Platelet Rich Plasma -PRP Westchester Dutchess County NY

Platelet Rich Plasma , or PRP has been received quite a bit of attention in the medical and public literature recently. This is one of the techniques we now have at our disposal to treat various tendon, ligament, muscle, and possibly arthritic disorders.

PRP is a component of whole blood. It is obtained by placing a sample of your blood in a centrifuge, spinning it for a few minutes and removing one of the layers that results…. that layer is call platelet rich plasma.

Why all the attention? For too many years, decades really, orthopedists have thought in a rather mechanical manner. There was very little thought given to the biological response necessary for healing and instead we concentrated on the mechanical efforts (surgery) necessary. That is changing. We realize that the body possesses significant potential to heal itself in many circumstances. Especially, if the correct milieu of substances or chemicals can be placed in the injured area, and in the proper concentration. PRP contains a concentrated aliquot of those special cells and chemicals that can promote healing or enhance healing of certain injuries.

Today, the most common injuries treated with PRP are tendon, ligament and muscle injuries. Once we possess the PRP sample we inject it into the site of injury (an office based procedure) and then allow the chemicals and cells to work their magic, so to speak. The literature has shown that PRP can be useful in:

Tennis elbow
Golfers elbow
Arthritis
Certain ligament strains, eg. pitcher’s elbow
Rotator cuff disease
Medial Collateral Ligament tears of the knee
Abdominal muscle injuries

and it can also be a useful adjunct at the time of surgery, and may prove to decrease the recovery time of certain procedures.

Thought about PRP injections? Read on, or if interested in discussing more about your options…. please contact us at 914-789-2735 for an appointment

Here is a video discussing the basic science behind PRP …