Platelet-Rich Plasma: The Hot New Healing Trend Used By Professional Athletes

Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) is a natural substance within the body that provides numerous healing benefits. To attain PRP, blood is taken from the patient being treated, and then spun in a centrifuge until the PRP is separated from the red blood cells. The PRP is then administered back into patient’s “damaged tissue to enhance the natural pace of healing and regeneration.” [1] PRP therapy is far less invasive than surgery, and less time-consuming than post-surgical healing time and physical therapy.

That’s what makes this regenerative procedure so popular amongst professional athletes. In fact, there’s quite a long list of athletes that have used, or are currently using, PRP therapy. [2]

Another appeal to PRP therapy is that it can be used on a number of common sports injuries that, in the past, have tended to put players out of commission for some time. This includes…

• Achilles tendinitis
• Medial collateral ligament (MCL) tears
• Knee osteoarthritis
• Injuries to ligaments and muscles
• Chronic lower back pain
• Spinal stenosis
• Tennis elbow
• Acute and chronic tendon problems
• Joint fractures
• Plantar fasciitis
• Neck pain
• Rotator cuff tears
• Morton’s neuroma [3]

Here are some of the athletes who have had notorious success with PRP therapy...

Kobe Bryant

Image Source

In July of 2011, the famous NBA star travelled to Düsseldorf, Germany to receive regenerative therapy for his arthritic right knee. Apparently, Bryant even “recommended the treatment to Alex Rodriguez, which led the baseball star to undergo the same treatment on his knee late last year [2011].” Although Bryant doesn’t like to personally talk to the press about his injuries and treatments, Rodriguez says that Bryant “was really adamant about how great the procedure was for him,” Rodriguez told reporters.”I know that he was hurting before, almost even thinking about retirement, that’s how much pain he was under. And then he said after he went to Germany he felt like a 27-year-old again. I was still a little apprehensive about it and he kept staying on me about it.”[4]

Rafael Nadal

The famous tennis player had “aseven-month injury layoff, which started after he lost in the second round at Wimbledon in 2012.” Since receiving PRP therapy for his knee, he has won his 28th Masters 1000 title, and an Olympic Gold medal. [5]

Stephen Curry

One of the most recent athletes to use PRP therapy has been the Golden State Warriors own MVP- Stephen Curry. “Curry suffered his injury during Game 4 of the Warriors' opening-round series against the Houston Rockets, on April 24,” according to writer Dan Devine. Curry underwent PRP Therapy earlier this year, and is triumphantly back on the court. [6]

Alex Rodriguez

As previously mentioned, the now-retired Yankees player was inspired by his friend Kobe Bryant to receive PRP Therapy. After undergoing hip surgery, A-Rod completed“a total of five PRP therapy sessions, after which he reportedly felt great,” in order to help speed up the healing process, and return to the field quicker. In fact, the PRP therapy worked so well for him that he ended up coming back to play much sooner than the team’s doctor had anticipated him to. [7,8]

Rafael Furcal

After straining his oblique muscle while he was playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Furcal received PRP therapy for a strained oblique muscle. Furcal then injured his hamstring, which “threatened to force him out an additional month, that is until he underwent PRP therapy,” in which he was able to return to the field sooner than predicted.[9]

Inspired by Kobe?

There’s a reason why PRP therapy is becoming so popular amongst high-profile athletes. Their first priority is to get back to the field and perform as best as they can- PRP therapy helps them accomplish this quickly and efficiently.

Inspire others like Kobe Bryant has inspired his fellow athletes! Why replace when you could regenerate?

CONTACT REGENERIS MEDICAL FOR A CONSULTATION

If you’re interested in learning more about this revolutionary procedure, call Regeneris Medical at 1-855-734-3678 to book your PRP consultation today.

Sources:

[1] https://www.mortonsneuroma.com/professional-athletes-and-platelet-rich-plasma-injections

[2] http://www.prptreatments.org/sports-medicine/athletes-using-prp/

[3] https://www.mortonsneuroma.com/professional-athletes-and-platelet-rich-plasma-injections

[4] http://grantland.com/features/kobe-bryant-dr-chris-renna-regenokine-knee-treatment/

[5] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/tennis/article-2449179/Rafael-Nadal-How-broken-star-rebuilt.html

[6] http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/stephen-curry-had-platelet-rich-plasma-treatment-on-his-right-knee-182950035.html

[7]  http://grantland.com/features/kobe-bryant-dr-chris-renna-regenokine-knee-treatment/

[8] http://www.prptreatments.org/sports-medicine/athletes-using-prp/alex-rodriguez-prp-therapy/ [9] http://www.prptreatments.org/sports-medicine/athletes-using-prp/rafael-furcal-prp-therapy/

DISCLAIMER

Regeneris Medical® and affiliates do not claim that stem cell treatments or cellular therapies are a cure for any condition or disease. Adipose-derived stem cell therapies are investigational and are not a part of  FDA-approved stem cell therapies. The information and opinions on this website are for educational purposes only and should not be considered a substitute for advice from a medical professional. If you think you could benefit from stem cell therapies, we suggest patients research relevant information in addition to the information on our site. Be sure to consult a physician before deciding to participate in any investigational therapies.

