Platelet Treatments: Harness Natural Power

Looking to get a little more fullness around your smile or under eye area?

Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) is a reliable way to draw upon platelet power to give your skin a more vibrant and youthful look. Now a newer treatment called Platelet Rich Fibrin (PRF) can do even more!

How do these treatments leverage your natural cell growth process? Let’s take a quick look at the science and benefits behind platelet treatments and why PRF might be the right choice for you.

What are platelets?

Platelets are tiny cells in our blood stream that are naturally activated by our body in response to injury. Platelets travel to the wounded areas and band together to begin the healing process.

In PRP and PRF treatments, platelets will generate new collagen and skin cells to stimulate natural cell growth and improve skin fullness and texture.

Platelet Therapy Process: What’s Involved?

Both PRP and PRF are blood concentrate therapies.  A small amount of blood is drawn from the patient. The blood is then placed in a centrifuge. The centrifuge spins and separates the platelet rich plasma from the blood. The PRP is then either injected or micro-needled into the patient to stimulate collagen and improve skin tone and texture.

PRP vs. PRF: What’s The Difference?

PRF spins the centrifuge at a slower speed, which enables a much higher rate of platelet recovery than PRP.

Slower Centrifuge Speed = Higher Platelet Count
Additionally, PRF blood retains higher levels of white blood cells and stem cells, which promote growth.

No Additives = Better Results
PRP handling tubes contain anti-coagulants, which are necessary to process. PRF does NOT require any additives, which results in a higher fibrin count.

Fibrin Enables More Cell Growth
The biggest difference between PRP and PRF is the presence of fibrin. The fibrin stimulates your body to generate tissue at a faster rate than with platelets alone.

Fibrin is a fibrous protein generated by your body and naturally activated in response to injury.

Once the PRF is injected or micro-needled into your body, the fibrin creates a scaffold-like structure for platelets to attach. This structure enables the platelets to form the new cells which plump and smooth the tissue.

Thanks to fibrin, natural cell growth continues for days following your PRF treatment while PRP growth tapers off after only a few hours.

PRF: Before & After

Photos from The G Spa Santa Barbara

PRF treatments are at the forefront of Medical Spa Technology and we have been offering PRF treatments for the past year. We offer a variety of minimally invasive treatments to improve your skin as you age.

PRF micro-needling is also effective in treating hair loss.

Want to explore your options? Learn more about other micro-needling and platelet treatments here. Or give us a call today!