

Plasma therapy combines cutting-edge technology with the body’s inherent capacity to repair itself. It provides a very straightforward, non-surgical treatment that has a wide range of uses in regenerative medicine, sports medicine, dermatology, and cosmetics. 

PRP is a concentrated platelet solution that can help to speed up the healing process in your skin and joints. Since the solution is created from a sample of your own blood, there is no risk of allergies. It can be a safe and non-invasive alternative with many applications.

All kinds of people, with varying backgrounds, have benefited from PRP injections. How are you supposed to know when it is time to seek treatment? Well, understanding some of the benefits of the treatment may help answer the question of whether or not you are a good candidate for PRP injections.

PRP Injections for Hair Loss

PRP has recently gained notice as a possible treatment for one of dermatology’s most difficult problems: hair loss. Thinning hair is a problem for millions of men and women across the United States. While this can begin earlier in life, it is most common amongst those over the age of 50. If you have ever found yourself wanting to restore your hair but are hesitant to undergo hair transplant surgery, regenerative medicine, like PRP injections, offers a less intrusive option.

So, what is the connection between PRP injections and hair loss? Well, it has to do with increasing the platelet count in an affected area. PRP injections contain over 5 times the amount of platelets than what is found in normal blood. These platelets contain growth factors that are supposed to support wound healing and tissue renewal. 

During a PRP treatment, the highly-concentrated solution is injected deep into the scalp to reach the bottom of the hair follicle. This activates a particular population of cells known as dermal papilla cells, which play a vital role in hair development. 

The majority of PRP research for hair loss has been on its use to treat androgenetic alopecia (AGA). This is because a majority of hair loss cases are from men and women who are reaching their 50’s and experiencing a decrease in hormones because of age or menopause. AGA, often known as hormone-related baldness, can affect both men and women. 

If you do experience AGA, you will notice that hair loss is most common on the top and front of the head in males. When it comes to women, the thinning happens more on the top and crown of the head, and will typically start with the middle hair part and broaden over time. 

According to the data, PRP may function best when paired with other AGA therapies, such as topical minoxidil (Rogaine) or oral finasteride (Propecia), an anti-androgenic medicine. It is best to meet and have a conversation with your primary medical provider, or health professional, to learn more about what combination of treatments could be best for you. 

PRP Injections for Acne Scarring

Acne treatment can be difficult because of the variety of factors that can cause it to occur. Our lifestyles, our diets, and any hormonal fluctuations all play major roles. Even when the acne clears and heals, it leaves behind scars and hyper-pigmentation that are difficult to cure with topical medicines alone. That is why PRP injections are often used to treat acne scarring and hyper-pigmentation.

The cornerstone of beautiful skin is in its plasma and platelets. Injecting platelet-rich plasma into problematic areas of the face can promote cell development and healing. By boosting the amount of platelets in parts of your face that have been sunburned, scarred by acne, or lost suppleness, you may give your skin cells a boost, allowing them to mend naturally. 

The concentrated platelets generate many of the helpful growth factors that aid in the healing and renewal of your collagen and elastin levels. The skin on your face feels moisturized, plumper, and younger as a result of the healing process.

PRP Injection for Muscle or Joint Pain

PRP treatment is one of the most prominent methods of regenerative medicine these days. It is commonly used in combination with other forms of therapies and medication.

For example, orthopedics today will often combine PRP treatments with traditional therapies and medications in order to speed up the healing of injuries and reduce chronic inflammation as quickly as possible. This is because PRP therapy accelerates the repair of damaged tendons, ligaments, muscles, and joints by injecting a potent concentration of the patient’s own platelets. PRP injections treat musculoskeletal disorders by harnessing each patient’s unique healing mechanisms in this way. 

Whenever we experience pain in our joints, whether that is externally from an injury or internally from a degenerative disease, our bodies will work to repair these damages. PRP injections are a way to strengthen this process by supplying more fuel and resources for our bodies to use in our healing of these joints.

PRP Injections for Arthritis or Osteoarthritis

Not only can PRP injections help with joint pain, but it also is used to alleviate the symptoms of osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is characterized by pain and inflammation. PRP treatment can help reduce the inflammation that causes the pain and stiffness by delivering healing platelets directly to the root of the arthritis or osteoarthritis. 

Osteoarthritis develops when the protecting cartilage in a joint deteriorates, causing the bones to scrape against one another as the joint is moved. PRP injections are thought to help decrease cartilage deterioration, promote cartilage synthesis, boost lubricating fluid in the joint, and enhance joint function.

How Can I Seek PRP Treatment?

In recent years, PRP injections have resulted in definitive tissue healing. Even though complete baldness or complete pain relief is seldom achieved with the first injection, chronic pain and cosmetics concerns can be greatly decreased over time with multiple injections. PRP therapy activates the mending process, allowing patients to experience pain alleviation and skin/hair rejuvenation after a few weeks or continuous sessions. 

Historically, doctors adopted PRP treatment injections to improve rapid healing after plastic surgery operations or for other dermatological conditions like acne scar reduction or hair rejuvenation. Today, PRP injections continue to treat conditions like this, in addition to being utilized in sports medicine and orthopedics. The use-cases are only increasing as more research and innovation take place. 

PRP treatments have been helping people in Delray Beach, FL avoid invasive surgeries all while rejuvenating their skin and hair. The board-certified dermatology and cosmetic surgery expert, Dr. Thomas Balshi, has been helping people and their bodies begin their self-healing process through the science of PRP treatments for nearly 20 years. If you would like to learn more about what might make you a good candidate for receiving treatments like PRP injections, feel free to reach out for a consultation or request an appointment by filling out a contact form. If you have any questions do not hesitate to ask the team of professionals at Balshi Dermatology and Cosmetic Surgery!