How Foot and Ankle Surgeons Can Benefit From PRP
Since it is a new science, many people are skeptical about Platelet-Rich Plasma, otherwise known as PRP. There are some studies out there that state that PRP work no better than a similarly administered placebo, but there are many other studies and doctors that claim that PRP works and works well. This also works well at a much lower cost and less side effects, than traditional medicine.
One branch where the skepticism is loud and clear is podiatry, which deals with feet and ankles. Trying to combat this skepticism can help many surgeons to lower complication rates, improve patient satisfaction, and have better outcomes. For instance, here is a list of cases where PRP has been effective for the feet and ankles.
- Plantar Fasciitis
PRP has become rather common as a treatment for Plantar Fasciitis, with many studies to prove the efficacy of this treatment. For instance, Dr. Daanial Kassicieh or Sarasota Neurology claims that PRP is one of the most effective treatments for this condition, and that PRP is actually fully cure it. Many of his patients have avoided surgery just by utilizing PRP therapy.
This is done with no down time, no rehabilitation, and no side effects. This woud explain why plantar fasciitis is the 5th popular medical condition treated by PRP. This can be explained by over 3 million people that are diagnosed with this and no other treatment really works for it, besides, in fact, PRP.
- Archilles Tendonitis
This is another condition that can be fairly hard to treat, and gets worse over time unless healed. Many surgical approaches are often trickey and generally do not end up with good results. Because of this, the main treatment option is simply to give patients corticosteroids to reduce the pain, but really nothing else to treat the symptoms.
However, there have been many studies done that have shown that PRP is a lot more effective, including that from the European Foot and Ankle Society. This means that PRP is safer and more effective alternative than any other treatments available.
- Diabetic Foot Ulcers
Diabetic foot ulcers can be troublesome, especially when they do not heal or heal properly. Over 2.5 million Americans with diabetes who suffer from these ulcers. About 11% of these cases may need amputation of their affected limb. However, some studies have noted that just one injection of PRP and a topical solution bi-weekly started to heal the ulcers in just 8 weeks. Topical PRP also has been shown to work better than anti-septic creams as well.
- Regenerating Bones
Bone regeneration is most commonly needed in food and ankle area. Although mechanical stabilization works best, the utilization of PRP has been surprising. PRP helps with healing bones and soft tissue at the damage site. According to a recent systematic review of 64 articles, the conclusion was to include more PRP therapy into the healing of foot and ankle bones.
The science behind this is solid, for bone or tissue to form, three things are needed in the area:
- A scaffold for the growth to take place
- Biological stimulants to signal proteins
- Stem cells that provide bone building potential
All three of these are crucial for bone formation.. PRP can provide at least two of these, so there is no reason to ignore it when it comes to bone regeneration.
- Ankle Sprains
This is an incredibly common condition, and can be effectively treated by using PRP therapy. In one randomized controlled trial, researchers studied the effects of PRP injections on athletes with ankle sprains. This study showed that not only did PRP reduce the healing time by 20 days, but that they also experienced much less pain. This can reduce the recovery period from 6 weeks, for just about 2 or 3 weeks.
Immobilization is Vital
When it comes to foot and ankle related injuries, one thing that really cannot be avoided in rest and rehabilitation. This is true regardless of whether PRP is administered. Because of this, many of the studies that shows PRP to be ineffective often don’t use rest and rehabilitation, and that alone can be an issue.
PRP is in no way a magic pill. All foot injuries need rest and rehabilitation in order to properly heal. With these two combined, it can drastically reduce healing times.
How can Foot and Ankle Surgeons Benefit?
Using PRP in foot and ankle injuries is not going anywhere, so utilizing it would be the best way to go. Test it out with your patients, and try using platelet-rich plasma therapy instead of simply prescribing pills or doing costly surgeries. Your patients will thank you in the end.
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Why Should you Include PRP In Your Medical Practice?
