Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)
In recent years, doctors have learned that the body has the ability to heal itself. Platelet-rich plasma therapy is a form of regenerative medicine that can harness those abilities and amplify the natural growth factors your body uses to heal tissue.
How does Platelet Rich Plasma therapy work?
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The blood in the human body is made up of four main components. Over fifty percent of our blood is plasma. Plasma is the liquid part of the blood, made up of water, salts, and proteins. The rest of our blood is made up of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Each of these components serves a different function within the body. Red blood cells make up approximately 40 percent of our blood, carrying oxygen throughout the body and giving blood its characteristic red color. These red blood cells outnumber white blood cells approximately 600 to 1. White blood cells, while fewer in number, are essential to fighting infections within the body. The last component, platelets, are best known for their role in blood clotting. For example, if one of your blood vessels is damaged, it will signal to the body that it needs platelets to stream to the site of injury to form a clot, and the platelets will then work to repair the damage. If a body’s platelet count is low, it means that the body cannot properly form blood clots, which can be fatal. Platelets can perform this essential healing function because they contain specific proteins referred to as growth factors. As platelets rush to the site of injury to begin clotting, these growth factors start the process of regeneration and healing by activating the body’s biological healing process.
