PRP Treatment for Osteoarthritis

Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) treatment is an experimental treatment that uses ingredients from your own blood to treat damaged cartilage, tendons, ligaments, muscles, or even bone. Even though not considered standard medical practice, a growing number of people are turning the PRP injections to treat an expanding list of orthopedic conditions, including osteoarthritis and other joint ailments. The therapeutic injections used to treat osteoarthritis contain plasma with a higher concentration of platelets than is found in normal blood.

Plasma is the liquid component of the blood which is mostly water but also includes nutrients, glucose, proteins, and antibodies in addition to many other components. Pallets on the other hand are normal components of blood just like red and white cells. Pallets stimulate tissue regeneration and also promote healing as they secrete growth factors and other proteins that regulate cell division.

PRP treatment, when used for osteoarthritis, reduces the pain in the joints, repair the damaged cartilage and reduce/prevent further damage and also improve the functionality of joints by increasing the production of natural lubricating fluid in joints. The effect of this treatment lasts for 1-2 years.

The method and the effect of PRP treatment vary from person to person depending upon their basic characteristics like the blood composition, how the blood was processed once collected, and the additional additives that doctors augment platelet-rich plasma with to enhance the PRP’s healing properties.

This therapy is a minimally invasive intervention (joint injections and steroids) and is effective for enhancing tissue regeneration; however, this is not a single one-time injection treatment. The treatment is very comprehensive, meaning it includes multi-injection in joints and nerves given in series of sittings, medicines, and other physiological activities that help maintaining the effects of the treatment for a longer time.

While there are still studies being conducted on the effectiveness and relevance of PRP Treatment, experts believe that it’s helpful in treating the disease; It is also believed that PRP injections contain proteins that alter a patient’s pain receptors and reduce the pain sensation thereby helping them to deal with the disease better. This treatment should be strictly administered by an experienced doctor and pre-post precautions must be taken to avoid any kind of side effects.

Want to know more about PRP Treatment? Please feel free to reach out to us and we shall be glad to help. Stay tuned to know how PRP treatment is also useful for various other ailments.