In an earlier blog, I wrote about several legendary athletes, from Kobe Bryant to Peyton Manning, who chose the simple Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) procedure to get back in action much faster than they might have with other treatments.
Traditionally, athletes have been treated with medications, physical therapy, and/or surgery for a variety of injuries and conditions, including pulled hamstring muscles, rotator cuff injuries, tennis elbow, muscle strains, plantar fasciitis, ankle sprains, knee sprains and knee degeneration. The process was often long and frustrating, and sometimes unsuccessful – a devastating disappointment to the athlete and a great loss to a sport and its fans. That’s what makes PRP so exciting. The treatment is relieving acute or chronic pain by promoting the natural healing potential of the body without risk – and with remarkable results.
Athletes Score High In Study
A study of athletes with elbow injuries that was published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine* found that 88 percent of the athletes in the study returned to play without further surgery. It also showed real physical changes inside the players’ elbows, meaning that the results were very real and not just a placebo effect. Repeat…the benefits were real!
If you’re not familiar with PRP therapy, here’s a brief overview of the one-hour, minimally invasive procedure as performed at New Jersey Pain Care Specialists. First, we take a bit of your blood from the cleaned and anesthetized injured area. The blood is spun in a centrifuge to form a platelet-rich solution that is injected into and around the injured tissues. The concentrated platelets trigger a natural immune response as specialized white blood cells rush in to remove damaged cells and prepare the tissue for healing. Stem cells and other cells multiply, repair and rebuild the damaged tissue – an accelerated healing response that reduces pain, promotes increased strength and improves joint function.
Low Risk, High Reward
Most significantly, because PRP uses your own blood to jump-start and accelerate the healing process, it is considered a very low-risk procedure.
When you consider that top professional athletes and their teams have access to the best care in the world at any cost, it’s a great vote of support that more and more are choosing PRP as the safest, fastest, most reliable way to save their seasons…and even their careers.
Why would you choose anything else? Please contact New Jersey Pain Care Specialists to discuss what PRP can do for your ailment.
At the present time, PRP Treatments are not covered by medical insurance.
*The study, led by Dr. Luga Podesta and co-authored by the late Dr. Lew Yocum, was published in May, 2013.
