Platelet Rich Plasma: The Blood's Gift of Beauty and Youthfulness

Recently, a cosmetic treatment widely known as vampire facial has picked up some steam particularly after it’s been tried by the famous celebrity Kim Kardashian. But what this facial vampire fuzz is all about? And isn’t the word ‘vampire’ a term we normally associate with blood and horror movies?

In fact, the bizarre name of the treatment originates from the nature its procedure that requires drawing a considerable amount of blood from the patient to produce a substance called platelet-rich plasma.

For several years, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has helped many professional athletes to recover from serious sport injuries that involved joints, knees and tendons. The astonishing potential of the PRP, however, has been observed in cosmetics in which PRP has been used as a substance that once injected on the face rejuvenates it and improves its overall complexion and texture.

The interesting aspect of PRP is that it’s not created in laps or obtained from plants or animals but rather purely derived from the vital liquid that fuels our bodies and keeps us alive, blood. However, unlike the normal blood, PRP contains a concentrated amount of tiny blue cells called platelets. 

Components in centrifuged blood

Platelets play a vital role in stopping bleeding caused by injuries. Dermatologists go through the following steps to obtain PRP. First draw few pints of blood from the arms of the patients and place them in a vacutainers (blood tube). The blood drawn is then centrifuged to separate its core components that include red blood cells (accumulate at the bottom of the tube), white blood cells (at the center), platelets (at the center above the white blood cells) and plasma (at the top).  

The dermatologists then isolates the need components (plasma and platelets) to produce a sufficient amount of PRP.

In cosmetics, PRP is a precious substance due to the growth factors it contains that not only helps in healing damaged tissues but also assists in promoting skin health. PRP is delivered to patient via injections prepared from the patient’s blood after being process.  The substance is then injected into the patient’s face, releasing growth factors that stimulate and increase the growth of reparative cells. Occasionally, ultrasound imaging is used to help the physician in guiding the injection.

Depending on the cases, the number of injections required to see results may vary from a patient to another. But in most, though, the patient will only need one injection. Nonetheless, if the dermatologist sees that no harm will come from it, the patients have to option to obtain extra injections if he or she desires faster and better results.

With PRP treatment, the chance of getting an infection or experiencing severe side effect such as allergic reaction are extremely low because the PRP is derived from the patient’s own body. Thus PRP injections are considered safe. In addition that, PRP treatments are subjected to strict health care guidelines that require physicians to perform the procedures in a closed a highly sterilized room. No products or external materials are allowed to enter wherever the PRP is produced.

The dermatologist will perform a brief medical check-up called complete blood count or CBC before going for a PRP treatment. The check-up is to count the number of platelets present in your body (the average count is between 150,000 to 450,000 platelets). This is important step as it will determine whether the RPR treatment is safe for the patient or not. 

Unlike several other cosmetic procedures, the recovery time for PRP treatment is relatively short. However, few cases, there might be skin redness on the first few days that appear like sunburn. The redness often disappears on the second day. The patient may also experience a sandpaper-like texture on the skin that appears visible the day following the treatment’s. All of these side effects are don’t last more than three days.

The benefits of PRP injections:

Besides improving the skin tone, texture and complexion, PRP injections also..

•     Reduce under eye circles
•     Reduce wrinkles on the forehead, around the mouth and around the eyes
•     Increase skin elasticity
•     Improve skin volume
•     Reduce acne scars

The PRP injections guarantees better results if performed by an experienced physicians. However,. how good results will be  will always depend on the patient’s blood. This is because the platelet count and the level of growth factors in the blood vary from one person to another. The patients’ experiences are likely to vary as well. Some may report smoother skin, some reduced wrinkles while others varying combinations of both.

It's hard to tell how the PRP treatment will work out for most patients. But if you are one of them, rest assured as in the end of the treatment, you will get something out of it!