Regenerative Medicine

Utilizing the Body’s Facility to Heal Itself

There’s a regenerative substance found in the body that can mend tendons and muscle tears, speed up wound healing, improve hair growth, and restore youthful fullness to the face. This magical substance is Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP).

What is PRP?

Our blood is comprised of micro-sized, solid components; which include red cells, white cells, and platelets. Platelets are made up of hundreds of proteins called growth factors (the regulatory mechanisms of cell growth and division) which are integral components to healing injuries. The field of regenerative medicine is currently using PRP to support in the repair of tendon and muscle injuries, for facial rejuvenation, or to stimulate new hair growth.

To produce PRP the patient’s blood is first drawn. Using a centrifuge, the platelets are then separated from the other cells by spinning the blood. Spinning the blood increases the growth factors normally found in the blood by 5 to 10 percent .To prevent premature clotting, the platelets are then mixed with a small amount of anti-coagulant. The platelets can then be injected at the site of an injury with the use of ultrasound to precisely locate the area of concern, or can be driven into the skin through microneedling in order to repair injured tissue, increase collagen production, stimulate new hair growth, and enhance stem cell production.

PRP for Orthopedic Use

Do you feel physically limited from enjoying activities you’re fond of? Is your golf swing compromised? Tennis? Are you able to walk, jog, or enjoy martial arts like you did in the past? If you’ve ever asked these sorts of questions then PRP may be useful for you.

While surgery is irreplaceable for certain chronic injuries, studies have shown that PRP is beneficial in the treatment of tendon, ligament and muscle injuries such as golfers or tennis elbow, knee sprains, pulled hamstring muscles, and TMJ joints and rotator cuff tendonitis.

What characterizes an injury to a ligament or joint is an excessive scar tissue or microscopic tears which can translate to impaired movement or leave the joint or ligament vulnerable to further injury. Because our tendons have very poor blood supply, our body have trouble healing from these types of injuries.

PRP is believed to encourage a renewed healing response by improving the blood circulation of the injured area. This new healing response is also enhanced by the presence of PRP. Therefore, PRP used in combination with a specific rehab program may eliminate the need for surgery and reduce the risk of receiving another injury. For years, top athletes have regularly used PRP with desirable outcomes.

PRP for Hair Restoration

Many people regard losing one’s hair to be more impactful on body image than weight gain.

PRP for hair restoration has been receiving a lot of success lately. Many factors are responsible for hair loss, including genetic reasons, hormones, medications, stress, and even hair care products. One common factors is androgenetic alopecia (male or female pattern baldness) is an increased production of DHT hormone. Enzymes work to convert testosterone into DHT and is 5 times more powerful than testosterone. Half of all men will undergo hair loss as a result of increased production of DHA. While woman typically have lower levels of testosterone, minute small traces of DHT can lead to hair loss. Put another way, DHT results in the destruction of hair follicles.

Our hair is subject to 3 growth cycles:

Anagen: the growth phase where hair is attached to the base of the follicle
Catagen: the shorest phase where hair growth ends and the resting phase begins
Telogen: the resting phase of the growth cycle when hair begins to shed from the follicle

DHT acts by shortening the anagen cycle and lengthening the telogen cycle. This results in the hair follicle to miniaturize and become weaker, eventually resulting in the death of the follicle.

The application of PRP for hair restoration is comprised of a two-step process. About one to two weeks before your treatment, we perform a blood test to ensure that your platelets are a candidate for treatment. Your session begins with pictures and the application of a topical numbing cream. Your blood is then drawn and spun in a centrifuge in order to extract PRP. Your PRP is applied first topically through microneedling, and then PRP is injected into your scalp.

A multitude of sessions may be required depending on the extent of your hair loss, with periodic maintenance sessions. In order to maintain your results, we also recommend the use of hair care products that contain DHT blockers and Human Growth Factor Serum. The use of PRP rejuvenates the hair follicle of its blood supply and provides vital proteins to strengthen hair growth, increase the density of hair and lengthen the active growth cycle.

PRP for Skin Rejuvenation

You may have heard of the term vampire facial or vampire facelift. The same two-step approach is used as with restoring hair follicles, making use of microneedling in addition with injections of PRP. This process results in an inflammatory response in the skin that is a catalyst for a healing cascade. Skin becomes firmer, tighter, new collagen begins to develop, and acne scars are softened.

We recommend a series of 1-2 treatments that are spaced four weeks apart which varies depending on the condition being treated. Within 3 months noticeable results are observed. Utilizing Fractional laser resurfacing and dermal fillers along with PRP will maximize your results.

To learn from about PRP treatment visit Full Circle Health for a consultation to see if PRP may be the natural treatment answer you’ve been looking for.