According to many physicians, PRP (Platelet-Rich Plasma) has been a lifesaver for their practice, while others claimed that it helped them become passionate about medicine again. This is because not only is it 100% from the body of the patient themselves, but it is also natural and comes with pretty much no side effects. It can also be used to treat a plethora of medical ailments, to the point where no other treatment options come close.
Although the above are all fantastic and solid reasons for offering PRP therapies, there are also a couple other reasons as well.
For instance, it is extremely simple compared to other treatment options. For about 1000$ as an initial investment, you can get started with offering PRP. The equipment is relatively cheap, and it pays for itself over a relatively short amount of time.
It also is not just a passing trend, as it has been going popular for a long time and shows no signs of slowing down. The market for PRP therapies is expected to reach almost 500 million dollars within the next 10 years, or an annual growth rate of 12.5% since 2015.
Patient satisfaction is another reason. In certain situations, the satisfaction rate for patients have been as high as 95%. This shocks many of the patients, who believe, although justifiably, that they cannot reverse or halt their condition without side effects, down time, and invasive surgeries.
The time for you to start including PRP into your practice is now, while the supply is low but the demand is booming. There is still a lot more promise when it comes to PRP as well, including combining PRP with other treatments to increase efficacy. Since no standard has yet to be established, you may be starting these standards yourself.
It is vital that we get more doctors to utilize PRP therapy so that they can be a pioneer in this field. PRP can turn medicine on its head, and missing out should not be a smart option.
The best part about it, is that PRP can be utilized in almost every field and specialty, from sports medicine, to pain management, skin rejuvenation, hair care, and even urology. Most of the physicians who utilize this treatment also saw higher patient retention rates as well.
So is there a legitimate reason to not add PRP to your practice?
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How To Choose A Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) Kit
Despite being rather simple, PRP extraction has been shrouded with debate on the reliability of the methods for the past decade. We are going to help clear up the debate by providing information on choosing the best PRP kit.
Using a kit is in itself vital to the creation of PRP. While it is possible to draw blood into a test tube and put it through a centrifuge and claim it is PRP, it’s otherwise ineffective. This is what is known as “bloody PRP,” and it might hold 1.5x the amount of blood platelets if you’re lucky, but it will also contain a ton of red and white blood cells. Because of this, this ineffective form of PRP can potentially cause flare ups after injection.
However, if you use a kit, that concentration of platelets can be as high as 5-7 times the baseline.
What Makes A PRP Kit Good?
This concentration of 5-7 times is vital for PRP to work, and kits allow you to choose whether or not you want to keep in the red and white blood cells, or whether you don’t. Each one would work on different ailments. However, some commercial kits may not deliver what you may want in your PRP, so it is good to know the difference between the kits.
- Gel Separators
Gel separators is pretty much just a test tube with some gel on the bottom. This gel is able to separate the blood from the platelets due to osmosis. The main issue is that when the test tube goes through the centrifuge, most of the platelets will also be caught by the gel as well. This will wind up with 1.5 times concentration of platelets at most, but it does take out the white and red blood cells as well, so that’s a plus.
- Buffy Coat
The kits that allow you to see a buffy coat are most likely to give you concentrations of 5-7 times. A buffy coat is a thin layer that is formed between the blood and the plasma after being in a centrifuge. This is mainly just platelets and white blood cells, with plasma on top, and packed blood underneath.
After this, you have to be able to separate the bufy coat from the red blood cells without contamination. This will help you to get PRP with less than 10% red blood cells.
- Buffy Coat with a Double Spin
The third and final type utilize a buffy coat which is devoid of red blood cells. This is the best kit on the market, because what you do is after separating the PRP from the red blood cells, you spin it again to further get rid of the red blood cells and to concentrate the platelets even more. After this, all that is needed to do is to separate the buffy coat, and this is PRP.
The Biosafe Kit
Although there are many kits that create PRP, the Biosafe kit has to be the best on the market. This is because it give you full control over the end product. Using this machine, you wind up with 10cc of usable product, which you can then double spin for that 5-7 times concentration. You can also choose whether or not you want some red blood cells in the finished product as well.
