Platelet Rich Plasma Therapy is a Natural Way to Rejuvenate Your Appearance
There are a number of ways to brighten up your face by reducing wrinkles, adding volume to your face, and tightening your skin. Some ways involve surgery, like a facelift or an eye lift. Other ways involve non-surgical methods, like dermal fillers and skin resurfacing. One of the more natural non-surgical techniques for rejuvenating your face is called platelet rich plasma (PRP) therapy.
What Exactly is PRP Therapy?
PRP therapy involves using the patient’s own blood to reduce signs of aging and promote tissue growth. The blood is removed from the patient (approximately 10 milliliters, depending on the level of therapy needed) and then spun in a centrifuge. This isolates the platelets from the rest of the blood. Once all the platelets are extracted from the blood sample, they can be injected into the patient at the treatment site.
PRP therapy has actually been used in medicine for years as a way of helping the body tissues, muscles, and bone heal and regrow after an injury or illness. That’s because platelets are one of the key components in the blood that are responsible for clotting and repairing damaged blood vessels. Platelets also act as “growth factors” that promote cell growth and activation in the body.
What Kinds of Things Can PRP Therapy Treat?
Like other dermal fillers, PRP therapy can be used to treat fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes and mouth, collagen and fiber loss in the skin, a loss of volume around the cheeks and jaw line, and even scarring from acne. It’s not designed to be a permanent solution or a solution for major skin repair, but it can help improve the look, feel, and health of your skin.
What Happens During the PRP Procedure?
After you have a PRP therapy consultation with your doctor, they will determine which areas of your face will benefit from the procedure. At the time of your actual procedure appointment, the doctor will remove some blood from you and isolate the platelets. The doctor will then numb you up at the treatment site, either with local or topical anesthesia, and then injects the platelets in tiny amounts using a micro needle.
The entire procedure is pretty quick and doesn’t require any down time. You could probably have the procedure done on your lunch break if you work close enough to the doctor’s office! There’s also very few side effects associated with the procedure. There may be some swelling and mild bruising at the treatment site, but that will fade away a few days after the procedure.
What are the Benefits of PRP Therapy?
One of the primary benefits of PRP therapy is that the doctor is using blood from your body, so you aren’t at risk for blood-borne diseases or complications that can come from using synthetic materials. Some patients have trouble with the synthetic materials used in dermal fillers or implants because the body doesn’t recognize them. With PRP therapy, your body will accept the platelets at the treatment site without issue because it will recognize the material as its own.
PRP therapy is not permanent, but it does provide you with a brighter and rejuvenated appearance that will be present for several months. You’ll be able to see the results almost immediately and continue to watch your own blood platelets boost the health of your skin following the procedure.
Because PRP therapy isn’t surgical, it is considerably less expensive than other cosmetic procedures. It can also be combined with other surgical and non-surgical procedures to give you an even better result than you could get with PRP therapy alone. For those of you considering plastic surgery but aren’t sure if it’s for you, PRP therapy can give you an idea of what your face could look like after specific surgical procedures, including facelifts, chin or cheek implants, or eye lifts.
Where Can I Find Out More About PRP Therapy?
Here at Spalding Drive Plastic Surgery, we offer PRP therapy as one of our many non-surgical procedures for facial rejuvenation. If you would like to find out more or schedule a consultation, call us at (310) 275-2467.