Could PRP Have Helped This US Olympian Recover From Sports Injuries Before The Games Even Began?

Many of us are excited to watch the 2016 Summer Olympics being held in Rio de Janeiro. Therefore, Regeneris Medical is proud to announce that our partner practice, Tristan Medical Enterprises (TME) was recently given the opportunity to be a sponsor of the 2016 Olympic Games. Congratulations TME and all participating athletes!

Olympic sponsorship has given our health professional staff reason to ponder the incredible effort athletes put into training for the Olympics, and how we treat sports injuries at Regeneris Medical. The magnificent effort and athletic prowess of Olympians inspire us all, but especially those of us who exercise for purposes of recreation, health or athletic competition. (That is hopefully a large majority of people!)

Despite the rewards of athletic training and effort (such as weight loss or winning a game), knowing the pain of a sports-related joint injury can still be enough to hold some athletes back.

Types of Sports Injuries

During an interview, Olympic Volleyball player Brooke Sweat describes her rotator cuff injury and her fear of not being able to qualify for the 2016 Summer Olympics (due to the six to nine month recovery required with traditional, invasive surgical treatment initially recommended to her).

All I could think about was how Regeneris Medical can help professional athletes like Ms. Sweat (as well as non-athletes!) with our innovative, cellular therapies. Unfortunately, Ms. Sweat says she opted for a less invasive arthroscopic surgery to “clean it up,” but one which still required weeks of recovery.

(Watch the interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLx6Ur5G3VM)

Sports injuries can take the form of a muscle sprain or strain, a dislocated joint, a fractured bone, or tears of tendons or ligaments. In athletes of any age, an injury can result in missing competition, work or school, in addition to experiencing temporary pain and disability while the body repairs itself.

According to the National Health Interview Survey, publications exist which estimate that there are 26 sports and recreational exercise related injuries for every 1,000 persons in the United States.

Joint Injury in Older Adults

Not unlike professional athletes like Ms. Sweat, older adults may live with chronic pain due to past sports injuries, overuse injuries, or a lifetime of repetitive-motion or other physical stresses.

Some conditions such a person may experience include degenerative disc disease of the spine, or osteoarthritis of any joint. These conditions can be debilitating and may prevent the person from participating in athletic activities or even completing household chores.

Pain caused by injuries may lead to other health issues, and is most often resolved with extensive surgical repair or total joint replacement. However, surgical solutions can be painful, and require long recovery periods.

Regenerative Cellular Therapies

Our health-care professionals at Regeneris Medical are working hard to spread the word that surgery is NOT your only option! Regeneris Medical offers cellular therapies that may augment the body’s natural healing process, and have potential to benefit patients with sports injuries and/or chronic pain.

There are two types of cellular that we specialize in:

• Platelet rich plasma (PRP) • Stromal vascular fraction (SVF)

PRP is a concentrated form of activated platelets. Whenever tissue damage occurs, a natural healing process occurs in which platelets from a person’s own blood release bioactive proteins that initiate and facilitate healing. Regeneris Medical uses a PRP therapy that enhances the natural healing process by drawing and separating platelets from the patient’s own blood and injecting the platelets into the injured joint. Within the separated platelets are growth factors that signal the cells to multiply and to repair injured tissues.

A PRP therapy session takes approximately one hour. Tissue repair begins immediately and platelets remain active for up to 18 months, during which time they release potent growth factors. Some mild discomfort immediately following the procedure can be expected at the site of injection.

SVF is another method of cellular therapy that shows tremendous promise in healing and regenerating wounded joint tissue. During SVF, stem cells are extracted from a small amount of the patient’s fat cells, which are typically taken from the abdomen in a non-cosmetic, mini-liposuction procedure. The Regeneris Medical doctor can extract up to 10 million stem cells from the harvested fat cells, which are then injected directly into the injured joint. An expected growth and healing cascade occurs with stem cells being differentiated into specific tissues that need repair or replacement.

SVF procedures take about three to four hours to perform. There is a brief healing period from the liposuction, and one surgical stitch on either side of the navel. Generally patients can return to work the following day. And while PRP and SVF are effective administered on their own, injecting PRP and SVF together has the potential to produce exceptional results.

Healing

Cellular therapies offer alternatives to more traditional treatment modalities, which can be invasive and are followed by a lengthy recovery.

Think of how PRP and SVF therapies could have enabled Brook Sweat to recover completely and quickly from her rotator cuff injury… She could have potentially returned to Olympic training pain-free and fully healed, without facing an invasive surgery and lengthy recovery period after.

For the average patient, however, cellular therapies like PRP and SVF offer the possibility of resuming normal life activities and pursuing, not contemplating, the joy of physical activity and athletics.

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The Regeneris Medical Blog is a resource containing general information about potential uses of stem cell therapies for hair loss, orthopedic injuries, and autoimmune disorders, as well as updates on other popular health topics. The information contained within is not medical advice, and should not replace advice from a medical doctor. If you have questions about your health, consult a physician first.