What is Leukocyte-poor PRP?
Leukocytes are otherwise known as White Blood Cells, and some researchers believe that they can be detrimental to PRP therapy. While there is no consensus as of yet, it is believed by many that these blood cells may trigger an inflammatory response, and even prevent growth factors from creating new cells.
However, some researchers believe that white blood cells are vital to a beneficial response. They believe that without these cells, you will be left with a lot of scar tissue at the site of healing. This Leukocyte-rich PRP also tends to have much more growth factors as well.
If you want to try leukocyte-poor PRP, you will need a Leukocyte Reduction filter, also known as an LR filter. These filters use electrostatic attraction to separate the white blood cells from the rest of the PRP. Although some filters can get clogged, a CIF-LR filter will be able to prevent that and filter out 99.99% of white blood cells.
There Is Plenty Of Evidence To Back This Up
Many people are highly skeptical about PRP, and are willing to ignore it without tons of randomized double-blind studies. Ignoring that some of the things that they do in their practice is also not proven in this manner. Many refuse to even look at the evidence, including the long line of evidence since the 1970’s, ranging over 6000 scientific studies.
The best evidence is how much clients will pay for this despite not being covered by insurance. This shows without any doubt that something about this treatment must be working. As long as there are clients, Adimarket will be there to provide the equipment for practices.
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A Guide To PRP Therapy
Many clients are highly skeptical that their ailments can get better just by utilizing a few injections. Many clients may quit after a few sessions, but then return when they feel their ailments easing up. This is especially true when it comes to the practice of Rheumatology.
Rheumatology has benefited immensely from the use of PRP, otherwise known as Platelet-Rich Plasma. This is because not only is it simple to administer, but it works wonders for musculoskeletal conditions, such as joint issues, swelling, and bone issues.
If you are a Rheumatologist, you have probably used, or at least heard, of PRP therapy. This has helped many patients from having to go through surgery. However, over 27 million Americans in the osteoarthritis segment alone would have benefited more if their rheumatologist used PRP therapy.
Not All Treatments Are Successful, Here Is Why
Sometimes PRP can work, sometimes it may not, and this can differ even among the same person. However, there are some things you can do to prevent treatments from failing.
- Concentration
For PRP to work, the platelets present in the blood extracted has to be more concentrated than the baseline in the body. This can work by utilizing a PRP kit, which you can purchase at Adimarket. Using these kits, you can get a 5-8x the baseline, which works best for the treatments.
- White Blood Cells
PRP with white blood cells behave differently than those that do not have it. Most popular forms of PRP have these blood cells. There are three subgroups within this: Red Blood Cells, that don’t have platelets, Platelet Serum that has suspended platelets, and the Buffy Coat, which has both platelets as well as white blood cells. Adding in white blood cells can help speed up the healing process by removing bacteria and dead or dying cells.
- Using Anti-Coagulants
When making PRP, it is standard to use an anti-coagulant. This prevents the blood from clotting, but it does make the blood a little more acidic than usual. This can be detrimental on the growth factors, so adding a buffer before injection can be beneficial.
The Growth Factors Used
PRP heals wounds rather well due mostly to the growth factors that re found in blood platelets. By activating these platelets, the growth factors are able to be used by tissues and ligaments. Although the specifics are not well known, there is plenty of evidence that growth factors help with inflammation, remodeling, and even regenerating cells.
What is the clinical Evidence supporting PRP?
- PRP and Subacromial Tendonitis.
PRP has been shown to be effective in treating Subacromial Tendonitis in many studies. One study, headed by Dr. Turlough O’Donnell of the UPMC Beacon Hispital in Dublin Ireland, studied 102 patients treated with PRP while another 102 were treated with a 20mL solution of bupivacaine and 80 mgs of methylprednisolone.
After 12 months of follow-up, the PRP group were 16 times less likely to have to have invasive surgery as opposed to the other group.
