Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant and Alex Rodriguez are just a few of the superstar athletes who've used it to help their banged-up knees, shoulders and achilles' tendons.
A doctor in our region uses it for his patients with achilles tendonitis and plantar fasciitis.
Now the sometimes controversial treatment is replacing surgery to repair a serious, potentially career-ending injury.
Lynne Claar used to have trouble just getting around due to achilles tendonopathy. She says,"it was like limping going down steps all the time and just constant burning in my foot."
When medication didn't help, Dr. Adam Budney from Blair Orthopedics, recommended a new therapy that uses platelets from the patient's own blood. He explained, "we use a centrifuge and that spins the blood down which concentrates the platelets and we readminister to an injury."
It's called platelet rich plasma PRP therapy. The platelets contain natural substances in the body that promote healing of the inflamed tendon.
Eduardo De La Riva received a college baseball scholarship right after his sophomore year in high school. Then he tore up his elbow.
He considered surgery.which involved drilling into bone and grafting a tendon to reconstruct the elbow. It's effective, but recovery can take a year or longer.
Doctor Preston Wolin offered Eduardo platelet rich plasma therapy. Three and a half months after his injection, Eduardo's elbow had healed.
Now, he's hoping to strike it big in the majors someday. Lynne's just happy to walk without pain.
Some call PRP performance-enhancing. Doctor Wolin says it does not make healthy parts perform better, it helps injured parts heal. without surgery.
A doctor in our region uses it for his patients with achilles tendonitis and plantar fasciitis.
Now the sometimes controversial treatment is replacing surgery to repair a serious, potentially career-ending injury.
Lynne Claar used to have trouble just getting around due to achilles tendonopathy. She says,"it was like limping going down steps all the time and just constant burning in my foot."
When medication didn't help, Dr. Adam Budney from Blair Orthopedics, recommended a new therapy that uses platelets from the patient's own blood. He explained, "we use a centrifuge and that spins the blood down which concentrates the platelets and we readminister to an injury."
It's called platelet rich plasma PRP therapy. The platelets contain natural substances in the body that promote healing of the inflamed tendon.
Eduardo De La Riva received a college baseball scholarship right after his sophomore year in high school. Then he tore up his elbow.
He considered surgery.which involved drilling into bone and grafting a tendon to reconstruct the elbow. It's effective, but recovery can take a year or longer.
Doctor Preston Wolin offered Eduardo platelet rich plasma therapy. Three and a half months after his injection, Eduardo's elbow had healed.
Now, he's hoping to strike it big in the majors someday. Lynne's just happy to walk without pain.
Some call PRP performance-enhancing. Doctor Wolin says it does not make healthy parts perform better, it helps injured parts heal. without surgery.
Charlotte Ames is the area's only local Health Reporter and brings you the latest medical health news weeknights. You can catch Healthcast on WTAJ News at 5:00pm and her Health Headlines report on WTAJ News at 5:30pm.