A small amount of your blood is drawn and placed inside a centrifuge. The blood is spun at a high RPM (revolutions per minute) to separate the platelets and white blood cells (WBCs) in the blood. This concentration of platelets and WBCs are injected into joints and certain soft tissue to begin the healing process.

PRP contains growth factors and anti-inflammatory molecules that help to repair recent or old injuries.

Research studies are currently being conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of PRP treatment. At this time, the results of these studies are very encouraging. because the effectiveness of PRP therapy can vary. Areas that PRP has been shown effective include:

Chronic Tendon Injuries: 
According to the research studies currently reported, PRP is most effective in the treatment of chronic tendon injuries, especially tennis elbow, a very common injury of  the tendons on the outside of the elbow.

Acute Ligament and Muscle Injuries: 
Much of the publicity PRP therapy has received has been about the treatment of acute sports injuries, such as ligament and muscle injuries. PRP has been used to treat professional athletes with common sports injuries like pulled hamstring muscles in the thigh and knee sprains.

Disc/Spine Injuries: 
One of the most exciting uses of PRP is on the treatment of spine related problems. Conditions like degenerative disc disease, disc herniations and sciatica. Many of these conditions are now being treated with a simple PRP injection avoiding more invasive surgical options.

With a cortisone injection, pain relief usually occurs within 72 hours. Since PRP is a more natural way to heal, the pain may not go away immediately. PRP does provide pain relief, however the process by which pain relief occurs usually happens over a period of several weeks. The body must go through an initial inflammatory process in order for the healing and repair to occur. Pain relief from PRP therapy may take somewhere between 6-8 weeks. If relief from PRP is not better after 3 months, a second injection may be recommended.

Since most insurance plans do not currently cover regenerative medicine treatments, PRP injections are an out-of-pocket expense. Costs are variable depending on the number of joints undergoing treatment, and the number of treatments needed. PRP treatments often have best results when performed 1-3 times. Please schedule an appointment with our Pain & Regenerative Medicine specialists to discuss pricing and payment options.

Patients often prefer to explore conventional treatment methods first for healthcare coverage. A patient may decide to proceed with PRP treatments once conventional methods have been tried and failed to reduce or relieve pain.

PRP contains the necessary elements for healing to occur because of the growth factors and anti-inflammatory molecules that help to repairs injured tissues. An anti-inflammatory such as cortisone may only reduce inflammation in the tissue temporarily.

Side effects are unlikely, but possible. Any time a needle is inserted into the skin, an infection can occur. A common side effect of PRP injections, especially in the smaller joints is an increase of inflammation and pain after the injection.

PRP injections are becoming a more popular treatment option. Not all doctors are the same.  Our providers at Addison Pain and Regenerative Medicine are experts in their field. John East, D.O. and Christopher Hess, M.D. are the only Pain Management doctors in the DFW metroplex who are Board Certified by the American Academy of Regenerative Medicine (AARM).

Our providers:

• Can diagnose and treat pain accurately
• Can identify the correct treatment plan using conventional medicine and/or regenerative medicine solutions
• Develops treatment plans for patients that involves imaging technology (MRI, X-Ray)
• Can treat the entire body from the spine to the extremities
• Are highly trained at performing injections, whereas other medical specialties are not
• Performs injections under image guidance to assure precise placement of the PRP