- Epicondylitis
This is often a chronic form of tendinopathy, and treatments are rarely effective. However, studies involving PRO have been promising. In one study, 19 patients who would otherwise have gotten surgery were given PRP treatment instead, and after 8 weeks, they saw a 60% improvement, and within two years, that number rose to 93%.
Another randomized double-blind study compared PRP with corticosteroids in 100 patients with chronic epicondylitis. The beneficial effects of PRP far outweighed the effects of the corticosteroids.
- Plantar Fasciitis
Otherwise known as Policeman’s Heel, plantar fasciitis is fairly common in the field of rheumatology. The main treatment to date would be to simply mask the symptoms by using corticosteroids. However, one study showed that PRP was much better than corticosteroids after a 3 month followup.
- Knee Osteoarthritis
PRP therapies for osteoarthritis of the knee have been studies intensively in the past few years. These studies have shown a lot of promise for this therapy. One systematic review showing a total of 1543 participants showed that PRP therapy fares better than hyaluronic acid when it comes to improving knee joint cartilage.
How PRP can Benefit Rheumatology
PRP is not just a passing trend, and is here to stay, and may be the most useful tool for rheumatologists. With no other treatments coming close to its safety, efficacy, or simplicity, It is a shame that it is not more common than it currently is. Since this therapy carries no risk, there is no reason to at to not at least give it a try.
Trying it is relatively inexpensive, and will pay for itself over time. Adimarket will be happy to supply you with kits, and even a standard lab centrifuge.
We need more rhumatologists to utilize PRP and help patients forgo intrusive surgeries. This will be beneficial for over 27 million Americans. Besides, since it is a new treatment option, getting into the field early will make you a pioneer in the field, which will benefit your practice immensely.
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Three popular PRP Treatments for Skincare
Thousands of skincare centers across the nation provide at the very least one kind of PRP treatment. However, most do not go any farther than micro-needling with a topical solution. This is mainly because it is far simpler than all other methods, and it is incredibly popular. However, it would make more sense to many practices who have invested in equipment for add in PRP injections as well.
PRP Is Growing Substantially
Regardless of what is being treated, the protocol for obtaining PRP is the same: You draw the blood, place it in the centrifuge, and then take out the PRP from the rest of the material. This simplicity can be combined with PRP’s vast usability to create significant and mindblowing advances in modern medicine.
This includes skincare as well, as the PRP that you get from patients can be used in a plethora of ways. Here are a couple of examples of what can be performed by dermatologists and plastic surgeons the world over.
- Skin Augmentation
Adding a topical solution of PRP ccombined with microneedling can help to regenerate dying skin cells, and makes skin feel soft. Although this will probably work for most clients, many might want more. For instance, if you want to plump up the face, injecting PRPinto the dermis can help provide both beauty, as well as a healing process.
Although if you want to create volume, you will need a filler. One way to do this is by using a Platelet-Poor Plasma filler, or PPP, which is often left over from the PRP process. You can also use Hyaluronic Adic. A combination of these with PRP have been known to provide wonderful results, with some clinicians boasting a 100% success rate.
- Vitiligo Correction
Many companies will shill out millions of dollars to find out how to turn defective cells healthy again. Many are looking into DNA Technology. However, simply utilizing PRPP may provide the same results. Some studies have shown that adding CO2 laser therapy for correcting vitiligo to a PRP treatment can increase it’s effectiveness by 4 times. This can also be beneficial in other areas, such as correcting wrinkles, and even acne scars. So combining PRP treatments are conventional therapies can boost the effects tremendously.
So if PRP can help boost the effects of lasers, it may be able to also boost the effects of other skin therapies as well. It seems like a great opportunity to continue doing the work that you do, but this time it is more effective due to a simple method. This is something that hundreds of skin care facilities are already providing for their clients.
- Hair Rejuvenation
Mesotherapy is a common treatment that utilizes microinjections that deliver a medication throughout the skin’s service. This prodecure has been able to provide great quality results by adding peptides and vitamins to the mix as well. However, one of the best ways that you can incorporate this into your practice is by using PRP therapy.
