Treating hamstring tears with PRP

April 29, 2011 - PRLog -- Platelet-rich plasma, or PRP, as a treatment for injuries and chronic problems associated with muscular injuries is becoming an increasingly frequent topic of discussion in the media – especially as more elite athletes are turning to it as a means of faster recovery in healing.  

In the June 2010 Practical Pain Management Journal, Dr. David Karli and Brent Robinson described a clinical case of treating an acute hamstring tear with the use of platelet-rich plasma.  In this case, an MRI demonstrated a proximal hamstring avulsion with hemorrhagic and inflammatory changes.  The patient underwent a platelet-rich plasma injection into the injured site, as well as an injection of autologous thrombin prepared from activation of the platelet-poor plasma.  A post-injection MRI demonstrated the interval healing after the PRP and autologous thrombin injections.  

Karli and Robinson also discussed traditional non-surgical therapies, which they note have limited potential to alter the long-term course of the disease process.  These may result in fibrosis of the tissue if repetitive trauma ensues.  

They commented that PRP represents a very simple, cost-effective, minimal-risk procedure that utilizes the patient’s own tissue.  Karli and Robinson commented that the PRP application safety profile has been strong and no serious adverse effects have been reported in the literature.  

Dr. Dennis Lox, a physical medicine and regenerative medicine specialist in the Tampa Bay-area of Florida, comments that platelet-rich plasma has been utilized for a variety of musculoskeletal disorders, including acute injuries to the muscle and tendon, as well as in chronic arthritic joints.

Dr. Lox has utilized PRP in a variety of circumstances and concurs with Dr. Karli and Mr. Robinson’s assessment it is a safe and excellent alternative as a nonsurgical option in musculoskeletal medicine.  Dr. Lox also notes that the ability to use autologous thrombin (one’s own thrombin) to activate the platelet-rich plasma has inherent benefits, since previously described methods frequently utilize bovine (cow) thrombin.  Bovine thrombin leads to the possibility of immune reactions.  By utilizing one’s own tissue completely with platelet-rich plasma and autologous thrombin, one avoids these potential side effects.  

Dr. Lox states that there are a variety of mechanisms involved in regenerative medicine that look at how to form a scaffold or matrix.  Such a scaffold or matrix would allow the regenerative growth factors that occur in PRP or in stem cells to become much more physiologically active.  

“Any procedure, whether it is platelet-rich plasma or stem cell therapy, that tries to harness the healing benefit of growth factors would have a biological advantage if there is a matrix for which the cells are able to wrap to,” said Dr. Lox.  He further comments that as regenerative medicine continues to evolve, the outlook for future treatment options remains encouraging.


http://www.DrLox.com

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Dennis M. Lox, M.D. is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Since 1990, he has used sports medicine techiques and cutting-edge technology to help heal musculoskeletal injuries and relieve pain.