For many years now, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has been studied as a treatment for soft tissue injuries and diseases. If you follow professional sports, you are probably familiar with the many athletes who have elected to try PRP therapy in hopes of getting back into competition faster while ultimately avoiding surgery.
PRP therapy has proven itself worthy of inclusion when recommending treatments for soft tissue injuries. But now, thanks to a recently published study out of China, there may be an even better way to utilize it. The study suggests that combining liquid PRP with a gel helps tissue absorb the PRP better. That tends to lead to better results.
More About the Study
The study, conducted by a team of experts in China, was just published by the Scientific Reports journal. Researchers hope to gauge the efficacy of a combined PRP-gel material in comparison to straight liquid PRP. Their study proved that utilizing a gel alongside the PRP offered better results.
More than eighty patients with mild or moderate rotator cuff tears were enrolled in the study. They were divided into three groups:
- PRP Gel – Administered PRP injections along with a gel made with thrombin powder.
- PRP Only – Administered traditional liquid PRP injections with nothing else.
- Sodium Hyaluronate – Administered sodium hyaluronate with nothing else.
With all three groups, researchers made use of ultrasound to guide needle placement precisely. Injections were given and patients were monitored at one week, one month, three months, and six months. All patients were scored prior to treatment using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), the Constant-Murley score, and fat infiltration via MSKUS.
What the Study Data Showed
Now come the results. They were dramatic to say the least. At the start of the study, there was no statistical difference between the groups in terms of reported pain and limited function.
At both one week and one month, all three groups reported less pain but no significant improvement in function. At three months, the two PRP groups reported significantly less pain than the sodium hyaluronate group. At six months however, the PRP-gel group demonstrated the best improvement in pain. Their VAS scores were significantly lower than the other two groups. The PRP-only group still did better than the sodium hyaluronate group.
Similar results were observed in terms of function. All three groups slowly improved, but the most significant differences between groups was observed at six months. The PRP-gel group reported the biggest increase in function.
PRP Really Does Work
Like other studies before it, this study proves that PRP therapy does work as a treatment for soft tissue injuries and diseases. But the study also shows that combining liquid PRP with thrombin can improve efficacy by helping human tissue better absorb the PRP material.
It all makes perfect sense according to the experts at Texas-based Lone Star Pain Medicine. They say PRP injections are designed to aid the human body as it seeks to naturally heal damaged tissue. PRP material essentially jump starts the healing process and provides an early volume of growth factors that aid the healing process along.
It stands to reason that PRP material will do a better job if its absorption rate increases. Higher absorption means tissue has more material to work with. More material means better results.
It will be interesting to see where the results of the study lead. If I were a betting man, I would be willing to put my money on U.S. pain doctors beginning to embrace PRP with a thrombin gel. But time will tell where we go from here.