Mesotherapy can also be used to provide an even amount of PRP all over the body, including face, neck, hands, etc. This helps to rejuvenate the skin and reduce wrinkles, discoloration, and stretch marks. However, this works best when it comes to hair loss treatments. In fact, adding PRP with mesotherapy has exceeding the expectations that the industry has set.
This is why we think PRP therapy is something that every skincare clinic should offer. Since hair loss effects both men and women, it is important to try to work to make your treatments as effective as possible. Your patients will benefit from it and satisfaction will rise, is there any other reason to put it off?
“But I Never Heard Of Them!”
Some of these treatments and combinations are incredibly new, so new, that many might not have heard of them before. However, this is why signing up to use them as soon as possible is vital. This way, you can bee a step ahead of the competition when it comes to providing great services.
The demand for PRP is only growing over time, and the sooner you can get on board, the better off your practice will be. If you are interested in learning more about PRP therapy, or checking out our line of PRP equipment, you can do so by going to the Adimarket website and checking it out for yourself.
PRP provides more effective treatments for less time, less money, and more satisfaction. Tons off practices have been putting their trust in this treatment and have been reaping the benefits long term. PRP is here to stay, so are you ready to seize the potential of this great medical revolution?,
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Why Dermatologists Should Use Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP)
PRP is a powerful means of regenerating tissues, and has pretty a pretty large growth in popularity among patients, especially those who suffer from alopecia. This is despite the apparently lack of evidence that supposedly surrounds the treatment.
Is It A Lack Of Evidence Or Just A Lack Of Funding?The lack of widespread research may have more to do with funding than anything else. Many of the studies that are currently out there about PRP were unfunded, especially on the subject of Hair Regeneration. However, despite this lack of funding, the demand for PRP treatments for hair loss is growing at an unprecedented rate.
When it comes to PRP kits, there are three kinds to choose from. Ones that use gels, one that create a buffy coat, and one that creates a buffy coat utilizing a double spin. It is pretty unanimous that the last option creates the most reliable and concentrated form of PRP possible, at 5-7 times the baseline amount of platelets.
This concentration level also has the most nutrients which helps for the regeneration of blood vessels and stem cells. One commonly recommended tactic is to combine PRP hair regeneration with micro-needling with a topical layer of PRP. This may be beneficial in some cases.
Micro-needling is a way to create small amounts of trauma, which the body reacts to via a healing response. This response, mixed with PRP, can help to stimulate the growth of new cells.
In some instances, a dermatologist might have three sessions, with the first two being PRP injections, and the middle one being a micro-needling with a PRP topical solution. However, micro-needling is completely optional. Whether you choose to use this method or not, you will still be injecting the patient with PRP at the scalp.
Combining PRP with an Allograft Matrix
One thing that many hair regeneration experts do is combine PRP with an Allograft matrix. These are often used when healing wounds, as it changes inactive adult stem cells back into an active form. This makes the wounds heal faster.
This is because an allograft acts like a scaffold that proliferates cell regrowth and speeds up the healing process. Many experts in the fields have noted a high degree of success by using this method.
Allografts are generally made from using the bladder tissue of pigs. However, a better type of allograft is made from amniotic tissues and fluid. This type of allograft can be utilized with little or no chance of being rejected by the body, as opposed to those made from pig bladders.
Medications Vs PRP
The main drugs that are commonly used to regrow hair are Minoxidil and Finasteride. These were designed to be able to prevent male pattern hair loss, but did almost nothing when it came to regrowing lost hair. However, these drugs have been well known to only be temporary solutions, and if the patients stopped taking the drugs, the benefits of them would quickly reverse. These are also not 100% effective at stopping hair loss either, but it can slow the progression.
However, PRP is different. It may actually be the only treatment on the market that has been clinically proven to regrow hair and heal hair follicles. This means that it only only slows down hair loss, but actually helps with hair growth.
Many may ask how temporary the solution is, saying that the other drugs on the market are just temporary solutions. However, many pateints report that a PRP and allograft combination treatment was able to give them great results that lasted for nearly half a decade or more with just one treatment. However, each patient is indeed different.
