PRP seems a little too good to be true, or is it? We recently interviewed Seattle dermatologist Dr. Beth Anne Langrell, M.D., about this procedure. Here’s her answer:
“PRP injections are a new and exciting way to treat skin conditions. The procedure involves taking a patient’s blood, pulsing it in a machine to separate the platelets and then re-injecting the platelets back into their skin. The platelets then encourage new blood cell growth, creating healthier, plumper, younger-looking skin.
“The main ingredients in PRP are platelets, growth factors, and a human growth hormone. When injected into the skin, Platelets are meant to stimulate blood cell production. Platelets help make the skin look healthier and plumper by producing new blood cells. Studies show that PRP can provide up to a 36 percent improvement in softness and firmness in the skin.
“Growth factors can help with skin tone, wrinkles and pigmentation. Growth factors also help promote a younger appearance. And human growth hormone improves the skin’s elasticity and elasticity line thickness, as well as skin’s texture.”
In other words, the injection helps boost collagen and elastin production, giving you a more youthful glow. But do you need to have PRP? Dr. Beth Anne says you can use topical serums and creams to boost collagen production, but she says to beware of the mega-derms who sell them without proper scientific studies behind them.
They usually tout results from clinical trials in cancer patients with neurofibromatosis (NF), a rare genetic disorder. If you have this condition, you don’t need PRP, and your body already has great collagen production. If you’re healthy and looking for younger-looking skin, topical products and procedures such as PRP are likely unnecessary.
Before you get a PRP treatment, you’ll need to have a biopsy done on your face to determine if you’re a good candidate. If you are a good candi
date, you’ll need a general or freckle-reduction biopsy done first. You’ll get the biopsy done on the back of your neck, where there’s a 1-2 mm target lesion on the skin.
The biopsy is pretty simple, but you have to wait a few days after it for it to heal completely. It’s fine to go on with your daily activities while the biopsy heals. However, Dr. Beth Anne says you should avoid getting cuts and lacerations while waiting.
The next step is the actual PRP treatment. Once you’ve healed, you can get the PRP treatments right away. The PRP procedure is done in the office, under local anesthesia. This procedure takes about 45 minutes to an hour and will leave you with a tiny red spot on the back of your neck where the biopsy was done. The same procedure can be done at home if you’re comfortable doing it at home. You’ll need to use dermal scarring cream or an AHA before and after the PRP procedure.
Again, many clinics claim to do this procedure for a reasonable price. Before you get into a clinic, please do your research to see who offers this procedure in your area and how much they charge for it. In general, you can expect a minimum of $1,500 for liposuction in addition to a PRP injection procedure.
Dr. Beth Anne has seen patients who have done this procedure for around $8,000. If you have the cash, the procedure will be worth it. But this is a procedure that is still experimental, and there’s no way to know if it’s worth the money until you try it. So before you decide to get the treatment done, don’t forget to get a check-up first.
Final thought
“PRP injections are a new and exciting way to treat skin conditions. The procedure involves taking a patient’s blood, pulsing it in a machine to separate the platelets and then re-injecting the platelets back into their skin.
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This article was first published on Lotus Blog site
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