Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) treatments are effective because they deliver highly-concentrated platelets back into the body's tissue. As you may remember from high school science class, Platelets are like the fertilizer of the body. Everything they touch heals and improves. It doesn't matter if it's a torn muscle in need of healing, or thin, aging facial skin needing to be regenerated -- PRP works well wherever it is placed! Suppose you're interested in exploring a natural way of maintaining and improving the quality of the skin without the use of fillers or hoping to boost thinning hair. In that case, PRP might be the treatment you've been looking for.
Unlike the other injectables featured at Esthetics Center, Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) is not a product that is pulled off the shelf and injected into the face or body. Instead, we draw a small amount of your own blood, spin it in our centrifuge at 3,500 RPM, extract the concentrated PRP, and inject it into the area being treated. PRP treatments stimulate the body’s own healing process to regenerate and restore lackluster and damaged skin and boost the reparative process for wounds and injuries.
Plasma contains red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Platelets promote growth and healing, especially in the presence of injury. By separating the platelets and concentrating them in the area of an injury (in the case of microneedling) or directly into the tissue, your body responds by activating the natural healing process, which includes building collagen and elastin.
As far as delivery goes, PRP can be injected or micro-needled into the skin. Typically, PRP injections begin to work after one or two treatments.
PRP treatments can be used for many things, but at Esthetics Center, we offer PRP injections and microneedling to improve skin texture (rough, crepey skin) and hair growth. Specific areas it works really well are under-eye hollows, fine lines on the surface of the skin (crow's feet and lines around the mouth), acne scars, and hair restoration in men and women.
Every appointment at Esthetics Center begins with a conversation about your goals and concerns as a patient. We will also discuss your medical history and long-term risks and benefits to the treatment we have planned. Once we are ready to begin the treatment, we will draw the patient’s blood and let it spin while we prepare the treatment site. Some patients will receive topical numbing such as ice or lidocaine, and Nitrous Oxide (laughing gas) is also available for those who feel especially anxious. Once the PRP is extracted and ready, we will begin the injections or microneedling. This part of the treatment takes only a few minutes, and shortly after we finish, you will be free to go with just a few simple instructions for aftercare.
PRP treatments are an excellent option for anyone interested in naturally rejuvenating their skin or replenishing volume without the use of dermal fillers. It is also excellent for boosting hair growth for both men and women. Many of our patients seek PRP injections to improve the thin, crepey skin below the eyes. It also supports other treatments because it decreases your healing time, supports skin structure and integrity, and improves outcomes for other esthetic treatments such as Botox, fillers, and lasers.
Most people are not bothered by it at all. While the experience of drawing blood isn't typically enjoyable, this procedure requires very little blood, so the blood draw is over rather quickly. The treatment is not painful, and we make every effort to ensure you're comfortable -- ice, numbing, and Nitrous Oxide (laughing gas) are all available to make you feel less anxious.
PRP treatments have minimal side effects other than caring for the treatment site. The procedures all utilize the patient’s own blood product, which leads to very few if any complications. PRP is very safe, and most of all, very effective.
Recovery following any PRP treatment will vary depending on the number of injections and the area being treated. Generally, patients might notice some soreness, swelling, and possibly bruising for a few days. We recommend that patients refrain from exercise for 24 hours following treatment and stay hydrated to encourage healing. For microneedling patients, it is especially important to wear sunscreen and avoid exposure to direct sun for about a week. Usually, patients need three treatments spaced four weeks apart. Results will start to be noticeable about six weeks after the first treatment but will peak around six weeks following the last treatment.
Spinning the blood at 3500 RPM for 10 minutes causes the blood to separate. It separates into 3 layers -- the red blood cells, the platelet-rich plasma, and the platelet-poor plasma. We harvest just the PRP, which is injected into the face and/or on top of the head.
PRP, as was mentioned above, is excellent as an injectable or in conjunction with microneedling. We also have great results drizzling PRP over the face after an ablative laser procedure.
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