Aside from drugs, we only had one other choice when it came to hair loss, and that was hair transplants. This is why PRP has been growing in popularity in hair regrowth groups lately. Although those other treatments are not obsolete in the slightest, adding PRP therapy can be both beneficial and safe to patients in the long run.
Some people combine the two, and use PRP alongside Minoxidil and Finasteride with little to no side effects seen to date. You can even combine PRP with laser light scalp stimulation therapy, but that is up to you.
So Try It Out
PRP for hair regeneration, skin rejuvination, and even facelifts is going strong with no sign of stopping. Many dermatologists have already taken the plunge, and since this treatment is not going anywhere anytime soon, it may behoove you to join in on it too.
For more information about PRP including equipment, check out the Adimarket website. We provide great tools for any practice to utilize.
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Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) For Osteopathic Physicians
Although they can perform surgeries, osteopathic physicians try to avoid doing so whenever possible. Because of this, PRP seems to be an excellent fit for their practice. Since Osteopathy was built on the idea of self-healing, PRP seems to be a perfect fit.
A little while ago, PRP research was reviewed by The Journal Of The American Osteopathic Association, and concluded that more studies and evidence would be needed to make a solid statement on it. A little while later, a case study was filed, showcasing an 18 year old high school football player who suffered from a sports injury. The case study showed that the muscle injury healed rapidly under the effect of PRP therapy. So although PRP is not constantly held up on a pedestal by the mainstream yet, does not mean that Osteopathic Physicians can’t learn a lot or benefit from the use of PRP in their practice.
How Osteopathic Physicians can Benefit From PRP
- It’s Holistic
Due to the fact that Osteopathic Physicians prefer to treat the patient, as opposed to just treating a disease or the symptoms, PRP is a great fit. It works by using the body’s own resources and mechanics and helps the body to heal itself over time. It works because, instead of simply dealing with symptoms, like many practices and conventional medicine does, it works to deal with the problem head on.
For instance, there are many examples of PRP therapy taking the place of surgery and medicine. Such as the cases where female patients were able to revive their sex drive, although they were initially treated for incontinence. So although PRP therapy was created and pushed by allopathic doctors at first, PRP works wonders in the field of Osteopathic medicine, and can become one of the best methods of treatment for Osteopathic physicians.
- Musculoskeletal Issues
In some practices, musculoskeletal pain can be something that Osteopathic Physicians deal with often. However, it is good to note that PRP is quickly becoming one of the main treatments for these kinds of issues. For instance, many researchers believe that PRP should be the main choice for people who suffer from knee meniscus.
In 2016, University of Missouri Doctor Patrick Smith published a FDA-sanctioned double-blind randomized placebo controlled clinical trial on PRP. These kinds of trials are considered the gold standard in research. The results of the study was that PRP provided safe and notable benefits for people who suffer from knee Osteoarthritis.
- PRP has a great deal of potential
The third and most important reason why all physicians, including Osteopathic Physicians, should start using PRP therapy is due to how wide its scope is. Due to the fact that PRP is simple and common, it is safe to say that if PRP can work on knee joints and tendons, that it most likely works on other tendons, joints, bones, and muscles as well. PRP will soon be a commonplace treatment when it comes to pretty much all musculoskeletal diseases.
This means that PRP has a near limitless potential. This is especially important for Osteopathic Physicians, as if there is a problem with the patients wrist, it could be that the main issue appears further down the arm. This is why multiple PRP injections on various areas of the arm can work to not just heal the issue, but also enhance the other traditional methods that are used. This will help restore the balance t the body, and give full functionality back to the patient.
American Academy of Regenerative Medicine Doctor Peter Lewis has administered over 100,000 PRP injections to over 12,000 patients. He claims that more than 80% of his patients who have gotten PRP therapy has had fantastic results. Even people who have claimed to need surgery could be benefited by the use of PRP.
Are They FDA Approved?
As of this year, PRP treatments are not yet subject to FDA approval. This is because all of the treatments are performed on the same day as the extraction, and uses only materials that are already inside the patients own body. Because of this, the PRP therapy is within the scope of the FDA Code of Federal Regulation title 21, part 1270, 1271.1. As a result, it is exempt from needing approval.
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What is regenerative medicine?
Regenerative medicine is the exciting cutting-edge “medicine of the future” which holds the hope & the promise of efficacy which revolves around the ability of human tissue to be repaired, replaced, and healed (regenerated) once human tissues and organs are damaged or diseased. Regenerative therapies aid and supplement the natural healing mechanisms of the body. These therapies often employ the activation of stem cells to stimulate renewal of tissue damaged by injury, disease, or age. The rapid expansion of scientific knowledge offers great promise for continuing advances in this field of medicine which holds vast potential to improve the quality of human life.
What are stem cells?
Stem cells are the basic building blocks of life. They are unspecialized cells that can produce more stem cells through mitosis or differentiate into specialized cells that carry out specific functions in the body. Stem cells are found throughout the body’s tissues, organs, and systems although usually in small quantities in adults.
What are hematopoietic stem cells?
Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) can give rise to all types of blood cells including red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. They are particularly useful in the treatment of blood-related diseases and conditions.
What are mesenchymal stem cells?
Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) are multipotent stromal cells that are non-blood forming stem cells and can differentiate into a variety of cell types including muscle, bone, cartilage, and fat cells.
When introduced into a patient’s body, MSCs can repair or replace damaged or degenerating tissue by communicating with the surrounding cells thus causing a cellular cascade of healing (paracrine signaling).
Historically, the term MSC was coined in the late 80’s by the biomedical research authority, Dr. Arnold Caplan of Case Western Reserve. The acronym has recently been redefined by Caplan to “Medicinal Signaling Cell” since these cells secrete powerful bioactive molecules involved in cellular signaling and regeneration. Caplan now describes MSCs as a “multisite-regulatory dispensary” (Natural Drug Store).
The production of MSCs in the human body, can be precipitated by bioactive placental tissues containing Growth Factors, Cytokins and other powerful bioactive agents which trigger cell signaling.
The remarkable ability of MSCs make them irreplaceable in medical treatments.
What are accessible sources of stem cells?
Stem cells can be extracted from various parts of the body. They have been extracted from bone marrow and adipose tissue for a few decades. More recently, birth tissues from live births, including umbilical cord blood, cord tissue, with Wharton’s Jelly, and amniotic membrane tissue, have been found to be a rich source of both HSCs and MSCs and in addition, precipitate target tissue production of MSCs through paracrine signaling. Growth Factors, Cytokins, Exosomes & micro-RNA from birth tissues give rise to Stem cells in this way. These cells, as well as MSCs contained in Wharton’s Jelly tend to be more fit than stem cells obtained from adult stem cells.
WHARTON’S JELLY
Wharton’s jelly is a gelatinous substance found in the umbilical cord which is rich in stem cells. Studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have low immunogenicity. Human umbilical cord Wharton’s jelly provides a new source for MSCs that are highly proliferative and have multi-differentiation potential. Wharton’s Jelly Cells (WJCs) express MSC markers but low levels of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-ABC and no HLA-DR. WJCs have low functional immunogenicity and therefore recipient rejection has not been documented.
Advanced Regenerative Medicine
Advanced Regenerative Medicine involves the use of regenerative biomolecules, tissue engineering and stem cells to treat diseased or injured tissues.
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Photobiomodulation and why do we use a LED to irradiate PRP
So we have been in the regenerative medicine specialty for about 8 years. Just like pretty much everyone, we started by using Platelet Rich Plasma. We learnt about it, we were fascinated by it and we treated our patients with it. Patients loved and so did we. ‘
PRP, if obtained and used correctly is a very powerful tool to implement in any medical practice. Especially if we deal with the elderly, osteoarthritis, wear and tear of tendons and ligaments, loss of vitality. The PRP is also very frequently used in Plastic and reconstructive surgery. For wound care, scar improvement and overall rejuvenation of the skin.
But why does it work? and how?
Well, we are all familiar with platelets. They seem to have significant power and influence over tissue regeneration, and by concentrating them in a blood sample we can obtain signaling proteins, cytokines and growth factors. If we add white blood cells to the mix, we will have what is called L-PRP (leukocyte rich PRP), which makes that “soup” even more interesting.
Now, to harness the power of those bioactive substances we need to coax the cells into releasing them. Normally the platelets get activated by the addition of calcium, or by contact with collagen. But several studies have demonstrated the influence of laser of low intensity over the activity of some cells. That effect is called “Photobiomodulation”. Basically it is form of light this modality uses non-ionizing light sources, like LEDs or Helium-Neon lasers to produce photochemical events at various biological scales. It have been demonstrated that this light will react with the enzyme Cytochrome C oxidase which is paramount in the mitocondrial processes.
Several scientists went on to study this light and its effects over cellular cultures. and they found that cells proliferate more when exposed to low level laser, they also showed increased viability!
So we went on to compare the levels of cytokines and growth factors in an irradiated sample and a non irradiated one. And sure enough some of the growth factors even tripled the concentrations after laser exposure. The famous Interleukin 10, anti inflammatory protein doubled the levels, endorfines were released in high levels.
It has been established that the photobiomodulation process will give extraordinary benefits in pain management or inflammation, immunomodulation, and promotion of wound healing and tissue regeneration, and it plays a fundamental part in our protocols.
Isn’t it all short of amazing?
Will see you in the next blog. Keep your cells healthy!
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PRP and Stem Cell Treatments Being Studied for Hair Loss
Hair loss is very common, with tens of millions, if not hundreds of millions of people all over the world suffering from it. Hundreds of thousands of people decide to utilize hair restoration therapy, as well as other procedures in order to try to get at least some of their former hair back. Although some are effective, most of the time, the treatments only move already existing hair from one place to another. However, with Stem Cell therapy, we try to help new hair grow by helping the follicles to regenerate.
Adimarket helps, alongside a few other companies, to help provide new and reliable uses for PRP and stem cell therapies. We provide the equipment and other services so that doctors and practices will be able to provide these services to their patients.
There’s a Lot of Promise
While the main people talking about PRP and stem cell therapies are smaller companies like us, many other people are also discussing and seeing potential in these therapies. These include doctors, and practices, such as a doctor from Miami known as Lazaro M Garcia Md. This doctor already utilized PRP and stem cell therapy for people who suffer from hair loss, and is currently conducting a study that is supported by the National Institutes of Health.
In order to participate in the study, patients pay a small fee, which changes based on what part of the study they are in. Afterwards, the receive 2 injections of PRP and stem cells that are made from their own body, over 3 months.
Dr. Garcia is utilizing the body’s own growth factors in order to increase the amount of blood and nutrients to the otherwise dead hair follicles. This makes the dead follicles more lively and allows them to create new hair growth.
The way to make Platelet Rich Plasma is to is to use the patients own blood, which can come from either bone marrow, or other sources of fat. They go into a centrifuge, which concentrates the composition, and then allows them to be injected into the treatment site. While it is an otherwise simple procedure, some training in still necessary to ensure that it is done safely.
We Provide Equipment
We at Adimarket do not perform stem cell and PRP therapies, but we do offer the equipment so that doctors and practices can do so themselves. These include amniotic tissue, stem cell and PRP kits, centrifuge devices, and many more. Practices and doctors can order directly from us.
It is good to note that not all PRP systems are equal. The system that we have uses the closed tabletop system that is able to process the PRP in under 10 minutes. For more information, contact us or visit our website.
Hair loss is a serious problem with many people suffering from it. Now, thanks for PRP and stem cell therapies, we no longer only have to rely on hair replacement surgery to help patients. PRP and stem cell therapies may be the best therapy out there for both your patients, as well as your practice.
- Published in Blog